My take on the clipper fedora and choice for new purchase

[IndySmith-007]

I will give that a try! Thank you, fellas! Much appreciated.

[Clipper]

I will give that a try! Thank you, fellas! Much appreciated.

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I used one whole piece of ribbon as this topic advises. If you need any measurements or anything just PM me. It was super satisfying to have it turn out but I'm glad I had plenty of extra ribbon to experiment with first. I needed it!

[Clipper]

Little update here.

I was able to have Thomas from Advintage send me a few metres of back ribbon. 38mm and 45mm.

I decided to go with the 45mm since I'm sure that's what the original Raiders clipper had, even though my Akubra crown isn't quite as tall.

This time I learned how to do a tack stitch and no more iron on glue... (my first attempt at this ribbon got glue all over the first meter and I had to start all over...)

Anyway. Finally done and I'm very pleased! Again I do not have this sewed into the felt, but simply slid on over top. The fit is snug and you'd never know it wasnt sewn into the felt. I just didn't want to go through the hassle of removing the liner etc. and it opens the door to switch it out for the 38mm if I ever decide to.

I have sanded the felt a bit with 600, but my next project is to get some 1000 and 2000 grit and really pounce this felt into a smooth finish.

This ribbon is definitely worlds better than the ribbon I used from Michaels. No polyester shine. It looks very vintage and a true black. I really feel like this has turned it into the real clipper now. The ribbon made a big difference for me.

Check it out

-Clipper

[Clipper]

Oh I also got a much nicer hat stretcher that is much taller. I was able to steam and "reblock" the crown which helped quite a bit with my lopp sided crown.

Bought it off etsy for $18

[Charybdis]

You are bold, Clipper! Nice looking lid.. Now you have a "custom" hat!

[Clipper]

Bolder every day

Well I figure if you are going to start to experiment with hat modification, best to do it with a cheaper factory hat. I think the Akubra is a great starting point, and at first I was very happy. But then I started to see all the areas it was lacking. The felt, the ribbon (especially the bow) and for me, the misshapen crown. But with a little effort it can turned into something really great. Hat stretcher, new ribbon, sandpaper, and a little elbow grease.

As you can see in my bash, the felt kind of wrinkles in the dents. I don't like that. It's a bit like cardboard in that way. Im hoping with some pouncing of fine grit sandpaper I can get the felt to a better finish, and maybe with some steam and love I can work out those "cracks" into a smoother bash.

However! Overall I'm really happy with this thing. With the new ribbon I've turned into one of my rotations for daily wear.

Still, next purchase on my list is a hat from Thomas at Advintage. I think his Clipper is perfect. This ribbon is beautiful and really steps my hat up a notch.

-Clipper

[IndySmith-007]

Wow! Great work Clipper! I can really tell the difference in the ribbon as well as after you've stretched the crown for the lopsided-ness. Which stretcher in particular did you get on Etsy? May do that to my Fed IV.

[Clipper]

Wow! Great work Clipper! I can really tell the difference in the ribbon as well as after you've stretched the crown for the lopsided-ness. Which stretcher in particular did you get on Etsy? May do that to my Fed IV.

Hey thanks man! The new hat stretcher I bought was a lot taller and has more mobility to position it right where you need it in the crown. https://www.etsy.com/listing/214617091/ ... =related-2" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Great price at $12.50. And it arrived very quickly. I just steamed it a bit, wet the underside of the leather band and put the stretcher in over night. Did the trick for the most part. Enough that the lop sidedness doesn't bother me anymore. Really love it now!

-Clipper

[IndySmith-007]

Awesome! Thanks a lot! There are only two left so I'd better get it while I can hahaha.

[IndySmith-007]

My hat stretcher came in today. You're right, the shipping was VERY quick! Question though. When you put it inside the hat did you push it up higher inside of it to stretch out the top of the crown?

[Clipper]

My hat stretcher came in today. You're right, the shipping was VERY quick! Question though. When you put it inside the hat did you push it up higher inside of it to stretch out the top of the crown?

Cool! Yeah I did. Doesn't do a lot of good down low to affect the top part of the crown. I did the lower a bit the second night since my hat is a little snug on me. I might try again. The taper is still there a bit but every time I spend some time on this it looks better and better. Its been a fun project!

[IndySmith-007]

Awesome! I'll need to determine how much my hat needs it. I don't know how to put up pics on here otherwise I would lol.

[Clipper]

Awesome! I'll need to determine how much my hat needs it. I don't know how to put up pics on here otherwise I would lol.

Just create a photobucket account. It's free. Then when you upload a photo it will show a number of links on the right side. You copy and paste the direct link I think and it will show up . A bit of a pain but it works.

-Clipper

[AttyOzzy]

Wow Clipper! Wow!

What an amazing photo you have with HF. I am relatively new to this site. I won't ask you to re-write the story as to that day - but may I please inquire as to where I can find the post whereby you told the story of that meeting?

Thank you kindly.

[Clipper]

Wow Clipper! Wow!

What an amazing photo you have with HF. I am relatively new to this site. I won't ask you to re-write the story as to that day - but may I please inquire as to where I can find the post whereby you told the story of that meeting?

Thank you kindly.

Oh no AttyOzzy that is NOT me with HF! I wish! Just a photo I found online while trying to find different shots to see the hat in different lighting. Lucky kid. He probably had no idea how good of a movie it was going to be at the time. I like that photo because I think it proves that so many of the "Clipper" fedoras out there are just way too light colored of a grey. I think the Federation in Carbon Grey is much closer.

I actually just modified my hat yet again. I finally decided the ribbon I chose just looked too fat against the shorter crown of the Fed, so I just made a new one out of the 38mm I received from AdVintage. Man am I ever slow at sewing, but I like it much better not. I will try to post a comparison tomorrow.

-Clipper

[Jackfyddle]

Just received HJ Clipper






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[Jackfyddle]

Yay It came this morning!

So my first impressions/review:

First off, wow. Im very impressed that hats direct and Akubra can produce such a nice hat for $120 US. It's an unbelievable bargain.

It is a good block shape. Not quite stove pipe enough for a perfect raiders, but its really close enough to get the right look. They have also updated their liner to a beautiful vintage looking gold. I love it! The old ones I had owned were all white and get stained over time.

I was also worried about the fit, that my 22 1/8" head size would be too small in their size 59 which is 23 3/8th. And I was surprised to see they sent me their size 60! Even though their note to me said they selected a hat that is 23 1/4. A little confusing.. However, somehow it is a perfect fit! Snug in fact. I have a tiny bit of room on the sides so as it shapes to my head I imagine it will conform to a wonderful fit. So I guess I would say they run a tad small. My advice, definitely tell them your head size before ordering.

As for color. First impressions in my dark bedroom is it was dark. However, as soon as I stepped outside the color I wanted emerged. I could be little dark still, but I really really love it. It is a very good looking hat and I'm very happy to have chosen it. A+

As for shaping. It's very stiff out of the box. Which I expected. Yet it didn't take too much time getting the brim more floppy so I could get a lower front brim. I got a pretty nice crown shape just by hand. I only applied a little steam at the end to get the pinch to stay put. Im sure the felt will also soften some in time.

I had one slight issue. The right side of the crown (if you are looking straight on) appears to be more tapered than the left, making it harder to match the straight side look on both sides. As I keep working on it though it seems to become less of a problem and now after steaming it some it looks much more uniform.

Bottom line: BUY ONE! I REALLY prefer the carbon to the moonstone. I think it's a far better representation of the Clipper hat. Especially when you compare it to the washington scene at the end. Also, in the direct sunlight it is very close too and I can see this being a new favorite of mine for sure.

I do actually see a bit of a brown hue in the ribbon. It's definitely not jet black like my other light grey fedora. And since the Clipper hat had such a stark contrast in bow-felt ratio I might at some point consider putting a slightly wider jet black ribbon on but we'll see. It looks beautiful as is and I kind of hate to mess with it at all.

Let me know what you think! I'm one happy customer. Also it took about 7 days I think to arrive all the way from Australia to California so that's pretty good too.

I have a full album you should be able to see, but here are the best highlights: IMAGE HEAVY

Looks great!


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