New member / What's my hat worth?

[Tom Slick]

Hey everyone!

First of all, my hat isn't for sale... just wanted to find out more about it...

I've got Stetson "Open Road", Stetson Twenty, Silver Belly, in the original hat box, never been shaped... it's in mint condition... an indian friend of my fathers even made a beaded headband for it... my father only wore it a couple of times...

Anything you can tell me about my hat? How rare is it to find one that hasn't been shaped?


I've also got a old Beaver Hat Co. Cowboy Hat, 10x, Chocolate brown, well used, but still looks great!...


Thanks in advance for any information you can help with!

Best Regards,
Tom "Slick"

 

[tonyb]

From my way of seeing things, the answer to the "what's it worth" question differs depending on whether you're the seller or the buyer. If that hat were mine, in my size, I wouldn't part with it. But if I came down with a terminal illness, I'd advise my (soon-to-be) survivors to get at least $200 for it. I wouldn't pay anything near that much, though, 'cuz I'm cheap and patient enough to wait for better deals to come my way.

 

[Pilgrim]

IME the Open Road would bring $50-$90 on Ebay, perhaps a bit more if you did a REALLY good write-up, played the schmaltz, etc. A new Open Road can be had for $130 and most people don't know the old ones are better.

The Beaver is a good hat too, I have a couple of Beavers with a lower X count than yours. No real idea of what it's worth used but I'd say less than $80. Stetsons bring more on ebay than hats with the Beaver brand.

 

[Tom Slick]

Thanks for the info...

I'm not interested in selling my Stetson... just was curious...


How unusual is it to find an old hat like that that has never been shaped???

Later!
Tom "Slick"
- Yes, just like the cartoon character.

 

[Pilgrim]

I'd say it's unusual but not wildly so. With the millions of hats sold, it stands to reason that some would end up unworn for whatever reason. I bought a Stetson Whippet last year that I don't think had ever been shaped, and probably not worn. So it does happen, but it's probably something like a 1 in 500 occurrence.

 

[tonyb]

Yup. Unworn, unbashed old hats are rare but not unheard of. I have an apparently NOS Stratoliner that came open crowned, and I was tempted to leave it that way, but then decided I prefer a hat to wear over a museum piece.
Considering its family provenance, your Open Road is a treasure. If I were so lucky as you, I'd definitely wear that old hat, but only in dry weather. And I'd store it in its box and brush it from time to time and eventually pass it along to the next generation(s).
I'm a bit jealous. My old Grandpa was a hat wearer. There are numerous photos of him in his hats, but, as far as I know, his hats passed on before he did.
Edit: Last night, when I wrote the above, I had already had a coupla-three pleasing beverages. That may account for my suggesting you brush your hat in the WRONG direction. So I just now deleted that part. Sheesh, some people just can't hold their sauce.