The Cap Faction

[Razzman]

The music is fine! I agree with Ed, it's the floppy button on the top of the cap. Nothing that a needle and thread can't fix.

 

[Adnamira]

The music is fine! I agree with Ed, it's the floppy button on the top of the cap. Nothing that a needle and thread can't fix.

Thanks The button is actually secured tight. It's just the loop of metal that makes it stick up - it's not pulled through the crown like other buttons. It would probably look alright with the button removed completely. The wool zasu is much better as it sits down in the softer fabric more.

 

[Razzman]

I went back to look at the Zasu Caps. On some of the photos you can see that the button is not pulled through or secured firmly against the fabric, as shown on the link below. I think you could secure it a bit more tightly.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/VINTAGE-192...-/250905294967?pt=US_Hats&hash=item3a6b1ef877

 

[Adnamira]

It's actually the metal loop that is sticking up under the button. Ralf has his own way of joining the points of the eight panel at the apex. It comes in, in sort of a octagonal, which I think may add to the length of the crown, which makes sense when you want fabric over the brim, especially when the brim is big, but this has created a problem in how to attach the button and make it look good.

 

[seabass]

I have a couple of his caps, ZAZU they hold up well, My son has been using his for 2 years strong.
the button sometimes you can sense it bouncing around.....
i call it the Dingleberry... lol

 

[Adnamira]

Haha, Dingleberry!

Well, it's interesting to look at the feedback for Ralf's site. 100% rating, so the people who buy his caps seem to be happy with them. The only negative comment I can find is someone said that the cap they bought had plastic in the top. I can't find plastic in mine, so maybe Ralf did experiment with a different type of button. The only two things I can think that people might be unsatisfied with these caps is the look of the button and the thickness of the hem on some of the thicker fabrics. The seams look a bit rolled in some of the photos, but when you get the cap, the quality of how everything is done is very good. I'm considering a Wigens or Retro Sport frenchy doo for my next cap, but I like the cotton, eight panel lining in the Zasu so much that I am hesitant. I can live with the dicky button; not sure I can live with polyester linings. Polyester is a ****** horrible fabric - ruins the qualities of natural fibres such as wool, cotton and linen - doesn't breath, makes your skin itch when you sweat, and gets really stinky if you don't wash it regularly. The only benefit is that it doesn't take up much room. Kudos to hp and Zasu for cotton linings.

Comparing hat people to Zasu. I like the hp caps for being light and comfy, and convenient for chucking in a bag or on the seat of the car; also they are easy to wash. The seams look a bit neater and tidier in the hp than the Zasu cap, but overall I think because the Zasu caps are made by one guy, the quality is more consistant with the Zasu. The linings fit in the cap better on the Zasu than the Hat People Caps, and the Zasu has a more satisfying volume and size to it. The cotton hem is more comfortable than the stretch fabric hem on the hp caps, but with the thicker fabrics can make the hem quite bulky.

I was in a night club the other day, and a young lady, probably around 18, walked past me and said, 'Nice hat!' Her tone of voice seemed positive, so I deon't think she was taking the **** either, but maybe I am deluded

 

[Adnamira]

I just checked the button on the wool zasu and it is twice as big as the one on the denim cap - works a lot better. I think you can go on the photos he has on ebay. If the button is sticking up in the photos that is how they will be when you get them. If the button looks to be sitting down, then that's probably the way they will be. He does a good job of photographing his caps, and it is good to be able to see the actual cap you will be getting.

 

[flat-top]

Silly question, but couldn't you just tap the button down?

 

[Adnamira]

Silly question, but couldn't you just tap the button down?

It's a metal loop. There are no loose threads or stitching in this cap. The button is like it because of the way it's designed, not the quality of how it is made.

 

[flat-top]

It's a metal loop. There are no loose threads or stitching in this cap. The button is like it because of the way it's designed, not the quality of how it is made.

I was thinking that it was a button with almost like a metal "tack" on the underside, which in this case is under the lining.

 

[Adnamira]

I was thinking that it was a button with almost like a metal "tack" on the underside, which in this case is under the lining.

I know what you mean - that's the way they do a lot of caps.

 

[ralfh]

The golden days

never been surpassed

 

[alanfgag]

Thanks to Lefty for posting this auction that had closed without an opening bid.

This is one crazy tweed - thick and rustic. I couldn't find a maker mark inside... there are owner's initials stamped and a faint square where a size tag once stood in front of the sweat. That fabulous purple tip liner (did you know green/purple is my favorite color pairing?) reads "For Fine Retail Trade/ Made in USA" with a spoonbill, or dodo or I don't know what in the middle. 1 1/2" rolled sweatband is butter soft sheepskin or deerskin or something like that. No snap on brim.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

.
It's an old one for sure. My guess is 1920 at the latest, probably earlier.

 

[Zombie_61]

What do you all think of this line from Boardwalk Empire, as said to Al Capone:

"You are a man, yet you wear the cap of a boy."

Don't know. Flat caps were the caps of men who did manual work and/or did things in the countryside: shooting, hiking, golfing, driving, etc. Flat caps weren't meant to be worn while engaged in white-collar work.

I didn't see the episode, so I have no idea about the intent with which the line was delivered, but I'm inclined to agree with Mr. Chevalier. It seems to me to be more of a comment on Capone's social standing and/or position within the organization's hierarchy, i.e., "If you want to be taken seriously you should wear the clothing of a businessman."

...and apparently tight hats can contribute to baldness.

Ah, this old chestnut again. Medically speaking, the only way hats contribute to baldness is if the band is so tight that it restricts or eliminates blood flow to the hair follicles.

According to Hatless Jack: The President, the Fedora, and the History of American Style by Neil Steinberg (which is an excellent read, by the way), the modern version of this myth was perpetuated by--wait for it--people in the hat industry! Advertisers for straw hat manufacturers, in an attempt to convince wool and fur felt hat wearers to buy straw hats during summer months, claimed straw hats allowed better air flow to the scalp, thereby reducing the chances of baldness. This belief was reinforced when servicemen returning home after their tours of duty noticed they were beginning to lose their hair, and presumed this was caused by the hats they were required to wear while in the service (ignoring the fact that they were merely at the age when male-pattern-baldness usually begins). When hat wearing overall begin to decline, advertisers contradicted previous claims by stating hatlessness caused baldness as "the inevitable result of dry, brittle, sun-baked, windblown, dust-laden hair." There are a number of conditions that contribute to or cause baldness, but hat-wearing isn't one of them.

 

[DNO]

Gotta love those thrift stores! Found my second cap today...a lovely 6 panel newsboy by Henri-Henri of Montreal.

I'm much happier about the find that the second photo would imply. Just not too keen on the haircut!

I don't know the maker but they have a store in Montreal and an interesting website: http://henrihenri.ca/en/index.htm

Another place to visit next time I'm in that fair city.

 

[Lefty]

Thanks to Lefty for posting this auction that had closed without an opening bid.

I'm glad you went after it. It looks great.

 

[Adnamira]

Ah, this old chestnut again. Medically speaking, the only way hats contribute to baldness is if the band is so tight that it restricts or eliminates blood flow to the hair follicles.

Can't be good for you though, wearing a hat that is too tight. I bought a Kangol Bonded Wool Hudson once that was too small for me. It had a cloth band, but a suede edging. Wore it for about five minutes and got a headache, plus a goofy looking red mark around my forehead. I won't being buying any hat with the intention of stretching it, just as I won't be buying underpants that are a size too small for me and then stretching them out. I understand that it is hard buying on the internet, and if you are buying vintage. I will wear a daggy looking cap if it is comfortable; I would never wear a cap that was uncomfortable, no matter how good it looked. I've bought over a dozen caps on the internet so far. Good sellers and good makers usually provide measurements that allow you to get pretty close to the right size, and I've never had a problem with a cap that is too large so far. If you are really into buying vintage, and have a heap of hats, maybe some that have shrunk, then having a hat stretcher would make sense, but if you are a first time cap buyer, you probably aren't going to have one of those, and you probably have better things to do with your time, and you don't want your first cap to be a Monkey Magic experience - 'Ay ya ya ya!'

 

[Johnny J]

Thanks to Lefty for posting this auction that had closed without an opening bid.

Great looking cap Alan. I like it!

 

[randooch]

Great looking cap Alan. I like it!

+1 Very compelling cap.

I'm wearing my recent Ebay find, which had two moth bites that I sewed up. It's very comfortable; I tend to wear it indoors only, like pajamas.