Need hat advice

[tropicalbob]

Foxer, have you checked out Northwest Hats? He has the best deal, I believe, on customs ($175 for rabbit felt) and his Facebook page is something else. I'll be ordering from him soon, as his reputation here on the Lounge seems to be very good.

 

[Hothir]

Also depending on your head size and what you want to look for, vintage shopping on Ebay is a good pastime. To help you find vintage fedoras make sure to check the boxes for pre-owned (you don't want to buy a new hat on Ebay. and enter your real size (not S M L) that will weed out most of the cheapo imitation hats.

 

[Brother cavefish]

Akubras are always a good starter hat if not a finisher, inexpensive and readily available on ebay, but keep in mind hats are not made oval they are shaped either by you or a hater, akubras i just fully wet the outside and then shaoe

 

[tropicalbob]

Akubras are great hats, but you're still buying something on the internet and can't know how the fit is going to be. My first VS last summer was a complete revelation: a hat that actually fit!

 

[Brother cavefish]

If you know your size akubras are pretty easy to fit, and shape, one can usually tell their size changes by the wrinkled sweatband

 

[Martygrant]

Need help with first hat

Hello to all. What a nice forum. I'm a new member who caught the hat bug and can't wait to order a hat from a place in Chicago I found out about on this site... but for now I need some helpful advice with my first hat, please, and forgive my lack of "hat" vocabulary.

I have my father's nearly mint 1959 Stetson 7X Open Road in it's original box but I never wear it. Loved the feel of the felt. Finally decided I needed a hat to wear and so bought on-line a grey Stetson Pinnacle Beaver Fedora. Being ignorant (and unaware of the existence of this forum) I went to a cowboy boot store with my new in-the-box hat to ask how to properly "snap the brim" down. You see, the "stiffness" of the slightly upturned factory fresh brim edge made me cautious about mishandling this process and wrongly creasing the felt or something. I wanted advice and education on what to do. Maybe this hat isn't supposed to have the brim snapped down? The store's 19 year old "hat expert" said, "Oh yeah, I'll can steam it into shape for you" and proceeded to steam and work the brim down a lot. It looked "OK" but it doesn't snap back up very well and looks pretty bad when it is snapped up. I don't blame the young guy as I should have ask better questions first. I had the feeling something wasn't right when I got home. The front area of brim also seems to have lost it's "stiffness" much more then the back. I found this site a week ago and from what I searched and read I'm thinking I need help. Can a hat expert redo the brim and restore its "factory" shape and "stiffness"? Are there any recommended places anywhere in Arizona, New Mexico or even California that can evaluate my hat and restore its proper shape and so on. Thanks.

 

[jlee562]

Sounds like you just need a simple reflange

 

[Martygrant]

Great. Can you please recommend a good place in San Francisco for this as I will be there in December.

 

[jlee562]

Paul's Hat Works on Geary out in the sunset does reflanges for $20 the last I checked. It's my understanding that Goorin also operates some sort of custom service out of their North Beach store, but I never venture to that part of the city.

 

[Bob Roberts]

Nice hat is a Stetson Windham. No longer in production. Mens Hats.com has em in assorted sizes in mink color for only $107 which is an incredible price. Good luck.

 

[tropicalbob]

Darn enablers. Here I was all set to go with a custom job, but the more I look at the CD in the green the cooler it looks. Thanks a lot, Brother Cavefish, now I can't decide.

 

[RJR]

Pretty hard to go wrong with the BDCD,but its also fun to design your own hat with a custom maker.

 

[konadog]

Total noob, need advice on a fur felt fedora

On the hunt for my first hat. i live in los angeles, so i'm looking for something that works in warm weather. ideally a light tan colored fur felt fedora with a similar shape to the Goorin The Man, which I tried on today:

http://www.goorin.com/shape/straws-panamas/the-man-straw-fedora-hat

i have a big noggin (usually an XL or 7 3/4 or 61/62). looking to spend between $150 and $300. i understand there is a ton of info on this site and I could just dig deep. but you all know so much. who makes a great light tan fur felt with similar dimensions to that Goorin that also comes in big sizes? and then, where do i buy it?

thanks in advance.

 

[frussell]

Get in touch with Tony at Tumwater Hats or Art Fawcett at Vintage Silhouettes. Either could make you a copy in your size of just about any hat you send them a photo of. Both are excellent guys who make superior hats. Frank

 

[KingAndrew]

The Man looks like a pretty typical profile hat: low crown, not very wide brim. Most of the current Stetson line fits the shape. If you're looking for higher quality at a very affordable price point, you might try an Akubra Hampton in Regency Fawn. It has the same look and will be tough as nails.

Most of the Loungers here seem to prefer a higher, straighter crown, often with wider brims. Good, affordable hats that offer that look in a nice tan felt include the Akubra Federation IV in Fawn and the Stetson Premier Stetsonian in tawny.

You also can't go wrong with a custom from Tumwater or Vintage Silhouettes. But if you're a noob, you may want to get your feet wet with a couple of readymade hats first.

 

[Monte]

"... if you're a noob, you may want to get your feet wet with a couple of readymade hats first."

Now that is some advice you should take before dropping $300 plus, Konadog. I had a hat made because I was impatient and now looking back, I was not at all educated enough to tell someone to make me a hat. The man didn't even know my true head size. Take your time on the custom built route. Get a couple vintage hats and see what you like as far just plain wearability in regards to color, dimension, shape, etc. I don't wear a lot of my first hats but I now have a handle on what I would wear and what I would just buy to collect. Educate yourself more than you have to on things like fashion because fashion is a passing fad. Timeless style is what matters. . . and welcome to the lounge.

 

[memphislawyer]

"... if you're a noob, you may want to get your feet wet with a couple of readymade hats first."

Now that is some advice you should take before dropping $300 plus, Konadog. I had a hat made because I was impatient and now looking back, I was not at all educated enough to tell someone to make me a hat. The man didn't even know my true head size. Take your time on the custom built route. Get a couple vintage hats and see what you like as far just plain wearability in regards to color, dimension, shape, etc. I don't wear a lot of my first hats but I now have a handle on what I would wear and what I would just buy to collect. Educate yourself more than you have to on things like fashion because fashion is a passing fad. Timeless style is what matters. . . and welcome to the lounge.

I was that way too. Got me a Stetson Saxon readymade. Still have it. But I thought wider brims were not me and now, I prefer it. Selling my Falcon Park hat only because it is a shorter brim at 2 1/4" and I like them a bit wider, 2.5 to 2.75 inches seems to be the sweet spot. The Saxon is a 2" brim or so but it wears well on me. However, it has a 'cold' feel to it and I am running up to Buckaroo hatters to get one made because his hats feel 'warm' on me. By that, I mean that they are softer, don't feel industrial. I love how I look in the Saxon and wear it with suits, but my Buckaroos, well, total love

 

[tommyK]

I'm always recommending older silverbelly Stetson Open Road hats to people looking for a warm weather hat. They're light, good quality, don't heat up in the sun like darker hats, descent brim for sun and rain protection and have a casual look. If you're a smaller size the Royal Deluxe versions are abundant and affordable.

 

[konadog]

thanks all. I'm leaning toward the akubra Hampton, as it seems to be a nice starter at a reasonable price.

 

[Lotsahats]

I had a hat made because I was impatient and now looking back, I was not at all educated enough to tell someone to make me a hat...Take your time on the custom built route. Get a couple vintage hats and see what you like as far just plain wearability in regards to color, dimension, shape, etc. I don't wear a lot of my first hats but I now have a handle on what I would wear and what I would just buy to collect. Educate yourself more than you have to on things like fashion because fashion is a passing fad. Timeless style is what matters. . . and welcome to the lounge.

That's wisdom. I had almost the exact same experience. Well said, Monte!