What hat should I buy?

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eazybox

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DeclaringTiger said:
Thank you(y) I'll definitely keep these things in mind when I eventually buy an Indy hat. Anything to say about the Harrison? I can be pretty indecisive even if the answer is right in front of me haha
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I've heard nothing but great things about all the Advantage hats, but have no direct experience. I'm basically an HJ man and even one of my Adventurebilts is really a reconditioned HJ. ;)
 
damonbus

damonbus

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eazybox said:
I've heard nothing but great things about all the Advantage hats, but have no direct experience. I'm basically an HJ man and even one of my Adventurebilts is really a reconditioned HJ. ;)
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How are Herbert Johnsons for everyday wear, like camping and stuff? If I paid that much I would want a hat I could wear all the time and not have to worry about it falling apart.
 
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eazybox

Member
damonbus said:
How are Herbert Johnsons for everyday wear, like camping and stuff? If I paid that much I would want a hat I could wear all the time and not have to worry about it falling apart.
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You would want to go with beaver felt instead of the film accurate rabbit, if you chose HJ. The main worry with rabbit would be tapering, which happens over time with every brand but which Akubras seem particularly resistant to, which was why I recommended them based on the requirements you stated.
 
Major West

Major West

Member
damonbus said:
How are Herbert Johnsons for everyday wear, like camping and stuff? If I paid that much I would want a hat I could wear all the time and not have to worry about it falling apart.
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If durability and a really tough hat is a factor, as mentioned above I would consider Akubra. If I wanted a really tough hat to wear travelling the world I'd get one of those. Having said that if you ordered a hat in Beaver felt from any of the mentioned vendors it would probably be equally as tough, assuming it was well put togther.
 
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AttyOzzy

New member
Hi Damonbus,

My HJ is a great hat. I bought it because I always wanted one. I have the beaver felt. It is sturdy and well made. The customer service is also great - Go Michelle! Woo! I wear the HJ on hiking trips, to and from work, and feel that it is a very durable hat.

As for the Advintage(s), they are a slightly thinner or lighter felt and have the Raiders look I was going for. I have found them to be very durable and comfortable to wear. The height is great and no hint of improper taper.

And I do agree with my friends here. Akubra is a very good hat.
 
damonbus

damonbus

New member
AttyOzzy said:
Hi Damonbus,

My HJ is a great hat. I bought it because I always wanted one. I have the beaver felt. It is sturdy and well made. The customer service is also great - Go Michelle! Woo! I wear the HJ on hiking trips, to and from work, and feel that it is a very durable hat.

As for the Advintage(s), they are a slightly thinner or lighter felt and have the Raiders look I was going for. I have found them to be very durable and comfortable to wear. The height is great and no hint of improper taper.

And I do agree with my friends here. Akubra is a very good hat.
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So which one would you recommend?
 
damonbus

damonbus

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My concern with Akubra is they are shipped open crowned. I?m not good at bending it to give it the Raiders look.
 
Major West

Major West

Member
The advintage Harrison Hat version 2 Rabbit/Beaver blend. That's what I've got, shipped within a week of ordering.
 
Drones33

Drones33

New member
I`d agree with the above; for what your`re planning to use it for I`d go for an Akubra Fed IV (I have one in carbon grey. Been hiking in the wet welsh countryside a number of times, stands up really well to the rain and holds its shape. And as for shaping it yourself, there are plenty tutorials on youtube to give guidance.) or an Advintage Harrison as Major West suggests. (I have one that I wore on a walking holiday in Austria last year. Again, was just the job.)I dont have a Steele and Jones fedora, but ive seen only good things about them. i do have an S&J Indy jacket however, and dealing with with them was a delight. The quality and attention to detail is remarkable.
As for Penman, he clearly does excellent work but looking at his website and his instagram feed, it seems to me that his Indy fedoras have lost their way a bit, particularly the Raiders fedora; they look rather like caricatures of the Indy hat I think. Perhaps thats just me but have a look below...
Penman Raiders fedora, the shape is just a bit too extreme for my taste
penman_1_by_00177840-dcog982.jpg


S&J. Looks great, very popular
s_and_j_1_by_00177840-dcog9bj.jpg


Advintage. Spot on I reckon
advintage_1_by_00177840-dcog99o.jpg
 
ThrowMeTheWhip

ThrowMeTheWhip

Well-known member
Oh god, that Penman hat is atrocious. I?m not a fan, but by god, hadn?t realized they?d gotten that ridiculous looking.
 
E

eazybox

Member
ThrowMeTheWhip said:
Oh god, that Penman hat is atrocious. I’m not a fan, but by god, hadn’t realized they’d gotten that ridiculous looking.
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I've been seeing that look from Penman for about a year, perhaps longer. The color doesn't even look right, and the ribbon is too shiny. Another thing I don't like about Penman is that he and friends of his publicly attack and make claims about other hatters that are questionable, to put it mildly. I believe that's why he was banned from COW.
 
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ThrowMeTheWhip

ThrowMeTheWhip

Well-known member
eazybox said:
I've been seeing that look from Penman for about a year, perhaps longer. The color doesn't even look right, and the ribbon is too shiny. Another thing I don't like about Penman is that he and friends of his publicly attack and make claims about other hatters that are questionable, to put it mildly. I believe that's why he was banned from COW.
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Yes, I can personally attest to that behavior. I have experienced something similar myself.
 
P

penman hats

New member
let me chime in here for a second as there are a few missed points. first, Adventurbilt hat is not a redone HJ by no means. Steve Delk is the one guy who brought the standard and screen accurate look back to Indy and Indy fans. So much so got the gig for Indy 4 which he beat out over 20 companies and it wasn't even a close rate.


There are some Raiders hats that I have that I have exaggerated creases for two reasons. Sometimes due to travel the creases tend to loosen up so with a request of the customer I did this. kinda the custom hatter thing.


as for the ribbon. I have been attacked about the original ribbon manufacture. First some amateur hatters are very sure it was indeed the original ribbon until we ( steve , marc and myself) said no to selling to them.. then those same amateur hatters said they were sure it wasn't. Now one of those hatters claims they found the manufacturer so now those same people are now claiming it is in fact the same ribbon. See the pattern, these same people change according to how it will help themselves.


those photos shown here were taken with my iphone so you really can't go by those photos nor should you go by any one shot of any product.


as for finding the original raiders block. for sevral decades where were told the blocks were gone. One day someone looks in a closet that no one looked into and boom the blocks were found. doesn't sound right to me. more likely a recast. don't take my word for it. follow the link..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec6heul3O5E

its a ugly business and what some people will do to others puts a damper on making hats at time.
 
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eazybox

Member
penman hats said:
let me chime in here for a second as there are a few missed points. first, Adventurbilt hat is not a redone HJ by no means. Steve Delk is the one guy who brought the standard and screen accurate look back to Indy and Indy fans. So much so got the gig for Indy 4 which he beat out over 20 companies and it wasn't even a close rate.


There are some Raiders hats that I have that I have exaggerated creases for two reasons. Sometimes due to travel the creases tend to loosen up so with a request of the customer I did this. kinda the custom hatter thing.


as for the ribbon. I have been attacked about the original ribbon manufacture. First some amateur hatters are very sure it was indeed the original ribbon until we ( steve , marc and myself) said no to selling to them.. then those same amateur hatters said they were sure it wasn't. Now one of those hatters claims they found the manufacturer so now those same people are now claiming it is in fact the same ribbon. See the pattern, these same people change according to how it will help themselves.


those photos shown here were taken with my iphone so you really can't go by those photos nor should you go by any one shot of any product.


as for finding the original raiders block. for sevral decades where were told the blocks were gone. One day someone looks in a closet that no one looked into and boom the blocks were found. doesn't sound right to me. more likely a recast. don't take my word for it. follow the link..........

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ec6heul3O5E

its a ugly business and what some people will do to others puts a damper on making hats at time.
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I've seen that video and it proves nothing according to other hatters who have posted about it on COW. According to one of them, you could do the same hat trick with any block. Or, you could reblock the HJ before you do the video to make it look any way you want. As for the AB I mentioned, it is a reconditioned HJ. that was co-produced by Steve Delk and Indy Magnoli around 2007. I respectfully suggest that you stick to making your own high quality hats and stop trying to smear the reputations of other hatters who are in competition with you.
 
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eazybox

Member
One more thing. Since my Magnoli AB/HJ was made on Steve Delk's Raiders block, and it looks significantly different from my HJ reboot, my HJ could not have been made on a recast Delk block. No way.
 
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penman hats

New member
eazybox said:
I've seen that video and it proves nothing according to other hatters who have posted about it on COW. According to one of them, you could do the same hat trick with any block. Or, you could reblock the HJ before you do the video to make it look any way you want. As for the AB I mentioned, it is a reconditioned HJ. that was co-produced by Steve Delk and Indy Magnoli around 2007. I respectfully suggest that you stick to making your own high quality hats and stop trying to smear the reputations of other hatters who are in competition with you.
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Steve never used the same block on the HJ that he did on his own hats.

Of course those hatters are going to say that. They are the same one who flip flop on the Indy ribbon. Depending on how it suits them. you can not slip on a dry hat onto any block and have it fit so smoothly with out air or ripples.

Im not smearing anyone. What I am doing is calling out someone who recast steve's block.


There has been nothing but a big smear campaign at COW because I didn't give them any free hats anymore. Thats how that place works.
 
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penman hats

New member
Just to be clear. Richard swales of HJ has been telling all of us for nearly 40 years, that the original raiders Blocks are lost. Some guy walks into the place to start making hats for HJ and just happens to look in a closet after a short time there and bam. He finds all the blocks and material that Richard was too dumb to find. Then after a short time HJ fires him over the dozens of customers complaining about poorly made hats. They let him just walk out the door with all the original Blocks and materials.

Thats the story we are supposed to believe??????? I'm not buying it.


..... and just to sum up

-Richard never checked a closet in nearly 4 decades
-no one else ever checked the closet
-only one guy in nearly 40 years checks a closet
-guy gets kicked from making HJ hats
-guy walks away with the most iconic hat blocks and parts in history

wow! and my video is the stretch???????
 
E

eazybox

Member
penman hats said:
Steve never used the same block on the HJ that he did on his own hats.

Of course those hatters are going to say that. They are the same one who flip flop on the Indy ribbon. Depending on how it suits them. you can not slip on a dry hat onto any block and have it fit so smoothly with out air or ripples.

Im not smearing anyone. What I am doing is calling out someone who recast steve's block.


There has been nothing but a big smear campaign at COW because I didn't give them any free hats anymore. Thats how that place works.
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Well, the real proof of the pudding is in the eating, isn't it? All I can say is that, if the new HJs are made on a recast Delk or Penman block, they should look exactly the same as a Delk or Penman hat. They don't. To my eyes, the new HJs look better. Others can judge for themselves. And I'm in no way implying that you are not a talented maker of excellent quality hats.
 
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penman hats

New member
ThrowMeTheWhip said:
Yes, I can personally attest to that behavior. I have experienced something similar myself.
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Going to have to reply to this. you are only getting half the story. COW wanted free product from vendors as a kick back for having them at COW. when that practice started, I wouldn't go for it as did a few others. Tony Nowak's son Riley for example. We were forced out for not towing the line. They remove all the nasty things they said about people like Tony, Riley and even Peter from Wested. They called him a damn drunk at one point but you won't see all that as they delete and hide. They have the control of the forum, They also read your Private messages, they have sock puppets to direct threads the way they want.

you wan't to believe it go right ahead.
 
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