We describe the fabrication of porous chevron thin films deposited at glancing incidence and report some common growth peculiarities of the microstructure. In particular, the second (and additional) chevron arms of porous chevron thin films are consistently inclined at angles significantly greater than the corresponding first arms. This effect is observed in both real and simulated films and has important implications in the fabrication of optical coatings. A simple theoretical model is developed to describe this effect, and a technique for achieving consistent column angles is presented.