First Hat?

[gtdean48]

Buying vintage is a discovery process as well. I have vintage hats from 7 1/2 Long Oval to 7 5/8 Long Oval that all fit. Some hats that have sat for periods of time seem to get tighter (never had one that seemed larger). Finding a Hat Jack when buying vintage is a good idea, IMHO. These folks have it for a decent price & Harbor Freight has a similiar product very cheap..
http://www.drysdales.com/Hats/Hat-Accessories/detail-32-Medium-Fit-Hat-Jackreg.html
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=42210

 

[Gilgamark]

I believe someone else said it, but before you buy a hat on eBay or elsewhere, ask the seller for the inside circumference. Going by size is dicey. Know your head size in inches and cms. That's your best bet.

 

[Spats McGee]

I have a couple of wool felts & crushables that I like just fine. I kind of hate to knock your first hat choice, but it does seem like you could do better than the one you picked. Maybe it's just the picture that they chose for the website, but the hat you picked just doesn't scream "quality" to me. My wife and I both went through grad school, so I'm well aware of the restrictions of a grad school budget. But I think that you can do better than that hat at that price.

When I first started buying hats, one of the first things I bought was a $25 Burlington Coat Factory wool felt (size XL). A year and a half down the road, I still wear it from time to time. I like that hat just fine, but let there be no doubt: it just isn't the same as one of my fur felts.

I don't really keep track of ebay, but if I remember correctly, it seems to have lots of hats in your size and you could probably pick up a good vintage lid for around the same price, if you've got a little patience. Also keep an eye on the Classifieds here at the Lounge. Some great bargains pass through there.

 

[Dewhurst]

Actually, knowing your hat size is very important, even for sizes like S, M, L, XL, etc.

These "generalized" sizes are usually a real hat size, they are just spread out more by skipping every other 1/8th or even every third 1/8th. This is very often the case on cheaper hats, but even some truly decent hats will do this occasionally. The trick is to find out what the L means to that manufacturer. E.g., I have a Bailey in Large (L), and it is definitely a 7 3/8. But I also have a Stefano in Large, and it is definitely a 7 1/4 (my usual hat size). The Stefano is easily 2-4 times (objectively ) nicer than the Bailey, but it was only available in S, M, L, etc.

Also, I can't agree with the people above who said to skip wool altogether. I feel that I am able to appreciate my nice hats from Biltmore, Borsalino, Stetson, etc., due to my initial experience with wool hats, both nice (Dobbs) and no good (Ron Chereskin Signature Collection!).

Oh yah, be careful with size charts. They don't all agree, sometimes differing by entire sizes.