The School of Hard Knox

[Mario]

No kidding. This one has plenty of cat's meow in it, Mario!

:eusa_clap

Tell me about it. Ever since it arrived here I didn't find much sleep as I keep purring back at it all night long...

 

[jimmy the lid]

After seeing Mario's fabulous Knox, it occurred to me that I had never posted my Knox Premier in this thread. Interesting to compare the ribbons on the two lids, which share some common elements...

Cheers,
JtL

 

[Mario]

My oh my...that one is such a fantastic beauty, Jimmy. *sighs* :eusa_clap

I really like the fact that they used the same ribbon for the brim binding on your lid. On mine it's a different ribbon. Under some lighting conditions it takes on a distinctly reddish hue while in other lighting situations it appears to be almost as green as the felt.

 

[jimmy the lid]

On mine it's a different ribbon. Under some lighting conditions it takes on a distinctly reddish hue while in other lighting situations it appears to be almost as green as the felt.

I'm glad you mentioned that, Mario, as I had forgotten to ask you about the ribbon's color. I'm not completely sure what the color is from the photos. It does appear to be a kind of reddish-brown. If you had to describe the color based upon daylight conditions, what color would you say it is?

Cheers,
JtL

 

[buler]

Jimmy and Mario, those are both knockout hats. That extra little color in the ribbon really makes them shine. Anyone find an ad to match the hat yet?

B

 

[Mario]

I'm glad you mentioned that, Mario, as I had forgotten to ask you about the ribbon's color. I'm not completely sure what the color is from the photos. It does appear to be a kind of reddish-brown. If you had to describe the color based upon daylight conditions, what color would you say it is?

Cheers,
JtL

It's hard to describe. In the photos it appears to be of almost the same color as the ribbon, but that's the lighting. It's not a reddish-brown, rather a greenish-brown (I'd tend to call it greenish-red, but that would be a rather strange anomaly).

 

[jimmy the lid]

Mario -- I think we're talking past each other.

When I asked about reddish-brown, I was referring to the ribbon, not the edge binding. I believe your post refers to the edge binding, yes?

So, with that said -- what color is the ribbon itself? Brown? Burgundy?

Thanks,
JtL

 

[Mario]

I see...

Well, then - yes, the ribbon itself could indeed be described as a reddish-brown. Almost the color of rust. Yours seems to be a bit lighter, judging by the photos.

 

[Mario]

Jimmy and Mario, those are both knockout hats. That extra little color in the ribbon really makes them shine. Anyone find an ad to match the hat yet?

B

No, sorry. I have yet to come across an ad for one of those lids.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Well, then - yes, the ribbon itself could indeed be described as a reddish-brown. Almost rusty.

Gotcha. That ribbon is a beauty. Plus, I think the different color edge binding on yours really adds to the uniqueness of that lid -- fantastic!

Cheers,
JtL

 

[jimmy the lid]

Buler -- in answer to your question about ads, I haven't really come across anything that's right on the mark. Here's a post by Lefty on the subject:

These are the only striped ribbons I've seen in any Knox ads, though they're clearly not the same hat. Knox doesn't seem to have advertised the difference in quality. Rather, they just advertised a model, color, or finish, and stated that other Knox hats were available from $x to $y.

Here's a striped ribbon on a '44 Foxhound - a model for which I seem to have far more ads than any other.

In this 1950 ad, the Pinehurst has a striped ribbon.

 

[Mario]

Wow, Jimmy - those are great! Thanks a lot! :eusa_clap

I really like the color combo of the foreground hat in the second picture (sans the feather...). Just what I'm looking for at the moment: light gray felt with a dark or medium gray ribbon, maybe also the binding in that same darker shade of gray... Yummy!

 

[Salty O'Rourke]

Knox Twenty Back Bow

Picked this up on one of those Buy-It-Nows where the opening bid is only ten bucks lower than the BIN price - makes it easy to pull the trigger. It arrived today. Seller claimed it was 1940s, and I think it just might be. In his listing he talked about a "plastic liner shield" but it's actually oilcloth.

Out of the box - note the Custom Edge:

The bow:

Profile and wind trolley - more on this later:

Liner - that little shadow at the lower right quadrant of the Knox shield is a small smudge, otherwise it's very clean. The oilcloth is invisible to the camera but it's there.

On my head, with a pinch:

​

About the wind trolley - the button has the Knox crest on it, which is cool, but the entire thing is detached from the hat. I can't see that it was ever attached. I'm guessing that the cords were shipped with the hats and it was left up to the customers whether or not to have the haberdasher attach them, but that's just a guess.

Anyway, all it needs is a good brushing and some time in solitary confinement with a box of baking soda. How pleasant to acquire a vintage hat that doesn't need work!

 

[unitone]

Tom N Jerry

 

[Florida_Marlin]

Here's My Knox

Here's a grey, 2-3/4 brim Knox, bought at Hastings Men's store, San Francisco. It lives in Florida now. This has the most amazing felt. It is soft and lightweight, but can hold a shape really well, then morph into another shape with just your hands. Really nice! Here are some pics and one with me wearing it, at Keaton Beach, FL, this winter. Regards, F_M

 

[Mario]

Great looking hat with perfect proportions - and you wear it really well! :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

But tell me: you said you bought at Hastings Men's store. How come that the photos are from the 'bay? [huh]

 

[Florida_Marlin]

oops!

Sorry about that, I meant it was originally bought at Hastings, and stamped in the hatband. I bought it from the bay. The old box had a label that had '44 or '49 as the purchase date (assuming it wat the box for the hat, though the label stuck to the box was a Hasting's label). I could not tell if the last digit was a 4 or a 9. Regards, F_M

 

[Mario]

*case solved*

 

[ScottF]

Knox Building:

 

[Sam Craig]

After seeing Mario's fabulous Knox, it occurred to me that I had never posted my Knox Premier in this thread. Interesting to compare the ribbons on the two lids, which share some common elements...


Cheers,
JtL

Gee, Mr. The Lid, that's a beautiful hat.

Knox really knows!