Club Obi Wan

fedoralover

So John, I just saw that they are going to make another Indy film with Harrison Ford, do you have any idea if you will be able to make the hats for the movie? We've had our differences but I can honestly say I hope you first of all want to do it and second will get asked to do it. I know Steve isn't...

fedoralover

Pictures say it all. Still a few shelves to put up and more hats to display, but 95% done. Incredible amount of people walking by and coming in saying how great it is to have a hat shop here. Mike should do well in both off the shelf sales and custom orders. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v683/fe...

fedoralover

DiCatania wrote:That's great news! What's the address?

I looked it up on Google maps and I think it's 863 Pearl St. Eugene Oregon. If you look it up on Google maps street view you can see the empty store front.

fedoralover

fedoralover

I thought it may be of interest to some here that Mike at Northwest Hats has found a place to rent to open a storefront Hattery Shop in the heart of downtown Eugene Oregon. It's an ideal location with lots of pedestrian foot traffic as well as being on a main thoroughfare through Eugene where it wil...

fedoralover

tedquinton wrote:I should have said, it's Portuguese - Fepsa 100% beaver.

I've seen the fepsa rabbit but not the beaver. It must be awesome! It looks great in the pics. How long did it take to get it?

fedoralover

fedoralover

My latest from Mike. Not an Indy hat, but with some of the same DNA. I was looking for a hat with a touch of adventure, based loosely on Alan Ladd's fedora from the film 'China'. http://i1291.photobucket.com/albums/b557/Tedquinton/IMG_9600_zps1zb8uyhb.jpg This is rabbit felt, from FEPSA. It is incr...

fedoralover

Yeah - the 2-hats I have on order are both Indy inspired. One in moss and one brown. Gave him the specs from the original Indy hat but asked for a CS style bash. The ribbon for the moss hat will be slightly wider but no big deal for me. ;) I saw your hats today. Good thing they aren't my size or yo...

fedoralover

Because he continually helped any and everyone here who ever asked his advice with no thoughts of ever putting himself on a pedestal, continuously contributed to the dialog and discourse for the sake of finding truth, even if he discovered he was wrong in his initial thinking (and was gladly humble...

fedoralover

binkmeisterRick wrote: This was never true of Steve Delk

So true, I really miss Steve posting here. I wish he would take the time to chime in now and then. Many of these type of conversations would be very different and more civil if he did.

fedoralover

fedoralover

[quote="Indiego Jones" This is decisive for many fans t o buy or not a hat.-[/quote] Definition of the word "fan" comes from the root word "fanatic" which is "enthusiast", "devotee" referring to persons showing more than ordinary support for, adheren...

fedoralover

I can see where you are coming from, but to me so much of this is open to ones interpretation of "Original". Considering that these movies were made decades ago, even if you can confirm it's the same company, is the companies standard for manufacturing the same all these years later? Maybe...

fedoralover

I saw Mike has a new Fepsa body Indy hat on his Facebook page. I got to see it in person before he sent it out. I can honestly say, the fepsa felt and depth of color is the best I've seen. It looks every bit as good as the brown Indy Optimo fedora I got a number of years ago. BTW, Mike doesn't clai...

fedoralover

Great looking fedora. I'm assuming that the felt is fepsa from previous posts from Thomas. The color penetration and richness of the felt looks great. I like the liner too. And that price is hard to beat for a beaver blend.

fedoralover

fedoralover

John, it's your product and your claims about your product. It's up to you to as the seller to prove those statements are true, not the consumer. The fact that you keep avoiding providing that proof but instead resort to deflection and misdirection to avoid it tells me you don't have any. And I susp...

fedoralover

"Almost all custom hatters I know do more than just steam and block the hat. There are different ways to extend the durabilty of felts. Much water, heat and pressure (as fedoralover already said), but also surface work, "water proofing" and "burning" e.g.. You have to extra...

fedoralover

Folks, let's keep the tempers down please... Insults by ANYONE will NOT be tolerated. As much as fedoralover has a right To question the topic of this discussion, The secrets of the eternal order of hatmakers have as much right to remain just that. We're here to discuss. Let's keep it that way plea...

fedoralover

John if my own mother, whom I love dearly, made claims like you do, I would still have to respectfully say the same thing. Show me the proof. You may be sincere in your belief that this "secret" makes your felt bodies shrink less than any others that have been through a hot bath and a rebl...

fedoralover

"There is, however, still an elusive 'secret step' that he developed." Of course, there always has to be a "Secret". But secret as it may be, felt is still felt. And felt tightens up from the same things that made it felt to begin with. HEAT, MOISTURE, PRESSURE. You can repeat th...

fedoralover

Anyone who has watched video's on how felt bodies are made to begin with can see it's no mystical process to do. Felt bodies are basically made from wool or fur of some type, moisture, heat, and pressure. Depending on the company and the quality of the hat, they will repeat the process a few times o...

fedoralover

:clap: That is a gorgeous looking hat! Here's one he made I really liked. I saw it in person and it was a real stunner. I think it was for a member here. Not sure who. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v683/fedoralover/10646815_843311135681195_5117220261425456007_n_zpsff29ecc4.jpg http://img.photob...

fedoralover

He makes no claim to have the exact block for an identical Indy fedora, rather he calls them "Indy Style". Here is one he has on his facebook page. If it was brown it would be close to a last crusade. All you would have to do adjust the pinch a bit and change the specs to suit your taste a...

fedoralover

Here's another one of Mikes 100% beaver fedora's showing the different type of ribbon and bow work he does.

fedoralover

fedoralover

Where is this shop? The site doesn't load. the shop is in Eugene, Oregon Mike is a very nice fellow and his hats are top class Both statements are true. And here are few examples of the different hats Mike is capable of making. Both are 100% Winchester beaver and currently he charges around $250 to...

fedoralover

Steve developed a technique to 'pre-age' the felt so it 'dies' sooner and will greatly reduce the possibility of shrinking and taper over the life of the hat. He taught his technique to Marc and John so they are the only three hatters that use his process. Regards, Indiana Jeff Well, that doesn't m...

fedoralover

Do all hatters pre age the felt to extend the life between reblocks? Like how AB and Penman Hats do? Define what process you are calling "pre-age". I have an old borsalino ad that says they "pre-aged" their felt for 4 years before they made the body into a hat. Are any hatters d...

fedoralover

A fepsa rabbit felt fedora Mike made for himself. The body was pounced so fine he didn't have to do anything to it. It's super soft and floppy but holds it's shape. Dark gray with a hint of green in the light. Fepsa is a high class act. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v683/fedoralover/10933781_916...

fedoralover

BendingOak wrote:I have a fepsa color swatch book in my shop and they do have a good selection of colors. On e I get the details worked out this will be a offering of mine. Most like start with a couple of Cora then expand.

Do you have any beaver bodies from fepsa John? All I've seen are the rabbit.

fedoralover

fedoralover

I got to see this fepsa rabbit felt fedora in person before it was sent out to the owner. All I can say is, if anyone has a chance to get a fedora made from this felt, whether it be from Penman or Northwest hats or anyone else that has it, you will not be disappointed. This pic does not do the felt ...

fedoralover

I just watched the video, the hat looks awesome John, great job!!!

fedoralover

fedoralover

Portugal, you can read a bit about them here.

https://www.fepsa.pt/company" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

fedoralover

fedoralover

People really don't want to know. I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I want to know. John, if you or Art lived in Eugene I'd be at your shop weekly to look at your work and to see what's new. That's why I was fascinated by the look of the fepsa felt body. I love to learn new stuff about hats....

fedoralover

Boy, this thread really didn't go the way I intended. Maybe I came across as being down on Winchester, if so I didn't mean it to be. I've seen finished Winchester felt rabbit and beaver hats and they look fantastic. I also have 2 Optimo fepsa felt fedora's in my collection and they also look great. ...

fedoralover

Could be part of it. Also what rabbit felt is that from Winchester. They have more then one. I agree that they get the nod For better but that doesn't mean winchesters is bad, by no means and this isn't a fare comparison. I will be adding them to my line of offerings. Took some time but so busy wit...

fedoralover

Yes, Fespa is a proven felted and I use them myself. The one thing you have to understand about fespa felt fedora lover is they pre-pounce their felt bodies before they ship them to their customers (hatters). Not a fair comparison s one is more of a raw body then the other. Thanks John, does the pr...

fedoralover

I'm not sure I understand your post. Northwest hats only has a few of these bodies and still mainly uses winchester beaver and rabbit. The fepsa felt is a "proven felt"as it is a company that's been around awhile and is well known in the hat world as a high quality felt. I posted the pics ...

fedoralover

I was just over at Northwest Hats and he had just received some felt bodies from Fepsa. What a contrast between it and a Winchester body. And this is just Fepsa's rabbit body, I'd love to see the beaver. Hopefully Mike will get some of those after a while. Here is a pic of them side by side. Both ar...

fedoralover

Last winter I found a Stetson Nutria western hat at Goodwill. It was too small for me and the sweatband was shot. But the thin dress weight felt was in excellent condition. So I bought it for $9.00 and took it to Mike at Northwest hats. He's been really busy but he finally got around to working on i...

fedoralover

I just re clicked on it and it works for me too. Hmmm, not sure why it won't for you.

fedoralover

fedoralover

Here is a link to see the place the felt is made if anyone is interested. More hatters are starting to use it. Northwest hats is also. But don't expect to pay the same price. The felt is supposed to be exceptional but the price is higher. http://www.fepsa.pt/company/a-fabrica" onclick="win...

fedoralover

It's been interesting watching my hat trying to get back to me from Mike. :? It apparently ran into the back of those tornados and storms going through Illinois last Thursday, the 3rd, and stalled out saying.... "A late UPS trailer arrival has caused a delay. We're adjusting plans to deliver y...

fedoralover

I FINALLY sent off my black hat for Mike to put edge trim on. This has been a project hat that's been hanging fire since 2009, so I'm interested in seeing how it turns out. It's not an Indy style, but was based on the campaign hats from 1898, and was made for me by Jimmy Pierce before he left the b...

fedoralover

When I first heard about Mike I was curious how good he was at the prices he charged. So I had this vintage Borsalino that needed everything, new ribbon, sweatband and edge binding. It has almost no felt stiffener in it. I've seen some bad edge bindings before so it was kind of a test on how he woul...

fedoralover

A few shots from this weekend: http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy109/Greg_Robinson/IMG_8394_zps5bd6fbcb.jpg http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy109/Greg_Robinson/IMG_8364_zpsb1193780.jpg http://i782.photobucket.com/albums/yy109/Greg_Robinson/IMG_8389_zpsf6328fe7.jpg and http://i782.photobucket....

fedoralover

Thanks for the clarification. I can appreciate and understand why you wanted to make that distinction. You offer a very unique and specialized Indy fedora. I've seen your work in person and I was very impressed. I was at the Portland Expo antique show and saw a guy wearing a fedora that really stood...

fedoralover

I can see where one of Mike's comments about the ribbon can be misconstrued. When he said "This hat has the real Indy brown ribbon on it. This ribbon is very hard to get. It is the same color that they used on the actual movie hats. That super dark, almost black, but brown ribbon is commonly re...

fedoralover

Mike posted another up today. Interestingly enough, this one has the Indy Brown ribbon. http://i.imgur.com/od85QUKl.jpg "Here is anther "Indy" hat but this time it has something new. This hat has the real Indy brown ribbon on it. This ribbon is very hard to get. It is the same color ...

fedoralover

I'm talking to Mike about making a rabbit fedora like the one on the left, probably steel gray with a black ribbon. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v381/Max_Deployment/uglymugs_zps2339ee03.jpg I'm wanting it with period-appropriate specs (as long as I can still get the look I want, if that makes ...

fedoralover

Here's a refurb Mike did for me. This was a thin ribbon Open Road style vintage Borsalino. I have several of them already so I had Mike dress this one up by putting on a wider edge binding and a 2 inch black ribbon. fedoralover http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v683/fedoralover/DSCN0967_zpse8bfd8c3....

fedoralover

Mike posted another up today. Interestingly enough, this one has the Indy Brown ribbon. http://i.imgur.com/od85QUKl.jpg "Here is anther "Indy" hat but this time it has something new. This hat has the real Indy brown ribbon on it. This ribbon is very hard to get. It is the same color ...

fedoralover

I put it on one day with a tilt toward my left ear and that was it. :D It needed a little tilt to bring out it's true character. :TOH: Regards, Indiana Jeff Most fedora's really do look better with a bit of a tilt. Interesting you mention your black fedora. Here's one of me in a black fedora with a...

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