My HJ Has Arrived!

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:09 pm

Woo Hoo! My first "real" Fedora... (Other than my 2 "Bollman Designer Collection" hats and my Stetson "Temple"), I am now the proud owner of a Herbert Johnson, thanks to Todd! I will probably be moving onto an AB and possibly an Akubra when finances allow it, but I am just so excited I thought I would brag and waste your time. I have wanted this hat since I was 17 back in 1984. I think my wife is a little upset because I am paying more attention to the hat than her right now... I have to thank Todd for his help, he has great communication and styled it beautifully. I regret that I don't have a digital cam to post pics, but maybe soon. Fortunately I have been through enough hats that I got my size right and it fits perfectly. It is extremely soft, a nice sable that looks correct, and the ribbon is much darker than I expected, which I was hoping. It arrived on Thursday and I still have goosebumps when I look at it.

Anyway, just needed to get it out, most people think I am nuts, but I figured you guys would understand...

I am so psyched.

Michael B

Hoosier · Post by **Hoosier** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:15 pm

Congratulations MichaelB! I am currently awaiting my 1st "real" fedora as I write this. Let me know how you smooth things over with the Mrs. May come in handy. . .
Best regards,
Hoosier

Arkansas Russell · Post by **Arkansas Russell** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:16 pm

Congrats!!
I know how you feel. I will be getting my Fortune and Glory AB real soon.
I will also try to post some pics.
Have fun with your new brim.
Arkansas Russell

BendingOak · Post by **BendingOak** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:43 pm

congrats on your HJ, will you be posting any pics?

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:51 pm

Yes, I agree with my good friend, penman; I would love to see some pics, especially with it on your head. Congratulations on the hat. There are some really nice HJs out there.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:54 pm

Hopefully at some point I will be posting pics... Like I said, I don't have a digital camera, but some people at work do. I can't promise anything soon but I will see what I can do. By the way, I should mention that the wife is pretty psyched about the hat as well. She just thinks I should stop messing with it... But I can't help it...

MichaelB

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 8:56 pm

It's nice when your wife likes your hat and very difficult if your wife or girlfriend didn't. You're ahead of the game. And yes, sometimes you just have to leave the hat alone. Some of our members have gone crazy fiddling with their hats, never satisfied with the results.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 10:18 pm

Good to know... I guess I should leave it alone. Not easy!

Can I take pics of just the hat? I really don't look good, um, period... We'll see...

Thanks again!

MichaelB

Indakin · Post by **Indakin** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 10:54 pm

let the hat age on its own, it will eventually form better, and become YOUR hat. Its ok to go for the indy bashes, but i feel youll never really get it perfect. They just happend to treat the hat a certian way, jsut trying to make it old for the film, and now it drives us all nutts trying to get the look

Let the hat become more your own persoanlity, and then it will look great in my opinion.

BendingOak · Post by **BendingOak** » Sun Feb 12, 2006 11:34 pm

[/quote]let the hat age on its own, it will eventually form better, and become YOUR hat. Its ok to go for the indy bashes, but i feel youll never really get it perfect. They just happend to treat the hat a certian way, jsut trying to make it old for the film, and now it drives us all nutts trying to get the look Let the hat become more your own persoanlity, and then it will look great in my opinion.

I agree with you.

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 12:02 am

michaelb wrote: Can I take pics of just the hat? I really don't look good, um, period... We'll see...

Thanks again!

MichaelB

You know, the reason I ask for you to wear it, and if you check you'll see I always do this, is because a hat sitting on a table is a lifeless thing. It needs a head in it to animate it. It is the only way you can see what the brim looks like and if it is all proportional.

Don't be self-conscious; no one is harder on the eyes than I am.

Rusty Jones · Post by **Rusty Jones** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 12:09 am

Hemingway Jones wrote:no one is harder on the eyes than I am.

NONSENSE! My eyes have never seen anything harder than Ford with an earring :c)

now lets see some Fedora! :cD *crosses fingers for pics*

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 12:23 am

I will get right on it!

Michael B

IndyFlyer · Post by **IndyFlyer** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 1:59 am

It is great to read someone posting about a hat that is exciting to themself. Don't try to measure up to another hat that may be having being posted at the moment. Buy YOUR hat and wear it well. You may not need to "move on" to another. There is no 'right or wrong' or no 'this is better than that'. HJ carries history and commands desire and respect to any fedora fan. Put it on and take some pics. PICS!! We can't wait.....

On a side note;

My eyes have never seen anything harder than Ford with an earring

Or, Clint Eastwood crying!

Dekker · Post by **Dekker** » Mon Feb 13, 2006 7:31 am

Congrats on the HJ, michaelb! I was a little disappointed with my HJ when it turned up, but with a little love and shaping it's quickly become a prized possession! I hope yours develops in the same way.

Indyflyer - great advice, but where were you when my HJ arrived

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 11:46 am

Well, here ya go. These were done this morning at work, some with a flash, some without. We were a little rushed so sorry about any image quality, etc...

Thanks!

Michael B

Fedora · Post by **Fedora** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 12:45 pm

The hat looks pretty good. May I suggest that your next hat be specified with a 2 7/8(or 3) by a 2 3/4 brim width. You have a full face, and the wider brim on the side would really make a tremendous difference, in the way the hat looks on you. I think these hats come with a 2 1/2 dimensional cut on the sides, and they look great on thinner facial shapes. The full faced fellows, need more brim on the sides to bring the hat into proprotion.(for the Indy look) regards, Fedora

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 12:55 pm

Thanks! I know what you mean, but my other hats have wider brims (properly dimensional as far as I know) and I just don't look right in them for some reason... Believe it or not, this is the best hat so far for my fat face and my wife agreed. Maybe it's because the other hats have a shorter crown which makes for a wide brim, on a wide face with a short top... Just looks odd.
I really prefer this one... Also, the styling was a lot better before I got to work, but like I said, we were in a bit of a rush here and didn't want to bother anyone. Also I didn't have a mirror nearby to adjust the shape perfectly. But I think you can get the overall look. In some shots it almost looks too small but it fits great!?

Thanks!

Michael

Fedora · Post by **Fedora** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 1:10 pm

Believe it or not, this is the best hat so far for my fat face and my wife agreed. Maybe it's because the other hats have a shorter crown which makes for a wide brim, on a wide face with a short top... Just looks odd.

I know what you mean. I cannot wear a short crowned hat with a wider brim. But, most of that is only because I am so used to the Indy look, and judge every other hat with it as the ruler.

Please do no take my comments in the wrong way. I just automatically do the proportion deal with the Indy fedoras. I can't help myself!!

The hat does look good on you, so do not feel self conscious, just because of me.

My mouth tends to outrun my mind, as many will attest here.

Fedora

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 1:22 pm

No problem! I didn't take anything personal as far as your comments... I figured you would be the guy who knows. Believe me, I am always checking and re-checking and finding something on all my hats that start to bug me. Such is the nature of the fedora I guess... Or the fedora obsessed like myself at this time...

Michael B

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 3:31 pm

Michael B,
That hat looks good. I think you should pull it down a bit and not show so much forehead. You kind of have that early Jimmy Stewart, push it back on the head thing going.

It may be the perspective of the photos, but you do have a wide face and could probably carry off a big hat, like a Stetson Open Road, better than someone with a narrow face. Once again, it's tough to tell from the photos, but it looks like, in the top photo, that the sides are being pushed out and it's putting a bit of taper in the top (though I have seen photos of myself that look this way and it is the result of an optical illusion caused by the lense).

Still, Michael, it's a great looking hat and you look comfortable and totally at ease in it; you carry it off very well. Well done, my friend.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 3:42 pm

Why thank you sir! Yes, in the third photo I pushed the hat back just to show it from another angle... I thought it was going to look huge on me from the pictures I've seen on the net, but It looks just a hair small. But I like the tall crown and it feels incredibly comfortable. My others are either down to my ears or a bit too tight and high on the head. My Stetson is a size 58 and is too big. This is a 57 and I hope it's not going to create too much of a taper...

Michael B

Antone · Post by **Antone** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:04 pm

Hemingway Jones wrote: You kind of have that early Jimmy Stewart, push it back on the head thing going.

Not that that's necessarily a bad thing!

Good looking hat; how much tweaking did you have to do after it came out of the box?

Antone

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 4:20 pm

Thanks Antone!

It is the "Peru?/Raven Bar style" and it was pretty much set out of the box, thanks again to Todd. I felt the bashes and pinch were perfect and didn't really mess with them, but I am working on bringing the brim down just a tad in the front and give a slight bit more of a curl to the right edge. I am also wondering about the back... I usually like it to either snap up or down, but it's kinda in the middle. We'll see...

Michael B

Canyon · Post by **Canyon** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:11 pm

Michael, congratulations on your new purchase.

The hat is a gorgeous colour.

I may too buy a HJ one day.

Indakin · Post by **Indakin** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 5:30 pm

i agree , very nice color, and that HJ looks very soft, it should wear in very nicely. I've only had my Fed DEluxe a few days and its already getting softer and more flexable.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 6:16 pm

Thank you Canyon,

I am surprised by the color. It really is wierd how different lighting affects different hats. At one point the ribbon looked like the hat color, and in the next room, it was like a completely different hat with a "black" ribbon.

A bit softer than I expected Morgan, but that was a nice surprise of course. And you had to mention the Fed Deluxe... Grrr... That was the first one I was going to get and now ya got me thinking about it again! Maybe that will be next.

Ya know, my wallet can only handle so much guys! You're killin me.

I do want an Adventurebilt as well, seeing all the pics and hearing the rave reviews. It seems to be the optimum choice, but I wanted an HJ first for obvious reasons.

I'm doomed. Or at least my wallet is.

Thanks again!

Michael

P.S> Most of these sentences require emoticons so you can get where I'm coming from but I still can't figure out how to use them. Copy paste?

BendingOak · Post by **BendingOak** » Tue Feb 14, 2006 7:02 pm

michealb,I have both HJ and AB. I just love the AB I had the same thought when it came to the HJ. After getting one, I wished I saved the money (so I can buy another AB

).

Ransom · Post by **Ransom** » Wed Feb 15, 2006 3:04 am

Looking good! Says nice things about the HJ for me to consider before I get my first hat. Right now I'm conflicted between the Fed delux and the AB. Mainly because I'm not usually a hat guy. I love the hats on you guys, but dunno if it will work for me, hence the rationalization for going with the fed deluxe which looks like a great hat in its own right. The flip side to this is what if I LOVE the hat

and then wish I had spent the extra dough to really spoil myself on the AB. To complicate matters more, I'm a poor grad student that has no business spending the money anyway. Oh dear, decisions decisions!

Anyways, congrats on the beautiful cap!

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Wed Feb 15, 2006 11:55 am

Thank you Ransom,

I can't really tell you what to go with first... I had the same problem. I thought I always looked terrible in Fedoras, but this one seems to work for me. I am sure the others will work fine for me as well...

Someday,

Soon I hope.

Thanks!

MichaelB

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Thu Feb 16, 2006 9:37 am

Wow... Thank you Indiana Tone!

I couldn't agree more with your first statement.

As for the AB, I am sure I will be more than ecstatic with that piece of headgear! I know of Fedora's reputation from my many readings on Indygear, so I know it will be pretty amazing... I think I will go straight for the beaver felt now.

One other thing, I got home and decided to double check the brim on the sides with a ruler and they are exactly 2 1/2". So, I am off by a 1/4" according to Fedora? I checked my Stetson Temple and voila... The same thing? Same with all the other hats... And the brims look pretty wide...

Under the "Gear" history section, I read that the origonal in Raiders was 2 5/8" on the sides, which means I am off by 1/8" now? Then the quote below:

"I've heard the difference between the sides and the front and back disputed - either ¼ or 1/8 inch. In a conversation I had with Mr. Swales at HJ, he supported the 1/8-inch difference, above. Others have reported he's confirmed it should be ¼ inch difference. Oh well… These differences are slight, and for the fan may really just be a matter of taste."

I don't know, sounds about right to me? Maybe it's just the camera?

Just a few thoughts... Any other info would be appreciated!

Thanks again!

Michael B

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Fri Feb 17, 2006 11:22 am

I don't mind at all...

And yes, it seems like a long time, but things are definately falling onto place...

So then it still appears that I am off by only a 1/4 of an inch? Is that considered a lot? I guess it could make enough difference of course. If you look at the 3rd photo down, you can kinda see that it's a wider brim than it looks... Same when I look in the mirror. It's gotta be something with the lens in that photo... I don't know.

But I am sure when I get my Adventurebilt I will be very, very happy. Maybe after we do our taxes...

In the meantime, this will do fine! I really like this hat! Woo hoo again!

Thanks!

Michael B

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Sat Feb 18, 2006 8:21 am

Tone is right about brims and the shape of people's faces. In the old days, you would go into a shop and try on many hats and the hatter would trim a brim or recommend a taller crown all based on the shape of your head and face. Fedora will do this through a picture.

As for your HJ, I like it very much and I say, wear it and wear the heck out of it. I would also recommend you get an Adventurebilt because Steve can go off the photo of you in the HJ and adjust his hat to fit you. Remember, those hat dimensions you are quoting above were for Harrison Ford. It may look different on your face. You would be amazed at what Steve can do.

I believe in having more than one hat to spread the wear around.

But, don't for a second, feel bad about that HJ; it is very nice.

michaelb · Post by **michaelb** » Mon Feb 20, 2006 9:24 am

Thank you again Hemingway!

And yes, yes, YES, to all of you, I know! I will have an Adventurebilt at some point... (Good to know by the way that my pics will be useful for Steve as a styling guide. Would have never thought of that! Excellent!) Just need to pay rent for a while. This hat was surprisingly easy to get the wife's go-ahead, but I think a second might take some time, (and sneakiness...)

And I can't agree more about the fact of having more than one hat! I already have six hats at this point, but the Stetson is the only one that comes close in terms of quality compared to the HJ.

And I don't feel bad about the HJ at all. In fact I think it might need a pillow to lie next me in bed when I sleep. Maybe the wife can sleep on the floor for now...

Michael

My HJ Has Arrived!

My HJ Has Arrived!

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hat

Finally Got a Few Pics of My HJ...

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