Info on ebay Borsalino I won for $20.50?

[hsitz]

I just won an ebay auction for what appears to be a beautiful brown Borsalino hat. Can anyone give me more info on it, e.g., probable vintage? Thanks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140149751858

 

[Bantam Man]

Hi hsitz,

Yes, it is rather old, judging on for instance the type of liner and the label in the crown.

However, the rule of thumb to date a Borsalino by taking the first two digits of the second number puts you for a question. There's only one number, and the first two digits are 1 and 8, if I am right. Would it be that old!?

Anyhow, you are a lucky fellow. The label in the crown reads "qualita extra extra superiore". And that translates to: great great great felt.

Bantam Man

 

[Dinerman]

Nope, the serial number only works that way for newer ones.
Yours probably is from the '40s or '50s. They're a bit harder to date. Lots of liner logos and styles.
Borsalinos are great hats. Absolutely great hats. I don't think you'll be dissapointed.

 

[bolthead]

I just won an ebay auction for what appears to be a beautiful brown Borsalino hat. Can anyone give me more info on it, e.g., probable vintage? Thanks.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=140149751858

I'll have you know.....you just stold hat right from under my feet dude. I was the last bidder.

.....or should I say, 2nd to last bidder.

Can I ask, what he charged for S&H? He never really said in his auction.

 

[Solid Citizen]

Borsalino

IMO just from the auction photos looks like a 1950's era lid!

Solid Citizen

 

[hsitz]

Thanks for the info guys. I was hoping it was not a recent vintage hat but had no idea myself. I'm new to the world of hats. I've always admired fedoras but just recently decided I'm going to take the plunge and try wearing them myself.

In an interesting aside, I took up saxophone playing last year as a middle-aged musical know nothing. I started out with the standard Yamaha student saxophone but quickly discovered the world of vintage saxes. Now I have a few, dated from 1929 to 1946. Apart from the fact that they're less expensive than newer professional level horns, the vintage saxes are beautifully constructed and have a tone that you can't get anymore. Somewhat analogous to vintage hats.

Another thing about vintage saxes that I expect will be the same with vintage hats: It's a rich experience just to hold them in your hands and realize that they were constructed 50, 60, 70 years ago. I have fun imagining their history.

bolthead: What can I say? Sorry man. If I have any problems with fitting or ever want to sell the hat for any reason, I'll look you up. Oh, and the seller wants $9.50 for shipping. Tiny bit high but I won't complain. Cheers.

 

[bolthead]

bolthead: What can I say? Sorry man. If I have any problems with fitting or ever want to sell the hat for any reason, I'll look you up. Oh, and the seller wants $9.50 for shipping. Tiny bit high but I won't complain. Cheers.

I'm gonna hold you to that my friend.

....also, that's about average for S&H on ebay these days, you did very well.

 

[AlanC]

Nice find.

Sometimes you have to wonder about the bashes some of those hats have.

 

[feltfan]

I have one Borsalino marked "Extra Extra Superiore" like yours.
It truly is. You will, or should be, astounded by the light,
soft, fine felt. Assuming it's like mine, you should have one
of the finest felts ever made. Enjoy.

 

[RokkerMan]

wish i could find one in my size!

 

[Dinerman]

Oh, and the seller wants $9.50 for shipping. Tiny bit high but I won't complain.

That's really not all that bad for shipping. It costs more than you'd think. I get annoyed when people charge over 12. Then ther are the folks who charge 20 something. Don't know how they can get away with that.

 

[AlanC]

No, you can't complain about anything in the neighborhood of $10 I don't think. It does cost more than you'd think, and they do have to pack it and (usually) take it to the post office. As a sometimes seller (although not usually of hats) I'm often surprised myself when I get to the post office at the shipping charge (yeah, I should get a postal scale).

 

[The Wingnut]

Makes me wish my brainpan was a few sizes smaller so I could pick off all of these screamin' deals on tiny hats! Great score! I'd estimate it somewhere in the late '40s to early '50s, as well. You can't beat the price, that's for sure.

 

[Tony in Tarzana]

Not sure it is tiny, though. Looks like it was first sold in Italy, so the size on the tag might be the old French sizing wherein 6-1/2 translates to an American 7-3/8.

The pic is too fuzzy for me to be sure, though.

 

[ideaguy]

welcome to the lounge! I've been looking for a decent alto for the longest
time-all I can find is waaay overpriced not-so-vintage horns with pads held
on with band-aids. Neat to hear of your scores on saxes! Now if there was
a soprano hanging around without a home...let me know?
I think you grabbed a winner with that $20.50 bid on the Borsalino...
great hats, and your's is an older one, translates to better quality, softer
felt, nicer color (!) and if it was made so that the size is yours-oh, boy;
what I didn't see right in front of my nose, as usual...I think you'll find
that once you wear one-felt cleaned and softened-you might think twice
about buying any other kind of hat. Still my favorite, and I've got a few hats
now...if it's too big for you, why write me and we'll maybe play a tune we both
can enjoy-but put me in line in the proper spot, of course.
Congrats, and PM me when you can about your saxes-would like to know the
brands, see some photos...

 

[deanglen]

Nice find.

Sometimes you have to wonder about the bashes some of those hats have.

I'd call that one 'bashing-by-the-seat-of-your-pants'.

dean

 

[hsitz]

I've been looking for a decent alto for the longest
time-all I can find is waaay overpriced not-so-vintage horns with pads held
on with band-aids. . . . PM me when you can about your saxes-would like to know the brands, see some photos...

Well, I've got to get up to 15 somehow, so I'll just post it:

If you aren't aware of it already, go to the SaxOnTheWeb forums. It's a high traffic discussion forum where a lot of the guys are into vintage saxes. I've got three vintage altos. Bueschers, Conns, Martins, or Kings are probably the vintage altos you'd want to look at. I would tend to stay away from ebay, too dangerous. There are a number of honest, reliable, talented vendors out there that do good rebuilds or tuneups before selling horns:
http://www.vintagesax.com
http://www.worldwidesax.com
http://www.junkdude.com (don't be put off by the name)

You should be able to get a great alto for $1k or less.

Take a look at this late 1920's Buescher True Tone that was restored by a fellow who frequents the SaxOnTheWeb website. He sold it to me for $900:

http://forum.saxontheweb.net/showthread.php?t=53992

The classifieds on saxontheweb are also good place to get deals:
http://forum.saxontheweb.net/forumdisplay.php?f=160

Buying a vintage sax is probably quite a bit more dangerous than buying a vintage hat. First, saxes are quite a bit more expensive. Second, it's really hard to tell from looking at pictures of saxes whether they play well or not. You have to put a huge amount of trust in the seller, which makes ebay very dangerous.

ideaguy, if you want more info you can email me at hsitz at nwlink dot com . If I were you I'd go to saxontheweb and let some of the experienced guys help you along. There are also decent new horns available for well under $1k.

 

[hsitz]

I'd call that one 'bashing-by-the-seat-of-your-pants'.

dean

I was wondering about the bash on this hat. Is it an example of some standard old-fashioned-style bash? Or is it more likely a unique bash that someone put in just to be a little different? I wonder whether bashes are the kind of thing that can look okay so long as you think they do, wear with confidence. Seems like a lot of fashion is that way. Set the trends. . .

 

[deanglen]

Honestly, I think someone inadvertantly popped up the middle of a center dent and didn't bother to re-bash it when they took the pictures. Probably when they were trying to get a clear shot at the Borsalino stamp on the underside of the crown.

dean

 

[hsitz]

dean -- Yes, that's a third option I was wondering about. Seems a bit strange that someone would be that careless in doing the pictures, but possible. Then again, the pushup in the center bash looks pretty symmetrical with rest of hat. . .

In any case, I'm hoping I'll be able to just push down the top to create a typical center bash.