Stetson Roadster

[skydog757]

That is a great photo. I agree; that's much more attactive to my eyes. Nice job and thanks for posting.

 

[RJR]

I like the new ribbon.

 

[hartfell]

Picking up an old thread here - but just got delivery of my new Roadster in Walnut. Very good-looking hat. Love the proportions, the color, the crease in the crown, the leather band. It's one of those hats you can dress up or down. I'm surprised it's not one of Stetson's more popular hats. The only thing I would change would be to give it a flatter brim. It's either brim up or brim down, no in-between flat which I prefer. All in all, a great hat!

 

[skydog757]

The only thing I would change would be to give it a flatter brim. It's either brim up or brim down, no in-between flat which I prefer.

I agree; I own quite a lot of snap brims and I do like 'em, but I would definitely like to have some where the brim is flat or at least flatter. More so on some of the stingy brims - the down-turned brims can be short to the point of looking like a child's hat and I don't always want to wear the brim up.

 

[javadave61]

I'll add my +1 to the Roadster. The Stetson outlet had it for $50 when I was there and I would have gladly picked it up had the walnut been in my size. They did have black, but I wasn't feeling it. Anyone know what felt is used on it? Is it their royal felt? It seemed nice, but I didn't take much time to look at it that closely.

 

[dkstott]

I just joined the Stetson Roadster group with my Walnut colored royal deluxe roadster.

I'm not quite sure about the leather hatband.

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[dkstott]

After some thought, I decided to modify my Roadster a bit. 1 inch ribbon for the hatband. I really like this look now.

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[Boomerang]

I think that was a great improvement. Love the last pic.

 

[BulldogsRBtrThnPeople]

Agreed. Looks excellent. I have a Roadster and I honestly don’t know why it doesn’t get more love around here. It’s very versatile and rather handsome.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Agreed. Looks excellent. I have a Roadster and I honestly don’t know why it doesn’t get more love around here. It’s very versatile and rather handsome.

Nothing personal. Like most recent Stetsons, I has quite a bit of taper that many of us don’t like. The crown is lower and the brim narrower than I prefer too. The current offering is made with “firm” felt and when it comes to a fedora I’d rather have softer dress-weight felt.

All that matters is that you like yours. I have several hats that others wouldn’t look at twice that I personally love. You should post photos of you wearing the Roadster in the What Hat Are You Wearing Today thread so we can see what it looks like being worn.


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[dkstott]

The Stetson Roadster has the Royal Deluxe felt which is the same as what most folks love about the Stetson open road hats. The crown is 4 1/2" inches with a 2 1/2 inch brim.

Personally, I wouldn't go much taller in the crown and this brim width is perfect for me.

Anything bigger than that is just too much hat for me.

I have a hunch that the Roadster doesn't get much love is because of the thin leather band.

Yes, everyone's tastes in hats vary.

Nothing personal. Like most recent Stetsons, I has quite a bit of taper that many of us don’t like. The crown is lower and the brim narrower than I prefer too. The current offering is made with “firm” felt and when it comes to a fedora I’d rather have softer dress-weight felt.

All that matters is that you like yours. I have several hats that others wouldn’t look at twice that I personally love. You should post photos of you wearing the Roadster in the What Hat Are You Wearing Today thread so we can see what it looks like being worn.


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[deadlyhandsome]

The Stetson Roadster has the Royal Deluxe felt which is the same as what most folks love about the Stetson open road hats. The crown is 4 1/2" inches with a 2 1/2 inch brim.

Personally, I wouldn't go much taller in the crown and this brim width is perfect for me.

Anything bigger than that is just too much hat for me.

I have a hunch that the Roadster doesn't get much love is because of the thin leather band.

Yes, everyone's tastes in hats vary.

The Royal De Luxe hats that get the most good press here are the open crown hats. Not a lot of love for the modern Stetsons with machine pressed crowns...not even for the Excellent quality hats that are pure beaver.

While the current (not sure of past models) Roadster may be of Royal De Luxe (RD) quality, it is not the same type of felt as say the Stratoliner, Stetsonian (sadly discontinued), or even the current RD Open Road. Stetson calls those “soft felt,” but the Roadster is made from “firm felt.” The leather band does give it a more outdoorsy, less dress look, but that’s not a bad thing. However, the entire vibe of the hat isn’t very classic/vintage and that seems to be what many of the members here are looking for.

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[dkstott]

It's funny because according to Delmonico hatter & JJ Hat center, they can't keep up with the demand for the modern Stetson's.

It appears the general public likes them.

 

[Frunobulax]

It's funny because according to Delmonico hatter & JJ Hat center, they can't keep up with the demand for the modern Stetson's.

It appears the general public likes them.

Well, that is a good thing. Different crowd in these parts. I have and enjoy some modern ones. However, once you get a taste for the superior felting and craftsmanship found on vintage and custom hats, it's kind of hard to get excited about a machine-pressed hat with fishing line holding the ribbon on.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

It's funny because according to Delmonico hatter & JJ Hat center, they can't keep up with the demand for the modern Stetson's.

It appears the general public likes them.

The hats from the 1920s are different from those from the 1930s which are different from this from the 1940s. Change will continue and “progress” won’t be denied. Men’s stores might not be able to keep up with skinny jeans and Ugg boots, but not all of us are going to jump on that train.

I’m all for diversity, and I wish Hat-Co luck. I also wear hats that most folks here have little interest in, and, except for a few comments from known boors, no one has taken me to task for my opinions or preferences. I don’t want you to feel picked on. There’s nothing wrong with the Roadmaster, it’s just not the type of hat that the majority here have gravitated to. Your original question (perhaps rhetorical?) about why the Roadmaster isn’t shown the love that other hats receive has a definable answer. The felt, shape, sweatbands, ribbons, liners, and construction of the current hats are all well below the quality of vintage (1950s or older with some exceptions) hats. Some of the more recent Stetsons get more “love” due to having some better felt (like the Premiere Stratoliner) or better shape and proportions (like the Stetsonian), so we live with the inferior components and build quality.

The members of The Lounge do not tend to represent the current market or the the trends of the day. The forum was started as a place for all things “golden Era/Age” and that remains the center of our interest. However, it’s a big tent community where all are welcome and we’d love to see your hats regardless of vintage or style.


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[Frunobulax]

The hats from the 1920s are different from those from the 1930s which are different from this from the 1940s. Change will continue and “progress” won’t be denied. Men’s stores might not be able to keep up with skinny jeans and Ugg boots, but not all of us are going to jump on that train.

I’m all for diversity, and I wish Hat-Co luck. I also wear hats that most folks here have little interest in, and, except for a few comments from known boors, no one has taken me to task for my opinions or preferences. I don’t want you to feel picked on. There’s nothing wrong with the Roadmaster, it’s just not the type of hat that the majority here have gravitated to. Your original question (perhaps rhetorical?) about why the Roadmaster isn’t shown the love that other hats receive has a definable answer. The felt, shape, sweatbands, ribbons, liners, and construction of the current hats are all well below the quality of vintage (1950s or older with some out fliers) hats. Some of the more recent Stetsons get more “love” due to having some better felt (like the Premiere Stratoliner) or better shape and proportions (like the Stetsonian), so we live with the inferior components and build quality.

The members of The Lounge do not tend to represent the current market or the the trends of the day. The forum was started as a place for all things “golden Era/Age” and that remains the center of our interest. However, it’s a big tent community where all are welcome and we’d love to see your hats regardless of vintage or style.


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Meh. Stetsons have just gone downhill since John B. sold that first one while out west. Now that was a hat.

(I think we tend to sound like that sometimes)

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Meh. Stetsons have just gone downhill since John B. sold that first one while out west. Now that was a hat.

(I think we tend to sound like that sometimes)

I can certainly see that. It’s hard to be really into something and still not come across as elitist. There is a whiff of snobbery sometimes that can be hard to avoid.

Even when the decline of hat quality is quantifiable and beyond dispute (as if anything is), it doesn’t matter to the guy who owns a recent hat and is happy with it. Some even like the hard-wearing, keeps-its-shape nature of modern hats. I have modern western conversions for the same reason.


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[Rmccamey]

We all have different tools for different jobs. Some are new, some are old. For me, it's the same with hats.

 

[dkstott]

There seems to be some confusion about whether or not Stetson has discontinued the Roadster or not. It's still in their online catalog, but most retailers have limited quantities.

I was able to purchase a second one in almost new condition. As I've posted in the past, I don't like the thin leather outer band.

On this one, I installed a 1 inch wide charcoal grey ribbon with double bow. I think the contrasting color looks great.

 

[dkstott]

Images added