Measuring people crowns?

[Spurinna]

Hello,

I'm trying to find a new fedora to replace an old one I got years ago, which sadly was left in heavy rain by a young cousin of mine. The problem is, all the new fedoras I try on have crowns a little too low. I'm getting close to having to buy online, but I want to know for certain how high a crown I need. How do you measure the crown of your skull to find out what crown height you need in a fedora?

 

[Belegnole]

Darn good question!

 

[J.T.Marcus]

The easiest way is to measure the crown of a hat that fits the way you want. Do you still have the "ruined" hat? If you don't mind telling us, what brand, model and size was the hat? Rain soaked hats are usually salvageable.
You also live close to Garland. Have you gone to the HATCO (Stetson/Resistol) Factory Outlet, and tried on various styles?

 

[zetwal]

It is an interesting question. I've asked this myself and have done some online reading in months past. There are some theories out there but none of them worked for me. So out of curiosity I worked backwards.

I figured out what size crown I like (measured from the crease in front) and then took some measurements of my own face. I'm sure it won't be the same for everybody (the back height is critical too, as is where you wear your hat, etc). But lets keep it simple for the moment.

Anyway, I tend to like the crease in front to be the same distance as from the pupil of one eye to the bottom of the chin. I know it sounds strange! give it a try and see what you think. Does this work for anyone else?

Loungers why not repeat my experiment and share your results with the rest of us? Determine the crown height that you generally prefer, and then find a facial measurement that matches it. This would be much better than second hand theories. Could be interesting -

 

[johnnycanuck]

There are two ways you can determine your proper crown height.

1. Put the hat on you head the way you would normally wear it. Look in the mirror. From the bottom of the brim to the bottom of your chin should be roughly the same distance as the distance form the Top of the hat to the bottom of the brim.

and if you don't have the hat in hand (mail order)

2. Look in the mirror. Measure the distance from the middle of your eye to the bottom of your chin (mouth closed). That's roughly how tall the crown of your hat should be.

I just checked method #2 and it holds true with most of my hats.
If everything else fails and you end up mail ordering just buy a open crown hat and bash it as low or as tall as you want.

Johnny

 

[Spurinna]

Thanks everyone for your help and advice.

Unfortunately, the old hat is in serious trouble. The brand labels are faded too much to tell who made it (I picked this up at an antique store). And it will take some professional reblocking to get it wearable again. However, my head has grown a little (make of that what you will), so I needed a new one anyway. This was just the final straw.

And I tried the measuring from eye to chin trick, which gave me a result of just over 5 inches. I'm pretty sure that's what I need, since 4 inch crowns usually stop the bottom of the hat about an inch above the ears.

This brings up a new problem, though. Where can I find a fedora with a 5 inch crown? There aren't any at the Resistol warehouse (though, they were low on variety last time I was there). Any further pearls of wisdom from them as are in the know would be appreciated.

 

[johnnycanuck]

Akubra Federation/Campdraft from http://www.hatsdirect.com/ should be tall enough. Or go the custom route Art Fawcett http://www.vintagesilhouettes.com/ maybe even try and find a local hatter that will make something up for you.
Johnny

 

[Dinerman]

And remember that on a hat, the crown height does not equal the crease height. You need the lowest part of the crease to be higher than the highest part of your head.

 

[zetwal]

And remember that on a hat, the crown height does not equal the crease height. You need the lowest part of the crease to be higher than the highest part of your head.

D-man's correct. Another way to put it ... The open crown needs to be quite a bit taller than the tallest point of the proposed crease (so that when you go to crease the hat you have something to work with).

It shouldn't be hard to find a hat with a crown tall enough (when open) to accommodate your preferred crease. And don't be shy about experimenting with your crease until you get it where you want it.

Unless of course this is the look you want!