David Conwill
Call Me a Cab
- Messages
- 2,854
- Location
- Bennington, VT 05201
The Short Story: I commissioned a semi-custom from Buckaroo Hatters. It’s a brown Fed IV Deluxe with a 9-ligne-bound snap brim, an 18-ligne, brown ribbon, and a “TVA” diamond bash.
The Long Story: “Way” back when I first joined the lounge, I found a thread about the quintessential WWII-era hat. Amongst several snide remarks about steel helmets, someone mentioned the Stetson Whippet and described it. Someone else commented that it sounded just like an Akubra Federation but with a bound, non-dimensional brim. From that exchange, an idea was born.
I’ve always wanted a Whippet (or at least since I learned about them on Port Halcyon), but had resigned myself to never owning one, given the crazy prices they fetch on eBay and my numerous bad experiences buying things sight unseen. So I resolved that someday, I would have one of our talented hatters “Whippetize” either a Federation or an old cowboy hat.
After an aborted attempt to buy a Resistol Stagecoach and have Major Moore Whippetize it(I got sniped on the hat), I put that idea on the back burner. I didn’t have the money to buy a new hat for modification, and I didn’t have the time to haunt eBay for a good deal on a modifiable hat. I always knew that someday I’d do it. I really found the Federation to be the most appealing hat for the task, because it’s readily available new and a known quantity to me. If the hat fits, buy it in every color, as they say.
I also knew that I’d have Buckaroo Hatters make the changes I wanted, because Mike has been great about always answering my e-mails, despite the fact that until now I’ve not been able to give him any business.
Come this fall, I discovered Doublegun selling his brown Fed IV Deluxe for less than a new Standard and decided to take the plunge. I love the brown Feds, but endured so many Indiana Jones remarks as a kid that I knew I would only ever own a Whippetized brown (my current hat is an unmodified Moonstone Fed IV Standard).
Mike kept in good contact with me during this project and I’m mighty pleased with the result. Per my information on the classic Whippet, the hat band is 18 ligne brown, and the binding is a 9 ligne brown (slightly different shades due to ribbon stock and artistic license). Mike also added his “TVA” diamond bash at my request, as I have utterly failed to successfully add a diamond bash to my Moonstone. The only deviation from my original plan is that the brim was left dimensional, and I think the result is stunning.
Some of you may be wondering about the name. Buckubra is obviously a portmanteau of “Buckaroo” and “Akubra” (and one I thought sounded better than “Akubaroo”). The name “Aero” comes as a tribute to the Whippet. In addition to being a small dog, the Whippet was a lightweight automobile produced by Willys-Overland in the 1920s. After the Model 77 and the Americar (neither of which sounded like good hat names to me) in the ‘30s and ‘40s, Willys produced a small car called the “Aero” in the 1950s. I like the car, and I like the name, so my hat’s the Aero.
If Mike is reading this, and wants to work out a bulk deal on unfinished Federations with Akubra, he’s welcome to use that name.
Hope you like it and enjoyed my long-winded history. This hat has been a long time coming, and I’m very excited.
-Dave
