Knox Premier

[Mario]

Jimmy, that's one amazing, simply stunning hat. I feel the urgent need to assemble and arrange the images in Photoshop and then print it out as a poster! Eh...did I say poster? Well, no, that's wrong. What I meant to say, is, of course, a billboard!

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[carouselvic]

Jimmy, last night I dreamed that you also got matching braces and sleeve garters just like your ribbon treatment.:eusa_doh:

 

[OddSteve]

Jimmy, that's one amazing, simply stunning hat. I feel the urgent need to assemble and arrange the images in Photoshop and then print it out as a poster! Eh...did I say poster? Well, no, that's wrong. What I meant to say, is, of course, a billboard!

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

Admit it, what you really meant to say was pin-up

 

[Mario]

Admit it, what you really meant to say was pin-up

All right then, I fess up...

 

[jimmy the lid]

Jimmy, last night I dreamed that you also got matching braces and sleeve garters just like your ribbon treatment.:eusa_doh:

Ouch! I trust that banjos and pizza were not involved...

Cheers,
JtL

 

[jimmy the lid]

Wow, what a fantastic hat, JtL!

Okay, here's my thinking on the age of the hat...

Thanks, Brad! And thanks for weighing in on the dating issue. I had pictured this one as dating from the late 30's/early 40's timeframe -- and, from the info you have provided, that seems to be pretty much on target.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[jimmy the lid]

About the cleaning; Optimo is THE place for vintage TLC but I've read that Graham is almost always real keen to strip hats of their trimmings and do complete refurbs, including replacing sweatband leather. I'm sure you're planning to discuss details with him but I thought I'd bring that up since you might not want this hat to really be rebuilt that much even if it is his M.O., y'know?

Just to be clear, the ONLY thing I have in mind for the Knox would be a clean and block -- no refurb! It is in beautiful condition -- but a cleaning might help freshen things up a bit.

As far as Optimo goes, I've had several hats cleaned and blocked there, and have generally been very pleased with the results. The only two that I haven't been completely happy with were extremely light-colored lids, and some traces of dirt remained. That being said, I'm probably the only guy in the universe that would even notice this, and they certainly came back in better condition than before the cleaning. I think I may have had the unrealistic expectation that a cleaning could always remove ALL dirt in ALL cases. [huh]

I have only ever had one vintage hat that had to have a sweat replaced as part of the "clean and block" process -- a more recent vintage Borso (the cream-colored one), which had shrunk down over time and needed to be brought back up to its original size. That meant having to remove the sweat, since it was stitched directly to the felt. This was A-OK with me, since this is a hat I want to WEAR. The one disappointment is that Optimo did not return the original sweat. Luckily, I had photographed the lid before I sent it over, so I still have a record of what the sweat looked like. My advice on sending hats to Optimo is to include a letter with very specific instructions, and also ask Graham to give you a call if he feels that anything different needs to be done, or if they won't be able to do things exactly as you have specified. You should also specify that they should return any original components that have to be replaced (after you have given them the go-ahead). Optimo has certainly done a great job of rejuvenating the hats I have sent over there (including a couple of green Whippets! ).

Turning back to the Knox... I'm going to have to do some more thinking about what to do... Brushing (and some steam) went a long way to clean it up from years of storage, and, if you were to see the hat live and in person, it probably wouldn't occur to you that it needed cleaning. Hmmm... I may be convincing myself to just leave it alone, even as I'm typing this... There is always a trade-off between getting them cleaned and risking something going wrong with the original components. I would truly regret it if something like that happened with this one...

Cheers,
JtL

 

[jimmy the lid]

It is interesting, that there are not too many hats of that particular kind around. What were they in the in their times? Mainstream? Fancy? Special fashion exrtavagances? Who were the intended clients? Certinly not the average Kevin (British colateral for Joe ), as opposed to a contemporary Jimmy

Like you, Dreispitz, I would be curious to know how common this kind of ribbon treatment might have been back in the day. It is certainly true that it seems to be extremely rare in terms of what has survived to be fished from the 'Bay...

I have been combing through vintage ads to try to get a sense of this. While stripes on ribbons can certainly be seen on vintage felt lids, I have yet to see any ads with this particular kind of ribbon (or the kind of ribbon on my green Playboy). As a general matter, it seems that striped ribbons were more common on straws, and they certainly seem to connote a casual, "summery" look. Based on the auction photos of the Knox, I wondered whether the stripes on the ribbon would be limiting, in terms of the versatility of a felt hat. But, in this case, I think it actually serves as a very classy accent, and could be worn in a variety of seasons and settings -- although that's not something I would have originally predicted.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[DanielJones]

Jimmy, you have to be the luckiest dog on the porch. To find a beautiful hat like that one in that size. Great find, and I dig on the color. :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

Cheers!

Dan

 

[Lefty]

These are the only striped ribbons I've seen in any Knox ads, though they're clearly not the same hat. Knox doesn't seem to have advertised the difference in quality. Rather, they just advertised a model, color, or finish, and stated that other Knox hats were available from $x to $y.

Here's a striped ribbon on a '44 Foxhound - a model for which I seem to have far more ads than any other.

In this 1950 ad, the Pinehurst has a striped ribbon.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Thanks for that info, Lefty.

I decided not to risk anything happening to this lid, so I'm not going to send it out for a clean and block. Given the hat's age, I want to be particularly careful about not having anything happen to the stitching on the sweat.

So, time for the teardrop...

Cheers,
JtL

 

[gtdean48]

Thanks for that info, Lefty.

I decided not to risk anything happening to this lid, so I'm not going to send it out for a clean and block. Given the hat's age, I want to be particularly careful about not having anything happen to the stitching on the sweat.

So, time for the teardrop...

Cheers,
JtL

Love that RIBBON! Sweet BINDING, too! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[RBH]

Here are ads I found on the Knox Preimer, the first from 1930 the last one I found was from 1947.
The price was $10.00 on both of them.

 

[babs]

Ah! You're the rascal that won that hat! hehehe.. I was watching that hat.. I can't find the auction now, must have deleted it, but I might have even been a bidder on it. Found it.. I remember now.. I cried when the bidding got into the hundreds. Too rich for the newb.

Glad it found a home where it can be truly appreciated for it's pedigree.. I simply wanted it because it's dadgum gorgeous! hehe

Great win there.

Wouldn't you have loved to acquire that beauty for 10 smackers. But then again, when this hat was made, a 10 spot would be a week's wages to a lot of folks.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Once again, thanks, guys (Mario, Dan, Bill, babs).

Rusty -- thanks for posting those ads. Very interesting that the Knox Premier went for $10 in 1930. I guess, from a pricing standpoint, that doesn't rule out the 30's for this lid. The lines of the blocking also seem consistent with ads I've seen from the mid to late 30's -- so Brad could be right on about all of that.

I agree, babs -- $10 in 1930 was certainly nothing to sneeze at!

Cheers,
JtL

 

[carouselvic]

I decided not to risk anything happening to this lid, so I'm not going to send it out for a clean and block. Given the hat's age, I want to be particularly careful about not having anything happen to the stitching on the sweat.
JtL

A wise choice Grasshopper. TLH

 

[Dreispitz]

Premier arrived!!!

Today, I picked up the Knox Premier, I recently fetched on the bay. Pictures will be posted later. What I can say for the time being, is: it arrived in virgin, unworn state, is unreeded, and .....

.....the sweatband is taped, as opposed to be stitched together! So, we are well talking of a 1920ies specimen.

 

[Dreispitz]

Here we go!







The marvelous brownish grayish tone is hard to catch with the camera. Note the different colour scheme of the hat band and the brim binding.

It is actually the thinnest felt, I own, so far. Thinner than my xxx Imperial Stetson Bantam! A simply mindblowing hat, I have not had the chance to come across, before.

 

[carouselvic]

Today, I picked up the Knox Premier, I recently fetched on the bay. Pictures will be posted later. What I can say for the time being, is: it arrived in virgin, unworn state, is unreeded, and .....

.....the sweatband is taped, as opposed to be stitched together! So, we are well talking of a 1920ies specimen.

The US Patent Office gives a first use for for the ovalized sixteenths as Feb. 1933,nice hat!

 

[mayserwegener]

The marvelous brownish grayish tone is hard to catch with the camera. Note the different colour scheme of the hat band and the brim binding.

It is actually the thinnest felt, I own, so far. Thinner than my xxx Imperial Stetson Bantam! A simply mindblowing hat, I have not had the chance to come across, before.

Super find! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap The felt looks like it has a heather like quality (might be the photo). What does the bow look like?