Club Obi Wan

That darn Penman and his excellent hats...

Seroiously, the reblock looks like a success. Congrats!

Back from the dead!

How long does he take to make/ship a hat? I need a Raiders Clipper before a wedding in July.

baddates1 wrote:Back from the dead!

How long does he take to make/ship a hat? I need a Raiders Clipper before a wedding in July.

If you're asking about John, I ordered the natural beaver Penman above in October 2016 and received it in May 2017. I saw the blocked but unfinished body in his shop on May 8.

The only way I see you having a Clipper fedora by July is to order an Akubra.

Ridgerunner58 wrote: The only way I see you having a Clipper fedora by July is to order an Akubra.

Also the new Herbert Johnsons! I ordered one on Monday or Tuesday of this week and they said it's already out the door for delivery. I have no idea if their wait times will stay this way, but at the present moment they're shockingly fast. -M

Same here, I placed my order on October 10th 2016 and received it in May 2017 (maybe end of April, since I was out on vacations)

Anyway, you can always call John and ask him directly.

Good luck!

Ridgerunner58 wrote:

baddates1 wrote:Back from the dead!

How long does he take to make/ship a hat? I need a Raiders Clipper before a wedding in July.

If you're asking about John, I ordered the natural beaver Penman above in October 2016 and received it in May 2017. I saw the blocked but unfinished body in his shop on May 8.

The only way I see you having a Clipper fedora by July is to order an Akubra.

Mulceber wrote:

Ridgerunner58 wrote: The only way I see you having a Clipper fedora by July is to order an Akubra.

Also the new Herbert Johnsons! I ordered one on Monday or Tuesday of this week and they said it's already out the door for delivery. I have no idea if their wait times will stay this way, but at the present moment they're shockingly fast. -M

That's is definitely super fast!!

I had a day off while working in Portland a couple weeks back, so I hooked up with John at his shop. Spent a couple hours talking hats, getting measured up and placing my order. Had a great time, now I just have to turn off and forget about the order until December!

Iam also considering a Penman Indy hat! still undecided, other than knowing I want grey beaver felt.

Hi guys just got these pics from Mr. Penman my Everyman raiders without the turn is on its way

Just got my Penman Portuguese Beaver Felt Hat, so smooth and very floppy too, i love it




Are the pics too big? Let me know so i can edit it

love the color.

Jeremiah wrote:love the color.

It looks and feels like a true Raiders era Herbert Johnson hat

My little review of the everyman raiders https://youtu.be/mr95OXEiHvs" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Nice fedora!

I picked up a brand new Everyman Indy Raiders on EBay a few weeks ago. Compares well to my Advintage Harrison and Adventurebilt Henry.

Glenville86 wrote:Nice fedora!

I picked up a brand new Everyman Indy Raiders on EBay a few weeks ago. Compares well to my Advintage Harrison and Adventurebilt Henry.

Any perceivable differences among the three?

Forrest For the Trees wrote:

Glenville86 wrote:Nice fedora!

I picked up a brand new Everyman Indy Raiders on EBay a few weeks ago. Compares well to my Advintage Harrison and Adventurebilt Henry.

Any perceivable differences among the three?

Honestly - not much. I always had suspicions the Harrison and Henry (both being European factory hats) came from the same place with price being the main difference. The Everyman like the others is a factory blend fedora. It just comes down to the prices and the bashes the sellers use. They are all 3 blended beaver/rabbit, factory hats and in my case Indy style ones. Other than the bashes, they all look pretty much the same to me in materials and finish.

That's what I suspected. Probably all the same hat.

Forrest For the Trees wrote:That's what I suspected. Probably all the same hat.

The sweats are tailored to the buyer (markings/logo). One of my Harrison models actually has Fernandez Roche on the sweat along with the AdVintage logo/name. Sold in Europe and a few other countries. Factory hat but company is in Seville, Spain. Not sure if they were ordered from Spain or ordered from a distributor in Germany. Still a European factory hat.

http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.a ... jones.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Glenville86 wrote:

Forrest For the Trees wrote:That's what I suspected. Probably all the same hat.

The sweats are tailored to the buyer (markings/logo). One of my Harrison models actually has Fernandez Roche on the sweat along with the AdVintage logo/name. Sold in Europe and a few other countries. Factory hat but company is in Seville, Spain. Not sure if they were ordered from Spain or ordered from a distributor in Germany. Still a European factory hat.

http://www.microsofttranslator.com/bv.a ... jones.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Yup, that looks right. Based on my conversations with John and looking at the product people were getting when they ordered the AB Henry, that's the same hat company I was able to conclude was producing these hats.

Interesting information. Another interesting thing to note is that on adVintage's website, the Harrison in 100% beaver is only 10 euros more than the 80/20 blend.

Check that, it's 30 euros more than the 80/20 if the head size is more than 56 cm.

Just got this hat. Can't believe how fad d it is already. Wanted to have it reblocked to CS but need to know first if it's possible to bring back the Sable brown color first.

https://imgur.com/gallery/iujHW" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I think the color looks great. The one on right is too dark IMO.

Anyway, to answer your question, I think I remember reading Steve Delk once say that the faded color can be taken away by some sanding during a reblock.

Beautiful!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

What is the open crown height of the everyman hats?

5" 1/4 or 5" 1/2

So I'm pretty close to getting an Everyman. I haven't bought a fedora in few years, so I'm pretty excited, but IndyRiv brought up an issue with his hat fading in color. Does that seem to be an issue with the Everyman's? Mine would be spending a lot of time outside. I have an Akubra slouch and it's held up like a champ over the last year, with lots of time in the sun.

The hats from Adventurebilt and Penman Hats were made in a way to fade naturally over time. This is not a freak phenomenon; rather, it is ny design. This was done so that an AB or a Penman could fade into the correct color, rather than fading out of it. The kind of fading that IndyRiv has comes from a lot of use under the sun, same as my hat.

shade88 wrote:The hats from Adventurebilt and Penman Hats were made in a way to fade naturally over time. This is not a freak phenomenon; rather, it is ny design. This was done so that an AB or a Penman could fade into the correct color, rather than fading out of it. The kind of fading that IndyRiv has comes from a lot of use under the sun, same as my hat.

Very good info, thanks! My last two indy fedoras were a Todd's Downtowner (got wet and shrunk, but never faded) and a Todd's Uptowner (which faded to an ugly pale green). Couple that with some fading of hats when I was a golfing kid, and I've always had this fear that a hat will only be the colour I buy it in for a couple months. Glad to hear that AB and Penman are meant to do that!

Sorry, I've not been on this thread in awhile. I'm just reading previous posts, I'm perplexed. Why are we discussing HJ and Advintage hats on a " Penman post 'em up " thread ?? Please don't come back at me with production time, most of these hatters are individuals and, if successful, are weighed down with orders. Plus, weigh in the fact that John makes the hat from the felt, no pre made hat bodies, everything is done by hand, I have three hats made by him. Just stick to the subject, no underhanded potshots, go to the Advintage thread or HJ thread if you need to pound your chest or promote... jeez.

micsteam wrote:Why are we discussing HJ and Advintage hats on a " Penman post 'em up " thread ??

I believe they were discussing whether the Penman Everyman was using the same felt bodies as the Advintage Harrison, and Adventurebilt Henry, which could be it's own thread (albeit a short one), but it seems like a fine question to bring up in this thread, especially as people consider which one of the factory made hats to purchase.

micsteam wrote:Plus, weigh in the fact that John makes the hat from the felt, no pre made hat bodies

This is interesting information. When I toured his hat shop 5 years ago, I was under the impression that John (along with every hatter) started each hat with a felt "blank" (which is circular shaped felt body, with a raised cone in the center). We are probably thinking of the same thing though, but using different terms. What do I know, I'm not a hatter!

Adventure Dog wrote:

micsteam wrote:Plus, weigh in the fact that John makes the hat from the felt, no pre made hat bodies

This is interesting information. When I toured his hat shop 5 years ago, I was under the impression that John (along with every hatter) started each hat with a felt "blank" (which is circular shaped felt body, with a raised cone in the center). We are probably thinking of the same thing though, but using different terms. What do I know, I'm not a hatter!

Yeah, I’m almost certain you’re right. John’s talked to me about ordering raw felt bodies. The only difference in the hatting community is between the folks that order them piecemeal and those that order them in large quantities.

All hats begin life as a raw felt body, which is basically a cone of matted fiber, usually animal fur. The blanks John buys are already formed into a very rough “hat” shape with a center “dome” surrounded by a wide, unfinished “brim.” Agh that point the felt is not smooth or finished.


He then blocks, flanges, pounces and finishes the hat by sewing on all the parts.

No one that I’m aware of makes a had from a flat sheet of felt. Since the felt for hats is matted in a cone to begin with, (which is the shape the hat tries to taper back to as it ages- until the felt finally “dies”) I’m not sure it would even be possible.

Any guys have pics wearing there Everyman Indy Fedora?

Do a 'search' for 'Everyman' in the Fedora section, and quite a few come up:

search.php?keywords=Everyman&terms=all& ... mit=Search" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Regard! Michaelson

Thanks pal, I was going through this thread and saw a lot of great hats to.

Thanks to car96 for making my Penman dreams a reality.

He sold me his Penman Temple of Doom in rabbit. It's a wonderful hat in great condition.







A few pictures of the inside of the sweatband. Apparently, this is a 4-year-old hat.




These cards came with the box.



Here are a few pictures of the hat on me. I think the back shot really evokes the TOD style.

Looks good on you, glad we could finally get the deal done.

I just sent out the order form for an ABL KOTCS. This will be my first beaver hat; the only others I have are an Everyman and an old Dorfman from my younger years. Is there anything I should know that differentiates Beaver from Rabbit hats?

Not really, other than the cost might make you more hesitant to wear it. But don't be, wear the heck out of it.

How resistant to wear, tear, and rain would you say they are?

A Penman beaver? They're about as durable as a hat can be. Seriously, I've beaten the pulp out of mine and it still has the shape it came in after all these years. You can't get a more water resistant or durable felt than a well made beaver like John uses and treats. It's the best you can buy, so you can't really compare it to anything.

Well, let’s not get TOO enthusiastic there!
The materials are exactly the same as used by other hat makers in the craft, Portuguese or Winchester felt, and all are just as tough and long lasting as the next.
Penman’s craftsmanship is absolutely on point, and THAT’S where the rubber meets the road.
Regards! Michaelson

I'm of the opinion that the FEPSA/Portuguese beaver felt is the superior felt to the Winchester felt bodies. The Winchester ones have a lot of stiffener in them, there's actually a shellac 'core' to the body which can be exposed if over-pounced. FEPSA also seems to be more consistent with dye quality, while not relevant to Indy hats per se, Winchester has had issues being able to produce consistent runs of colors like Black cherry and blue smoke.

Wish I could argue with you on that, as I literally live 10 miles away from the Winchester factory......but I can’t. When they get it right, they’re great, but they’re not consistent.

I’m also in the FEPSA camp and wear a prototype AB Steve Delk experimented with back in 2006 but never followed through with as he thought that beaver was too thin. I’ve had it rebuilt at least 4 times as far as I can recall and it STILL comes back for more......but I also have 2 beaver AB’s about as old of Winchester beaver that are just as good...... just heavier.

I still say the final word is in how good the hat maker is in working with the same material as everyone else and still come up with a product that’s ahead of their competitors.

John Penman is one of those craftsmen.

Regards! M

Michaelson wrote: I still say the final word is in how good the hat maker is in working with the same material as everyone else and still come up with a product that’s ahead of their competitors.

John Penman is one of those craftsmen.

Regards! M

Wholeheartedly agree on this part, and certainly Mr. Penman would never send out a hat body that wasn't top quality. I'm sure he'd toss a bad body and start over rather than send out a sub par hat.

Workmanship and reputation is everything.

Regards! M

Today I sent the order through for the ABL KOTCS, and in the comments, it said to expect the hat in November, but when I asked him on the 10th of December, he said July. I'm not complaining, but that just got me thinking that he might have been asked to do the Indy 5 hats. My thought process is that Marc and Steve first heard they were in the running to make the hats on April 30th, 2007 and that filming began on June 18th of that year. They were cutting it close on finding a hatter that could produce good and enough hats on time. Kathleen Kennedy said that Indy 5 would begin filming in spring, so anywhere from March to June. I'm assuming that Lucasfilm doesn't want to cut it so close on the hats, so they probably went to Steve or Marc to ask for hats, but since they are retired and have a good relationship with John, they may have steered Lucasfilm in his direction. John would need about double the time that Steve and Marc took to make the hats since John is only one man. That, or I'm just overthinking everything, and he just got many orders during the winter holidays.

Hard to say. Bernie Pollack stock piled several hats and jackets on the 'off chance' a 5th film would be made.

If that's the case, Penman COULD be tasked to reblock/clean up the existing hats rather than having to MAKE any new ones. There were a lot of left overs warehoused, or at least that's what Steve told me back in 2008.

Of course as mentioned, it's all conjecture.

Delays could also be strictly due to the uptick of Covid cases on the west coast too. I'd be betting on that reason myself.

Regards! Michaelson