@Anesthetist:
I’m telling you, I used to think that the 633 was my favorite but the rise and thigh of the 888 have me bowled over atm. I might need to get some 21oz 888 next.
I have to ask/address this statement, as I've seen it come up several times, both here and other places - where does/did the notion come from that the 888 has a larger thigh than the 634, and therefore the 633? I'm not going to dig for it too much, but in Giles' original announcement/description of the 888 was that is was based on the 634: "New jeans cut. Higher rise than IH-634 - particularly at the back. More taper from the knee than the 634." The first iteration had the same thigh measurements as the 634 in the same fabric. Shortly after the first release, some guys were asking/requesting a larger thigh for subsequent runs, but the response was that it was selling so well it wouldn't be changed. When I've compared the 634 to 888 measurements in the same fabric, the thigh is the same with an expected small amount of variation.
I get and acknowledge that each version in different fabrics will have slight variations in measurements. One of our fellas on SuFu had an OD 634 version that looked skin tight, like a 777. He's a tall, lean, athletic guy with bigger thighs, but not a gigantic weight lifter build. They were too tight for him, and looking at the fit pics it was understandable. I think that was an extreme case of a 634 variat being unusually slim.
The 633 is SE's proprietary cut, and seems to be continually evolving with each release. Every variant that I have looked and compared seems to be a bit different from one to the next. But in general "taking their famed 634s and tapering the leg for a smaller leg opening and also lengthening the inseam by a few inches.", it still based on the 634.
Could it be that you're comparing a 633 variant that happened to have smaller thighs than a standard 634?
My point to all of this is that if the 888 is/was not intended to have bigger thighs than the 634, let's put that notion to rest once and for all.
edit: wow that was unintentionally long winded…