Nutria felt in the modern day

[jwalls]

Nutria

Gentlemen,
I promised a post of a hat made with one of the old stock natural nutria bodies of which I have a few left.
http://www.myphotos.yahoo.com/s/20um7cjq58enefbtwthi
This homburg was the best of the two I've done so far with the nutria. The other was a stingy brim for my brother.

 

[1961MJS]

Hi

That hat looks great. The whooping 3 hats I've seen pictures of that are Nutria are all roughly the color of the one you posted? Can you get any color like Beaver and Rabbit?

Nice looking hat, and I'm not generally a homburg kind of a guy.

Mike

 

[jwalls]

Mike,

I do have a couple of these bodies in pecan and one in black. But I do not know if I can find any more of them.

 

[Lexybeast]

I just won this vintage Stetson nutria western a couple days ago.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110559935137&autorefresh=true#ht_553wt_1139

Still waiting for it to arrive, but I'm thinking I might send it to Optimo for a conversion. Would that be heresy?

 

[AlterEgo]

At the risk of sounding like a know-it-all, nutria actually refers only to the soft underfur of the animal that is called coypu, which is in the family Capromyidae, genus Myocastor, species M. coypus.

At any rate, coypus look and act a lot like beavers, but unlike those North American rodents, coypus are originally indigenous to South America. They were originally imported into the U.S. and Europe to be raised for fur, but many escaped or were intentionally turned loose after the downturn of the fur felt hat industry, and the rest, as they say, is history.

Personally, I think nutria makes every bit as good a hat as beaver. Why we do not see more nutria fur felt is anyone's guess. Compared to beaver, perhaps coypu are more difficult to capture from the wild, harder to farm-raise, or don't possess as much prestige. Sounds like nutria may be making a bit of a comeback, though.

Including the tail, the critters are about 3 feet long and weigh around 20 lbs.
Cooked and prepared properly, coypu may be good to eat, but they make poor indoor pets, as they tend to gnaw on wooden furniture until it basically no longer exists.

Given that beaver and coypu are both animals that spend a good deal of time in the water and whose fur renders exceptional felt, it seems that other, similar mammals would, as well. Accordingly, why don't we see fur felt made from otter, muskrat, seals, and sea lions? Do I hear plain old rats, anyone?

 

[feltfan]

I just won this vintage Stetson nutria western a couple days ago.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110559935137&autorefresh=true#ht_553wt_1139

Still waiting for it to arrive, but I'm thinking I might send it to Optimo for a conversion. Would that be heresy?

That was you, huh? I meant to bid almost twice that, but
forgot... Yeah, I think it would be sad to change that hat.

But it's your hat.

 

[W4ASZ]

Not Heresy, but ...

I just won this vintage Stetson nutria western a couple days ago.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110559935137&autorefresh=true#ht_553wt_1139

Still waiting for it to arrive, but I'm thinking I might send it to Optimo for a conversion. Would that be heresy?

I came close to bidding on that one. My inclination, were it mine, would be to get it cleaned and blocked and then to enjoy the hell out of it !

Conversion is for religion, not hats.

 

[jwalls]

Nutria

This hat was made for a customer. I only have one more Pecan body left.
http://www.myphotos.yahoo.com/s/20um7cjq58ener2f19ec

 

[RHY]

Nutria - Optimo

I just won this vintage Stetson nutria western a couple days ago.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=110559935137&autorefresh=true#ht_553wt_1139

Still waiting for it to arrive, but I'm thinking I might send it to Optimo for a conversion. Would that be heresy?

I won an Ebay nutria in 2007 and sent it last year to Optimo for refurbishing. They did an excellent job and it fits perfectly as well.

 

[Derek WC]

Nutria are such a pest in Oregon, that there is no bag limit on them for hunting, and their fur is much like that of a beavers, so Nutria in a hat = same quality as Beaver - the cost.

 

[W4ASZ]

Nutria on the Bounty

Hatters take note.

http://www.dailycomet.com/article/2...e=Half-a-million-nutria-killed-from-Nov-March

 

[1961MJS]

Hi

Anybody know how many of those darn things it takes to make a hat? I bet every Lounger could get a couple of Nutria felt hats a year with what they kill now.

Later

 

[W4ASZ]

Hi

Anybody know how many of those darn things it takes to make a hat? I bet every Lounger could get a couple of Nutria felt hats a year with what they kill now.

Later

My thought exactly. Some company could make a fine hat, again, from this non-native pest, as in olden times. How about a lid like a good, soft Open Road called the Stetson Vermin ? Or an Akubra Camp Rat ?

Seriously, this is a waste of good pelts.

 

[1961MJS]

Stetson Vermin and Akubra Camp Rat

Hi

I'd wear those. :eusa_clap

They should both initially be in some kind of swamp green color.

Later

 

[donnc]

Similar situation in New Zealand, where the introduced "brush tailed possum" wreaks havoc on trees. The fur is apparently usable for fur garments, don't know how well it's suited to felting.

 

[CRH]

How do we bring this to the attention of Stetson and Akubra and to Winchester too?

 

[W4ASZ]

How do we bring this to the attention of Stetson and Akubra and to Winchester too?

I hope at least one is watching.

I really would buy a quality Clear Nutria or Swamp-Green Nutria hat, though I would expect a bag of red beans and rice and a bottle of Tabasco to complete the experience, along with a pound or two of boudain.

Would you favor the .17 rimfire for this application, or ye old .22 long rifle ?

 

[donnc]

They must know. The state has been paying bounties for years.

Has anyone wondered what's going to happen, when it comes to light that you guys are wearing hats made out of bunny rabbits? I don't know, suppose it's possible that the hat industry is just laying low and doing nothing to attract attention to itself for this reason. Today, fur of any kind is kind of a tough sell, except felted fur - why? only reason I can think of is, people who are active in the animal ethics issues have been oblivious. Oscar de la Renta benefits when his nutria fur coat gets in the news, because fur as in fur coats was otherwise a lost cause anyway, but Stetson has a lot to lose if suddenly you're a monster if you wear one of their hats.

 

[W4ASZ]

How do we bring this to the attention of Stetson and Akubra and to Winchester too?

Winchester or someone else may actually be getting the bulk of these bounty pelts already. I just thought the numbers were profound. Some progress is being made against an invasive species and for displaced native critters.

How about naming each style of 100% nutria hat after a Louisiana parish, i.e., The Terrebonne ? I see that as looking like an Open Road.

But if I really want something like this I'll be calling the Major as I know HATCO won't be doing this for me, or even telling me what's in any given hat.

 

[CRH]

Winchester or someone else may actually be getting the bulk of these bounty pelts already. ...

Consider this thread under surveillance..............