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

[DJH]

The seller's other hat, the ROYAL SUNNINGTON sold for much less: http://www.ebay.com/itm/1930s-1940s...pt=Vintage_Men_s_Clothing&hash=item27bdbe498b

That's a great hat, size 7 - were you bidding HE?

 

[suitedcboy]

OK, so that Stetson model is the Vogue. I have one that is just like that one but has matching silver binding and brim and is a mist grey.
I can't find "Vogue" on mine.
I always think of it as my "pimp" Whippet......

 

[HatsEnough]

The seller's other hat, the ROYAL SUNNINGTON sold for much less: http://www.ebay.com/itm/1930s-1940s...pt=Vintage_Men_s_Clothing&hash=item27bdbe498b

That's a great hat, size 7 - were you bidding HE?

I watched it for a while... but I have to say, at this point I am starting to drift toward adding just Stetsons to my collection, and darn few at that. I have a few Stetsons that I might sell if I can find the exact same models in my proper size, for instance. So, unless it is something that really strikes my fancy, I am not much interested in OTS fedoras (Other Than Stetson) right now. That Demon Hanover was a good example of something really special that I went for and so was that high derby I got a week or so ago.

Further, I have every color that I want right now, so I don't even have a color need.

I think I am at a major slow down in purchases. I have let about 8 or 9 I was watching go without even a bid over the last month if that is an indication.

Anyway, I feel that I am getting very selective at this point.

... aaaaand my wife would love to see me slow down! I think I owe her that, too! Ha, ha.

 

[Rabbit]

Now, what made this nice Stetson get to $157.51 I wonder?

It is a very nice hat. Smallish at 7-1/8. Not a Whippet but a "Vogue." Great color, too.

I'd say it looks more 40s 50s instead of 30s 40s era, though. It looks like a leaf in the liner logo. But if it is stars, I could be wrong.

It is a beauty, but I thought it went for a fairly high price.

Anybody got an idea? Is the "Vogue" a really rare model? (I have no idea so I'd like to know)

Good color, rare model, nicer styling than a whippet, reputable seller, good pictures.

From the way the bids were coming in for the Vogue, I was expecting it to sell for more. The price hardly changed on the last day.

I didn't join in myself, but I thought the buyer ended up with an exceptional hat at a pretty fair price.

I was that nasty last bidder on the Vogue
Liner shots for purposes of dating will follow as soon as it gets here (which will take a couple of weeks).

 

[Fedora Jay]

I won this one tonight: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200644969188&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123

I'm pretty excited about it, whether or not it's actually vintage, at that price. I'll post up what more info I can find about it when it gets here.

 

[alanfgag]

From the way the bids were coming in for the Vogue, I was expecting it to sell for more. The price hardly changed on the last day.

Unfortunately a couple of enthusiasts pushed the price up early on. A handsome 1950's hat with nice styling. Congratulations to Rabbit on the win.

 

[alanfgag]

With a nudge from a very knowledgable Lounger and a closer look at the liner dating thread... I'm moving my vintage guess to earlier than 1950. My admiration for the hat remains unchanged!

 

[Rabbit]

That liner dating thread is very useful indeed, I noticed it too. I'll post some close-ups of the Vogue's liner there.

 

[Justin B]

Wish I'd seen that Royal sunnington before HE got it. I'd have given him a run for his money. The color is amazing...and it's my size. You decide not to keep it HE let me know.

 

[hatophile]

Nice catch on that Vogue, Rabbit.

Looks like a sweet Dobbs (Churchill) for you, Alex.

 

[alanfgag]

I bought this L&T branded derby to add to my small collection of early 20th century NYC department store hats.

As Erik Satie once said, one can't have too many black bowlers, n'est-ce pas?

 

[scooter]

You could probably pull off a derby, Alan, but I fear I'd look like a clown sans makeup.

That Sunnington was exquisite but much too small for me.

So who has done this. I bought a hat off Ebay last night for a relatively low BIN, and as soon as I clicked the confirm button, immediately said, "Why did I buy this hat?" I think I conned myself into thinking someone else was gonna snatch it up and I had better act quickly. It's a nice enough hat, but not one I need. It's funny how your mind can play games with you.

 

[SteveAS]

I won this one tonight: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200644969188&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123

I'm pretty excited about it, whether or not it's actually vintage, at that price. I'll post up what more info I can find about it when it gets here.

I'd guess it's from no later than the 1970s. I have two Churchills (a Twenty-five and a Fifty) and they're both very nice hats, as you'd expect from hats sold by Neiman Marcus. I think you got a great buy on that hat, particularly for its size.

 

[T Rick]

Surprised no mention of this one (a two-fer!) yet here. Also surprised (and glad!) you guys didn't fight me a bit harder for it. Ended 4 days ago, arrived from FL today.

I agonized over this pair, as I really wanted them, but quite out of character for me (I normally don't want anything that will need to be worked on, or will not be 100% original when it's finished). The Stratoliner is quite dirty, and needs a ribbon. The Open Road looked much better, but still dirty (at least it was complete!). But one thing kept drawing me back to the auction, again and again.... I didn't decide to bid until just at the end, maybe 2 hours before auction close.

Both were listed as size 7 1/4, not even my size. But I reasoned a felt sizing strip (picked some up at Henry The Hatter's about a month ago) here or there would take up the little slack if needed (if they'd not already shrunk to my 7 1/8 size, or if the sweat wouldn't conform as my Akubras did).

Well, I was delighted to find that the Stratoliner was in fact a 7 1/8, clearly tagged, and it fits fine. The OR is not that bad, and the aforementioned felt strip will be the most needed for a good fit.

Dirty hat pics warning- these are "before" shots, the "after" shots won't be available for some time.

I really like the bash on the Strat. Pity it will be lost in the cleaning and blocking process, but I can probably reproduce it fairly closely.

Like I said, pretty dirty. The above pic shows some of the typical "blotching" that I hope will come out. Below shows a wee bit of moth damage, the only spot on this hat (and only one on any that I own so far!). It's on the underside of the brim, and if the felt comes clean, I can live with this little nibble.

Commonly stained liner, and size tag I was pleasantly surprised to see...

Sweatband in not too bad of condition...

Above, another ugly liner shot, below, another shot of the blotchy felt...

With the Strat needing a ribbon, I could only think of ONE place to send it off for rejuvination. A quick phone call found the Master, Art Fawcett, available to talk on the phone for a few, where he outlined his restoration procedures to me. The hat will be deconstructed, cleaned (no guaranty the spots will come out though) and rebuilt with original components. A new (vintage I believe) ribbon will be installed to match the original as close as possible.

This hat was a gamble, but if it comes out as well as I think it might, it will have been a gamble well worth it.

Part 2 of the post coming in a moment (running into the image limit shortly).

 

[T Rick]

Part II, The Open Road;

Well, like I said, something kept drawing me back to that auction. What color was that OR anyway? Going back time and again, I wondered, was I seeing what I wanted to see, or what I really thought? Looking at the auction pics on what appear to be an American Flag, I decided the color nearly MUST be what I was thinking... a Green Open Road! I've wanted one since first saw one in pics from a few other Members, and have seen very few (maybe one or two) since I've been locked into eBay's hat section for the past several months. Didn't think I'd really get the chance. Could it be? Was this to be my Green OR?

I wasn't completely sure until I excitedly opened the box today (didn't expect it to come for about another week or so). This one is for sure, a hard color to capture. But it IS, for sure, most decidedly Green.

Like I said, hard to capture. A lot like Akubra's Bluegrass Green is hard to capture. This one is a bit "browner" than the Akubra, but still unquestionably Green.

Out in the sunlight, looking for a bit better representation of the color. Still not there.

Here, you can see the green in the strap on my wristwatch, but the green of the hat still evades true representation.

The sweatband on this one is pristine. If I didn't know better, I'd think it's been replaced. It has not.

More ugly liner, oxidized reed ends and again, that beautiful sweatband (I'm thinking ol' HHS may have preferred the Stratoliner to this Open Road, and worn it much more...).

Looking forward to putting up some "after" shots of both of these (this OR is also a bit 'blotchy" here and there, though nowhere near as bad as the Strat, it will also require cleaning- it may also go to Art, or I may do it myself or try one of several other Hatter's or Services). Time will tell.

 

[bowlerman]

I won this one tonight: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200644969188&ssPageName=ADME:B:EOIBSA:US:1123

I'm pretty excited about it, whether or not it's actually vintage, at that price. I'll post up what more info I can find about it when it gets here.

Looks sharp-- nice find.

 

[DJH]

Surprised no mention of this one (a two-fer!) yet here. Also surprised (and glad!) you guys didn't fight me a bit harder for it. Ended 4 days ago, arrived from FL today.

Looking forward to seeing your results, T Rick.

 

[bowlerman]

I bought this L&T branded derby to add to my small collection of early 20th century NYC department store hats.

As Erik Satie once said, one can't have too many black bowlers, n'est-ce pas?

Looks like a great one, Alan! Now you've got to grow the iconic long goathee and grab a pair of vintage specs!

 

[alanfgag]

This doesn't cut it

Randooch had this one right on the money... this Borso was never worn because the brim was too wide, so someone fixed it good, but not well. I don't mind the 1 3/4" brim length, but it is going to take some heavy work with sandpaper to deal with the lumpy trim job. Liner protector is oil cloth, not tissue paper.

 

[zetwal]

Randooch had this one right on the money... this Borso was never worn because the brim was too wide, so someone fixed it good, but not well. I don't mind the 1 3/4" brim length, but it is going to take some heavy work with sandpaper to deal with the lumpy trim job.

That was my suspicion as well. No big deal. You win some and you lose some ...