I believe they are the same height to water overflow, but I would have to compare to refresh my memory. The bottom length is longer in the 30x60 Bellwether than any of the 60" cast iron tubs if I remember. The width I think is a tiny bit narrower than the Villager. But the Villager doesn't have that cool contemporary design that the Bellwether has :)

Here is mine, perfect for bathing kids:

Thanks! HOw wide is the ledge on the bellwether?
I am considering the 32 inch wide bellwether.
And then possibly a 34 inch wide tub for our other bathroom.

Is the ledge on the bellwether smaller than other kohlers and does it in return have a bigger basin?

Can you put shampoo and things on it?

What about the shape- is the straight sides of it less comfortable than some of the other tapered baths?
thanks

Choosing a bath tub is not easy. It is such a personal choice.

We too have a Bellwether in the hall bath. We are shower people; the bath tub is for the needs of bathing a baby or young child in the future.

We selected Bellwether because it is made of cast iron that retains water temperature better. One of my friends is upset by her acrylic tub because her cat likes to get in and out of the tub and puts scratches on her tub. I also heard bath toys could scratch the acrylic tub. We like Bellwether's modern, squarish look that fits perfectly with the style of the bathroom.

The ledger of Bellwether is around 4.5 inches - it is curved on the edge of the ledger, not easy to give an exact measurement. It has plenty space for arm rest, shampoo bottles, bath toys...etc.

I am not a big sized woman, I bathed in it once. For me it is ok as a bath tub, but not deep and wide enough as a soaking tub. But since I am not a bath people, I won't have patience to use a deep soaking tub regularly.

My best friend has a deep, wide soaking tub, she regrets having it. For her, it is hard to get up and out of the tub even with a grab bar; it costs a lot of hot water just to fill it.

Thank you for that info. I had no idea the 32 bellwether is sloped and smaller inside. I thought it was big inside.
Do you know which of the kohlers in 60/32 gives the deepest soak? This is what I am seeking. Still undecided about acrylic or iron as I heard iron gets cold fast and I don't know if that is true! I take baths every day and like to take long hot baths so I am seeking a 32 inch wide 60 inch long kohler good for deep long hot baths! Any ideas?

I think the Memoirs is 11.5" water depth and people like it. The Bellwether 32x60, to me is too short, but the 66" might be better. It is 11.5" water depth too. Other than those models I don't know you will have to go to Kohler's website and compare the "Dimensions and Measurements (Spec Sheet)" pdf file that is there for each of their models.

Have you looked at the Bancroft? It is a drop in 66x42" and water depth of 16". But it is acrylic.

the Bancroft looks good-

enduring, I like the look of the Bellwether in your photos. It looks like it doesn't have the armrest things that run along the sides. I have never had those so I don't miss them. What are your thoughts?

p.s. I also love your 4" tile surround. When I told my BD I wanted to replace my 4" gray tile with 4" gray tile, she looked at me like I was nuts, esp. since I said I wanted white grout.

linelle, I like it as an all purpose tub. It is not a soaking tub as the water is only 9" to the overflow, I think. It is like the Villager in that regard. They are both 14" total if I remember. It is a great simple looking tub. I am not a bath person and only wanted a tub for kids and dogs. But I have been taking a bath in it for the last year as my second bathroom is still in the works, lol. I really like my faucet and hand spray. I use the spray all the time.

Remember, this Bellwether is the 30x60 model which is the standard type installation. The builder alcove type that I have was introduced last April.

Kohler has an earlier Bellwether version that is still available. It is deeper and wider. The drain roughin is not in the typical bath location. The front end slopes like the back end, causing the drain to be further toward the center of the tub, by a few inches. It also needs a longer tub filler or the water will fall onto the slanted front. This spout issue is mentioned in the specs. It has a very short bottom length and would not work for me, but might be perfect for shorter people.

Enduring - Does your Bellwether have a smooth finish or is it very wavy? From what I can tell in your pictures, all of the shiny parts in your tub look very smooth (I'm looking specifically at the first picture in your 12/14/13 8:47am post). Looking at the reflection off of the corners and faces of the tub, it doesn't look like there is distortion in the finish?

I'm asking because we have purchased a Bellwether and it's waiting for us at Home Depot. We've been by to pick it up but left it there because we weren't sure about the finish. We saw a Villager tub at HD (they carry the Villager in-store, but the Bellwether is special order only) and it had such an odd finish. Like giant orange peel. Perfectly imperfect and very strange looking. Like they hadn't waited long enough for the enamel (or whatever the white stuff is called) to settle before it set. The finish of the Bellwether they've got for us is a bit better but still quite odd. Now, I'm not looking for a perfect finish - I'm after the vintage, been there forever kind of look, and I absolutely love the way yours looks. But I'm worried about putting this tub next to smooth subway and porcelain hex tiles and having it look wavy and strange.

I've attached a photo. The lighting at HD isn't great, but I think you can see where the finish is uneven by looking where the light is reflecting vs. not - it's splotchy rather than an even transition between reflection and no reflection. Does yours do that? Your pictures sure don't look like it but it's hard to tell.

Thank you so much for your time! I really want to be able to use this tub as the price and look are right. And it's one of the only CI 30x60 tubs on the market - we really don't have the extra 2" for a 32" tub, so I want to make this work, but I'm not sure if I'm being too picky.

Oh and I wanted to add that when you run your hand across it, it feels lumpy, not smooth.

Thank you all for your wealth of information. I know this thread is old, but I am on the hunt for a low height tub and came across Bellwether and Villager.

I no longer can take bathes. So looking for a tub with a low step over. Prefer a walk in shower, but being we only have one bathroom, for resale purposes, just in case we decide to move, it would be easier to sell with a tub in our single bathroom.

on Kohler it states for the Bellwether 15" step-over threshold for easy entrance and exit.. Villager they only state that it's 14" height.

We just put our second Bellwether in and I just measured it - 14". And that's to rough floor too, so with tile it would effectively be a little shorter.

fjernsyn Please post pics of your before and after, love to see them.

Yes I would love to see them too.

Hi, I was about to pull the trigger on a Kohler Archer acrylic tub but found a lot of reviews about scratches. Now I’m looking at Bellwether because it will mainly be used for bathing young kids.

The issue I’m having is - we will have a frameless shower replacing our existing stall. The tub will be standalone. And there will be a kneewall as a partition btwn the tub and shower area.

So not sure how it will look in a high ceiling bathroom.

Any thoughts?

bumping because I have a similar situation/question regarding comment above ^^

Hi all, I've read several reviews on Bellwether quality being sub-par, from orange peel finish, divots, spotting/rust under the glazed finish. I really like the contemporary look of it opposed to my current kohler Villager. Unfortunately my Villager is no longer shiny and has a few barely noticeable hairline veins/cracks on the bottom (was told it doesn't compromise the tub, it just may not look as pretty). So if those of you who have the Bellwether can give me an idea of any quality problems encountered I'd appreciate the feedback especially since I've read Koehler has been shifting the blame on customers for not inspecting the tub before dragging it home, having it installed and then discovering the imperfections.

It would be great to see your pictures especially those who did a bathroom remodel.

We rejected one tub, reordered it and it came the same so we just installed it, followed by a second. It has the wavy orange peel finish, but I've decided not to let it bother me. I only see it in certain light. Haven't had rust or anything though. Really like how they look, just nice and classic. Small for actually taking a bath (at least in the 30" width) but we only use them for baths for my toddler.