Penman is "da man" . . .

[thedurdens]

. . . and his hats are pretty good too!
Just wanted to post some pics and a review of my two fantastic hats by one Mr. John Bending Oak Penman, Sir. These hats speak for themselves thankfully as I knew I would not come close to the Mitch La Rue style of great pics.





The hat on the left is my "WatchEddie" in a charcoal gray Rabbit felt with black ribbon. My reasoning for that was I simply wanted to ease myself into the shorter brim with the "Eddie's" 1 3/4 inch brim as opposed to the "Watchman's" 1 1/2 inch brim.
The hat to the right would be my Penman Raiders in pure Beaver felt.

Both these hats are top-notch like their creator. The materials and construction are excellent and I especially love the sweatbands in both (very comfortable to wear all day long.) Having never had a beaver hat I have to say that I am sorry that I got my "WatchEddie" in rabbit. Don't misunderstand, the rabbit is great and even better than what I was accustomed too, but after owning this beaver hat I don't think I will ever go back to rabbit. The beaver felt that John uses is, in a word, luxurious and like the liner says "Bulldog tough."

In an effort to be brief (please feel free to ask any questions I missed) these hats are well worth every penny I spent and I will be ordering again soon. Like I said, they are top-notch and so is John. At the risk of sounding like a kiss-up (us East-Coasters hate that) in a world where quality goes down and attitude goes up it is comforting to know that a guy like Oak still exists. I have said it before that the people on COW are a great group which is one reason that I frequent these boards (that pesky gear addiction is another and John is no exception. The few times I have talked to him have been a pure pleasure. We've talked the obvious (hats and Indy) to the not so obvious (comic books and Rasputin ) and John has been both a joy and helpful. (That's about all this Jet fan can say about a Giant fan, sorry John )

Thanks all, and here are some pics with the hats on,
Frank

"WatchEddie"
http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... 567cbb.jpg

http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... ff113e.jpg

http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... 34a292.jpg

"Indy"
http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... f3387d.jpg

http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... 5f3f61.jpg

http://i625.photobucket.com/albums/tt33 ... b893ec.jpg

[jlee562]

This is making me really excited for my Penman Public Enemies style hat, I ordered one in black, rabbit, and it should be here around Dec/Jan......

[DR Ulloa]

John is dream to work with. I love seeing different style Penmans because of this. Plus John is like an artist. That charcoal Watch/Eddie looks great. I'm glad I went with charcoal with this current hat. I was worried it might be too dark. Obviously not.

I like the specs on your Watch/Eddie; much better than the original, in my opinion. Great hats. Congrats.

Dave

[BendingOak]

The watch/eddie as you call it looks real good with the shades. I'm glade you like them both. It's always good to hear when someone is happy with what I did. It was great chatting with you. It's my favorite part of the biz. I get to talk with people I normally wouldn't ever get to chat with.

[thedurdens]

John is dream to work with. I love seeing different style Penmans because of this. Plus John is like an artist. That charcoal Watch/Eddie looks great. I'm glad I went with charcoal with this current hat. I was worried it might be too dark. Obviously not.

I like the specs on your Watch/Eddie; much better than the original, in my opinion. Great hats. Congrats.

Dave

Thanks, Dave. John is an artist and the charcoal is great. I can't decide between a Raiders in that color (in beaver of course), a Rorschach hat in an Indy brown, or something completely different.

Thanks again,
Frank

[Fedora]

I have to chime in here. John sent me a hat to check out, awhile back, as he wanted to know, from me, how he was doing in hatmaking.

First, realize, that I call em as I see em', and NEVER would tell a guy a lie about his work. Just to make him feel good. I was ready to give John plenty of constructive critiques, but was elated when I did NOT HAVE to.

I checked out John's work with a fine tooth comb, and as I told him, your hats are just as good as what I make. And I meant it.

It took me longer to learn the craft, than it did John, because he caught on so fast!

Some people are just naturals when it comes to certain things, and John is a natural. Now understand, others have sent me their hats, (no names) and most had a long way to go before they could in good conscience, sell what they made. John was the first to send me a hat, that had such attention to the important details that "make" a hat. I could give John no advice, because he already had everything down pat. John has the gift, and I hope he stays with it. Being young, like Marc, these guys will carry the torches into the future. And no doubt, will be well known one day, outside of the Indy community. Fedora

[Mitch LaRue]

Hear, hear, Steve!


Beautiful hats by the way Frank... and they look great on ya!

[thedurdens]

Thanks, Mitch! How did I do picture wise?

I am honored to have you chim in, Steve, and I agree as well.

The trouble now is deciding what type of hat to order next and in what color?
I am leaning toward a charcoal gray Raiders, although everyone (who sees me wear hats, that is) has really liked the shorter brim style of the "WatchEddie" as I think it is more of an "in" thing.

Thanks again everyone,
Frank

[Mitch LaRue]

I think you did very well... a very fine job of photographing, my friend.

And, if I might suggest...
I think a Penman "Marlo" or "Spirit of Barney" would suit you quite well... although maybe in that "Pecan" color (either way, though... Penmna's the way to go!)
Whattaya think?

[thedurdens]

Thanks for the insight, Mitch. I was actually thinking of the "Marlo" as well. First choices were the Raiders in charcoal or a "Watchmen" in Indy Brown, but the "Marlo" has always caught my eye. Maybe a "Marlo" with the "Watchmen" colors utlizing the Pecan as you suggested?

The hat on John's main page is also nice with very unique colors. The big problem is they are all great. Though that is really only a problem for my wallet.

Thanks,
Frank

[BendingOak]

I have to chime in here. John sent me a hat to check out, awhile back, as he wanted to know, from me, how he was doing in hatmaking.

First, realize, that I call em as I see em', and NEVER would tell a guy a lie about his work. Just to make him feel good. I was ready to give John plenty of constructive critiques, but was elated when I did NOT HAVE to.

I checked out John's work with a fine tooth comb, and as I told him, your hats are just as good as what I make. And I meant it.

It took me longer to learn the craft, than it did John, because he caught on so fast!

Some people are just naturals when it comes to certain things, and John is a natural. Now understand, others have sent me their hats, (no names) and most had a long way to go before they could in good conscience, sell what they made. John was the first to send me a hat, that had such attention to the important details that "make" a hat. I could give John no advice, because he already had everything down pat. John has the gift, and I hope he stays with it. Being young, like Marc, these guys will carry the torches into the future. And no doubt, will be well known one day, outside of the Indy community. Fedora

Steve,

I can't tell you how nervous I was sending that hat to you. I have so much respect for you and Marc as hat makers ( and as men) and your opinion means so very much to me. I hope to make hats for as long as I can. I just love seeing the raw bodies change before my eye into a hat. It has been a great ride so far and I'm having a blast. Thanks again Steve.

[thedurdens]

During a walk in two different local parks over the holiday weekend, I had two people approach me with compliments about my hat -- the "WatchEddie." I was more than happy to tell them about it and passed along John's card as well. (keep them tucked in the hat )
Just placed my order with the Oak for a straight-up "Watchmen" in Pecan and a steel gray Raiders with slightly smaller specs. John is just a pleasure to deal with and I am excited as heck. "Now we play the waiting game!"

Thanks all,
Frank

[theinterchange]

Two hats to wear with pride! I have yet to see a Penman I didn't like! After the dust settles on the Penman I have on order, I'm planning to save up for another.. this one'll be a non Indy though.

I agree with Mitch on the style suggestions. Maybe he should start an emag, IGQ [Indy Gear Quarterly]. Seriously, Mitch, you always have a flair of class about you. Or as Oscar Shapley said in It Happened One Night "You've got Class with a capital K"

Randy

[BendingOak]

Two hats to wear with pride! I have yet to see a Penman I didn't like! After the dust settles on the Penman I have on order, I'm planning to save up for another.. this one'll be a non Indy though.

I agree with Mitch on the style suggestions. Maybe he should start an emag, IGQ [Indy Gear Quarterly]. Seriously, Mitch, you always have a flair of class about you. Or as Oscar Shapley said in It Happened One Night "You've got Class with a capital K"

Randy

It has nothing to do with Mitch it's his wife who makes him look good.

[theinterchange]

You mean to say he can't dress himself?! Proper photos do help, but I think the man makes the clothes in this case.

Randy

[BendingOak]

You mean to say he can't dress himself?! Proper photos do help, but I think the man makes the clothes in this case.

Randy

Mitch, can wear anything and look good but his wife takes the best shots. I think that she is smart enough to work in the range of the camera and she frames the shot using the person not the hat.

[theinterchange]

I knew what you were meaning. She does wonderful work.

Randy

[Mitch LaRue]

You'll get no argument from me, gents... and I appreciate your words (mostly because my lovely bride is that much cuter when she's blushing)... but since the name of this thread is "Penman is 'da man'..." and not "Rachael LaRue is 'da bomb'..." I figured I'd better beat the MODs to the punch here and put us back on topic by saying
"No matter how gifted the photographer, a good hat photo BEGINS with a quality hat... and in THIS regard, clearly thedurdens growing collection of fantastic PENMAN lids puts him on some very solid ground, indeed!
Kudos again on your wonderful hats, Frank!


(Now, THAT time I think I managed to handle matters with "Klass with a capital 'C'"...)

[theinterchange]

Haha, I was going to wind it back toward the thread intent fairly quickly myself, Mitch. You saved me some work.

I'd have to say my favorite is the Watch Eddie hat, since we mostly see Indy hats here, it's always a nice thing to see other styles. Especially well done ones.

Randy

[theinterchange]

Not to hijack the thread, but does anyone know what month's orders John's on?

Randy

[BendingOak]

I'm working on June order and they should all be done by the end of the month.

[theinterchange]

Ok! I'm not too far off then, I just double checked my records and I ordered the first part of July! Thanks for popping in.

Randy