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The Open Road Guild

Atticus Finch

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,718
Location
Coastal North Carolina, USA
Lottsa ORs!

I remember, shortly after joining this forum, looking at the beautiful collections of the other members, and thinking to myself, "Nice, but why own so many hats? Doesn't a person have only one head?" Well, only three short years later, here's my current collection of ORs and OR-like hats. All are in size 7 3/4 or 7 5/8.

I have to admit, this hat collecting thing has kinda snuck up on me.

Moving clockwise from the foremost:

1. 'Fifties, 3X Beaver, silverbelly Open Road.
2. Modern Camp Draft in Fawn.
3. Modern OR.
4. Seventies, Sovereign Quality, unnamed OR.
5. 'Fifties Stetson Panama OR.
6. 'Sixties OR.
7. Modern Camp Draft in Silverbelly.
8. Modern Straw OR (center).


easter09009.jpg



AF
 

RBH

Bartender
Atticus Finch said:
I remember, shortly after joining this forum, looking at the beautiful collections of the other members, and thinking to myself, "Nice, but why own so many hats? Doesn't a person have only one head?" Well, only three short years later, here's my current collection of ORs and OR-like hats. All are in size 7 3/4 or 7 5/8.

I have to admit, this hat collecting thing has kinda snuck up on me.

Moving clockwise from the foremost:

1. 'Fifties, 3X Beaver, silverbelly Open Road.
2. Modern Camp Draft in Fawn.
3. Modern OR.
4. Seventies, Sovereign Quality, unnamed OR.
5. 'Fifties Stetson Panama OR.
6. 'Sixties OR.
7. Modern Camp Draft in Silverbelly.
8. Modern Straw OR (center).


easter09009.jpg



AF

W O W !!! :eusa_clap
You sir ... have some great hats!!!
 

Bob Smalser

One of the Regulars
Messages
139
Location
Hood Canal, Washington
Here's a similar collection. I've worn fedoras for almost 50 years but since discovering this site, have been trading out for all Open Road styles, as since I retired I'm rarely in something other than work or casual clothes.

Clockwise from top left:

362311799.jpg


Stetson light tan beater to wear on painting jobs.
Stockman of Hollywood custom in Carhartt Brown.
Stetson 25 Silver Belly from the 1950's. My dress hat.
Adam Mainliner in tan from the 1950's.
Resistol 3X in Silver Belly from the 1950's.
Borsalino Alessandria in gray, rebuilt by Catalena Hatters.
Pan-a-lite straw for the rare hot day here.
Stetson 3X in chocolate brown from the 1960's.

To round out the rotation to match my current wardrobe, I have a Bluegrass Green Campdraft on order and am looking for black and dark gray Open Road styles. Once I have those, I'll keep my hand in trading up. I really like the Resistol Beaver 100 I got for the wife. ;)
 

RBH

Bartender
Bob Smalser said:
Here's a similar collection. I've worn fedoras for almost 50 years but since discovering this site, have been trading out for all Open Road styles, as since I retired I'm rarely in something other than work or casual clothes.

Clockwise from top left:

362311799.jpg


Stetson light tan beater to wear on painting jobs.
Stockman of Hollywood custom in Carhartt Brown.
Stetson 25 Silver Belly from the 1950's. My dress hat.
Adam Mainliner in tan from the 1950's.
Resistol 3X in Silver Belly from the 1950's.
Borsalino Alessandria in gray, rebuilt by Catalena Hatters.
Pan-a-lite straw for the rare hot day here.
Stetson 3X in chocolate brown from the 1960's.

To round out the rotation to match my current wardrobe, I have a Bluegrass Green Campdraft on order and am looking for black and dark gray Open Road styles. Once I have those, I'll keep my hand in trading up. I really like the Resistol Beaver 100 I got for the wife. ;)
Bob, those are great hats!! I like the looks of that Pan-a-lite !
 

Inusuit

A-List Customer
Messages
356
Location
Wyoming
Atticus Finch said:
I remember, shortly after joining this forum, looking at the beautiful collections of the other members, and thinking to myself, "Nice, but why own so many hats? Doesn't a person have only one head?" Well, only three short years later, here's my current collection of ORs and OR-like hats. All are in size 7 3/4 or 7 5/8.

I have to admit, this hat collecting thing has kinda snuck up on me.

Moving clockwise from the foremost:

1. 'Fifties, 3X Beaver, silverbelly Open Road.
2. Modern Camp Draft in Fawn.
3. Modern OR.
4. Seventies, Sovereign Quality, unnamed OR.
5. 'Fifties Stetson Panama OR.
6. 'Sixties OR.
7. Modern Camp Draft in Silverbelly.
8. Modern Straw OR (center).


easter09009.jpg



Atticus,

I like the fact that you have retained the Cattleman's crease on some of your ORs.
 

Atticus Finch

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,718
Location
Coastal North Carolina, USA
Inusuit said:
Atticus, I like the fact that you have retained the Cattleman's crease on some of your ORs.

Thanks, Insuit. Much of the reason is that I'm timid to rebash a vintage hat. The other reason is that I get many more compliments on my cattleman's creased ORs than my fedora ORs. I'm not sure why. Maybe the shape of my punkin' head goes better with that bash, I don't know.

So...except for my '50s OR which came to me as a fedora, all of my Open Roads are cattleman's creased. My other fedora "ORs" are actually Camp Drafts.

AF
 

Bob Smalser

One of the Regulars
Messages
139
Location
Hood Canal, Washington
Dunno about where you are, but there's a protocol for such things around here. As a logger in a region with both, I wouldn't want a real cattleman to poke me in the eye for putting on airs trying to look like something I'm not. ;)

But otherwise, I've come to love the cattleman's crease. It's the single greatest reason many of these fine, high-end hats remain such steals.

$12.21 Pan-a-lite
a801_1.JPG


$19.91 Stetson 5X
034.JPG


$49.00 Stetson 25
!BPuMGGQBWk~$(KGrHgoH-DEEjlLl1e6UBJ1CcFQmk!~~_12.JPG


$22.01 3X Resistol
3802_1.JPG


$20.50 Stetson Sovereign
dbf3_1.JPG


$18.25 Adam Executive
b822_1.JPG


And that's just the tip of the iceberg.
 

Atticus Finch

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,718
Location
Coastal North Carolina, USA
St.Ignatz said:
That OR of yours I under bid. This one was not getting by me. Minimal use from previous owner. Second time worn it just settled on the dome and felt like i've worn it for years.

Ooops! Sorry. I guess that OR was sort of the "Holy Grail" for me, too. As you probably know, size 7 5/8 LO is kinda tough to come by. But you ended up doing very well. Your OR appears to be in excellent shape and is a Royal Delux, to boot!

I actually think enough of my old Open Road that I bashed my silverbelly Camp Draft to match it. That way, the Camp Draft can be my everyday hat while the OR only comes out for dress occasions.

AF
 

Chinaski

One Too Many
Messages
1,045
Location
Orange County, CA
Submitted for your approval...

Okay, nowhere on this hat does it say Open Road, so you'll have to decide whether or not I am eligible for membership in the Guild. This is a Royal Stetson, and I'd appreciate any input on dating this hat. There seems to be a couple anomalies - it looks like it had a wind trolley, which I've read Stetson stopped doing in the 70's, but you can see in one of the pics that what was once possibly a cord has been snipped. Also looks like a dark brown sweat, not brown like vintage and not black. Let me know what you think.

DSC_0071.jpg


DSC_0070.jpg


DSC_0072.jpg


DSC_0073.jpg
 
Messages
10,524
Location
DnD Ranch, Cherokee County, GA
It is an OR style but there are Stetsons that are of the style but do not say Open Road anywhere. Did you look behind the sweatband for any tags? I had a more modern one that had OPRD on a tag.
That looks like the reminants of a lapel cord.
I have a Stetson 25 that looks exactly like my Open Road, wind trolley & all, but does not say Open Road anywhere & therefore I cannot claim it as an Open Road.
Earlier on in this thread, I read "If it doesn't say Open Road, then it is not an Open Road".
 

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