Stetson Pure Beaver Stratoliner

[VetPsychWars]

https://stetson.com/products/pure-stratoliner-alabaster

Received mine today. I had lucked into 25% off on Stetson's site, so I jumped on it.

Been wearing it in the house, longer I have it on, the better it fits. Those of you who want soft hats, you're out of luck. Those like me who prefer the factory crease will be happy. Exactly the same as the cheap one except better construction, a color I love, and a nice feel on my head.

If you can deal with a stiff hat (and only you crazy people think it's *wrong*), you'll be happy.

I did not take a pic because it looks exactly like it does on the Stetson site.

Edited to add: it is insanely thin! And, yes, it feels like "cardboard", just how I like it!

Tom

 

[suitedcboy]

I like the looks of that one in the photos. I wear and buy way more new westerns than anything and I am fully versed in stiff hats. I have a long offset oval head and I always have to do a little to get a comfortable fit on stiff hats. Steam can do it but you might end up with a kink or whoopy if your head is pushing out on one spot a lot. I have softened the front to conform to my forehead bump by supporting the front outside of crown with index finger and second finger pushing to either side of the worst area and then pushing the sweatband lower edge from inside with the the index finger of other hand to deform and soften that area. Wearing it is effectively doing this but much slower.

 

[VetPsychWars]

My head is a definite "German Oval" and the profile looks like an egg!

But this hat is fitting pretty well, quite happy.

Fedora stiff is not the same as Western stiff, thank dog.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I like the looks of that one in the photos. I wear and buy way more new westerns than anything and I am fully versed in stiff hats. I have a long offset oval head and I always have to do a little to get a comfortable fit on stiff hats. Steam can do it but you might end up with a kink or whoopy if your head is pushing out on one spot a lot. I have softened the front to conform to my forehead bump by supporting the front outside of crown with index finger and second finger pushing to either side of the worst area and then pushing the sweatband lower edge from inside with the the index finger of other hand to deform and soften that area. Wearing it is effectively doing this but much slower.

I have a long oval head too. I can often get hats to conform to my head shape using a band block, but now and again my efforts will cause the brim to get a bit wonky. I can re-flange the brim, but it’s a bit like whack-a-mole. This tendency manifests about every 15th hat I’ve had. It’s about 50/50 if I’m cheating and trying to size it up a bit. Softer felt is also more likely to cause issues than firmer/stiffer felt. The change in shape and/or size can play havoc with the brim tensioning. At least this has been my personal experience.

 

[VetPsychWars]

Fortunately, this felt is super thin, and it conforms well.

 

[202Caleb]

Congratulations, that's a beautiful hat.

 

[itsallgood]

I didn't know Stetson was selling direct, other than their two outlet stores. Is that new? It's distribution channel can't be too happy about that.

 

[new2hats]

Drat. Sale is over. How thin is insane? I like the blue. Are these like the Akubras and will shrink over time. Am a long oval as well, and usually get the 7 1/4 to shrink slightly. The newer Stetsons are large to me and wonder which size to get if I do eventually end up getting one.

 

[VetPsychWars]

I'm between 7-1/8 and 7-1/4. In general, Stetson runs a little large, but they do shrink over time. I had to stretch mine a little bit. You don't really know how long a hat has been sitting in a warehouse or stockroom.

As for how thin, it's the same thickness as the least-expensive Strat. I personally like the machine-impressed crease. Not everyone does.

 

[Harley]

Question about this hat.

How much beaver is used in the beaver fur felt?

Is it like 5%, or 50%?

Any idea? Does it say anywhere?

 

[jlee562]

My understanding is that the Pure hats are 100% beaver.

 

[belfastboy]

Question about this hat.

How much beaver is used in the beaver fur felt?

Is it like 5%, or 50%?

Any idea? Does it say anywhere?

My understanding is that the Pure hats are 100% beaver.

And the Excellent grade, if you can find one from their ever so brief life, is 100%

 

[deadlyhandsome]

My understanding is that the Pure hats are 100% beaver.

Wasn’t there some advertising (Japanese?) that gave the percentage of beaver in the Royal De Luxe hats?

 

[jlee562]

Wasn’t there some advertising (Japanese?) that gave the percentage of beaver in the Royal De Luxe hats?

Yes, according to Stetson Japan, the Royal Deluxe mix is 10% beaver, 90% rabbit.

 

[Harley]

It is advertised as "beaver fur felt" which usually means a mixture .. or "some beaver." (Usually mixed with rabbit). If it were 100% Beaver, they'd be saying so, I'm sure. Also, 100% Beaver hats are very expensive, like $1,000, although they apparently last a lifetime and can be reshaped over and over, yada yada, yada.

I am aware of a custom hatmaker who makes 5% Beaver fur felt hats, 50% and 100%. I assume this Pure Stratoliner is kind of in line with the Royal Deluxe, which someone mentioned was 10%. I'm just curious. I think I am going to buy it, regardless.

 

[jlee562]

It is advertised as "beaver fur felt" which usually means a mixture .. or "some beaver." (Usually mixed with rabbit). If it were 100% Beaver, they'd be saying so, I'm sure. Also, 100% Beaver hats are very expensive, like $1,000, although they apparently last a lifetime and can be reshaped over and over, yada yada, yada.

I am aware of a custom hatmaker who makes 5% Beaver fur felt hats, 50% and 100%. I assume this Pure Stratoliner is kind of in line with the Royal Deluxe, which someone mentioned was 10%. I'm just curious. I think I am going to buy it, regardless.

Not all of the Excellent Quality hats carried the "Pure Beaver" stamp, but presumably all the Excellent Quality hats were the same felt.

The Pure hats are using the resurrected old style Pure Beaver imprinting, look at the inside view on Stetson.com. Presumably the whole point of the premium priced "Pure" hats is that they are pure beaver felt. The Royal Deluxe is already in line with the Royal Deluxe quality.

100% beaver hats are only that expensive if you're buying from a luxury outfitter like Optimo or some of the more expensive custom hatters. Gannon will do a 100% beaver for $350. Northwest Hats start at $375. If you want to make your own hat, you can get a beaver body for ~$150.

 

[Harley]

Well, sweet! Thanks for the information. I just purchased one, brand new, off of ebay for $356. (I'm not going to mention the price to my wife, haha). Tobacco. Stetson is apparently sold out. I'll let you know my impressions when I receive it in a couple of days.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

It is advertised as "beaver fur felt" which usually means a mixture .. or "some beaver." (Usually mixed with rabbit). If it were 100% Beaver, they'd be saying so, I'm sure. Also, 100% Beaver hats are very expensive, like $1,000, although they apparently last a lifetime and can be reshaped over and over, yada yada, yada.

I am aware of a custom hatmaker who makes 5% Beaver fur felt hats, 50% and 100%. I assume this Pure Stratoliner is kind of in line with the Royal Deluxe, which someone mentioned was 10%. I'm just curious. I think I am going to buy it, regardless.

The Pure is…er…pure. 100% beaver. The Excellent line is also, as far as I know, pure beaver fur felt. The Royal De Luxe looks to be 10% beaver, and the Royal line, sometimes described as having the properties of dryer lint, is probably 100% rabbit. That makes sense to me.

I’m of the opinion that there isn’t anything magical about 100% beaver felt and it’s not always the right/best felt for all hats. I’d be interested in buying a hat from the Stetson Pure line if they add a style I like.