Stetson Temple

[fmw]

It seems strange to me to buy a pre-creased hat only to change the crease. If you want a custom crease why not either buy a custom hat or a hat with an open crown. Yes, I understand that open crown hats are rare these day. At any rate, I buy hats because I like them the way they are. If I don't like them, I don't buy them. Perhaps I just don't understand.

My Open Road hasn't met any moisture yet but my new whippet has been covered with snow. I brushed it off and set it to dry. No issues at all. I didn't even have to adjust the shape. It dried and looked just like it did before battling the snowfall. My Western Stetsons have been through anything you could imagine including mud, falling in rivers, snow and rainstorms etc. I have many miles on horse back and I've been thrown from horses in training with Stetsons on my head. Never a problem of any sort. Stetson is the largest maker of high end hats in the business. If they made bad products, that wouldn't be the case. I'm no expert about the hat industry but I'm pretty knowlegeable about business in general.

I own about 8 or 9 Stetson products. Love 'em. I'll continue to buy 'em and recommend 'em to others.

 

[monbla256]

It seems strange to me to buy a pre-creased hat only to change the crease. If you want a custom crease why not either buy a custom hat or a hat with an open crown. Yes, I understand that open crown hats are rare these day. At any rate, I buy hats because I like them the way they are. If I don't like them, I don't buy them. Perhaps I just don't understand.

My Open Road hasn't met any moisture yet but my new whippet has been covered with snow. I brushed it off and set it to dry. No issues at all. I didn't even have to adjust the shape. It dried and looked just like it did before battling the snowfall. My Western Stetsons have been through anything you could imagine including mud, falling in rivers, snow and rainstorms etc. I have many miles on horse back and I've been thrown from horses in training with Stetsons on my head. Never a problem of any sort. Stetson is the largest maker of high end hats in the business. If they made bad products, that wouldn't be the case. I'm no expert about the hat industry but I'm pretty knowlegeable about business in general.

I own about 8 or 9 Stetson products. Love 'em. I'll continue to buy 'em and recommend 'em to others.

BINGO !! I concur with you 100% If you want a hat as was made 40/50 years ago, find a 40/50 yo hat or go custom, but when you buy a production hat you get what you see ! Like customizing a car, to do it thouroughly and correctly, it aint cheap

 

[Tone]

Out of curiosity, how many open crowned models does Stetson make at the moment?

 

[monbla256]

Just one, the Open Road. It is no longer made in the variuos quality levels as back in the past. And as such it retails btwn $150.00 /$200.00 depending on where you purchase it. It's now just one of many in the Stetson line up of western styled, pre-creased, stiffer felt hats in their line up. Thats all

Onward thru the Fog

 

[danofarlington]

Just one, the Open Road. Thats all

Onward thru the Fog

That's open crown? I thought ORs were all stiff and pre-formed in recent years.

 

[monbla256]

That's open crown? I thought ORs were all stiff and pre-formed in recent years.

Where did you get open crown from Open Road ?

 

[Tone]

Hmm. Not even that. Doesn't the Stetson Open Road come with that "Boss Hog" crease in it? Which Stetson hats for fedoras are "open-crowned"?

The Stetson Nostalgia, and...?


*Yeah, I see, you guys were beating me to that one while I was posting.

Any others, though?

 

[danofarlington]

Where did you get open crown from Open Road ?

That's what Tone was asking above. I would have been cheered to know Stetson made an open crowned OR.

 

[monbla256]

Hmm. Not even that. Doesn't the Stetson Open Road come with that "Boss Hog" crease in it? Which Stetson hats for fedoras are "open-crowned"?

The Stetson Nostalgia, and...?

Nope. Just the US version of the Cattleman crease. I have never heard of a "Boss Hog" crease. Would you have a pic of it ?

 

[Tone]

Heh. Nope, looks like Boss Hog wasn't even wearing an OR.

Putting this open-crowned bias aside, the general shapes of the pre-pressed Stetsons (and the specs assigned to those) and the limited choice of open-crowned options are what have kept me from getting a Stetson fedora for years. I have to say, however, that there are some Stetson models out there, this year, that are making that much less a concern.

 

[fmw]

I have little experience at creasing hats. However, it seems to me that one could wet down an OR and return it to an open crown, no? If not, then one could certainly send it to a hatter and have it done professionally. For me, the OR has too big a brim to be a fedora. Isn't it out of style to have a fedora with a brim that is nearly 3"? It makes a super western dress hat, however, and that's exactly what it looks like out of the box. I think Stetson got it just right.

I still think those who want to engage in hat creasing would do better to start with something other than an Open Road. Many have extolled the virtues of the Campdraft. I think it is too wide a brim for a fedora personally but it appears to be a good choice for self-creasers. The camp draft would make a super Open Road with a cattleman crease or a super Aussie outback style hat with a C crown or teardrop. Again, perhaps I just don't understand.

 

[1961MJS]

The Stetson Temple is set with taper. Changing the crease on a Temple won't fix that. The question was how close do the Fed IV and Stetson Temple look to each other. In short, nothing alike; and a recrease on the Temple won't change that. The Nostalgia isn't "set" in that tapered look. That's all. Yeah, if someone prefers that look in their hat, the color fact is the same.

Where are everyone's Stetson Temple pics in this thread anyway?

Hi Tone

I haven't taken any Temple pics yet. I'm camping this weekend anyway. It is true that the taper is changeable (or at least as changeable) as the rest of the crease, but I didn't get where the main question was Temple versus Fed IV. The Temple is a decent hat, and from what I've seen of the Fed's they're great too.

Later

 

[Tone]

Hi 1961MJS,
The question wasn't whether the Temple and Akubra FED IV were both great hats, but if they looked similar, and whether or not a FED had the same color range as the Stetsons.

I was just in a store looking at Steson Temples in mink. I really like the color, both mink and caribu, and I like it's shape and brim proportions. But I also need a hat that can hold up in fog, drizzle and rain (I don't like to use an umbrella). So after reading some experiences here, looks like this hat is out of my list. Can anyone suggest a very similar alternative? BTW, I have 2 Akubras (Sydney, Leisure Time), but they don't have that look and color of the Temple that I like. Do Fed IV's really look similar?

For a Stetson Temple thread, it does appear pretty lean on Stetson Temple pics, though.

 

[Jedwbpm]

Here are pictures of me in my Stetson Caribou Temple

Hope you like them

Jeff

 

[monbla256]

I have little experience at creasing hats. However, it seems to me that one could wet down an OR and return it to an open crown, no? If not, then one could certainly send it to a hatter and have it done professionally. For me, the OR has too big a brim to be a fedora. Isn't it out of style to have a fedora with a brim that is nearly 3"? It makes a super western dress hat, however, and that's exactly what it looks like out of the box. I think Stetson got it just right.

I still think those who want to engage in hat creasing would do better to start with something other than an Open Road. Many have extolled the virtues of the Campdraft. I think it is too wide a brim for a fedora personally but it appears to be a good choice for self-creasers. The camp draft would make a super Open Road with a cattleman crease or a super Aussie outback style hat with a C crown or teardrop. Again, perhaps I just don't understand.

fmw,
You make some good points concerning brim sizes and a fedora style of hat. The CD has a 73mm/2.874" width brim which is NOT out of the late 40's/early 50's brim widths as they were wider than those of the earlier 20s/30s. But then a lot of stuff was wider as well, from suit lapels, shoulders, pants, cars etc. It was postwar America and "more was better" From the '60s till now Fedora brims seem to have settled into the 2.375" to 2.5" range . I tend to agree with you about the OR vs CD creasing and style designation but I think a lot of folks here have found a style/model of modern hat that has ties to the earlier OR and lends itself to shaping as was done back in the late 40s/early '50s and have made EVERYTHING revolve around this hat!! Besides, this thread was about the Stetson Temple and I must apologize for helping kidnap it away from it's original vien

Onward thru the Fog

 

[monbla256]

Jed,
That Temple is one good looking hat on you!!! I like that Caribu color as well And the wide ribbon works as well

 

[Tone]

Thanks for posting some shots, jedwbpm. This Stetson Temple thread definitely needs more Stetson Temple pictures! Great color! There's a Stetson "sage green" out there that's really getting hard to pass up, too.

 

[fmw]

Nice, Jeff, and I'm glad somebody other me likes Stetsons around here. Is caribou gray or brown?

 

[fmw]

Monbla, I'm not against recreasing hats. And I'm certainly not against people using what they own as they see fit. It just seems like a strange way to approach things. I understand that the OR has a following. I followed it myself. I like mine a lot and I normally wear it with the brim snapped down. But I wouldn't call it a fedora and I wouldn't change a thing on it.

I also understand the fashions of the 40's and 50's. I was born in the early 40's. But fashions have changed and, even though the fedora is a bit of an anachronism today, styles seem to dictate narrower brims and shorter crowns for it. We are talking about the 21st century are we not?

 

[Tone]

Hi Fmw,

I think you might be mistaken; or misinterpreting the previous posts. Nobody in the last few posts was bagging on the Stetsons; just observing the availability of their open models when it comes to those who might like to style their own. You may be defending a cause in which there is no opposition. I'd gather it's more from a knee-jerk reaction than the content of the last few posts when it comes to mention of the Stetson in certain circles. Let's most definitely see more Stetsons.