Akubra Campdraft

[Telemaster]

For the second in my series of “is this weird?” posts... I noticed this “welt” formed or forming in the crown of my fairly new Campdraft. I really like the hat and all still, but am a little surprised by this given Akubra’s famed rep for robustness and all-weather road worthiness. I actually haven’t been in the rain with it at all really yet... once a light drizzle. I didn’t use steam to bash it, rather just a spray bottle with distilled water - applied more conservatively than liberally.... I think. It was hard to photograph well and I would say is more noticeable in the flesh (I mean für)... So, is this weird?

 

[glider]

You would think that could be a fault in the felt. Perhaps the felt hasn't properly bonded there. I think I would contact Akubra.

 

[ecleccentric]

I can't speak from experience with the Akubra heritage felt myself, but from what I've read of what other people have experienced, you basically have to wait for the felt to soften up a bit over time before it will snap up and down without steaming, whereas the standard imperial quality felt will snap from the start.

Thank you!

 

[ecleccentric]

That's my experience with a couple of Heritage felt Akubras.

I have a fed iv, stylemaster and campdraft. I've become accustomed to the fed and the stylemaster, but still cant really get used to the campdraft. I just rebashed it and lowered the crown...

Any tips from the experts about getting comfortable in the campdraft? Thanks!

 

[Zombie_61]

I have a fed iv, stylemaster and campdraft. I've become accustomed to the fed and the stylemaster, but still cant really get used to the campdraft. I just rebashed it and lowered the crown...

Any tips from the experts about getting comfortable in the campdraft? Thanks!

The wider brim on the Campdraft can be a little intimidating at first if you're used to wearing hats with narrower brims (by comparison) like the Fed IV and the Stylemaster. Just keep wearing it; it'll either grow on you eventually, or it won't.

 

[andrew_AU]

The wider brim on the Campdraft can be a little intimidating at first if you're used to wearing hats with narrower brims (by comparison) like the Fed IV and the Stylemaster. Just keep wearing it; it'll either grow on you eventually, or it won't.

Yes. Just keep wearing it. I remember back to when the Campdraft felt huge on me....about 18 months ago. It's now (one of) my go-to hat(s)

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I have a fed iv, stylemaster and campdraft. I've become accustomed to the fed and the stylemaster, but still cant really get used to the campdraft. I just rebashed it and lowered the crown...

Any tips from the experts about getting comfortable in the campdraft? Thanks!

I’m not sure what part of it you are not comfortable with. You say you lowered the crown, is the crown height what is bothering you? The larger brim can take some getting used to, but that’s only because you’re not used to it. Trust us, it doesn’t look as conspicuous to us as it does to you. Wear it a lot and you’ll most likely come to love it.


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[glider]

if you don't like the brim after you've worn it some you can always cut it down .

 

[andrew_AU]

if you don't like the brim after you've worn it some you can always cut it down .

Sacrilege

 

[RJR]

TFL Edition BGCD 2 5/8" brim.

 

[1mach1]

View attachment 114548
TFL Edition BGCD 2 5/8" brim.

Always like seeing the Lounge Edition CD. Don't see many posted these days.

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[Been]

Brims up!

View attachment 43036

Love the brim! How did you produce the roll?

 

[Zoukatron]

Love the brim! How did you produce the roll?

Presumably that brim shape is just the natural shape of the brim, just snapped up front and back rather than snapped down in front as is more usual.

 

[bearinfedora]

reviving this thread almost after a month but better to ask my question in case if it comes up in future as well, and apologies if it was asked before. However, search results were inconclusive.

Let's get to the point. I have Campdraft Bluegrass Green and Silver Belly. Love them both coequally. Now at this point, contemplating with the idea of getting Taupe Fawn which raises two questions:

1. How does it feel like? I'd say the touch and feel of Silver Belly feels a bit harder while Bluegrass Green feels on the softer side.
2. I have been looking at the photos. Taupe Fawn seems darker in some while lighter in others, depending upon the lighting. What would be the HTML code for this color to get a better idea?

Thanks in advance folks

 

[Zombie_61]

...Let's get to the point. I have Campdraft Bluegrass Green and Silver Belly. Love them both coequally. Now at this point, contemplating with the idea of getting Taupe Fawn which raises two questions:

1. How does it feel like? I'd say the touch and feel of Silver Belly feels a bit harder while Bluegrass Green feels on the softer side.

Some people think there is a correlation between Akubra's colors and stiffness levels. There might be some truth to that, but in my opinion it varies from hat to hat regardless of color and simply depends on how much (or how little) stiffener has been applied to each individual hat body. For example, some members commented that their Taupe Fawn Campdrafts were quite soft when compared to other modern production hats they had purchased, but when I received mine it was stiffer than all of my other Akubras combined. It actually took some effort to snap the front of the brim down, and the first three to five times it immediately snapped right back up. Manipulating the felt by creasing, re-creasing, handling, and wearing the hat over the last four years has softened it considerably, but initially it was like cardboard.

...2. I have been looking at the photos. Taupe Fawn seems darker in some while lighter in others, depending upon the lighting. What would be the HTML code for this color to get a better idea?

I feel your pain. Before I purchased mine I did the research and made some inquiries, and when the hat arrived the color was still a bit of a surprise. Akubra's Taupe Fawn is one of those colors that's difficult to capture accurately in photographs unless you're a professional photographer, and even if you had the correct HTML code it could look different on your computer screen because of monitor settings and such, and look different in person because of the way the felt reflects light.

Yep, same hat photographed on three different days in direct sunlight with different backgrounds. On my monitor I'd have to say the color in the middle photo is the most accurate overall. In more subdued/indoor lighting I'd say the color in the right photo is pretty accurate, though not quite as vibrant. I don't think it ever actually looks as light in color as it does in the left photo, but I can't see it 'cause it's on my head so I don't really know.

Bottom line, it's a nice subtle mid-brown (a true mid-brown that's neither "light" nor "dark") and I wear mine far more than I wear my Silverbelly or Bluegrass Green Campdrafts because it's so versatile. I hope this helps at least a little.

 

[andrew_AU]

Some people think there is a correlation between Akubra's colors and stiffness levels. There might be some truth to that, but in my opinion it varies from hat to hat regardless of color and simply depends on how much (or how little) stiffener has been applied to each individual hat body. For example, some members commented that their Taupe Fawn Campdrafts were quite soft when compared to other modern production hats they had purchased, but when I received mine it was stiffer than all of my other Akubras combined. It actually took some effort to snap the front of the brim down, and the first three to five times it immediately snapped right back up. Manipulating the felt by creasing, re-creasing, handling, and wearing the hat over the last four years has softened it considerably, but initially it was like cardboard.

I feel your pain. Before I purchased mine I did the research and made some inquiries, and when the hat arrived the color was still a bit of a surprise. Akubra's Taupe Fawn is one of those colors that's difficult to capture accurately in photographs unless you're a professional photographer, and even if you had the correct HTML code it could look different on your computer screen because of monitor settings and such, and look different in person because of the way the felt reflects light.

Yep, same hat photographed on three different days in direct sunlight with different backgrounds. On my monitor I'd have to say the color in the middle photo is the most accurate overall. In more subdued/indoor lighting I'd say the color in the right photo is pretty accurate, though not quite as vibrant. I don't think it ever actually looks as light in color as it does in the left photo, but I can't see it 'cause it's on my head so I don't really know.

Bottom line, it's a nice subtle mid-brown (a true mid-brown that's neither "light" nor "dark") and I wear mine far more than I wear my Silverbelly or Bluegrass Green Campdrafts because it's so versatile. I hope this helps at least a little.

my taupe fawn campdraft is a lighter brown than my heritage fawn fed iv deluxe.

As for how it feels, I think each batch of hats is different. And age, wear, handling of course. Some of my brand new Akubra's were quite stiff but others were relatively pliable.

I have never noticed a correlation between stiffness and colour though

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Some people think there is a correlation between Akubra's colors and stiffness levels. There might be some truth to that, but in my opinion it varies from hat to hat regardless of color and simply depends on how much (or how little) stiffener has been applied to each individual hat body. For example, some members commented that their Taupe Fawn Campdrafts were quite soft when compared to other modern production hats they had purchased, but when I received mine it was stiffer than all of my other Akubras combined. It actually took some effort to snap the front of the brim down, and the first three to five times it immediately snapped right back up. Manipulating the felt by creasing, re-creasing, handling, and wearing the hat over the last four years has softened it considerably, but initially it was like cardboard.

I feel your pain. Before I purchased mine I did the research and made some inquiries, and when the hat arrived the color was still a bit of a surprise. Akubra's Taupe Fawn is one of those colors that's difficult to capture accurately in photographs unless you're a professional photographer, and even if you had the correct HTML code it could look different on your computer screen because of monitor settings and such, and look different in person because of the way the felt reflects light.

Yep, same hat photographed on three different days in direct sunlight with different backgrounds. On my monitor I'd have to say the color in the middle photo is the most accurate overall. In more subdued/indoor lighting I'd say the color in the right photo is pretty accurate, though not quite as vibrant. I don't think it ever actually looks as light in color as it does in the left photo, but I can't see it 'cause it's on my head so I don't really know.

Bottom line, it's a nice subtle mid-brown (a true mid-brown that's neither "light" nor "dark") and I wear mine far more than I wear my Silverbelly or Bluegrass Green Campdrafts because it's so versatile. I hope this helps at least a little.

In Moon’s video he talks about his silverbelly being incredibly stiff. Mine was soft and wonderful. I agree that the stiffness doesn’t have much to do with color but with how the felt was produced during a particular production run.


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[Zombie_61]

my taupe fawn campdraft is a lighter brown than my heritage fawn fed iv deluxe...

Interesting. I've never seen it in person, but I thought Akubra's Heritage Fawn was comparable to their Tawny Fawn. Apparently I was wrong, because my Taupe Fawn Campdraft is darker than my Tawny Fawn Fed IV.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Alex has done a fine job regarding the tricky hue of the Taupe Fawn, but I'll chime in too. Here are pics of my Taupe Fawn Campdraft when I first got it. In full sun, and open shade.





As far as felt softness... the only Akubra I have had that I'd describe as soft is my Stylemaster. My Campdraft isn't soft, but it's nowhere near as hard as my old Federation III, which NEVER softened at all in ten years of weather exposure: it was closer in feel to my preshaped Akubra country hats.

And as we've observed here many times: Akubra felt softness/hardness doesn't seem predictable by Imperial/Heritage grade or a particular dye color. It seemingly just varies from batch to batch. So it's kind of a crapshoot with each one whether you get a softer one or a firmer one! But geez, they're all still great hats for the price...

 

[bearinfedora]

Thank you everyone for writing such comprehensive and helpful responses. I am glad to read all of them, and decided to go ahead with purchase. Now just gotta way.

Wish Akubra Campdraft was available in more colors including black and blue-grey color. Guess, a collective nagging to them might make this wish come true