Disappointed with Stetson

[Lorne]

Hello all,

I was walking through downtown Boston, when I saw a bridal shop. Looking into the back I saw they sold men's hats, so I wandered on in. I tried on a grey, pinch front, snap-brim fedora. Unlike my vintage Stevens, the felt was stiff, thin and cardboard like. I was afraid that if I snapped the brim down, I tear the thing off. I had no confidence the hat could survive a single hour in the rain. All in all, I figured the hat for a costume job. My jaw dropped when I looked into the hat and saw that it was a $125 Stetson! I then looked at a few Casa’s. While their felt was thicker, they were came across as cheap unlined hats.

Are they all like that? Oh, how the mighty have fallen!


Lorne

 

[jeboat]

Changing times

The new Stetsons are just shells of what they used to be. At one time Stetson was the epitome of USA hattery. But just like the gun industry and others businesses, the family owned companies with a rich history gave way to Corporate Think, namely the bottom line of profit first, quality last.

This is the reason people like me will pay way more for a good vintage Stetson than a brand new one.

jeboat

 

[Kaleponi Craig]

Yes, I was also suprised when I tried on a modern Stetson. What a piece of junk compared to their vintage hats...KC

 

[Michael Mallory]

Stetson straws seem to be better than their felts these days -- and even the straws are iffy. I have one Stetson felt that I like, but I've also seen some that aren't worth dragging home. I think they're concentrating on cowboy hats these days, to the exclusion of all other styles.

 

[Twitch]

This is why people are scouring Ebay and buying beaver felt vintage hats...:fedora:

 

[besdor]

Stetson Quality

This is a topic that has been discussed before . Stetson today could not duplicate their quality of the past as they cant get the level of fur used years ago at a price that would make the hat sellable to the public . A Stetson Twenty that sold in 1950 for 20.00 would easily be 300.00 . For the average joe , thats alot of pesos .I know that guys like Graham from Optimo and Steve Delk and Art make great hats but they are a specialty business .
For this season , Stetson is making two styles in 100% beaver(?) that will retail for about 295.00 to 350.00 . Lets see what happens .

 

[ledsled]

I returned a Stetson

I'm a newbie here (and to hats). I ordered a Stetson from Cabela's and returned it. I think the model had "river" and "fork" in the name... and it was probably part of the gun club collection. I would not classify it as a cowboy hat. It was more like a fishing/outback kind of hat. Anyhow, when I took it out of the box, my untrained eye quickly saw that the pinch in the front was off-center, and there was an extra "dent" too. :eusa_doh:

Before my fedora fever runs out, I am sure I will be getting a custom hat one of these days!

 

[RedPop4]

A friend on another forum mentioned in a thread there, that Stetson was acquired by Resistol within the last 10 or 20 years. Is that correct?

 

[besdor]

Stetson and Dobbs and Resistol are all big happy company called Hatco . They are located in Garland TX. As for quality , well I guess the hats speak for themselves !!!!

 

[jamespowers]

A friend on another forum mentioned in a thread there, that Stetson was acquired by Resistol within the last 10 or 20 years. Is that correct?

HatCo (Resistol is part of this group now) acquired only the name of Stetson about twenty years ago. Stetson as an actual hat manufacturer has been gone for over 30 years. I think Stevens Hat Company got quite a bit of their equipment when they closed but I could be wrong.

Regards,

J

 

[RBH]

I'm a newbie here (and to hats). I ordered a Stetson from Cabela's and returned it. I think the model had "river" and "fork" in the name... and it was probably part of the gun club collection. I would not classify it as a cowboy hat. It was more like a fishing/outback kind of hat. Anyhow, when I took it out of the box, my untrained eye quickly saw that the pinch in the front was off-center, and there was an extra "dent" too. :eusa_doh:

Before my fedora fever runs out, I am sure I will be getting a custom hat one of these days!

I have a Stetson Three Forks I ordered from Cabellas over six years ago. It is a sage colored outdoorsy looking fedora style. While it {felt wise} does not compare to my vintage Open Roads it has been a good hat. It has taken rain, sun and general rough wear very well.

 

[Matt Deckard]

This is why people are scouring Ebay and buying beaver felt vintage hats...:fedora:

Has nothing to do with Beaver felt... It's just vintage hats... beaver doesn't make the hat.