Ebay Hats: Victories, Defeats, Gripes & Items of Interest

[Lefty]

Those prices are actually pretty reasonable. The first one is nearly double the average length (about 100 pages). About a year ago, these would have fetched around $300 each, and more for the big one.

 

[Viper Man]

Either way it went, the price of this Playboy was going to make me wonder. If the price was low, I'd wonder how all of these playboys seem to be going for peanuts, especially considering the larges sizes that are selling. They're normally pretty hard to come by, and they're very nice hats. If the price was high, I'd wonder why the other playboys went for so little and this one warranted a high price, especially being that it's probably the latest model I've seen.

In the end, it went for $86 - about $70 less than I would expect.

I was bidding on this when it was first listed (I have no qualms about a 2" brim ) but I didn't bid again after it was pulled. Something fishy about it, it just didn't feel right to me. I also needed to drop some hats off at Optimo for C&B and new sweatbands so that sorta killed my disposable cash.

 

[Tango Yankee]

I've noticed that you must be my size-bad news for me. I'll have to bring some "big guns" to an Ebay duel with you or I'm probably gonna go down. But, what else would one expect from someone with as many ribbons on their uniform as you (I've noticed the pic on the wall in the background-very impressive).

Right now I seem to be between a 7 1/4 and 7 3/8. I'm trying to keep the hat buying to a minimum while I go through what I have already, but I have no willpower. I have found, though, that if I really want a hat I have to bid big. I've learned that lesson more than once, I'm afraid. I'm still kicking myself over a lavender fedora that Marc Chevalier sold that I was outbid on. :rage:

And thanks for the comment on the ribbons. I was kinda impressed myself when I put together my final rack! lol Over the years you do your job the best you can and in the end it all adds up to a nice display. I still miss it, though. I guess I always will.

 

[Garrett]

Those prices are actually pretty reasonable. The first one is nearly double the average length (about 100 pages). About a year ago, these would have fetched around $300 each, and more for the big one.

I suppose I'm thinking in terms of how many vintage hats (in my size) I could grab for the $300 price tag.....or maybe I could wear a vintage apparel arts on my noggin.

 

[Belegnole]

been shopping

Snagged this today.....couldn't help myself, for some reason it just called my name. Be warned these are eBay pics

 

[Lefty]

a little Strat - but the listing didn't mention the model name -goes for $33.

 

[ScottF]

The Shudde is an old police trooper hat. The leather bit is probably the strap that goes around the back of the head. It can either be removed, or you might be able to find a replacement through stratton or one of their distributes.
Shudde Bros. is still around. I'd say yours dates to the 1950s.

Thanks, Dinerman. I'm looking forward to seeing it in person.

 

[rlk]

G.W.Alexander

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=160323178266&viewitem=&salenotsupported

 

[Jabos]

Right now I seem to be between a 7 1/4 and 7 3/8. I'm trying to keep the hat buying to a minimum while I go through what I have already, but I have no willpower. I have found, though, that if I really want a hat I have to bid big. I've learned that lesson more than once, I'm afraid. I'm still kicking myself over a lavender fedora that Marc Chevalier sold that I was outbid on. :rage:

And thanks for the comment on the ribbons. I was kinda impressed myself when I put together my final rack! lol Over the years you do your job the best you can and in the end it all adds up to a nice display. I still miss it, though. I guess I always will.

I feel the same about Ebay. Nothing worse than bidding and losing, because you later think "Damn, I blew that extra $20 it would have taken to win on stupid stuff". I still regret an Ebay loss from 8 years ago. Also, that avitar pic must have been when you were a young pup in the USAF, huh?

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Those prices are actually pretty reasonable. The first one is nearly double the average length (about 100 pages). About a year ago, these would have fetched around $300 each, and more for the big one.

I agree, the prices are fair. Apparel Arts is an extremely rare magazine. These magazines got TRASHED in the menswear stores, and there are very few left to us. AA sold special stands upon which the latest edition would be propped. The customers would then flick through them and find what they wanted the store to order. Undoubtedly pages were torn out, grubbed up, had foodstuffs dropped on them yada yada. Mostly the good ones are in libraries. But for some reason the really long ones - the 5th and 10th anniversry editions never fetched the high prices.[huh]

The bottom 3 are interesting editions. I have copies (scanned) of them all around here somewhere. You'll notice they are Fabrics and Fashions. This was presented by Apparel Arts from 1933 as a sister publication to Apparel Arts. AA was published 4 times a year - one around Christmas (Winter) then Spring, Summer and Fall editions. AA-FF would come out between these editions and would be predictive - these are the fabrics that will be in during the next season, so be a fashion leader and order yours now!, kind of thing. I think it was in 1935 or 1936 Apparel Arts merged with Apparel Arts - Fabrics and Fashions to become an 8-times-yearly Apparel Arts, with the "between seasons" editions retaining the function of Fabrics and Fashions, with the swatches and predictive information.

AA-FF contained a multitude of fabric swatches, and from it I learned an awful lot about Palm Beach fabrics. The sheer variety of Palm Beach fabrics was stunning to me. Not just the white/cream suits we see. Nubby, flecked, striped, whatever, they made it in the middle 1930s. Did anyone see the blue Palm Beach suit that sold the other week? Very rare.


bk

 

[MattJH]

As plentiful as the Stetson St. Regis homburgs are on eBay, I've never seen one in 7 5/8 until this listing. I threw in my bid 30 minutes before the end as I had plans, and the winning bid ended up being only $1.00 over mine. So it goes. The binding has a pretty obvious stain on it, so I'm not too disappointed, but the interest was there.

 

[billyspew]

One for a conversion

Just grabbed this Stetson 5x for my first conversion...

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&item=200320730586

Anyone know where to get good grosgrain ribbon?

Bill

 

[Tango Yankee]

I feel the same about Ebay. Nothing worse than bidding and losing, because you later think "Damn, I blew that extra $20 it would have taken to win on stupid stuff". I still regret an Ebay loss from 8 years ago. Also, that avitar pic must have been when you were a young pup in the USAF, huh?

Yeah, but you never know how much the other guy actually bid, just that they bid more than you. It could have been just that one dollar more, or it could have been a hundred dollars more--no way to tell. I do know that there have been a few times I've won with exactly my high bid!

And yes, Basic Training, summer of 1980. I thought I'd put it up there for contrast.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Anyone know where to get good grosgrain ribbon?

Bill

Berwick Street. (W1F)

bk

 

[billyspew]

Berwick Street. (W1F)

bk

Thanks bk, will try and visit.

 

[Lefty]

7 1/8 Stetson Royal Stetson Vita-Felt for $34 - with moth issues

 

[warmentrout]

Anyone know where to get good grosgrain ribbon?

Bill[/QUOTE]

Nancy's Sewing Basket. Google it. They will sell you a yard or less and send it in a regular envelope with a 42 cent stamp. However, I believe they only have scalloped edge ribbon, not bound.

 

[Lefty]

Dobbs 20, 7 1/4, $46. Liesure flex is new to me.

 

[Brad Bowers]

Dobbs 20, 7 1/4, $46. Liesure flex is new to me.

New to me, too. Looks like a convoluted foam rubber contraption from the patent info. Probably not successful due to low utility and higher production cost. Patent No. places this as a post-March 1953 hat.

Nice find for someone, and thanks for posting the link, Lefty.

Brad

 

[Dinerman]

Knox Comfit-also Patent 2632175

Dobbs also used the term Spring-aire