J. Robert Oppenheimer Fedora

[Mr E Train]

.... gave it a temporary re-bash and it went for the Oppie look like it was made for it!! I'd say get a Bushman and crease as Oppenheimer did his, wear it in EVERY rainstorm you can, let the brim dry sort of wonky and voila, an "Oppie" Robert would be proud of IMHO

I would like to see a picture of that!

 

[monbla256]

When my friend with a digital camera comes over next I'll re crease it again and get him to take a pic for ya! My older Bushman is VERY soft and I can fiddle with it as I want, just that the dirt and such shows the center dent / front pinch crease it's been in for all these years I just thought I'd give it a try !!

 

[ScottF]

I was high bidder on this for a while, but given it's unlikely that he ever wore it (I've never seen him pictured in anything other than his ragged-bash Stetson western), I bowed out. On the other hand, Oppie wore a 6 7/8, which would translate into a 7 in a non-porkpie bash. They did in fact confirm that it's a 7. Also, you can tell that the auction house re-bashed it, so perhaps it had more of an Oppenheimer bash previously and he wore it to special occasions...but I doubt it. In my opinion, more likely that he signed someone else's hat and they eventually gave it away.

http://historical.ha.com/c/item.zx?saleNo=6066&lotNo=38323

 

[ScottF]

Or is it a gambler, or planter? At any rate, I've always liked Oppenheimer's crazy thin-ribboned, messy, hand-creased hats. And I found a video of him wearing one, a reenactment of a Manhattan Project scene:

I've tried to recreate these with a Campdraft, but it's hard to get the same look with a hat that has the amount of stiffener in the brim as the Akubras do.

Great video - thanks. I feel very confident that Oppenheimer wore a Stetson dress western, similar to this early '50s San Fran model. Mine's nutria but his could have been 3X or other. If you saw an 'above' shot of my hat, you'd see that it is bashed exactly like Oppenheimer's.

 

[monbla256]

Or is it a gambler, or planter? At any rate, I've always liked Oppenheimer's crazy thin-ribboned, messy, hand-creased hats. And I found a video of him wearing one, a reenactment of a Manhattan Project scene:

I've tried to recreate these with a Campdraft, but it's hard to get the same look with a hat that has the amount of stiffener in the brim as the Akubras do.

I think you would need a wider brimmed hat than a CD to get that look, more along the lines of a Bushman with it's 3 1/4" brim if you want to use an Akubra to replicate it. As for "stiffener" in an Akubra's brim, I've not had ANY problem with ANY of mine in getting the brim shaped as I want it with liberal doses of steam and rain. Plus you are looking at a hat ( his) that was probably worn in ALL sorts of weather and for quite some time, so that it took on a shape of it's own that he lived with. All the pics of it taken at various times show a brim generally shaped the same but with various different "bends" in it that appear to have happened as it was worn. And I would imagine he wore a Stetson or Resistol western hat recreased his way back then. They were made with alot less stiffener than today's westerns and I'm sure this added to it's variability in shape as worn.

 

[ingineer]

This hat is on my bucket list.
Therefore i have a request to Mike at Northwest to have one made in beaver.
bound brim, contrasting ribbon, don't want an exact copy, maybe something he would have made if alive.
He responded very quickly , next will be pricing
Always the question comes back on crown height. 5 1/2 open?
Any suggestions?
I know i need 3 1/2 brim at least, does the bigger brim mean less crown limited by the felt
Any one else that should be my Huckleberry?

 

[carldelo]

As one ingineer to another, congrats on the upcoming Oppy lid. Many don't realize that Oppenheimer started out as an engineer, and was subject to occasional condescension from physicists, especially Teller.

I've always thought that the Stetson Gun Club Dune would make a good Oppenheimer. It has a 3-1/4" brim and a nice narrow, two-ply ribbon. A friend had one in high school and after - he wore it continuously and the brim came to resemble Oppy's. He never mashed down the crown, but there was plenty of it, so I think it might work well as a starting point.
http://www.sterlingleather.com/stetsonhats-7060-sf0416dune.html

 

[ingineer]

Carldelo;
Yes i've considered the Dune in its own right, Delmonico has it in silverbelly.
However bunny to bunny the cost is almost the same from a custom hatter.
i also have an Aussie Gold Akubra on the way.
Photobucket is not working so here is the dropbox link
https://www.dropbox.com/s/b646ywg97i6s1sj/AussieGold.jpg?dl=0

oh here we go

 

[Benzadmiral]

RE: the wide brim, Oppenheimer spent a lot of his youth in the northern New Mexico area, which (I understand) led to his selection of Los Alamos for the Manhattan Project. He'd have learned early that you need a wide brim for shade from the high desert sun.

 

[alanfgag]

A photo of Oppenheimer's hat credited to the cover of the first issue of Physics Today (1948)

the shallow telescope crease is typical of what can be done with a standard crown (5 1/2"). More crown allows a deeper telescope such as in this 5X Clear Beaver Quality, c.1940

 

[ingineer]

Alan;
Thank you the CB is perfect.
So i should ask for 6 inches open crown?
Hope you enjoyed the CME , 40 meters was blacked out a couple days ago.
Regards

 

[alanfgag]

With six inches or more you can make a fine telescope crease.

Alas, I haven't observed the sun since last fall. I hope to correct that shortage shortly.

:yo:

 

[ChrisB]

I work in a physics lab, it is not unusual for physicists to have an engineering background (usually electrical), and vice versa. One of my best engineering professors was a former particle physicist.

 

[ingineer]

Alan;
Thanks for the education. Much appreciated.
e-mailed Mike and he is going to make at 6 inches.
He said he might have some three cord ribbon to go with it.
What a pleasure to work with him.

 

[alanfgag]

Look forward to seeing it Richard.

 

[ingineer]

Mike at NW says he is almost finished with Oppys hat and is asking whether it should be flanged like western or like a fedora.
I'm seeking some advice Please
cause i don't know

 

[T Jones]

Mike at NW says he is almost finished with Oppys hat and is asking whether it should be flanged like western or like a fedora.
I'm seeking some advice Please
cause i don't know

If you want it to look like Oppenheimer's hat maybe you should have the brim ironed flat, (with a little stiffener added for shaping), instead. That way you can work the brim to look like Oppy's. The brim on his hat was pretty boogered up with no discernible flanging to it...

 

[LuvMyMan]

A photo of Oppenheimer's hat credited to the cover of the first issue of Physics Today (1948)

the shallow telescope crease is typical of what can be done with a standard crown (5 1/2"). More crown allows a deeper telescope such as in this 5X Clear Beaver Quality, c.1940

WOW! Can you make that in a 7 1/2 LO ? HA!

 

[T Jones]

My early '50s Stetson Nutria looked like the Oppenheimer hat before it was converted to a fedora, ( a gift from John Galt)....

Before

After

 

[Fed in a Fedora]

It looks a lot like my silverbelly Campdraft from its initial shaping process. The brim on Oppenheimer's hat is a bit wider and the ribbon would need changing, but it is pretty close.

As to shaping the brim, the back of his hat does seem to have some vestige of flanging. His hat did not get that look overnight. The front has lost its shape, while the back tells the tale in my view.

Fed