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

[AlanC]

As I know some of you can't resist cruising ebay for hats, I thought an ongoing thread where we can brag about a great deal, complain about skyrocketing prices or pointing out a rarity that was, sadly, not in your size but might be of interest to others

**Fedora Lounge policy now permits the linking of active ebay auctions.**

I'll kick things off with this lovely Smith's store label brown open crown that I was just outbid on:

The same seller had this Lee Adventure:

And this Stetson Flagship:

What have you seen lately?

 

[jimmy the lid]

My Easter Bonnet...

Picked this up on the 'Bay yesterday -- a Stetson 3X...

Cheers,
JtL

 

[Colby Jack]

As I know some of you can't resist cruising ebay for hats, I thought an ongoing thread where we can brag about a great deal, complain about skyrocketing prices or pointing out a rarity that was, sadly, not in your size but might be of interest to others

**As per Fedora Lounge policy no active auctions may be linked. Completed auctions only!!**

I'll kick things off with this lovely Smith's store label brown open crown that I was just outbid on:

The same seller had this Lee Adventure:

And this Stetson Flagship:

What have you seen lately?

Alan...what size were those beauty's in?

 

[AlanC]

^All three were 7 3/8s, just my size.

Picked this up on the 'Bay yesterday -- a Stetson 3X...

You were the winner of that one. I watched it, but didn't even bother bidding. I look forward to seeing it with the patented JTL c-crown. Congratulations!

 

[Colby Jack]

Those Strats are beautiful...I think the only way I'll ever get a "Strat"...is to have Art make me one. Alan...I am so glad they weren't my size....

 

[Bull Moose]

More ebay rantings

I shouldn't be complaining, but here I am. Being a cheap SOB, I watch for mis-worded, and poorly listed auctions. Apparently, in addition to these rather ill-informed sellers, they are not too handy with a tape measure either.

You see, my head is 23" in circumference. Not 22 1/2", not 22", not 24", its 23". Its not that hard to measure. When I see one of these poorly listed auctions for a nice hat, I have to always ask questions to be sure I am getting something that will fit me. Why would I buy a hat that would not fit me? Would you buy shoes 2 sizes too small? Even if they were on sale? Of course not!

I ask specific, to the point questions:
"What is the inner circumference of the sweatband?"
"What is the brim length?"
"What is the ribbon heigth?", etc

I get answers like:
"The hat is 22 and 5 lines wide"
The hat is 22 and 5/6 inches in circumference"
"The hat is about 23 inches long"
"the brim is about 2 inches "

Well, I should have asked for clarification, but in my eagerness to win the hat, and not tip off the seller they may have a better hat, and to prevent them from changing the listing, and letting others bidders beat me out of a hat I spend a lot of time and trouble finding, I decide make a decision and bid and take my chances.

Well, when it is all said and done, I have a couple nice hats, but none in my size.:eusa_doh: None measure close to what they say. One said the brim was 2 inches, and it is clearly 1 7/8. Even the hat that is a true 7 3/8 fits tight.

And another thing, apparently in addition to these sellers having no sense of style, wording, limited skills with a measuring tape, no sense to turn on the flash on their cameras, they have no sense of smell. I got a hat that smells like roadkill. Seriously. The poor hat has been banished from the house by the 'powers that be' because it was stinking up the place.

I think I am done with ebay for a while. Rant off.

 

[jimmy the lid]

You were the winner of that one. I watched it, but didn't even bother bidding. I look forward to seeing it with the patented JTL c-crown. Congratulations!

Thanks, Alan. Now, what gives you the impression that there is a c-crown in that lid's future?...

Well, I should have asked for clarification, but in my eagerness to win the hat, and not tip off the seller they may have a better hat, and to prevent them from changing the listing, and letting others bidders beat me out of a hat I spend a lot of time and trouble finding, I decide make a decision and bid and take my chances.

I know what you're saying here, Bull Moose. But two things I'm not shy about on the 'Bay are pinning down measurements as precisely as possible and asking precise questions about the condition of the hat. Do you run some risk that asking such questions may flag the hat for others? Yeah, maybe. But I'd rather risk that than wind up with a lid that has been badly misrepresented and then have to deal with all of the follow-up hassle.

Often, just from the item description, you can get a feel for whether the Seller knows anything about hats. Sometimes, I just go ahead and include a suggested method for how to measure brim width, etc. in my initial question, which winds up saving a lot of time. As far as measurements of inner circumference, I only use those measurements as very rough guides to more or less confirm the size of the hat as reflected in the size tag. I think that, even with the best of intentions, that's just a tricky measurement for a lot of folks to get right with any degree of precision.


Cheers,
JtL

 

[Feraud]

I was ready to bid on this one too, but it went just a tad too high for the level of my wife's tolerance of this new hobby.

Kind of off topic of this thread but what is the hat in your avatar?

 

[Tango Yankee]

I tried for this one, only because it 'said' it had the original pin attached.

I don't know whether or not it was the original pin, but this seller has sold a number of very nice hats and has seemed to be knowledgeable in the past. I believe her husband is (or was) a member here in the Lounge.

Cheers,
Tom

 

[PhilS]

ohn B. Stetson Company 3x Beaver Stetson Crafted Edge

Kind of off topic of this thread but what is the hat in your avatar?

It's a very nice hat, but I am going to sell it when I get around to it -- the ultimate taste arbiter, my 10 year old daughter, says the crown it too tall and the brim too small for my head shape.

 

[ideaguy]

Mr. Lucky....watta name for a score like that. Looks like it'll clean up well
and be one killer hat. Didn't see it. Glad of that, happy to see you hit the
bell after too many misses... Would you take some before & after photos?
It'd be great to see just what can be done to a good Panama, and sure would teach me a few things.
Congrats!:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[bolthead]

It's a very nice hat, but I am going to sell it when I get around to it -- the ultimate taste arbiter, my 10 year old daughter, says the crown it too tall and the brim too small for my head shape.

What size is it?

 

[Brad Bowers]

John B. Stetson Company 3x Beaver Stetson Crafted Edge

And as I go even more off topic...Tell me about the Crafted Edge. If it's a Cavanagh Edge, I'll have to add that to my list of names. Do you have an approximate date on this hat?

Thanks,

Brad

 

[bolthead]

Ok guys, here's a question for you all. When you're searching for your little gems, where exactly ARE you searching? The 2 main searches that I see are as followed: 1. All Items Category: Vintage Accessories > Men's Hats and 2. All Items Category: Hats > Bucket, Fedora. I've also had some luck just searching: Vintage Fedora. Do any of you try any other searches other than these? [huh]

 

[PhilS]

7 3/8

What size is it?

It is marked 7 3/8, and true to size. My head is 23", just measured for Mr. Fawcett.

 

[airforceindy]

Had my eyes on a decent looking Stevens last night; could've passed for a Strat. Carouselvic beat me to the punch

Regards, Andy

 

[PhilS]

I don't know enough to say whether Cavanagh...

And as I go even more off topic...Tell me about the Crafted Edge. If it's a Cavanagh Edge, I'll have to add that to my list of names. Do you have an approximate date on this hat?

Thanks,

Brad

But it doesn't look like it to my untrained eye. I read your informative sticky a couple of times, but haven't seen enough hats to judge the type of edge. The edge is on the upper side of the brim, not the lower, as in your photo. No stitching is apparent, but I don't have a loupe at home to give it a closer look. I could try to take some pictures if this information doesn't disqualify it from consideration.

The hat came in a Stetson centennial box (1865-1965), but the box may not be matched to the hat. Mid to late 60s seems a reasonable date for the style. The felt is quite solid and pleasing to the touch.

 

[PhilS]

My daily searches:

Ok guys, here's a question for you all. When you're searching for your little gems, where exactly ARE you searching? The 2 main searches that I see are as followed: 1. All Items Category: Vintage Accessories > Men's Hats and 2. All Items Category: Hats > Bucket, Fedora. I've also had some luck just searching: Vintage Fedora. Do any of you try any other searches other than these? [huh]

Vintage Stetson
Vintage Hat New Listings
Vintage 7 3/8 hat
Vintage 59 hat
Stetson Stratoliner

 

[AlanC]

I've been wanting one of these for quite some time. It looks as though these pics were takin outside so I'm hoping that this is true to color...it's why I chose it. I kinda took a gamble on the "Extra Long Oval", we'll see what happens. [huh] http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=170203020073&ssPageName=STRK:MEWN:IT&ih=007

Interesting, another airplane related hat--the '737'.

 

[tonyb]

Oh Jones, that's just so, so sad. Both tales, really. I'd be more than a bit disappointed were I mixed up in any of that. Heck, I'm disappointed just to hear about it. That Borsalino looked to be a real find. And how could someone think for a minute that a 6 7/8 is even remotely close to a 7 1/2?