Rare and hard to find

[fedoralover]

I've been collecting hats for over 5 years now. I've bought some new ones from Optimo and some Akubra's from Hatsdirect. But most of them I have bought off ebay, around 60 or so at last count.

I have looked at literally 1000's of hats on ebay and have noticed that some are just really really rare and hard to find.

First of all I've noticed that seeing a quality vintage fedora that is BLACK with a brim of at least 2 1/2 inches and a crown of at least 5 inches in a 7 1/8 and larger is extremely rare. Also finding a Cavanagh or a Knox with the same dimensions and sizes is also very rare. While I have had the rare luck of getting these two with these dimensions, the fact is most of these brands that show up on ebay are stingy brims.

So what's the deal? You guys that know hat history, can you fill me in on why the wide brim, high crown black fedora is hard to find. Stetson's are very common, yet you seldom see even this brand in a vintage wide brim black fedora. Black cowboy hats are everywhere, but not the fedora.

And why is it the same with Cavanagh and Knox? If any of you have these brands with the wide brims, 2 1/2 inches and up, you have a rare prize to be sure.

inquiring minds want to know. regards fedoralover

 

[Victor]

I don't know but I am also in the market for a black wide brimmed Fedora in
7 3/8 and haven't found it yet. Art has a really nice Optimo that he wears so I know that they exist.

 

[daggerlee]

I guess the simplest explanation would be that the hats of those styles were from an older time period and are not as well represented on eBay as the stingy brim hats of the 50s/60s.

I myself am looking for any type of hat to fit that description...I did just win a Knox, but it appears to be of a stingy brim

 

[gcollins]

Fedoralover, I know you and I love that kind of hat. Good questions you ask, especially since black seems to be one of the most common colors of all. Very strange.

I haven't worked through e-bay very much, but spent years trying and wearing commercial black brims, until I finally found one on my Hat Pilgrimage: The Search for the Perfect Hat. I'd love to run across a nice vintage 40s Borso or Stetson 100 in a nice black. But I too never see them.

Below is the Gladhatter Belly Beaver Black Beauty that I re-bashed. It is a series of photos...I wear it probably 3 times a week in fall, winter, and early spring. Very close to black lid perfection in my humble opinion. Also, an earlier post on Optimos new colors stated that Graham referred to this year's black as the best black he has had--if you like rabbit hats for the same relative price as a sterling beaver.

Anyway bring on more 30s and 40s black brims!

Here are the photos, you can choose "next" to see the whole series:

http://public.fotki.com/leikelin/gladhatter_custom/gladhatter_after.html

Regards,
G

 

[jamespowers]

I too have noticed that there are very few black fedoras with the 2 1/2" brim or larger. I have a Stetson Playboy in black and a Royal Deluxe but it has a 2 1/4" brim.
My best guess would be the meaning that black conveyed and still conveys today. Black is looked at as a mourning or funeral color. In a regular every day hat it might convey too much melancholy for most. I have heard the "who died" line when I wear the black fedora.
My second guess would be that black is the color of hat the bad guy always wears in those westerns and serials of old. You know the bad guy by the color of his hat. I suppose no one wanted to appear like the bad guy in a black fedora.
Black was reserved for the most formal hats. You can easily find a black bowler, top hat and homburg. Finding these in any color other than black is difficult. So black in this sense was more a matter of convention than anything else. I know I have a brown bowler and a gray homburg but these are thought of as less formal than the same hat in black.
The appearance of hats with brims less than 2 1/2 inches on eBay is probably more a sign of their rarity in general. Those hats are now probably going to be 50 years old or more. They just don't exist in the numbers and sizes we want. I am still looking for the Palomino, Mosaic, and a few others that Dobbs produced with wide brims. Even those do not exist in large numbers---if at all. Cavanaghs and Knox are also hard to find in wide brim. I am wearing a Wormser today that is just barely over 2" because I just could not find one with a 2 1/2 inch brim even though I wanted an example.
Just make sure that when you find a high crown and two inch brim from the 1930s you do not run in the opposite direction. They can be nice hats as well and can add variety to your collection. I just found a stove pipe Dunlap from that period. Very Nick Charles and 1930s Hollywood. Remember that the 2" brim is not only a fashion of the 1960s purely but just a revamp of the 1930s stingy brims. When it starts to get below 2" though you might as well be wearing a beanie.

Regards to all,

J

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Fedora has a black-----

Quote!!

Optimos new colors stated that Graham referred to this year's black as the best black he has had--if you like rabbit hats for the same relative price as a sterling beaver.

Rich,
Another untruth the black Optimo is a beaver blend.

I spoke to Fedora last week and he said the 100% Platinum Beaver he had in black looked very black black to him. No need to pay those "outrageous prices for the so called sterling beaver".

I know you would rather have a Vintage but i haven't seen them either.

 

[jamespowers]

See? Knox did make wide brim hats.

Regards to all,

J

 

[fedoralover]

In fact I'm working out an arrangement with Steve for one of his black fedora's. When he slows down some (whenever that is, he is swamped right now) I may be able to get one from him.

Thanks for the input guys, your answers made a lot of sense.

regards fedoralover

 

[Matt Deckard]

I have had many a Knox and seen many Knox hats with wide brims.

And yes, the Optmo Black Fedora is Beaver Nutria blend. One of the finest dress hat felts on the market.

Black wasn't a very common color for fedoras. You will find alot of black homburgs and bowlers and top hats. Most black hats were for formal occasions. I have seen them, though they are rare. The last one I saw was a Borsalino from the 1930's with a tall crown and a wide brim.

 

[Biltmore Bob]

When I wear a black fedora...

I look like a Rabbi...

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Why buy sterling when you can have Platinum !!

I have a black Akubra called CEO. When i wear it i get more nice remarks on it than any of my other hats. I like Fedoralover have a black beaver on order from Fedora.

http://www.adventurebilthats.com/ Pure Platinum Beaver

http://www.hatsdirect.com/images/products/ceo-black-large.jpg CEO Fedora

 

[jamespowers]

I look like a Rabbi...

That could be a good thing. Makes you look trustworthy and authoratative

Regards to all,

J

 

[jamespowers]

I have a black Akubra called CEO. When i wear it i get more complaints on it than any of my other hats. I like Fedoralover have a beaver on order from Fedora.

Now you know what being a real CEO feels like.

Regards to all,

J

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Thats so true

Jamespowers Wrote

Now you know what being a real CEO feels like.

Regards to all,

I tell you when you are dressed up with a fine Fedora i think alot of us feel like a CEO. :cheers1:

J

 

[jamespowers]

I tell you when you are dressed up with a fine Fedora I think alot of us feel like a CEO. :cheers1:

Yeah, all the prestige without all the responsibility.
Interestingly though, you point out an interesting fact. If you dress the way you are supposed to when going out, people assume you ARE the CEO.

Regards to all,

J

 

[gcollins]

Guess Carly Fiorinna could have used a nice brim for the last couple of years!

A black beaver from Fedora? That sounds like a great hat. In an Indy style?

 

[fedoralover]

Well I don't know about sharpetoys, but mine is going to be in a regular 40s style fedora. No dimenstional cut or tight front pinch. If anything it would resemble the Last Crusade style.

fedoralover

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Well I don't know about sharpetoys, but mine is going to be in a regular 40s style fedora. No dimenstional cut or tight front pinch. If anything it would resemble the Last Crusade style.

fedoralover

Rich,

Mine will be just like yours. Steve is going to send a felt samples when he gets a chance . I want to see the beaver pecan color also.

 

[Panamabob]

Gee, are you telling me that Steve sells the same beaver that the other guys do for such a low price...What a Sterling man to accept a decent profit margin without gouging "buddies."

 

[Danosaurus]

Gee, are you telling me that Steve sells the same beaver that the other guys do for such a low price...What a Sterling man to accept a decent profit margin without gouging "buddies."

I too can vouch for Steve...I have one of his 100% beaver Indy lids that is absolutely top notch. Now I don't have an Optimo or GH to compare it to, but I can say it blows all my Akubras and my Keppler 6x out of the water. At his price, it's a steal. On top of that, he's a great guy to deal with. When I first got mine, it needed a couple tweaks, like sizing it down a bit. I sent it back to him, and a week later had a perfect custom fit hat. :fedora: