Dobbs 55 update

[fedoralover]

A little over a week ago I bought a Dobbs 55 Open Road style fedora with the original box on ebays "buy it now". I just got back from vacation and found it waiting for me. It is a Dobbs West, beaver 55 in excellent condition. No moth nibbles, the inside liner and sweat band look brand new. It does have a few dirt smudges here and there but no damage to the hat. It has the wind trolley with a 2 3/4 inch brim and a 5 3/4 inch crown in the open state. It was my size of 7 1/4 and fits like a glove. I really lucked out on this one, the felt is really soft and creamy to the touch. While the nice ones are getting harder to find, this shows there are still very high quality hats to be found. The old Dobbs fedora's were excellent hats.

regards fedoralover

 

[jamespowers]

You can say that again. Very good buy on that one. Why did I know that hat would be nice.
I just got in a Knox Premier yesterday. I have now had a chance to look it over good. The 2 1/4" brim is fairly stiff but the 5" crown is very soft. It looks pretty interesting on me to say the least. I am wearing it as I type to get the feel. LOL
It is an Open Road style as well with the narrow ribbon and that silver belly color.
I think I can scare up a picture here. Let's see.... There we go.

Regards to all,

J

P. S. I have since moved the side dents to the front.

 

[jamespowers]

Here is the inside.
Lets see pictures of the Dobbs 55 Fedoralover. I am all eyes.

 

[Fedora]

Yeah, that book by Henderson says Cavanagh, Knox and Dobbs were top of the line hats back in the day. I knew that the first two brands were, but did not know that about the Dobbs. I saw a nice Dobbs tall crowned fedora awhile back on ebay. Looked good. Fedora

 

[jamespowers]

For some reason I really like the Dobbs that I have come in contact with. They are not all soft and floppy but they have real style. It just works for me. That and they had a propensity to make high crown,wide ribbon, wide brim hats in their heyday so I gotta love 'em. Their felt is dense and they wear like iron. Even after moths get them they have a grace and style undaunted.
Geez, I have to stop thinking like an ad man. Dobbs isn't paying me for this. LOL I do like them though. Too bad they got stuck with Hat Brands. They don't make em like they used to. :cry: They are still the dress hat of the line though they no longer produce women's hats and cowboy hats. I think Dobbs stopped producing cowboy hats in the 1960s. There is something that is missed---a cowboy hat that isn't necessarily stake driver hard. They had it all once--once.

Regards to all,

J

 

[Matt Deckard]

Sound like a good catch fedoralover... hope you can post some pics soon.

JP... that hat looks to have smaller dimentions that the Open Road. I think it could be 60's.

 

[jamespowers]

I would have thought that too but the brown leather sweat and the liner are the same as my 50s Dobbs. One can never be too sure though.

Regards to all,

J

 

[fedoralover]

I have just finished cleaning and reshaping this hat. The foam cleaner that I have took out all the dirt smudges and I reshaped it with just a touch of steam into a front pinch with a modified C crown. I used up all my film on my trip to San Francisco, after I get some more and get it developed I'll take some. I have a Dobbs 20 and it's felt is much softer and floppy than this one.

fedoralover

 

[jamespowers]

The Twenty might be older than the 55. Then again, the Dobbs West was more of a western hat so it would be more stiff and have a more western feel. Cowboys like the stiff felt for protection.
The Twenty was purely a dress hat. These were fedoras for use either casually or for more formal attire. The felt was quite floppy and holds just about any shape you like. I have mine in a C crown with an original 2 1/2 inch ribbon. Pretty large but the crown is 5 inches with the C Crown. You have to be a larger dude to pull that off they tell me. LOL I guess I can't lose any weight now. :cool2:

Regards to all,

J