Dating Your Hat (A Place to Discuss the Age of Your Vintage Hat)

[Alive'n'Amplified]

Hey everyone. Was wondering if someone could help me with this Cavanagh. To me, the crown height, ribbon width, and brim width suggest a 30s block. The hat is unlined, and it looks like the sweatband was not stitched at the seam. Perhaps it was originally taped. It (sweatband) also looks rather plain, no ink or foil stamping. There are two tags, which looks like only one has survived (see last pic). It's coming with the box, don't know if that's an indicator. The actual hat hasn't arrived yet from the 'bay.

These pics were straight from the listing. Let me know if something stands out. Thanks for looking...

 

[Ande1964]

I'd appreciate thoughts on this Borsalino I'm selling. As you can see in the action, I was guessing late forties to fifties. If anyone has a better idea, I'd like to amend the listing. The Salvatore Balbi store has been discussed here before, but I didn't find info on when they may have closed.

Thanks!

Anj

 

[Purplesage]

I have a couple of hats I could use help dating. This particular one is a Dobbs which is one of my favorite hats. The sweatband has come loose and needs to be resewn or replaced. The leather still seems to be in pretty good shape. The hat has as 5" crown as it is currently bashed and a 3" brim:

 

[danofarlington]

i don't know the fine points, but that one screams "Forties."

 

[lisesheehan]

How much is my mint Knox worth?

I got this at a yard sale a few days ago. After taking the pics, I found tag also under the inner lining, tag says Yale Genton, our price, 12.95. then another manufacturer tag says oval-reg, to duplicate-m 75069, block-452, size 7 1/4.
Oh well, I can't seem to upload a photo. Darn it.

 

[lisesheehan]

Well, I found the post about how to link to pictures, but even though I uploaded them to photobucket, when I right click I don't get a clipboard option, so I don't know how to get the image to imbed in the post. Sorry.

 

[lisesheehan]

http://s1185.beta.photobucket.com/user/lisesheehan/library/Knox Fedora

 

[casechopper]

Hi Lisesheehan,
That looks from the photos to be a pretty common modern (more or less) stingy brim hat in a relatively common size. The condition looks ok and you have the box so you might get somewhere around $40-50 for it on ebay.

 

[splintercellsz]

I recently purchased this Stetson Special. For some reason, I find very few threads on this style of Stetson. Any ideas on when it could be from?

 

[danofarlington]

I don't know, but I think the width of that ribbon would not have been popular beyond the 1930s.

 

[alanfgag]

It is later 1930s to early 1940s. There are quite a few Stetson Specials posted on the lounge and many threads that will help you research your hat. Here are a few.

pre 1940s Stetson Dress Hats

dating Stetson hats by manufacturing label

dating Stetson hats by size label

 

[Purplesage]

Dating Dobbs Gay Prince

I need help dating this Gay Prince I recently purchased. I was thinking the 40s but I could be wrong. It has a 2 1/4" brim and a 4 3/4" crown. The color is a deep brown. The sweatband is a dark brown but looks black in some of the photos.

 

[Brad Bowers]

While it shares many of the same stylings as a '40s Gay Prince, it's actually 1950s, probably mid-'50s. By 1959, even the Gay Prince was a stingy brim.



Brad

 

[Purplesage]

I thought by the mid 50's the majority of the hat makers switched from oil skin to plastic on the inside crown?

 

[Brad Bowers]

Not entirely. I've got an early 1960s Dobbs still using it, and I've seen a few others over the years.



Brad

 

[Purplesage]

Does anyone want to take a stab at age dating this hat as well identifying who the hat is made by? I'm thinking the 30s.

Also, how come images that I post seem to disappear. Flikr was really bad, they would disappear over night so I switched to photobucket. Everything was going along fine for at least a month or more. Now today certain photos from various threads I have in the classifieds have suddenly disappeared. Is it me or does everyone experience the same thing? It is really very frustrating. Thanks

David S.

 

[Purplesage]

Thanks Brad. I wish there was a way you could really pin down a date more precisely. Take a shot at the French hat I just posted.

 

[Rabbit]

Thanks Brad. I wish there was a way you could really pin down a date more precisely. Take a shot at the French hat I just posted.

Well, the dating of hats usually can't be narrowed further down.

 

[Connoisseur_BP]

Received my vintage Knox today via eBay. Very happy with it, in fact it even came with the original box. The seller said his father bought it after the war sometime in the late 40's. The liner reads "Knox Twenty." It also has the custom edge which was their version of the Cavanagh Edge (right?) Would appreciate any information anyone could provide on it. Thanks.

 

[Dinerman]

That Knox is from the '60s, and cost $20 new, making it a mid to up-market model for the time.