Thoughts on Akubra Federation IV Deluxe?

[gtdean48]

Sweet lid! Definitely post in New Hat thread, too. Congrats... gtd

 

[ken100]

Eureka

Finally an explaination for the little yellow brick shaped things that kept comming out of my mouth while wearing my III, so glad I now wear my IV.
Ken:eusa_doh:

 

[Wolfwood]

Best hat.

During the previous Federation III craze, to be totally honest, I thought it made most people look like Pez dispensers and I didn't understand the interest at all.

:eusa_clap

Already posted mine in the Overload thread, but since this is for the Federation only...

 

[JohnnyB53]

This is my new carbon fed 4, Im liking it, wadda you think?

I think it looks like a custom job or that you visited The Hattery and got the full customer service treatment. The hat proportions, the color, the bash, and the brim contours all fit you perfectly. If you did all that yourself, all the better. It looks great on you.

What bash did you put in the crown?

 

[JohnnyB53]

Iiiiiit's Here!!
I'm sure everyone is tired of yet another Fed IV deluxe but for those of you waiting who need drool fuel....

I have to say I like it. I decided to make the bash a little closer to my Stetson Chatham's look. I would say its about a perfect 18% grey card grey for those old time photographers out there.
hope you liked it!

Great color and great bash! I know just what 18% grey card grey is, and that's just the shade I was hoping for. I have a moonstone Fed IV Deluxe on the way too. It's probably delayed because of all the snow we've gotten in Seattle. In good weather it would have been here the 23rd or 24th.

 

[Everwyck]

How is hatsdirect.com on fitting?

Was thinking of plunking down for an Akubra Fed IV, but I'm worried about the fitting.

(It's taken me a long time to figure out my size (7-5/8), but I was able to do so thanks to learning about "Long Oval" here at the lounge. Until then, used to think I was 7-7/8! Plus, I had longer hair for a while.)

Does anyone know how hatsdirect.com deals with fitting Long Oval?

Thanks in advance,

 

[MattJH]

Does anyone know how hatsdirect.com deals with fitting Long Oval?

I can't remember which lounger it is, but at least one had a long oval made. If you ask HatsDirect to do it, they will, but there may be additional delay due to the extra step.

You could also take a minor risk and stretch the hat over your knee, which is a tactic given to me by both HatsDirect as well as David Morgan.

 

[Woodfluter]

Note that you have to wait 30 seconds between searches (apparently the Fedora Lounge is operating on a 1988 Casio wristwatch that has been hacked to run Linux, so it must be protected from excessive database queries).

Google searches with "site:thefedoralounge.com" are less frustrating, but unfortunately Google doesn't crawl the whole site.

kkkkggnnfff (=snork snork)!

Yeah, know what you mean kabuto. I have given up searching on the FL website engine, and should have pointed that out. Whenever I've done the same search with "fedora lounge" + "whatever" on Google it's come up with far better results. I haven't observed any Google omissions thus far, however. I have broadband and don't notice delays in my case.

Everwyck et al - per my experience (in a highly condensed nutshell), Akubras run a half size larger than you'd expect. Ignore whatever the guy behind the curtain says. The standard (Imperial grade) felt will shrink some over time, maybe a half size. The Deluxe (Heritage grade) felt won't. They size them as if they would both shrink the same even though they don't. Use that as a general guide and forgive me if I'm wrong, but this is based on all kinds of weird experimentation the details of which don't bear repetition here - really.

- Bill

 

[indycop]

I can't remember which lounger it is, but at least one had a long oval made. If you ask HatsDirect to do it, they will, but there may be additional delay due to the extra step.

I have had Hatsdirect and EA long oval hats for me and there has not been a delay and they have fit wonderfully. I am an extra long oval.

 

[Carlisle Blues]

Fed Deluxe IV Brown and Moonstone both go to hats.

 

[Everwyck]

Thanks, gentlemen- the feedback is much appreciated.

 

[Everwyck]

UPDATE:

SO I've been corresponding with a lovely lady at hatsdirect.com, who was willing to confirm my sizing. She informs me that there is a "memory wire" in the leather band which will mold to the shape of my head over time. Has anyone heard of this? And for those of you with Long Oval heads, has this been your experience? Have you found this to be the case, that your tape measured size counted for the same, and that the wire (and perhaps some felt padding) allowed the hat to fit your Long Oval head?

 

[gtdean48]

SO I've been corresponding with a lovely lady at hatsdirect.com, who was willing to confirm my sizing. She informs me that there is a "memory wire" in the leather band which will mold to the shape of my head over time. Has anyone heard of this? And for those of you with Long Oval heads, has this been your experience? Have you found this to be the case, that your tape measured size counted for the same, and that the wire (and perhaps some felt padding) allowed the hat to fit your Long Oval head?

There is a reed in the sweatband but no wire that I am aware of. The very end of the reed is metal tip. Most sweatbands conform to you head as a tendancy of the leather, like breaking in a pair of good boots will form to your feet. I have 2 Camp Drafts 61cm that fit well front to back but not side to side due to my Extra Long Oval noggin. Some felt strips were needed until I wore for a while & got a good sweat going. As it sweatband dried, it formed better to my head shape & the strips came out...HTH

 

[MattJH]

There is a reed in the sweatband but no wire that I am aware of.

Actually, there is. That thread discusses how to remove it if necessary. Some think the hats are more comfortable to wear without the wire in the sweat. I don't know if there's a difference between "reed" and "wire" though -- I actually still don't know what a reeded sweatband is, or what it means.

 

[Everwyck]

There is a reed in the sweatband but no wire that I am aware of. The very end of the reed is metal tip. Most sweatbands conform to you head as a tendancy of the leather, like breaking in a pair of good boots will form to your feet. I have 2 Camp Drafts 61cm that fit well front to back but not side to side due to my Extra Long Oval noggin. Some felt strips were needed until I wore for a while & got a good sweat going. As it sweatband dried, it formed better to my head shape & the strips came out...HTH

Thank you- Every bit of information helps! But when you measured yourself, was it 61cm on the tape measure? I may be obsessing, but this (sizing with a long oval head) is what burned me before and turned me off from hat wearing for years!

The saving grace is that it seems that hatsdirect's service is so good that it wouldn't take too much to make any adjustments or returns if necessary, but I'd like to keep from relying on that, if possible.

 

[Everwyck]

And BTW...

Carlisle Blues? My wallet hates you for posting those two side-by-side!

 

[gtdean48]

... was it 61cm on the tape measure? ...

It is actually 24 inches with a tape measure bought at Wal-mart. 24 inches converts to 61 cm. I wear a 7 5/8 Long Oval or a 7 1/2 Extra Long Oval. My first real hat was 30 years ago & a 7 3/8 XLO that I can still wear but requires a Hat Jack fairly regularly. I have hats from 7 1/2 R all the way to 7 5/8 LO plus 2 vintage hat stretchers & a Hat Jack = price of a very oblong & large noggin.

 

[avedwards]

Does anyone have both a Stetson Chatham and an Akubra Fed IV to compare them? I have a Chatham and I'm interested to know how much better a Fed IV (deluxe or standard) is.

And also, can hatsdirect make a Fed IV without the sweat band saying that it's pure fur felt? I know it sounds silly, but I have vegetarian friends who would skin me alive if they knew my hats were made of fur felt.

 

[MattJH]

And also, can hatsdirect make a Fed IV without the sweat band saying that it's pure fur felt? I know it sounds silly, but I have vegetarian friends who would skin me alive if they knew my hats were made of fur felt.

Perhaps your vegetarian friends could use some of the same tolerance they request from others, because that is silly. I have vegetarian and vegan friends both, and if they so much as opened their mouths about my own lifestyle preferences in a tone that even approaches judgmental, I'd swiftly and possibly not-so-politely silence them. Part of being in a minority group is self-awareness; you're going to disagree with most people, and that's okay, but no skinning of people alive is warranted because of it.

 

[Everwyck]

It is actually 24 inches with a tape measure bought at Wal-mart. 24 inches converts to 61 cm. I wear a 7 5/8 Long Oval or a 7 1/2 Extra Long Oval. My first real hat was 30 years ago & a 7 3/8 XLO that I can still wear but requires a Hat Jack fairly regularly. I have hats from 7 1/2 R all the way to 7 5/8 LO plus 2 vintage hat stretchers & a Hat Jack = price of a very oblong & large noggin.

Thanks again- It sounds like we have the same size/shape situation, so I'm glad to see that it can work. I'm just going to have to bite the bullet!

PS: Newbie question- Hat Jack? What's that? I can guess from the words, but I'm curious for more details.