The Conversion Corral

[alanfgag]

Cindy,

I always try to blow all the dust away before I do anything else while it is still very dry and loose.

A vacuum works very well.

 

[alanfgag]

Here's a beautiful vintage 5x Stetson I just restored.

Very interesting hat. What does it say above the crest on the liner? I wonder which parts were original to the hat before the renovation by Shudde Bros?

 

[bond]

Above crest on liner says 5x Beaver Quality same as sweatband .
I was thinking same thing Alan

 

[alanfgag]

A decade or two earlier, the 5X was marked as clear beaver quality. With "clear" or without, it's a seldom seen marking. Nice find!

 

[bond]

Yes, I concur . This is one of the nicest felts I've had and it is only the second 5x I've had in last 4 yrs .

 

[Geldoc]

Beautiful work, Bond.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

Here's a beautiful vintage 5x Stetson I just restored. The sweat was popped and ribbon rotted so I upped it to 7 1/2 and added a ribbon and wind cord . Sponged the felt to lightly clean and preserve the nice patina. Felt is very thin and very dense and one of the nicest Stetsons I've come across . Inside original sweat is the Rensh stamp.

Nice work!

 

[Joao Encarnado]

I guess technically mine is not a Stagecoach because it doesn't have that marking on the liner but it has similar dimensions.

Has I promised, here are some pictures of a black Stagecoach and a black 3X beaver with the same dimensions side by side. They are different by touch.

 

[T Jones]

Has I promised, here are some pictures of a black Stagecoach and a black 3X beaver with the same dimensions side by side. They are different by touch.

Is that the Stagecoach on the right with the pencil curled brim edge? I like that one. Something like that I wouldn't change, except for the ribbon color maybe.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

Is that the Stagecoach on the right with the pencil curled brim edge? I like that one. Something like that I wouldn't change, except for the ribbon color maybe.

Yes it is. I will not change the pencil curl and the ribbon color is dark grey. I like the contrast.

 

[Landman]

Resistol 3X Beaver

I received my Resistol 3X Beaver hat yesterday. This is the hat that I was asking about a few days ago that has similar dimensions to a Resistol Stagecoach.

First of all, the hat looked to me to be silverbelly in the auction photos but turned out to be a rather unique Camel color that is very hard to photograph. Even in my "After" photos the color is not accurately represented. It is more of a mustard colored tan or what I would call a Camel color. The brim on the hat is 4" but looks smaller because the crown on it is huge! It measured 7" when open crown and is still 6" at the highest point in the new crease.

Here is a brief description of what I did to the hat. First, I removed the original ribbon, blew all the dust off of the hat with an air compressor and then steamed the crown back into an open crown. After letting it dry I then sprayed the entire hat with distilled water and went to work on the crease. The felt is a typical thick western weight but was fairly easy to work with once it was sufficiently wet. After letting it dry I put a brown and black horsehair band on it for the photos below.

I think it turned out very nice but the crown on it is so big I would never wear it. It just looks funny on me because I'm tall and skinny. It would probably look very nice on a person with a larger frame. This was a fun little experiment though!

Here are some before and after pictures.

BEFORE:





AFTER:

 

[Landman]

Is that the Stagecoach on the right with the pencil curled brim edge? I like that one. Something like that I wouldn't change, except for the ribbon color maybe.

+1! That is the best looking Stagecoach I have seen. That is a good looking hat Joao.

 

[Chepstow]

Sharp Conversion Mike, great work on the crown, now the time to wear him is coming!

 

[Landman]

Thanks Manfred!

 

[John Galt]

I received my Resistol 3X Beaver hat yesterday. This is the hat that I was asking about a few days ago that has similar dimensions to a Resistol Stagecoach...

Well, I like the tweaks. Looks like a Montana cowboy hat to my eye. If the crown is just too high for you, you might telescope or double-telescope it Roy Rogers style. Check out the YouTube video of Roy making his signature crease if you haven't seen it - it's pretty cool.

 

[Landman]

Thanks John. I wanted to make a Gus type hat but if I lower the crown too much the inside of the hat fills up with the crown...if that makes sense. It would probably be a good candidate for a double telescope because there is so much crown. However, I think I'll leave it like it is for now. I have a friend that might like it if it will fit him. If it doesn't I will probably sell it.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

Nice work Landman on that rework and the horsehair hatband looks nice. Thank you on the compliment of my black Stagecoach!

 

[T Jones]

I received my Resistol 3X Beaver hat yesterday. This is the hat that I was asking about a few days ago that has similar dimensions to a Resistol Stagecoach.



AFTER:

The crease looks really good on that and the horsehair hat band is a nice added touch.

 

[Joao Encarnado]

First of all, the hat looked to me to be silverbelly in the auction photos but turned out to be a rather unique Camel color that is very hard to photograph. Even in my "After" photos the color is not accurately represented. It is more of a mustard colored tan or what I would call a Camel color. The brim on the hat is 4" but looks smaller because the crown on it is huge! It measured 7" when open crown and is still 6" at the highest point in the new crease.

Forget to add this: I love when a surprise like that arrives at my door, when you think it's a colour and ends to be a nicer colour.
If you think 7" is huge, my Tom Mix have a 8" open crown! Can't drive my car with it lol

If it doesn't I will probably sell it.

If it were 1 size smaller I would candidate for it.

 

[Landman]

Joao, the color was a nice surprise. The size of the crown was the big surprise though!

TJ, thanks for the compliment. I love horsehair bands and think they can make any western look good. Because of the height of the crown on this one a wider horsehair band would probably look better but I don't have any.