Quality Fedora

[DWalt]

Most any Texas city of any significant size will have at least one custom hat maker. Most do cowboy-style hats, but they will make any kind of hat you want.

Back many years ago when I was growing up, in my southern Ohio home town there was a large hat cleaning and blocking shop located in the downtown area. It was always busy because back then most men of every social strata wore fedora hats every day. I still remember all of the steam coming out of that place. Of course it has been gone for a very long time. I don't remember the last time I saw a man wearing a Fedora.

By the time I had reached the appropriate age to wear a Fedora, most men had already stopped wearing them.

 

[AJ]

My Grandfather wore a hat all his life. I wore hats in the Corps for 24 years. I still wear this one to the range.......Keeps the sun from burning my noggin, keeps hot brass off my gourd, and keeps my pea-pickin' brain warm in the winter. Not as fancy as some but it works for me.

 

[lkabug]

My foster dad wore a Stetson fedora. Foster mom said that is what she "notice about that looking guy". They were married 1927, dad was 27 years old, mom was 17. He had two, a yard work stetson and Sunday go to church/town Stetson. I never saw him outside without a hat.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

A little hat trivia:

The old expression "Mad as a hatter" is a reference to the old days when hatmakers worked the felts by hand using mercury in the process. Mercury is a toxic heavy metal that can be absorbed through the skin and, over time, causes serious brain damage. The damage was frequently the cause of aberrant and violent behavior.

 

[DWalt]

Hatters didn't use metallic elemental Mercury but rather mercuric nitrate. Metallic mercury is insoluble and won't penetrate skin. But soluble mercuric salts will. Metallic mercury is more or less harmless unless it gets hot and you breathe its vapors. I once had a job where I waded through pits of Mercury. No exaggeration.

 

[GypsmJim]

Look up the Henschel Hat Company. Maybe not a "traditional" Fedora, but they have some styles that you might like even better. I bought one online using their size charts and it fits perfectly.

 

[pwlibby]

take a look at Dobbs hats. They are very nice and great quality. My dad preferred them and chose them for business attire. A stetson open road is more my style.

 

[PeterJ]

I also love a wide brim fedora or just about any cowboy hat that protects my head and skin. Haven't worn a ball cap in years as they are about worthless for protecting you from the sun. The picture is my Stetson but Sunbody out of Houston makes great straw hats too. The old Tilly is usually used when rain is in the forecast.

 

[WuzzFuzz]

A little hat trivia:

The old expression "Mad as a hatter" is a reference to the old days when hatmakers worked the felts by hand using mercury in the process. Mercury is a toxic heavy metal that can be absorbed through the skin and, over time, causes serious brain damage. The damage was frequently the cause of aberrant and violent behavior.

Now I know......I must have been a "Mad Hatter" in my former life, and that has made me the way I am now in this life!!!!
Maybe without the aberrant and violent behavior though.

WuzzFuzz

 

[AJ]

Look up the Henschel Hat Company. Maybe not a "traditional" Fedora, but they have some styles that you might like even better. I bought one online using their size charts and it fits perfectly.

I have a cloth hat by Henschel Hat Company Like it a lot.

 

[Inusuit]

AND...damn it..most men these days that do have a good hat will not take it off while inside, or while eating at a restaurant.

WuzzFuzz

I'm guilty of that. Restaurants and other "inside" places no longer have a safe and secure place to put a hat. I won't risk my $250 Stetson putting it on the floor under my chair or somewhere out of my sight.

A ball cap is a different story and should be removed inside.

 

[Jaco1234]

Borsalino for real Italian style and quality.

 

[LoboGunLeather]

I have a cloth hat by Henschel Hat Company Like it a lot.

I also have an old Henschel hat, heavy canvas, waterproof. Similar to the "tin cloth" hats of another famous maker, but heavier construction. Lots of fishing trips in all kinds of weather. 20 years old or more and still just as serviceable as it was brand new.

Zero points for style. Lots of class, but all very low on the scale. Darn good hat!

 

[AJ]

I also have an old Henschel hat, heavy canvas, waterproof. Similar to the "tin cloth" hats of another famous maker, but heavier construction. Lots of fishing trips in all kinds of weather. 20 years old or more and still just as serviceable as it was brand new.

Zero points for style. Lots of class, but all very low on the scale. Darn good hat!

The hat with the black USMC emblem is my Henschel hat. The hat with the small gold USMC emblem is a Stetson. Both of these are for summer wear considering 90-95+ temps with 90-100% humidity here!

 

[Marshwheeling]

One of my favorite hats is an old Borsalino. It's pretty rough, and not recognizable unless you look inside.

 

[Onomea]

One of my favorite hats is an old Borsalino. It's pretty rough, and not recognizable unless you look inside.

If it's a favorite, and old Borsalino — older Borsalinos are better than newer Borsalinos; the company has been thorough a lot — there are places that will restore it for you.

To have your hat cleaned and reblocked used to be just a normal thing to do with a good hat.

 

[StrawHat]

I wear hats daily and have for about 40 of my nearly seventy years. I prefer wide brimmed Fedoras but finding them is not easy. So, I buy quality western hats and steam them to the shape I want. Here is my current Resistol. Also, a gray Fedora from Stetson and a palm hat from Sunbody.

If buying a felt hat, get a good quality fur felt as it will handle the elements better. A wool felt hat does not hold up to rain as well as a fur felt hat.

Don't waste your money on a straw hat. Spend a little more and get one made from palm. Palm won't droop when wet and is easily reshaped.

Kevin

 

[Chubbs103]

I also love a wide brim fedora or just about any cowboy hat that protects my head and skin. Haven't worn a ball cap in years as they are about worthless for protecting you from the sun. The picture is my Stetson but Sunbody out of Houston makes great straw hats too. The old Tilly is usually used when rain is in the forecast.

I'm sorry, but is that hat on the BED?

 

[16thVACav]

Check out Akubra, a great hat from down under.

Akubra Hats - Australian Made and Family Owned

 

[jdlii]

Filson is offering a "new" fedora made from rabbit felt.

If I recall correctly, there is a nice hat store South of Canal Street. Meyer "The Hatter" located at 120 Saint Charles Ave., NOLA 70130-2506. 1-800-882-4287. They have a nice web site.

 

[prairieviper]

My "on the job" summer hat before retirement. The winter one was felt. Both were made by Stetson.

 

[Bastogne71]

Check out Akubra, a great hat from down under.

Akubra Hats - Australian Made and Family Owned

Here's my Akubra Cattleman (translates to cowboy in the US) that is my favorite hat. Been looking for a different style but Between Covid restrictions in AU & US and shipping problems, they're harder to find in stock than small pistol primers!

 

[StrawHat]

Another thought, regardless of what fur felt hat you get, you will need a good brush to keep it clean. I like my brushes to have short (1-1 1/4") bristles. Others like longer bristles.

I also have a steamer so I can reshape the brim or crown to keep them looking nice.

Kevin

 

[MaricopaKid]

Filson is offering a "new" fedora made from rabbit felt.

If I recall correctly, there is a nice hat store South of Canal Street. Meyer "The Hatter" located at 120 Saint Charles Ave., NOLA 70130-2506. 1-800-882-4287. They have a nice web site.

I bought a nice summer Biltmore from them in '03. Still looks great, good people to deal with.

 

[Jaco1234]

A memorable fedora:
Tom Hardy as Forest Bondurant in Lawless.

Tom Hardy - Forrest Bondurant - Lawless - Tom Hardy Photo (31970216) - Fanpop

 

[7shooter]

Great movie, great characters with style.

My dad wore hats like that in the 40s and 50s. Dapper looking guy.

 

[pawngal]

I would look for a Stetson Stratoliner Fedora. OP is in Texas and it has a slightly Western shape. I have an older version.

If you want to look online at more Fedoras than you can imagine check this site out.
Fedoras - Fashionable Fur Felt, Wide Brim Hats | DelMonico Hatter

 

[doublesharp]

Gimme the Kid Rock porkpie

 

[CAJUNLAWYER]

Meyer the Hatter on St. Charles Ave a block off of Canal St.. The old guy finally died around 10 years ago. He not only remembered my Dad, he remembered my Grandfather buying from him. Told me I have the same bucket head and tastes as both of them.
Have a really nice panama Fedora that has had it's fair share of bumps and for foul weather I have a nice Filson Otter cloth rendition of the Fedora.
I like hats.

 

[WuzzFuzz]

Hey Caje, is it true that there is some places that are using that large rat down there to make fur hats out of...Rats...Beaver, they're both of the same rodent family?????


Dinerman
Dinerman
Super Moderator Bartender

Messages
10,562

Location
Bozeman, MT

Italian made, bulgarian sold, french language, nutria felt barbisio.

Barbisio- casa fondata nel 1862 - Sagliano Micca Italia

Rat-Gondin (Nutria)

Importe d'Italie

Franz Cervenka - Maitre Chapellier - Sofia

IMG_1364.jpg





Didn't print the picture, but it comes from a old post over on the Fedora Lounge...
WuzzFuzz