I've had my Akubra Fed IV for a year now and love it. Its built well and has suited my needs each and every day, rain or shine. However, in pictures, it just looks to be too "big" overall for my head. Whether this is my head being narrow or the hat being overbuilt (as some have said about Akubra), I don't know.
Either way, do you think this can be chalked up to my own personal image or would my head be better suited to a TOD or LC style hat?
If a new hat might alleviate the problem, what are your recommendations? I've heard Northwest and S&J are great options for a good price.
Of course, I'd love an S&J or a Delk or (insert another great maker), but I'd also keep my Akubra if it looks okay. I think seeing something every day with no comparison is what makes it hard. My guess is that's a big reason why collectors like us buy more than one of the same thing. Each has its subtle differences.
I think the Raiders bash looks really tall on everyone regardless of the maker. I still have a couple of them but almost never wear them. Wear the other ones on a regular basis. The Raiders bash is supposed to look that way.
I have even taken a Penman Raiders and converted it to a regular front pinch with a teardrop bash.
If you're looking for a quality custom hat at a low price, talk to Brian at Screencapped. Here's a link to a thread on some of his work with pictures (including the hat he made for me): viewtopic.php?f=24&t=67919&hilit=Screencapped
I had exactly the same experience when I received my Adventurebilt CS back in the day. The hat was incredible quality, 100% screen accurate, but the broad crown and wide brim looked huge on my head. The hat appeared 2 sizes too big, and I just couldn't wear it. Eventually I went with AdVintage, which fits and looks absolutely perfect on me. I have a Raiders and LC fedora from Thomas Osygus, and let me tell you - that guy knows how to build a great hat!
I have a rabbit AB that’s pretty tall for my liking. I put a really deep center dent in there so that it barely touches the top of my head when I have the sweat sitting where I normally wear my hats. This may be obvious to you already, but i thought I’d mention it. The Akubras are indeed a very full crown, especially when new. My Akubras have shrunk enough that they’re perfect now, and with hardly any tapering.
I’m no hat expert by any means, but I’m not afraid to manipulate a hat until I like the way it fits!
I've had 3 Fed IVs, and on 2 of them, the brims were a little bit short of advertised width. Presumably, Akubra cuts them down to size before shipping to Hats Direct -- they should be a little more careful. On a western hat, a 1/8" variation doesn't matter much. But on an Indy fedora, I think that small amount can really change the way the hat looks on a head.
I think yours looks fine, but you could try lowering the crown on yours a little bit and see if you like that look better.
I can see what you mean. It doesn't look bad on you, but the crown seems a bit overpowering, visually. I think part of the problem is that the Fed IV has a narrower brim than the Fed III, so it gives the illusion of a taller, fatter crown... which is harder for everybody to pull off. My recommendation would be to get a TOD or LC with a slight taper (nothing too dramatic) as your Indy hat. Then, think about rebashing the Fed with lower crown.
I have a Fed IV and the first thing my wife said was that it looked too tall. I also noticed that in the mirror it looked just a touch too wide at the hat band. I'd initially gone for a Raiders bash, but it wasn't quite right.
I adjusted the bash using steam from the kettle. I moved the centre crease about an inch to the right of centre, lowered the crown dent so it would practically touch my head and encouraged the sides in by pushing them inward at the hat band. I also used the foam spacers on the sides at first, but removed them and put them front and back. This helped to narrow the hat. I'm much happier with the look of it now and it still fits snugly. I hope this helps. Your hat doesn't look too bad, so don't fret too much. All the best.
I agree with the comments that the crown does look very large on you. The brim dimensions look OK, and it sits on your head correctly so the fit is right. The crown looks so large it looks like you could pull the entire head down to your chin.
I have a non-Indy hat from Northwest and it's great.
If you think it looks big on you it is. If you think it looks great on you it does. There is an art to wearing a fedora. Confidence is key and to heck with what anyone else thinks. Wear it with that attitude and you will look good wearing it.
Think we all go through the same journey with a hat, finding which proportions that fits the best. I personally cant got with a wide brim, but a taller crown works fine. I think your, very amazing, Akubra has the right shape to it and it looks just very cool. As long as it fits your head and you feel that it's not wobbling around then its great. My hat journey is probably never ending, always want to find something that looks even better.
I’ve run into that before too. It’s not too tall, but too bulky above the ribbon. I have that problem with Penman hats, beautiful but the look is off on me. I found the look I like with S&J hats.
