What's a good beginner fedora?

[Sean]

well what im thinking is i want to wear it with each of my suit one is gray one is black and one is brown

 

[Edward]

Moonstone sounds like a good choice, then. I have two of the Federation Mk IIIs - one regular, one deluxe. Both are excellent hats and get probably equal 'head time.' Very sharp look. I think I'm right in saying they're more of a late 30s / very early 40s look due to the wider brim, but of course there would have been many gents in the 30s who preferred a wider brim. Narrower brims were more common, as opposed to The Rule.

 

[johnnycanuck]

Akubra Federation www.hatsdirect.com

My first "real" fedora was a Akubra Federation back in 2000 (there was no deluxe available back then). It was my daily wear hat for two year until I bought a Akubra Snowy river (santone fawn) in 2002. Then it was my city hat and didn't see much camping action anymore. But it still got the rain and snow and sun from my daily walks. In 2004 I bought a Akubra Federation deluxe, I think its a Federation III with noticeable changes in the design. So my old Federation was retired to a yard work/snow removal/working hat. In 2006 my buddy that always loved the hat finally convinced me to sell it to him. Since then its been to countless Scout camps (he is a leader) and been all the way around Europe once. A few more sweat stains but still going strong. This is a great choice and the hat will take whatever you throw at it.
Johnny

 

[Torpedo]

well what im thinking is i want to wear it with each of my suit one is gray one is black and one is brown

Hi again Sean,

It will work with grey and black. It will probably work with brown too, although this depends on the particular shade of brown.

Anyway, if you do as many of us, you will not stop at a single hat. And then it will be too late...

Regards!

 

[dhermann1]

Size 7 on Ebay

Sean: I'm a size 7, or a largish 6 7/8, and I find that in that size there are a LOT of great bargains to be found on Ebay. There are a couple right now available. Just search for "Vintage mens hat". You'll find them.

 

[bolthead]

Now that you've decided what hat you wanna buy. Make sure you know what your head size really is.

You've said that it's a 21"....size 7? If I'm not mistaken a 21" would make you a 6 7/8. [huh]

 

[Rider]

Realize if you buy a Federation IV from hatsdirect, you will need to bash the crown yourself. Do a search here for how-to. Search terms "bash," "crease", or my personal favorite "diamond!"

Do get the size right. Perhaps you could go to a hat shop if there is one near you and try on for size to see what fits best.

When you get your Akubra, it will feel loose on your head. No worries. It all works out in the end if you've ordered your size correctly. After you bash it, and wear it for awhile it will become just right. If it's a little off, they provide foam to insert in the headband to snug it up a bit.

Enjoy.

 

[Sean]

Now that you've decided what hat you wanna buy. Make sure you know what your head size really is.

You've said that it's a 21"....size 7? If I'm not mistaken a 21" would make you a 6 7/8. [huh]

srry that was a typo my hat size is 6 7/8

 

[Sean]

how hard is it to make the hat crease

 

[Dinerman]

srry that was a typo my hat size is 6 7/8

Buy vintage. It should be pretty easy and pretty inexpensive to get yourself a knockout of a hat.

 

[indycop]

how hard is it to make the hat crease

Easy and fun! We will help you out!

 

[BobC]

It's easy to crease a hat, Sean, especially a Federation. The hat lends itself very well to a center dent, and if you bash it and don't like it just push it back to an open crown and start again.

 

[Sean]

allright its official i just bought my first real fedora!!!!!! the hat i chose was a gray Federation!!!!!!!!!! thanx everone who help me find it!!!!

 

[indycop]

And make sure to show us pics!

 

[jpbales]

the Fed IV is a good choice

I just purchased one recently and now it's like The Hat for me and all of my other hats get less time now lol. I got a regular Fed IV (not a deluxe) in carbon gray (which is darker than moonstone). It seems to go with just about everything I can wear, whether it's a suit or just jeans and a t-shirt.
Here's a couple of pics so you can get an idea of what it looks like. On my computer, the color is close to what it actually looks like:

jeans and a polo shirt:

it also works with a suit or jeans with t-shirt as well (by the way, I personally don't recommend wearing a felt hat with athletic shoes, but boots or leather shoes look good tho, fyi)

Be careful though, because you should consider if the hat is going to look good with your facial features. If you have a thin face, this hat may just plain look too big for ya, and it does have a really tall, really wide crown. Here's a website with some guidelines about hats that fit your face: http://www.millerhats.com/hatcare_index/hatfaces.html

One last thing, you should definitely consider going to eBay and looking for vintage hats. Your size is fairly small (compared to my 7 3/8+) so nice vintage hats shouldn't be hard for you to find. For me on the other hand, it's harder to get a hold of nice vintage hats in sizes larger than 7 or so.

Good luck with your search, and welcome to the lounge,
Jimmy

 

[jpbales]

ah

it looks like my post was a few minutes too late! haha well congratulations!

oh yea, did you get moonstone or carbon gray?

 

[Sean]

carbon gray my frind

it looks like my post was a few minutes too late! haha well congratulations!

oh yea, did you get moonstone or carbon gray?

 

[thomasrodd]

akubra sydney suggested

An extremely comfortable, low-key hat that looks good in a business setting. available from david morgan. i like mine a lot. a little less "out there" than the federation (i have one of those, too)