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[jlee562]

Can someone please help me with this:
What is the Borsalino made of, Fur/felt or wool:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/110979344907?ssPageName=STRK:MESINDXX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1436.l2649

Personally I think it's reasonable to assume that unless marked specifically as wool, a vintage felt hat will be fur felt. Not only was wool less common as a hat material, wool simply isn't as resilient as even the cheaper fur felts in the long run, so less of them survived.

And the more you look at hats, as long as there's a clear enough picture, it's usually fairly easy to spot wool felt from fur.

 

[nice hat dude!]

Can someone please help me with this:
What is the Borsalino made of, Fur/felt or wool:

Answer me this Batman would you pay that kind of money for a cheap wool hat?On the serious side as has been mentioned most of the vintage hats are all fur felts,price is not always a good indicator but it's occasionally helpful.IMHO

 

[Mystic]

This is a Wafer edge....thanks.

Is it a particular feature of any brand? I have seen this on a Stetson but don't recall seeing it on another hat.
Does it mean anything as to dating a hat?

 

[alanfgag]

This is a Wafer edge....thanks.

Is it a particular feature of any brand? I have seen this on a Stetson but don't recall seeing it on another hat.
Does it mean anything as to dating a hat?

It was a Stetson "coinage" for a wide over-welt brim with decorative stitching. More here.

 

[Mystic]

It was a Stetson "coinage" for a wide over-welt brim with decorative stitching. More here.

Thanks Alan. That was just what I was looking for.

 

[Dan Allen]

Can a ultrasonic humidifier be used instead of steam to shape a hat?

 

[John in Covina]

Can a ultrasonic humidifier be used instead of steam to shape a hat?

possibly - some people use steam and seem to have better results. hatter and cowboy hat places are usually going to use steam. However some people use will use cool water and a sprayer to shape a hat, steam seems to be prefered. If you get an inexpensive tea kettle you can use the steam from the spout. Still makes me wish i bought one of those scuzzy steam cleaners. Also good for removing cosmoline.

 

[m0nk]

possibly - some people use steam and seem to have better results. hatter and cowboy hat places are usually going to use steam. However some people use will use cool water and a sprayer to shape a hat, steam seems to be prefered. If you get an inexpensive tea kettle you can use the steam from the spout. Still makes me wish i bought one of those scuzzy steam cleaners. Also good for removing cosmoline.

It also seems to depend on the felt. I've found that vintage felts are easier to shape than modern, thicker ones. I've used plain water from a spray bottle on all, since I'm lazy, but found that modern felts require quite a bit more to hold their shape.

 

[Dan Allen]

I was curious as I was under the impression that it was the moisture, not the heat that was needed. I was in a drug store the other day and placed my hand in the fog of one being demonstrated and my hand was instantly damp.

 

[gtdean48]

Heat opens up the felt fibers allowing moisture in. It also activates the shellac that cool water doesn't.

 

[tridentine]

Does anyone know what kind of Stetson this is:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-70S...2/DhrW0wTAig9Gr0ckD70BI=&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc

 

[danofarlington]

I don't know, but I don't believe it's wool. The felt looks a little thin at the edges to be wool, and the hat is numerically sized. I'll bet it's fur felt. EBay sellers are notorious for not knowing the difference between wool and fur felt. At least they didn't call it polyester.

 

[tridentine]

Thank you.

 

[jlee562]

Yeah, the first tip off that the seller has no idea what they're talking about is that they called it "beaver wool." As I said before, I think the chances of you 'accidentally ' bidding on a vintage wool hat is slim to nil. And again, look at the texture of the felt. Wool and fur felts do look different.

Teach a man to fish what not.

 

[tridentine]

Could someone please tell me if a 23 1/4 inch head is a 7 1/2?

The reason I ask, because I thought for a long time I thought was 7.5 [I might be]
I have an older Borsalino that is 7.5 and a new Falcon Park fedora that is 7.5, and they both fit perfectly.

Today I got a new Stetson Ashland in 7.5 and it is loose.

I have a 23 1/4 inch head.
Am I missing something here.
Thank you.

 

[danofarlington]

I don't trust measurements, either of heads or hats. I just find out what my size is and go with that.

 

[jlee562]

Different manufacturers size differently, and there is inherent variabiliy in the nature of a felted hat itself.

 

[alanfgag]

23.25" is midway between 7 3/8 and 7 1/2... and hat measurements and ovals vary.

 

[tridentine]

23.25" is midway between 7 3/8 and 7 1/2... and hat measurements and ovals vary.

Thank you. So both sizes should fit?

 

[jlee562]

Thank you. So both sizes should fit?

Not according to your experience with the Ashland. There's a lot of variables at play (not the least of which I mentioned above). Do you know if you're a regular oval shape?