Dating Vintage Stetsons by Liner: A Field Guide

[alanfgag]

Not very familiar with the timeline of Stetsons with this liner, but it is 1970s or later, perhaps quite a bit later. Variations on that sweatband mark go back to before WWII. At that time, a 5X Beaver was a high end hat.

 

[Fed in a Fedora]

Thanks - I thought that the liner was pretty recent, but the wide band and markings seemed older, so I was puzzled by it all.

Fed

 

[alanfgag]

Thanks - I thought that the liner was pretty recent, but the wide band and markings seemed older, so I was puzzled by it all.

Fed

By wide band, do you mean the sweatband? Photos taken with a phone pointing down into the head opening of a hat tend to distort the proportions and make the sweatband look wider.

 

[Fed in a Fedora]

The sweat band is 1 3/4 inch, but my other late model Stetson (late 80s IIRC) is only 1 1/2 inch.

Thanks,
Fed

 

[moehawk]

Hi folks

Well, I think I got my Java problem fixed, so as promised in the broken sweatband thread here are pics of the Stetson I picked up before the sweatband crumbled too badly. This is still in thrift-store fresh condition, hence the battered shape and lint. Other info on the back of the sweat were stamps that read "PEARL", "WISE O.S." and "G947508". The number is the same as on a small red and white paper tag inside of the sweat. There was also a tag stating the fiber content of the liner is rayon satin of celanese yarn.







I apologize for the faintness of the image of the liner logo, the logo itself is very faint. If anyone can narrow down the age of the hat, that would be great.

Also, I know that there have been gigs worth of discussion here in the forum of the X value of felt and I don't want to raise that up again, but am I right in assuming that "XXX Beaver Quality" on a velour finish felt is not beaver at all but rabbit? Or maybe some other fur blended with rabbit?

Many thanks for all input!

 

[moehawk]

Darn it...images posted as thumbs...will try to re-post larger images...

 

[moehawk]

That should be better....XD

 

[alanfgag]

Nice 3XBQ... a fifteen dollar hat circa 1950, give or take a year or two. Unfortunately an era of brittle sweatbands and faded liner imprints - I have had several with similar characteristics. Guesses as to the composition of the felt would be guesses only.

 

[moehawk]

1950's, you say? That explains a lot about the condition of the hat... I'm sure that when I'm in my 60's I'll probably be a bit brittle and faded myself...lol

 

[Kwekwe Karu]

Just snagged a Royal Stetson on eBay

 

[Kwekwe Karu]

No pics of interior of hat alas. Will have to wait till arrives.

 

[Kwekwe Karu]

Only other pics I can find on it besides views of exterior of hat

 

[Guardian Enzo]

I just picked this one up - it's a 3X Beaver dress hat with no company tags under the sweat, but I'd be curious to get any input on the date. I'm thinking early-mid 50's based on the dimensions and the crest on the sweat and liner - it's a mix of the the scoliosis and straight-backed beaver, and that seems to have been the common era for that as far as I can tell. It's a 5" crown, brim is 2 3/8.

 

[alanfgag]

Mid fifties is a good guess.

 

[Historyteach24]

Date idea?

 

[Guardian Enzo]

Mid fifties is a good guess.

Thanks! I neglected to mention that it's a "Selv-Edge" - does that impact your thinking at all? That's still during the good years for Stetson, I assume? I'm very impressed by this lid.

 

[alanfgag]

Judging by the popularity of Stratoliners and Whippets I would say the 1950s is a very popular era with eBay hat buyers. I once owned a Stetson Fifteen (3X beaver quality) of a similar vintage to yours with a dated sales receipt for November 1956. Yours may be a little earlier, but somewhere near the center of the 1950s is a reasonable guess. The 3X was a hat of solid quality. Fifteen dollars was a step up from the Strats and Whippets and bought a good quality hat from Stetson or Mallory or Lee or Knox or Dobbs. At one time fifteen dollars bought a felted edge, but by the mid fifties you had to lay out twenty for a Cavanagh-style edge from the boys at Stetson and Knox/Dobbs.

 

[alanfgag]

Date idea?

I have an idea that it is 1960's-ish.

 

[Historyteach24]

Thanks Alan, that was my guess

 

[moehawk]

Hey everyone!

I finally finished fixing up that old 3XBQ that I posted about a few pages back. I think it turned out nice.
It went from this:


To this:



Since the sweatband had turned to dust, and I wasn't worried about a museum-quality restoration, I ended up replacing it with a piece of woven hemp belt. Fortunately the reed was still intact so I just stitched it to that. As I am a bit of a heavy sweater this is quite a lot more absorbent than leather. I have a feeling that this one is going to be a frequent flyer on my head, so comfort is very important

I wasn't a big fan of the brown ribbon on the pearl grey so I replaced it first with a piece of navy blue that I had lying around, but then I found a length of this royal blue ribbon that I liked better. The brown ribbon ended up on my Young's. I like the soft feel of the long-hair finish, but it seems to need to be brushed often or it begins to take on the appearance of a stray cat...

So now I have another question. I found this at a flea market today.







There is nothing stamped, printed or written on the sweatband, so I'm guessing that it is a third-party replacement. There are the remains of a rotted leather hatband still on it, and a moderate amount of moth damage to the crown. The color can best be described as that of Gulden's brown mustard. The felt is wonderfully soft.

So, any guesses as to an age? I know that just a liner isn't a lot to go on but with all the experts here it's worth a shot. Also, if anyone knows the model and what the color is called, that would also be helpful.

Thanks all!