Akubra Campdraft - WOW.

[RPeers]

<a href="http://s17.photobucket.com/albums/b92/philschatz/?action=view&current=IMG_4814.jpg" target="_blank"><img src="http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b92/philschatz/IMG_4814.jpg" border="0" alt="Photobucket"></a>

Looks a little large for your head lol

 

[DrSpeed]

I love Akubra's. Wonderful hats with excellent style. They're great value for money. AND since I live in a Euro country, exchange rates are very favourable at the moment. (I'm Dutch, right? We have a reputation to know a good buy when we see one ).
The Campdraft goes on my wishlist.
What am I saying? I should buy one now!

 

[David Conwill]

The Campdraft is a very nice looking hat. If I'm not mistaken, weren't the original Federations simply reworked Campdrafts with raw edges and 16-ligne ribbons?

Currently, I'm jonesing to buy a Federation and have the edge bound by a local hatter - but it looks like getting a Campdraft and putting on a wider ribbon would have almost as nice an effect.

-Dave

 

[DanielJones]

Good looking lid indeed! It has piqued my interest for sure. Congratulations! :eusa_clap

Cheers!

Dan

 

[kowalskt63]

Nice Lid...

I think I'm going to have to go out and get me one of them Aussie hats now. The 3 month wait is a bit tough however. :eusa_clap

 

[Atticus Finch]

That is a great hat!

My Open Road has the "traditional" cattleman's crease, but I have long wanted one bashed as a fedora. After seeing yours, I think a Campdraft might be just the thing I've been looking for. Don't they come with an open crown? Can one get them from Akubra bashed fedora style?

AF

 

[Mossyrock]

OK....ya got me. I ordered one of these today from Hatsdirect. They only offered the Campdraft in one color (Tawny Fawn), but it just happened to be the color I wanted anyway. They didn't mention anything about a three month wait, so I am hoping for the best. I'll post some photos when it arrives.

Mossyrock

 

[HamletJSD]

Silverbelly

Forgive my ignorance, but exactly what color is "Silverbelly?"
My OR looks very similar and my wife and I are having a mild dispute. I think it's grey, but she calls it tan. I was actually looking for a "light grey" hat when I picked up the OR.

I, therefore, keep insisting that "I apparently still need a grey hat," since she believes my latest acquisition to be tan.
If that argument works I'll need to some suggestions of a few other "similar-enough-to-be-debated" colors

 

[BobC]

That's a fine looking hat, PhilS, and your timing is on the mark. I've been looking at a campdraft lately and thinking of the silverbelly, a color that I don't have yet. Great to see pictures of the color...it looks like a light beige or tan if my monitor is accurate. How high is the crown and did you bash it yourself? Thanks, Bob. So many hats, so little time to wear them all!

 

[BobC]

By the way, if you decide you don't like it that 59 will fit me no problem.

 

[BobC]

Having grown up with Akubra's everywhere, I'm constantly amazed at how popular and well liked they are outside of Australia

The Akubras are really nice hats, splatt. I have two and have plans for two more before winter, and the Australians I've dealt with have been very accommodating.

My wife rolls her eyes alot, the same way she does when I take her to Best Buy or Circuit City with me.

 

[PhilS]

That's a fine looking hat, PhilS, and your timing is on the mark. I've been looking at a campdraft lately and thinking of the silverbelly, a color that I don't have yet. Great to see pictures of the color...it looks like a light beige or tan if my monitor is accurate. How high is the crown and did you bash it yourself? Thanks, Bob. So many hats, so little time to wear them all!

Dear Bob: Using Art Fawcett's color template, this Akubra is more like a "Sahara" than Silver Belly, in my opinion. It is very much like the traditional Open Road beige color. I did bash it myself, in a few seconds with steam. If you wanted the hat and wanted to avoid a 3 month wait, I could part with this one. I am somewhat overstocked with the sandy color and need something darker. Best, Phil

 

[BobC]

Dear Bob: Using Art Fawcett's color template, this Akubra is more like a "Sahara" than Silver Belly, in my opinion. It is very much like the traditional Open Road beige color. I did bash it myself, in a few seconds with steam. If you wanted the hat and wanted to avoid a 3 month wait, I could part with this one. I am somewhat overstocked with the sandy color and need something darker. Best, Phil

PhilS, I was really kidding when I said I'd take it off your hands, but if you're serious will you PM me to let me know how much you want for it? I'm interested.

By the way, Benny Holiday posted a bluegrass green colored Akubra Stylemaster here:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=24918&highlight=bluegrass

I presume the color would be the same wrt the hat style.

Pictures of my heritage fawn Fed Deluxe IV are here:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?p=567039#post567039

I believe that heritage fawn is a little darker than tawny fawn or vice versa, but the two are not extremely different. And I can definitely recommend the Fed Deluxe IV. It's a great hat. As a matter of fact, I'm also planning for a Fed IV in moonstone.

 

[BobC]

That is a great hat!

My Open Road has the "traditional" cattleman's crease, but I have long wanted one bashed as a fedora. After seeing yours, I think a Campdraft might be just the thing I've been looking for. Don't they come with an open crown? Can one get them from Akubra bashed fedora style?

AF

AF, the campdraft is an open crown hat. I bet Ron at Hatsdirect would bash it for you if you have bought from him before. My guess is he wouldn't do it on a first purchase because they won't take an altered hat back if it happened not to fit or was otherwise unsatisfactory. As for Sam at Everything Australlian, I could be wrong, but I doubt that he would bash it for you.

Why not bash it yourself? It's easy and it's kind of cool to get something nice and then personalize it just the way you want it. Believe me, if I can do it, anyone can.

 

[toobacat]

Mid Brown Campdraft

Here is a picture of my Mid Brown with an open crown. I received it a couple of days ago; it shipped about a month early. It's much nicer than my 15 year old Stetson Open Road. The felt is much lighter than a western hat... more like a vintage fedora.

 

[Mossyrock]

OK....ya got me. I ordered one of these today from Hatsdirect. They only offered the Campdraft in one color (Tawny Fawn), but it just happened to be the color I wanted anyway. They didn't mention anything about a three month wait, so I am hoping for the best. I'll post some photos when it arrives.

Mossyrock

Hats Direct sent me an e-mail confirming receipt of my order and to let me know that my hat would ship in two weeks or so. Normally, they say they have it in stock, but are currently out of my size (56). I'm patient...I can wait two weeks. That sure beats three months!

 

[BobC]

Hatsdirect has a large inventory of hats and usually ships from stock whereas Everything Australian has a much smaller in-stock inventory and most often has to order hats from Akubra. Hatsdirect usually ships faster, but their prices are higher as a result of the inventory on hand, and their shipping costs are quite a bit higher because they ship airmail. Generally, I think the service is a little better at Hatsdirect, but the price is more premium because of it. I have ordered from both places and have no complaints about either.

Another factor in the long wait for Akubra hats, according to what I have seen here on the lounge is that Akubra cycles through their repertoire of hats and that cycle takes about three months. Therefore, the length of time you wait will depend on the timing of your order vs where Akubra is in their cycle. I ordered a moonstone Stylemaster from Everything Australian and was quoted a turn around of 3 months, but I received the hat in quite a bit less than that.

 

[Will Morgan]

Akubra cycles through their repertoire of hats and that cycle takes about three months.

I can fill this picture out a bit I think...

Each year Akubra gives us a schedule of 'indent order' dates: monthly dates by which we need put orders in to them for hats. We determine quantities for each style-size-color that we wish to order from looking at current inventory, past sales and our advertising program, send it in by this date, and then Akubra starts in on manufacturing, shipping the resultant hats to us roughly two months later.

We'd also like to get ordered hats more quickly of course, but in May I went to visit and was newly amazed -- amazed at how efficiently Akubra is able to schedule and manufacture so many variations of head coverings each with so much hand and machine work put into them, all with such great lasting quality in -- only two months!

I believe that if you are ordering from an Akubra dealer who is in turn placing an indent order, your order date might hit or miss their indent date, which would explain the addition of a week or three.

Occasionally a hat or two we've ordered is delayed until our next shipment, this might happen if Akubra finds a flawed hood or two down the line in the manufacturing process. Then they'll wait schedule another dye lot of hoods in that sort of fur blend, in one or both of the two hood sizes, and then start in on shaping and trimming the hood to the needed style-size-color hat.

On the other hand, I'd imagine that if Akubra had enough appropriate hoods ( fur blend-dye-size ) already in stock from a past job lot because it was a small or concise order or a common hood, they then might be able to ship the hat or hats out a month or what have you early.

We have considered offering indent ordering at the retail level, we regularly get calls from customers requesting say.. a Campdraft! We've chosen not to as the extra record keeping and communications that would need occur over three months would be a bit of a challenge for us, and we'd be unable to exchange hats for size promptly, or to credit those simply not satisfied with their special ordered hat.

BTW I'd love to be able to serve every North America Akubra customer from North America, but the number of styles and colors of Akubra makes keeping them all in stock impractical. So we pick a selection of styles that we feel best fits the market here in North America, promote them, sell them and service them, occasionally dropping one style, and picking up another.

www.davidmorgan.com / www.akubra-usa.com

 

[BobC]

Thanks for your post, Will. It's nice to hear from someone who is really experienced why we have to wait for Akubras. They make a huge variety of hats with a number of color choices. And that still doesn't allow for the many sizes.

I love my Akubras and plan to add more to my collection.

 

[Magus]

I can fill this picture out a bit I think...


www.davidmorgan.com / www.akubra-usa.com

Will I hate to be the bearer of bad news. But Villiage hats in San Diego dosn't list Akubra as a brand they carry.