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Lock & Co.

Messages
19,001
Location
Central California
Thanks everybody.....been trying to pick a custom maker...trying to do my homework so I don't ask redundant questions but it's tough to know who to go with....

Pick any of the good reputable hatters and you won’t be disappointed. It’s not rocket science and all the competent hatters whose work shows up on The Lounge to rave reviews will do right by you. My personal favorites for quality and value are: VS, Gannon, Phoenix, Northwest, and Tumwater...in no particular order. All of the make excellent beaver fur felt hats in the under $400 range. Lots of other hatters are just as good, but I don’t have personal experience with them.

The only truly bad experience I’ve had with a custom hat maker was with Staker Hats. D’Aquino also had some serious issues, but at the price it’s hard to complain to much about her.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
 

milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
I saw this advertised and the hatband made me want to buy it more than anything else.

It somehow reminds me of the hatband ( puggaree) on Australian Army hats
img_6717.jpg


while everything else would suggest more of a Tirol kind of hat.

Would anyone be able to ID this hat ( I will also try to write to the company but my experience with hat company’s answering emails is very bad to date).

It is made of humble wool, in a semi-long hair sort of fashion, but it is very soft and comfortable and it says it is “ Made in England " . Quite a few of their hats are made abroad these days. Maybe this has some age? Can’t be really old. I couldn’t find it on the company site.

I also like the color and Melé finish ( I am unsure of how you call this felt made of a blend of different colors , I am quite sure I saw a thread on these kind of hats but was unable to find it). Click to expand Lock and co. 1.jpg Lock and co. inside.jpg

Lock and Co 2..jpg
 

Lean'n'mean

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,087
Location
Cloud-cuckoo-land
Looks like one of their cheap women's hats for the non-discerning shopper. I've seen similar ones online. Probably doesn't have a model name as it was no doubt just part of batch that was sold for a short period before being replaced by a different el cheapo model. Such is disposable fashion.
 

milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
Highly unlikely! It would nee be a very large head ( 60 cm 7 1/2 UK ) for a woman! I can’t believe this is a woman’s hat. The women’s hat I have seen on their site don’t look anything like this and aren’t sized with sizes other than M L and XL. Different kettle of fish

I would be asking them but at their address info@lockhatters.co.uk the emails bounce back.
 
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Lean'n'mean

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,087
Location
Cloud-cuckoo-land
Don't let large sizes mislead you, I've seen women's hats in the larger sizes, no doubt catering for hair mass & there are ladies with bigger heads than fellas out there. :rolleyes:
Lock & Co do sell some quality gear but when a hat looks like it's made from a blanket & with a cloth sweatband, it is aimed at the lower end of the market.

IMG_1963_2400x.jpg
 

milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
I did get an answer fro the PR person of the company whom wasn’t able to provide (as you predicted ) any information other that it wasn’t in the current catalogue.

Meanwhile I am enjoying the hat very much and it looks quite dapper, if I may say so myself, even if it may not be belonging to the most expensive range of their hats (although there aren’t really “ cheap” ones that I can see anywhere).
Lock and co. wearing .jpg
 
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milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
Interesting, where did you get the picture of the hat above ( the one I am quoting)? The Puggaree seems to be similar but mine is stitched closed while yours seems to be rather loose and open and I see a pin sticking out which makes me think that you have been folding the puggaree on a similar body hat (is it the same hat? Does it have the sticker inside?)

The puggaree is just plaited but not stitched like mine, also the “ well” above the crown seems to be very small ( but then again my hat is rather large) and the woolen felt not as tight a fabric as mine

I don’t understand if you have the same hat or if you recreated it. The proportions look quite different. Please, advise.
 
I did get an answer fro the PR person of the company whom wasn’t able to provide (as you predicted ) any information other that it wasn’t in the current catalogue.

Meanwhile I am enjoying the hat very much and it looks quite dapper, if I may say so myself, even if it may not be belonging to the most expensive range of their hats (although there aren’t really “ cheap” ones that I can see anywhere).
View attachment 186872
Wear and Enjoy!!!!! When it comes down to it...cheap.....expensive....wool or fur felt.....all that matters in the end is that you like it and wear it!!!!
M;)
PS I have wool and fur and love them all..........
 

milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
Thank you! I certainly do enjoy this hat. An I am not hung up on beaver felt as the only form of headdress. As I said what attracted me to the hat was the puggaree which gives this a sort of military look . My wife likes the color and the texture of the wool felt.
 
Messages
18,443
Location
Nederland
and very strangely here another hat, by another English Hatter , Herbert Johnson, very similar to the one I bought, sporting the same puggaree hatband and a similar label

$_86.JPG
$_86.JPG
Which makes it likely that neither of them was the manufacturer, but they just provided the brand. No matter though: as Mark said: as long as you enjoy wearing it.
Lock&Co certainly don't do cheap and I would consider them overpriced for their quality and banking on their "tradition". Being located at St. James comes at a price I guess.
 

milandro

A-List Customer
Messages
420
Location
The Netherlands
I think that the same is true of Stetson ( the wool felt variety for example) which has hats made by other companies. They are , by the way, not cheap either.
 
Messages
18,443
Location
Nederland
I think that the same is true of Stetson ( the wool felt variety for example) which has hats made by other companies. They are , by the way, not cheap either.
Nothing against high priced hats, as long as the quality matches up to it. I try to limit my Stetson hats to the ones that were made by them. That's not strictly true, because I had a few that were made under license by Failsworth and by Mayser. But those did live up to the Stetson name.
 

jlee562

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,103
Location
San Francisco, CA
I'm not sure of when the companies conglomerated, but in recent years, the same factory has been putting out Christy's and Lock hats, and I presume Bates as well. Until they spun off to their own workshop, Herbert Johnson seemed to have been made there as well, as many Indy fans were noting the similarities between the old HJ offering and the Christy's Adventurer.
 
Messages
18,443
Location
Nederland
I'm not sure of when the companies conglomerated, but in recent years, the same factory has been putting out Christy's and Lock hats, and I presume Bates as well. Until they spun off to their own workshop, Herbert Johnson seemed to have been made there as well, as many Indy fans were noting the similarities between the old HJ offering and the Christy's Adventurer.
Must have been Christy's then. They are still in business. I do hope they make better hats for the other brands than they do these days under their own brand name. Those are just plain awful.
 

CurlyJames

New in Town
Messages
2
Hello,

I recently signed up to this site and today had the good fortune to find a nice old hat in a charity shop here in Inverness, Scotland.

I’m just wondering if anyone is able to identify what kind it is? I’m a total newbie and don’t even know if it’s a fedora or a trilby or if it’s a women’s hat or what!
I’ve uploaded some photos to a hosting site.

https://imgur.com/a/nP4PKwa

One thing I’d didn’t take a photo of, the leather sweat band inside was broken and on the inside was a handwritten date of 30/1/68 so I assume it dates from then.

Any suggestions would be most welcome.
 

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