The hard-to-find or unusual Hat Circle

[AbbaDatDeHat]

wow

time to leave..again.

Garrett:
I would prefer you do not leave this thread nor any others. If my previous post directed at you has anything to do with your leaving then i apologize to you for any ill feelings it may have caused you. I certainly could have expressed my message in far kinder terms.
I respect you, your abundant knowledge and especially your passion for all things hats and this lounge is very fortunate to have so few expert members such as you.
It would be the other members loss not to learn from what you have to share should you not contribute to this thread especially. Rare hats are your specialty as everyone would agree i believe. Rare and old hats even more so.
I would appreciate it if you would reconsider your exit and stay and teach us new members as well as accept my apology.
It’s not my place to be giving “life lessons” nor speak for others on the lounge. Who was right and who was wrong matters not, as long as we can be respectful of each other.
Bowen

 

[Daniele Tanto]

A few days ago I wrote my opinion on the so-called "rarities" in a thread asking for our personal opinion on being a collector or wearer of hats. Maybe it wasn't the right place and few have read what I think. A post on this thread can be good-natured or evil, I opt for a constructive post because through reasoning, criticism and proposals you can get better results, even in a game like Fedora Lounge. First of all, I am sorry Garrett expresses his will to leave, considering that he is one of the rare ones who actually posts examples of hats of enormous quality and historicity. Think again, or exclude yourself, as I do, from some useless threads. Having said that, I believe that Max's joy at having found what he considered a point of arrival in his collection prompted his enthusiasm to propose a thread to celebrate the victory. Some joined in, others refrained from comments after reading, others probably ignored. Of course there is the problem, as Garrett points out, of what rarity means and, although each of us has his own personal definition of rarity, we will never reach a point of equilibrium in which rarity is shared. I think Garrett interprets with his words a sense of unease for this race, without meaning, to consider something "rare" that belongs to one's personal sphere. In this regard, some of us might open a similar thread every two weeks, but the purpose of some, myself included, is to share news, hats and other items that bring a greater understanding of the topic to other fellows. For this purpose I have found myself in difficulty in recent times, too many words for little and very little willingness to share, if not: I have this and you will have to suffer and spend a lot of money to get it. Here I stop and invite you to make some reflections on the subject.

 

[Frunobulax]

I thought we were just having a little fun...

 

[Just Daniel]

What a fun thread! Here is a hat I consider rare, a 30s Royal Stetson soft hat.

From my view, I’d say the thread is fun when we combine hats that are hard to find now and that are exciting to find. When I came across it on eBay I about jumped out of my virtual skin. And it has the $10 price tag inside, although no lot number.

 

[Just Daniel]

Wow! Those boxed reorder tags are so much fun to find!

Since Max is the OP and he’s posting “Hard to find or unusual hats” based on what he’s found in the market over the last couple of years I think that the parameters are obvious.

There are all sorts of other threads for other hats, but I’m enjoying the big tent nature of this thread. Some might have been common at the time they were originally sold, but scare/rare on the market today.

My hardest to find hat so far has been this:

View attachment 267674 View attachment 267675

What makes it truly rare isn’t the brand, or the model (I don’t know what model it is), the condition (mint!); what really makes it rare is the size:

View attachment 267676

 

[steur]

I'm with Jim on this one: nothing wrong with having a bit of fun and if you don't care for the "rare" or "hard to find" label, maybe post an unusual hat or skip the thread altogether. Nothing wrong with that.
In some sense all hats are rare in the same way that none of them are. Type "vintage hat" as a search into Ebay and you'll get forty thousand results at any given time and two weeks ago there were three Stetson100's, "grail hats" to many, on auction at the same time. Rare? I think "rare" is a very relative measure and Max has proven that with some perseverance and the willingness to spend some serious cash you can find yourself with a collection of stellar hats in only a few years time.
I'm as interested as the next guy in the history of the hatting industry in all its facets. There are plenty of threads dedicated to that and thank goodness there are. But that doesn't mean we can't have some less serious threads as well. Isn't there a popular "WTF hats" thread as well?
I think it's a pity we don't seem to do well as a forum whenever there's difference of opinion about something.

 

[Just Daniel]

Here is a rare hat just for fun in the positive spirit of the thread. Maybe I am being a bit mischievous, the hat is not necessarily rare except that I’m pretty sure the Doc does not have one

Here is a Knox Thirty!

 

[alanfgag]

...although each of us has his own personal definition of rarity, we will never reach a point of equilibrium in which rarity is shared.

A wise observation. With members coming and going over the years, our group is a mixture of members of different tenure and with that, a range of purpose, experience, hat knowledge and tastes. I remember having a cup of coffee with RLK once where he admitted to posting and bumping just to move the Akubra threads off the front page.

I have quite a few thoughts in my head so I will just post a couple of hat photos with a brief explanation of why they qualify to me as rare or unusual. First one that comes to mind is this Hawes Von Gal. From the profusion of print advertisements on eBay, the company must have sold tons of their $3 hats, yet precious few examples have survived to be resold on the vintage market. The condition of this one and the fact that it is a soft hat rather than a stiff hat help it to qualify as an unusual find:

Another that strikes me as rare is this Dunlap duplex hat. Not that old (1940s I believe) it has inspired copies from a number of talented modern hatters... but original examples of half felt half straw hats are "rare" - at least I know of only two - both found by the same lounge member. I am lucky to have one.

Rare can be an ancient survivor or a seldom seen model or also a hat that becomes one of a kind by a special provenance. This hat, made by the Frank Stack Hat Co. is a post-war high end felt (silver beaver 50) - the type that many lounge members (including the OP) get excited about. Insides show that it is made for Stack by Maclachlan, a maker well regarded around these parts. It's a fine hat with very few comparable examples that I have seen. What makes me add it here is that it came in the original box with information on the original owner. I.G. Brown was a Colonel when he purchased this, likely when he served as sheriff of Hot Springs, Arkansas in the late 1940s. He rose to the rank of Major General and was the founding director of the Air National Guard.

cheers,
Alan

 

[RossRYoung]

Thanks for sharing that Maclachlan, Alan! All 3 beauties, but the felt and history of the ‘Stack’ are most fascinating.

 

[Just Daniel]

Great fun, great hats, and great post!

A wise observation. With members coming and going over the years, our group is a mixture of members of different tenure and with that, a range of purpose, experience, hat knowledge and tastes. I remember having a cup of coffee with RLK once where he admitted to posting and bumping just to move the Akubra threads off the front page.

I have quite a few thoughts in my head so I will just post a couple of hat photos with a brief explanation of why they qualify to me as rare or unusual. First one that comes to mind is this Hawes Von Gal. From the profusion of print advertisements on eBay, the company must have sold tons of their $3 hats, yet precious few examples have survived to be resold on the vintage market. The condition of this one and the fact that it is a soft hat rather than a stiff hat help it to qualify as an unusual find:

Another that strikes me as rare is this Dunlap duplex hat. Not that old (1940s I believe) it has inspired copies from a number of talented modern hatters... but original examples of half felt half straw hats are "rare" - at least I know of only two - both found by the same lounge member. I am lucky to have one.

Rare can be an ancient survivor or a seldom seen model or also a hat that becomes one of a kind by a special provenance. This hat, made by the Frank Stack Hat Co. is a post-war high end felt (silver beaver 50) - the type that many lounge members (including the OP) get excited about. Insides show that it is made for Stack by Maclachlan, a maker well regarded around these parts. It's a fine hat with very few comparable examples that I have seen. What makes me add it here is that it came in the original box with information on the original owner. I.G. Brown was a Colonel when he purchased this, likely when he served as sheriff of Hot Springs, Arkansas in the late 1940s. He rose to the rank of Major General and was the founding director of the Air National Guard.

cheers,
Alan

 

[drmaxtejeda]

More pics of my Mac Golden Beaver Hundred, sent to me by my brother-in-law. Looks like a 7 1/4, but it's unreeded, and a large area in front has become unstitched. I already contacted Optimo to ask if they have the machine for unreeded sweatbands.
I have an unfoxed, identical liner I can transplant to it

 

[alanfgag]

More pics of my Mac Golden Beaver Hundred, sent to me by my brother-in-law. Looks like a 7 1/4, but it's unreeded, and a large area in front has become unstitched. I already contacted Optimo to ask if they have the machine for unreeded sweatbands.
I have an unfoxed, identical liner I can transplant to it
View attachment 268037 View attachment 268038 View attachment 268039 View attachment 268040 View attachment 268041 View attachment 268042 View attachment 268043

Hi Max,

The sweatband is surely applied with a reed. The front is fabricated using Maclachlan's AirVac ventilation construction... same as in the Silver Beaver 50.

 

[buler]

Yep, don't stitch that Air Vac closed. Who knows what could happen.

B

 

[BobHufford]

Yep, don't stitch that Air Vac closed. Who knows what could happen.

The hat would rapidly Self Conform ...

 

[suitedcboy]

Now this has me wondering if what have been called sales sample hats and gift certificate hats were man bun hats for one of the earlier man bun periods.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Here’s the hat I wore today, and it’s one of only 12-15 ever made.

VS in Glacier:

 

[BobHufford]

Here’s the hat I wore today, and it’s one of only 12-15 ever made.

VS in Glacier

Nice! I thought the count was 13 (as I have #13). Did a couple more sneak in there?

 

[jlee562]

Hand dyed Oxblood from Black Sheep, only one!

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Nice! I thought the count was 13 (as I have #13). Did a couple more sneak in there?

Wasn’t sure of the number, but 13 is within my range. Love this color.

Hand dyed Oxblood from Black Sheep, only one!

Now that is exclusive!

 

[drmaxtejeda]

The hat would rapidly Self Conform ...

View attachment 268080

Hahaha!