The Official Stetson 25 Thread

[suitedcboy]

Felt beaver content is one of the most consistently inconsistent grading systems I've ever run across. The variables of where on the beaver's body the fur is sourced, shellac content, mercury and non mercury felting, and pouncing and you have quite a mess. I'm only referring to the first half of the twentieth century too. The other factor affecting this is the effects of age and on the felt. I can't recall having anyone in the 80s or 90s speak to what some of the high end hats, 7x and 100s, etc. were like as new hats compared to how well kept example's felt feels today.

 

[wsmontana]

Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

 

[Rmccamey]

A Twenty Five OR is a mighty special hat. Congrats.

Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

View attachment 559420 View attachment 559421 View attachment 559422 View attachment 559423 View attachment 559424 View attachment 559425

 

[Rmccamey]

A Twenty Five OR is a mighty special hat. Congrats.

Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

View attachment 559420 View attachment 559421 View attachment 559422 View attachment 559423 View attachment 559424 View attachment 559425

 

[wsmontana]

A Twenty Five OR is a mighty special hat. Congrats.

Thanks Randy!

 

[Hurricane Jack]

The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier.

You’re on a roll!

 

[wsmontana]

You’re on a roll!

Thanks @Hurricane Jack! Fortunate finds for sure!

 

[Weatherman]

Just got my first 25 OR. Looking at another. This one needs a good bash but I haven't decided on cattleman (OR Style) or a teardrop. It appears to be from the 40-50s judging by the size tag. The brim is also 3.25, wider than the standard OR 2.75.

 

[DaveProc]

Just got my first 25 OR. Looking at another. This one needs a good bash but I haven't decided on cattleman (OR Style) or a teardrop. It appears to be from the 40-50s judging by the size tag. The brim is also 3.25, wider than the standard OR 2.75. View attachment 654053 View attachment 654054

Can you provide pics of the inventory tag behind the sweatband, it should help identifying approximately when it was made

 

[Weatherman]

No inventory tag. But, note that the liner is held in place with stitching and some type of paper tape.
The type of size tag in this hat according to information I was able to find online started in the 30s and lasted approximately to the 60s although they were already using a tan and black tag by the '50s.

https://publiusforum1.wpenginepower...-on-fedora-sweatbands-and-fedora-dating-tips/

Can you provide pics of the inventory tag behind the sweatband, it should help identifying approximately when it was made

 

[DaveProc]

No inventory tag. But, note that the liner is held in place with stitching and some type of paper tape.
The type of size tag in this hat according to information I was able to find online started in the 30s and lasted approximately to the 60s although they were already using a tan and black tag by the '50s.

https://publiusforum1.wpenginepower...-on-fedora-sweatbands-and-fedora-dating-tips/
View attachment 654063 View attachment 654064

Looking at the tip and liner I suspected the hat was later the the 1940s and possibly late 1950s or 1960s which the same Publius Forum site confirmed

 

[Weatherman]

Looking at the tip and liner I suspected the hat was later the the 1940s and possibly late 1950s or 1960s which the same Publius Forum site confirmed
View attachment 654067

I don't believe so. If you look closely at the information on that page they're showing the wrong picture, a picture of a black and tan tag while describing only a tan tag with black ink which they say "By the 1930s, Stetson went with a manila card stock with only black ink printed on it. This one lasted until 1960."
while their information says the tag lasted to the '60s, Stetson was clearly using other tags starting in the fifties, the black and tan with only the partial size and then later on the black and tan with the full size and in the 60s they went to the black tag with the gold lettering.

 

[DaveProc]

I don't believe so. If you look closely at the information on that page they're showing the wrong picture, a picture of a black and tan tag while describing only a tan tag with black ink which they say "By the 1930s, Stetson went with a manila card stock with only black ink printed on it. This one lasted until 1960."
while their information says the tag lasted to the '60s, Stetson was clearly using other tags starting in the fifties, the black and tan with only the partial size and then later on the black and tan with the full size and in the 60s they went to the black tag with the gold lettering.

The long oval tags don't follow the "rules" as the regular tags.
Somewhere on this site it is discussed in depth.

 

[Weatherman]

The long oval tags don't follow the "rules" as the regular tags.
Somewhere on this site it is discussed in depth.

If you can find it, I'd love to read it and learn more.

 

[MikeinRome]

If you can find it, I'd love to read it and learn more.

That's going to be a late 50's hat at the earliest, if not early 60's or so. It's absolutely not from the 40's.

 

[Weatherman]

That's going to be a late 50's hat at the earliest, if not early 60's or so. It's absolutely not from the 40's.

I would agree with the mid to late fifties but I'm fairly certain that by the 60s they had already changed to the square tag that was black with gold numbers. I also have not been able to find any information as to how long they made the 25. The original creation of the 25 was because it was made of Superior Products and sold for $25 when other hats of the era were selling for 10 dollars. I'm still researching past articles and posts on this page as well as others but there seems to be a lot of conflicting information. Either way it's obviously made of Premium materials and the sweatband is thick and supple as opposed to the sweat bands they started making in the late 60s and early '70s out of cheaper, thinner leather. Here's a royal Stetson that I also just purchased that I'm not sure about the age but I know is quite vintage. There's no plastic in the top of the liner that I believe started going into those hats in the '50s and '60s because of the hair gel that guys wore at the time and the liner points to the 40s or so from what I can tell.

 

[MikeinRome]

I would agree with the mid to late fifties but I'm fairly certain that by the 60s they had already changed to the square tag that was black with gold numbers. I also have not been able to find any information as to how long they made the 25. The original creation of the 25 was because it was made of Superior Products and sold for $25 when other hats of the era were selling for 10 dollars. I'm still researching past articles and posts on this page as well as others but there seems to be a lot of conflicting information. Either way it's obviously made of Premium materials and the sweatband is thick and supple as opposed to the sweat bands they started making in the late 60s and early '70s out of cheaper, thinner leather. Here's a royal Stetson that I also just purchased that I'm not sure about the age but I know is quite vintage. There's no plastic in the top of the liner that I believe started going into those hats in the '50s and '60s because of the hair gel that guys wore at the time and the liner points to the 40s or so from what I can tell. View attachment 654083 View attachment 654084

You're fighting a losing battle. I've seen at least a couple of dated or documented Stetsons from the early 60's that have the keyhole tags instead of black square tags. Not going to waste time on this subject. That second hat of yours is interesting. What paper tags are behind the sweatband? I'd estimate that heavy plastic on the liner started by 1955, if not a couple of years before.

 

[Weatherman]

They started using the plastic in 53 after the Korean war and used it up until the 70s.
As for the Deluxe, here's pics of the tags.

 

[MikeinRome]

They started using the plastic in 53 after the Korean war and used it up until the 70s.
As for the Deluxe, here's pics of the tags.
View attachment 654095 View attachment 654096 View attachment 654097

I figured about 1952-53 for the plastic. That hat looks like late 40's to early 50's.

 

[Weatherman]

I figured about 1952-53 for the plastic. That hat looks like late 40's to early 50's.

Agreed. The purple center piece was not so common. The hat looks and is the same dimensions as the Strat. It is in great condition except for the sweatband stitching, which I repaired.