Stetson 25 comes alive.

[fedoralover]

Okay I couldn't resist, I went back to that thrift store this morning and bought that Stetson 25 Open Road for $12.50. It was shaped like a cowboy hat, but I punched out the crown and put my spray foam cleaner on it and reshaped it with steam and put in the front pinch. This hat doesn't look like it was ever worn. Sewn in liner with the extra piece of liner under the sweatband to prevent the staining from the leather. Has a wind string with it. It now looks like a quality fedora rather than a cowboy hat. This hat has been shaped like a cowboy hat for decades and with just a little steam the old shape went out and the new one went in with out any creases showing. Amazing felt. I really don't understand the quality rating that Stetson put on their hats as there is no doubt that this is a higher quality hat than one of my Imperials. It is close to the same level as the other one I have, but I would still say it's a higher grade of felt, much thicker, softer and more finely pounced. This is really a nice fedora, anyone else have a Stetson 25 or know anything about them? By the way the original price of tag of $25.00 is under the sweatband. Hence the name Stetson 25.

fedoralover

 

[Fedora]

Interesting. Another question to add with yours. When did Stetson add the '25"? Since most older Stetsons were less than 25 bucks, except the "x" hats,(3x, 30 bucks, 5x 50 bucks, 10x, 100 bucks), the 25 appears to fall between the Imperial and the 3x. I am assuming a bit here. As I have said, my finest Stetson is the vintage 3x that was sold by HJ in 1971. It must have been a pre-sellout Stetson as it was made in Philly. My second finest vintage hat is the old Imperial from London. ( both of my best Stetsons came from the UK) Next is the Nutria Quality. That is how I rate my collection of vintage Stetsons, currently. Then the Royal and Royal Deluxe line comes in. The funny thing is that even Stetson's lower priced lines are better than anything available today. IMHO, of course. Fedora

 

[fedoralover]

I have a 3x stetson as well, but when held side by side with my other stetsons it doesn't compare. Which makes my point that it's really a crap shoot when buying vintage. Even though they have the same name they may vary greatly in quality. I have 2 Imperials and one doesn' t have that extra lining under the sweatband and the other one does. Go figure. But like you said the vintage will still beat the new any day of the week. This Stetson 25 even has a little metal cowboy that is attached to the ribbon. I was going to take him off but then noticed that the ribbon goes through a slot on the back side of him. I'd have to cut the ribbon to take him off. So I guess he's gonna stay. Yee haa! By the way this hat has the 5 3/4 inch crown and a 2 7/8 ths brim. The sweat band is a dark brown and very soft.

fedoralover

 

[Fedora]

I am considering sending my 3x to you fedoralover, and also to Art as I am on his list for a vintage 3x dress hat, wide brim and high crown variety. I would like to get on the same page for the sake of the hobby. The 3x that I have, has seen its better days, with all of the moth bites, but it still is a good representation of what I am after in vintage felt. When I speak of quality, it is from an unofficial point of view. What I base my perception on is, the fineness of the felt, and lack of fuzziness, the feel of the felt, and how much effort it takes to push a needle through the felt(somewhat subjective), and last but not least, the felt's ability to hold a particular block over time with less than frequent reblocks. Now, this may not be the optimal criterion for judging quality, and I will admit that point. When a felt is so fine, and finely pounced that you have no guard hairs visible, and it is hard to see any fibers without a magnifying glass, well, this does it for me. So, if it is ok, I will send you the 3x shortly for comparison so we can all talk oranges here. And Art, if you read this, I want to send it to you too, so you will know what I am after, if you happen to run across felt of this nature in the 3x Stetson line. And then you guys can make me sick, by telling me you have something finer.LOL Seriously, if it got any better than the 3x that I have, I could not stand it. regards, Fedora


PS. Oh, you guys must send it back, moth damage and all.LOL

 

[fedoralover]

SEND IT BACK!

Send it back??? Oh sure there's always a catch. Ha, Ha.

That would be great fedora, I'd love to see it and do a comparison. I do have to add though, that the felt on my new Cavanagh and Borsalino are nicer than on this Stetson 25. I think you would need an electron microscope to see the felt hairs on those 2 hats.

regards fedoralover

 

[Art Fawcett]

Boy...so many questions!!
I'll gladly accept your stetson Fedora.

Fedora, I think we need to define "early" here. You are talking about an "early" hat that was made in 1971 which, in my minds eye, is late. I don't know specifically when the X factor came into play but pryor to that there were just "lines" like imperial and felt content ie: "clear beaver" "nutria" but I am talking 1900-1940. I believe they started using the X designatin in the late 30s but could easily be wrong. There was SO much change and so little written info it's tough to pin it down.

 

[Andykev]

Let me chime in here

I believe that the hats made in the 30's and part of the 40's are superior, and Fedora will most likely concede this point to me. Just plain and simple better felting overall in the industry at that time. That is not to say the "Stetson 25" from a leter period, or a "Stetson 3x" is any better or worse.

It has been my experience that you have to compare hats to hats, and not name brands , model designations, or sweatband stampings.

I have a Cavanagh hat from the late 40's or maybe even the 50's that is so tight it makes Jack Benny look generousLOL

Art, I have seen your vast collection and inventory, and agree with Fedora (as Graham fromOptimo had one) the Stetson Imperial (that green one he had) was so nice and tight...wow!

That said: I can honestly challenge anyone to show me a hat better than my MacLaughlan Silver Beaver 50. I have two, both off of Ebay. I stole them...and they are the finest, smoothest, tightest...and Fedora you would KILL for the chocolate brown one.
It would make the BEST Indy hat as it has a HUGE tall crown and a WIDE brim, welted edge. I really wish I could show it to you..you'd really really love it. You know quality. This one is fine. So do you go to the LA things? If you can fly from where you are, I think LA is a cake walk for me!

 

[Fedora]

I concur with you Andykev, and Art too. On the 3x from 1971, this is a late hat, but one of the last made by the original Stetson Company, before the name was sold and the plant closed down in Philly. And before the quality took a huge nose dive. I would not want a Stetson that was not made from 1865 to 1970. The earlier the better. With that being said, this 3x is right up on the top in what I perceive to be quality. I may try to take some real high definition pics, and try and put some photos side by side of various lines of felt that I own to show the difference, if in fact the difference can be captured. Regardless, at some point pretty soon, I will ship this moth eaten hat out West so you can either correct me or concur. I will be happy either way. But I do want Art to view it as I think there may be varying degrees of "fineness" even in regards to vintage hats. Since fedoralover says his 3x is not as good as the 25, I want him to compare my 3x to his best hats and give a comparison. Great fun guys. And I do plan on taking a trip out to the "Left Coast" one of these days. Right now, I am sorta of tied down with caring for my wife's father. That can be a full time job. We don't believe in nursing homes, and do it the way it was when I was a kid. We had quite an extended family, and at one time, I knew my grandparents, and great grandparents. They lived with us when they got too old to take care of themselves. Fedora

 

[Justdog]

Not all Stetson felts created equal

Nice thread and an even more relevant topic as our hats become more vintage. Possibly if the felt has accumulated different contaminates over time it may present as a bit different quality. My 20 is basically new and is vey soft and uncontaminated. My 25 is soft but not as soft as the 20, The 3x is the same as the 25 , almost, have to give the edge to the 25. 25 has a great bash that was probably created originally as it naturally fell in that way. Even though I tried several manipulations, no steaming or anything, it just returned naturaly to its original bash.
All price tags are original between 15 -25 dollars

 

[MAPip]

Just found this old thread and wanted to commend all of you for being amazing and leaving pearls of wisdom for us grasshoppers to come and find.