The Open Road Guild

[Short Balding Guy]

Hats, what's missing is that Ermine Stetson to sit on top of the pile of ORs. You clearly need to buy the one on eBay, then you can really relax and be sure that you've finished with Open Roads.

I just read posts about the Ermine OR. Rare hat body with a colorfull and documented history -cool. Easy advise, but do not forget to confirm the hat value(Ermine Stetson) with your insurance company. I know I had to get a special insurance policy for my guitars. Incidently, I just was reviewing some of the old OR ads and see that they came in a bunch of great colors that I have not seen yet, or even in your pic. You need more colors!

Oh, I need more colors too.

Eric -

 

[HatsEnough]

You guys are really going to get me in trouble with my wife.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Incidently, I just was reviewing some of the old OR ads and see that they came in a bunch of great colors that I have not seen yet

Open Road Colors

 

[buler]

I just read posts about the Ermine OR. Rare hat body with a colorfull and documented history -cool. Easy advise, but do not forget to confirm the hat value(Ermine Stetson) with your insurance company. I know I had to get a special insurance policy for my guitars. Incidently, I just was reviewing some of the old OR ads and see that they came in a bunch of great colors that I have not seen yet, or even in your pic. You need more colors!

Oh, I need more colors too.

Eric -

The Ermine, at least the one we've seen, is not an OR. Looks more like a dress 7X Clear Beaver mode edge to me.

B

 

[kiltie]

I looked like crazy for a thread I was sure I had seen, one that was for pics of hats in the rain, but I couldn't find the darn thing.
Considering the subject of the photo, I figured this was just as good a place: Still Life With Open Road and Bagpipes.
I snapped this last Wednesday during a visit to Colorado Springs -

 

[jimmy the lid]

I love it! :eusa_clap

Good to see ya here, kiltie.

 

[randooch]

I looked like crazy for a thread I was sure I had seen, one that was for pics of hats in the rain, but I couldn't find the darn thing.
Considering the subject of the photo, I figured this was just as good a place: Still Life With Open Road and Bagpipes.
I snapped this last Wednesday during a visit to Colorado Springs -

Nice shot! I think this is what you sought:
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/show...lements&highlight=hats+surviving+the+elements

 

[Jedwbpm]

I looked like crazy for a thread I was sure I had seen, one that was for pics of hats in the rain, but I couldn't find the darn thing.
Considering the subject of the photo, I figured this was just as good a place: Still Life With Open Road and Bagpipes.
I snapped this last Wednesday during a visit to Colorado Springs -

Very nice Kiltie. Nice Open Road and Nice Morrison pipes. Are the button mount delron's Morrison too?

Jeff

 

[hatophile]

I looked like crazy for a thread I was sure I had seen, one that was for pics of hats in the rain, but I couldn't find the darn thing.
Considering the subject of the photo, I figured this was just as good a place: Still Life With Open Road and Bagpipes.
I snapped this last Wednesday during a visit to Colorado Springs -

Nice shot of hat and pipes, Laddie!

 

[kiltie]

Thanks, JtL, and thanks for the comments, everyone.

Very nice Kiltie. Nice Open Road and Nice Morrison pipes. Are the button mount delron's Morrison too?

Jeff

The set on the bottom are Mccallum AB2 deluxe with Airstream and the ones on top are Dunbar polypenco P1 'antique' with button mounts. Both have Dunbar polypenco chanters. The Mccallum set is mine and the other set belongs to another band member. The Dunbar pipes were intended to be purely a matter of getting a quality set at relatively less expense, but the polypenco material is a champ down here in Texas: no maintenance.
I guess 'delrin' is pretty well interchangeable with 'polypenco' ( trade names? ).

edit: Thanks randooch - that was, in fact, the thread I was looking for.

 

[HatsEnough]

What language was that written in, Kiltie?

 

[kiltie]

What language was that written in, Kiltie?

"Nerd". You can start to understand it after a month on the chanter, then become fluent when you move up to the pipes. Folks at competition level can even expertly communicate in different dialects, but I mostly know just enough to get directions and order food.

 

[Jedwbpm]

What language was that written in, Kiltie?

That is the kind of talk that one see's at Bob Dunshire's Bagpipe forum

Jeff

 

[HatsEnough]

Well, I finally got a grey, vintage Open Road. Have plenty of silverbelly ones and one Tan one, but the other color Open Roads seem far and few between. I'll post a photo when it gets to me. but it looks to be a 50s era 3X in great shape.

 

[Giant.leap]

Gentlemen of the Guild...I have joined your ranks as my 1940's Open Road arrived in the mail today. A find on the Bay and with it's original box as well. I am going to go with a teardrop bash with turned down brim. It also has it's original wind trolley wound around the crown. Photos coming.

-Scott

 

[HatsEnough]

By the way, does anyone know when the low end ORs stopped having the wind trolley? Many of my 25s and up have the troeley string but few of the 4X and 3X and plain ORs have one. The gray one I have coming is a 3x, but it older than most of the other ORs I have and it has the string.

 

[alanfgag]

My guess is many have been surgically removed.

 

[zetwal]

Gentlemen of the Guild...I have joined your ranks as my 1940's Open Road arrived in the mail today [...]

Welcome to the Lounge (and to the ORG). We look forward to seeing your hat soon.

 

[gtdean48]

My guess is many have been surgically removed.

+1

 

[HatsEnough]

OK, my gray OR came in.

Gray Open Road from the 1940s

I have to say, this is one of the finest Open Roads I have (aside from the clear beavers and the higher end OR-styled hats)

Until this one, I had only one other than silverbelly colored OR (so I have two now. This gray and a tan one). The felt is not thick, but very resilient. The color really is beautiful on this one. It still has it's wind trolley string. And it came with some interesting "extras."

But first the stats…

Size: 7
Sweatband: Leather, Reeded
Brim Size: 2-7/8, Gray Brim Binding
Date of Manufacture: 1940s, I say this because it has the stars on the logo on the sweatband and the liner both.

Interestingly, tucked behind the sweatband I found two little slips of paper with the original owner's name on it. It was originally owned by “Roland Gund 1919 Linden Ave, Racine, Wisc.”

Also, either the liner was replaced with a new one, or it was just cleaned in the early 1950s. The liner is not sewn in but is held in with wide blocks of paper tape. On one of the pieces of tape is written the date of March 25, 1952 (date pencil marked on tape holding in liner).

The liner has that cellophane styled protector, not the clear plastic style of later 50s era hats.

Anyway, I am very, very pleased with this hat.