Open Crown Stetsons: A Call (Plea) to Retailers!!

[The Wiser Hatter]

Thanks Jeff I know Stetson hopes to sell more of them or they would not be putting out the effort to do so. Time will tell if it was worth the effort.
Having nice hats for men to purchase will take a while for the public to catch onto. That is the whole problem we need a good Network TV show to be come popular that had hats as a feature of one of the lead actors.

 

[DougC]

The Whippet will find a spot on my hat rack once its available.

 

[Golden]

View attachment 13852
open crown Premier Whippet

Kind of looks like the Stetsonian, would love to see a grey offered here.

soooo this beut isnt available yet?

-j

 

[fedoracentric]

Correct, Golden. We are waiting for a sale date.

 

[RBH]

..... That is the whole problem we need a good Network TV show to be come popular that had hats as a feature of one of the lead actors.

We have one.

 

[KingAndrew]

As for TV, I think much of the impetus behind the hipster stingy-brim revival came from the popularity of Mad Men's early seasons. That look had an influence beyond headgear--as I can see every day with all the young men wearing too-tight suits here in Shanghai.

Another recent show with lots of hats was Boardwalk Empire. And let's not forget Walter White's pork pie...

 

[tommyK]

soooo this beut isnt available yet?

-j

This thread has been going about a year and we've only got 2 open crown hats to show for it, the Stratoliner and the Stetsonian. I'm afraid that might be all we get if the sales aren't there on these existing offerings. I'll be pleasantly surprised if we get more but am not expecting it.

 

[Studebaker Driver]

It was enough to get me to order a Stetsonian and an Akubra Campdraft. I'm sitting on my hands waiting for them.

 

[besdor]

I don't think Hatco will make any new open crown styles. Having seen the fall line, most of the hats are 1 3/4 inch to 2 1/4 inch brims in a center dent style. There are some new things that they have improved on, one being the trimming. There are a lot of new bands that people will like. But the crowns are getting lower and lower!!!

 

[tommyK]

I would be happy if Stetson offered just one open crown model a year if they mixed it up; Stratoliner this year, Whippet next year, Playboy the year after that and so on. Maybe 2 or 3 colors per model.

 

[Lotsahats]

I'm glad that Stetson is trying these new hats; for me, though, until the ribbon stitching issues are resolved, I won't be ordering anymore.

A

 

[Lotsahats]

Vintage Royal Stetson and modern premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian

I picked up a vintage Royal Stetson a couple of weeks ago, and I've been meaning to do a side-by-side comparison with my new premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian, so here we go.

The hats

On the left is a vintage '54-'56 Royal Stetson in a rich chocolate brown. On the left is a new premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian in tawny. Each has a 2 3/4" bound brim; the Royal sports a 5 1/2" open crown, and the Stetsonian a 6 1/2" open crown. In terms of silhouette and basic shape, the hats compare quite favorably; Stetson did a very nice job recreating the classic look of its hats from the 50s.

The bows

First, the vintage Royal:

And the new premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian:

The vintage Royal's ribbon is an interesting over-lay style, while the premiere Deluxe Stetsonian is a classic bow; both of them, to my eye, offer a nice appearance. The execution of the bow work, however, is different. The vintage Royal has more subtle stitch work; the stitches are less obvious and blend better with the bow, with the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian's stitches are more coarse and obvious. You can see that of the stitching threads has come loose already since November on the Stetsonian.

Tacking stitches on the ribbon

The vintage Royal:

The premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian:

Both pictures come from the stitch on the back of the hat. The vintage Royal's stitch is obvious but not quite as deep; the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian's stitching dimples the ribbon significantly. Other tacking stitches in the Stetsonian create even more dimpling, but I wanted to offer the best example from each hat.

Edge binding and felt quality

In each of the shots, the vintage Royal Stetson is on the left, the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian is on the right:

The stitching on the edge binding for the vintage Royal shows small, tight stitches that come right to the outside edge of the binding ribbon; this distance is consistent, as is the stitching. The premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian comes with more obvious, less consistent stitching that sometimes strays a bit far from the ribbon. As yet, there is no curling or rising taking place on the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian, but at the same time, there is no chance of such a thing happening on the vintage Royal since the stitching comes right to the edge.

For the felt quality, the vintage Royal offers a flat, even pouncing job; the felt is uniform and short. The premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian's pouncing has left the felt feeling longer, and the color is less consistent; you might be able to see almost a nap-type look occurring on the premiere Royal Deluxe. The vintage Royal's felt is thinner than the felt on the premiere Royal Deluxe; while they are different, both hats feel solid and substantial, firm without being stiff.

Sweatbands

The vintage Royal:

The premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian:

As I noted on the edge binding, the vintage Royal offers a tighter, smaller set of stitching for the sweatband, while the premiere Royale Deluxe Stetsonian shows a larger, coarser set of stitches. The premiere's stitching isn't as obvious as in the ribbon and the bow, but it is still not quite as refined as the stitching on the vintage Royal. As well, you might note that there is a change occurring in the felt to the right of the sweatband on the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian; the color is lightening and the nap rising a bit.

The vintage Royal was an entry-level hat in its time, a bottom-of-the-range choice; the premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian is a step up quality-wise in today's market. Despite this difference, I think the general quality of workmanship goes to the vintage Royal. I still enjoy my premiere Royal Deluxe Stetsonian for its classic lines and vintage feel, and its general quality still stands a mark above the run-of-the-mill contemporary Stetson dress hat; that said, I'm not sure that I'll be purchasing any more new production Stetsons. Of course, being a 7 3/8, I have a bit more choice in vintage hats than do some of my better-endowed colleagues on this board, so going vintage is a luxury for me.

The opinions expressed here are just that--opinions. Your mileage may vary. I hope this comparison was useful!

(cross-posting in Open Crown Stetsons: A Call (Plea) to Retailers!! and Side By Side/ Hat Comparisons)

 

[MCrider]

I would be happy if Stetson offered just one open crown model a year if they mixed it up; Stratoliner this year, Whippet next year, Playboy the year after that and so on. Maybe 2 or 3 colors per model.

I agree with you on this. I don't know Stetson's plan of course, but I don't think open crown or premium models are going to be a huge overnight success. So if they do just a few premium models a year (AND keep quality at a higher level) it might build some momentum. Most people aren't going to shell out over $200 for a hat. But if they see a higher quality item than what they've bought before, it might just be enough to get them to pull the trigger on one. As for me, I'm just waiting for the Whippet!

 

[tonyb]

... I don't know Stetson's plan of course, but I don't think open crown or premium models are going to be a huge overnight success. So if they do just a few premium models a year (AND keep quality at a higher level) it might build some momentum. Most people aren't going to shell out over $200 for a hat. ...

I think you're right. If these new models don't sell a whole lot better than the "Nostalgia" model of a few years back, well, that wouldn't bode well for seeing more of the sorts of hats preferred around this place. Count me among those hoping they sell like ice cream on the Fourth of July.

I can live with the ways in which these models don't quite match the overall quality of the vintage Stetsons. Let's give 'em a chance to make some improvements. In the meanwhile, it's good to have hats out there in styles that hat aficionados such as ourselves find appealing, but don't regard so preciously that we would fear wearing them under "real world" conditions.

 

[Rogera]

Well said tonyb.

 

[tommyK]

Charcoal Whippet, yummy!

 

[Jedwbpm]

Had an order today for a Premiere Stratoliner in mink. Customer wanted it creased in a teardrop. How do you like my job. 4 1/2" at the front Pinch and 4" at the back

And did anyone notice the new Stetson 100 liner that Matt posted the other day?

Jeff

 

[RJR]

That crease looks great.

 

[theoldnorthwest]

Hello,
I am seriously considering purchasing one of the Premier Stratoliners from DelMonicos. I really wanted to find a vintage Strat but cannot find one in my size 7 1/2. I have a couple of open roads but they are both silverbelly and I would like a darker color. I just cannot find a gray or dark brown vintage Stratoliner in size 7 1/2 and have been looking for quite some time. One thing I really like about the vintage hats is the crown height. In the photos the crown on the new Stratoliners seems a bit shorter. Could anyone give me an idea what the crown height might be on the new Stratoliner after a center crease has been put in it? I would really like the crown measured at the front to be at least 4 1/4". I bought one of the Akubra Sydneys which also has a 5 1/2" open crown and after giving it just an average center crease the crown measured just under 4" at the front. I am worried that the crown on the new Stratoliners will be too short. I would greatly appreciate any information you guys might have. Thanks.

 

[Jedwbpm]

Bob the hat that I just did was 4 1/2" at the front and 4" at the the back to give it a nice rake. I center dent should take felt and thus can be even Higher. When I go in on Tuesday I'll put a quick dry crease in one and post some pictures of it for you.

Jeff