Club Obi Wan

ordered one and am waiting. Hopefully it will arive by the end of the month.

ZOWIE! GOT IT!!

All I can say is it was well worth the wait, and you other guys have a real treasure to look forward to-- this is the ONLY hat I've ever purchased that I was 1000% happy with as soon as I removed it from the box.

Steve, your reputation is well deserved-- thanks so much-- and thank you, Indy, for making this available-- the quest for the perfect HJ is finally over!

If you were on the fence, buy this hat now!

Jack


;0

Sorry I can't provide pictures yet-- I'm sure someone else will before long.

Jack,
Just curious, when did you order your Magnoli HJ? I am hoping my is in the pipe and will be shipping soon.
Thanks,

Cheers,
OWJ88

OWJ88 wrote:Jack,
Just curious, when did you order your Magnoli HJ? I am hoping my is in the pipe and will be shipping soon.
Thanks,

Cheers,
OWJ88

May16-- that date was imprinted on my brain. Hope you get yours soon, and i highly doubt you'll regret your purchase!

Jack

Thanks for the info Jack. I will post pics whenver mine arrives.

Cheers,
OWJ88

OOooooo!!!! May 16th! I ordered May 17th!!! Yippie! Come on home baby!

OK. I'm done now.

So, we're a little closer to Halloween, and there's a new review or two over at Indy's site...anybody have anymore pics of this lid to tease us with?

Johnny

I'm not sure at this point. I've been waiting much like Ralphy (for his Little Orphan Annie Decoder pin) in A Christmas Story for a while now. Not that I'm complaning. Steve is slammed and the Indy HJ is just another hat on top of that huge workload. Anyway, I've been trying (and preaching to others) Bink's philosophy of "Just pull up a chair here and enjoy a glass of iced tea on this porch. Enjoy the company of other gearheads waiting for their AB's and MC/AB/HJ's." But I find that of late my chair is increasingly empty as I wait to accost mail carriers, and hound poor FedEx people. I think the UPS guy is afraid of me. I feel sort of thin, like butter spread over too much bread. I need a holiday. A very long holiday, and I need my hat, my love, my pressious...

Smeagol

Um...sorry,

Johnny

and remember johnny "don't forget to drink your ovaltine"

Johnny

.....that's priceless

Johnny Fedora wrote:So, we're a little closer to Halloween, and there's a new review or two over at Indy's site...anybody have anymore pics of this lid to tease us with?

Johnny

I hope to get some pictures of it on my noggin this weekend to add to my show-off thread. Will that help?

I have to say, the more I look at it, the more SA the block looks to me.

By the way, Johnny - you might want to contact Magnoli or Steve. You posted that you ordered in April. If that's right, you should have it by now. I ordered in May, and so did Easybox.

Yeah, I sent Steve a note the other day and Tony...it's cool though. Good things come to those who wait and all that. But pics of your lid would be cool to see.

Johnny

Oh my god, oh my god! I'm so excited, so excited. Indy just sent me a note saying it's on its way! Gotta clean the house, press my shirt, get a haircut! AHGAHGAH!
Yeah, yeah, I know...
;0

It's coming! It's coming...oooo feel light headed...........


Johnny

Merry Christmas, Ralphie!

Jack

make sure to post some pics when she comes in.....i double dog dare yah!

I just got home from work to find that. ^ Words escape me right now but here's part of what I told Stave and Indy...from somewhere within me, a ten year old boy thanks you. I’ve waited twenty six years from that first showing of Raiders until half an hour ago for this hat and I need you to know that (other than my wedding ring) this is the most precious thing I’ve ever owned, and I thank you both from the bottom of my heart.

Steve, you nailed it! It’s exactly what I wanted, and you were right, I do see the difference of having it fitted to my face. You’ve got a customer and a friend for life, and I promise not to be such a pain next time. I’ve got one heck of a hat to wear while I wait!

Tony, you’ve got a life long customer as well. Thanks so much!

A full review with more pics is coming.

Thanks again everybody for my first piece of real gear!

Johnny

lucky guy!

someday, one of those shall be mine!

I know exactly how you feel-- the thrill of taking one of these out of the box and having it be exactly the hat you've dreamed of owning for decades is indescribable. Kong-size Congratulations!

Jack

Aeris_Canon wrote:Glad it finally came in, Johnny. Now...does anyone actually wear these on their head or do we get to see the hat on dressers and hat stands?

I was actually planning on building a life-sized Indy doll with authentic gear, one bit at a time and raffling it off at the next Indy Summit!

If the hat that comes with Sideshow's bust doesn't look good enough, hopefully it will be removeable so people can display their "museum quality" Magnoli HJ-s on it instead.

Jack

Fine lookin' specimen you've got there, Johnny! Congratulations on the completion of a quest that's been going longer than I've been alive!!!

My Magnoli HJ with a little desert dust applied


It looks tapered in this pic but it really isn't! Must be an effect of the camera lense and the angle...

AC - Is that the hat you have too? The one you're wearing in the Todd's Standard Jacket thread?

Funny, they don't seem to fall apart as much as their reputation, do they?

Just don't try to reblock one in need of a reblock. You might very well end up with the brim in one hand, and the crown in the other. I know, as my wallet will tell you. You really learn fast when it cost you the price of an HJ if you know what I mean. On the sidelines, you can say what you want. But when it costs you money, the point is driven home, and driven home painfully I might add. And it tends to give you strong opinons. When it happens twice, and the second time you were really trying NOT to pull the brim off..... I cannot use a size 7 1/4 HJ to make a size 7 1/4 IMHJ. But, I can use a size 7 5/8 to make a 7 1/4! The felt will shrink down that much with ONE ironing. ONE. I recently used a size 7 5/8 to make a size 7!!!!!! That ain't supposed to be an easy thing to do, but I did it effortlessly, and all it took was ONE pass of the iron after I tied the hat off on the block. Honestly, you really don't know the whole story of any felt until you work it. I think Marc swore off of working HJs when he saw all of this happen. It is scary thing, for a hatter.

With that said, I think this felt is as close as you can get to the Raiders felt if you get it with no stiffener. With stiffener, it is nothing special.

I would love to have some oversized bodies of this felt to make hats from, from scratch. I think if you started with a body made to build a size 8 hat, and shrunk it on the block to my size, a 7 1/4, it would make a hat that I would love to own, just because of the nature and characterics of this particular felt HJ is using currently. But from what it looks like to me, they are using bodies that are not large enough to make hats from, and they overstretch them to get the sizes. If you take a brand new HJ and put it in the stream pot, it shocks within a few seconds, and loses an inch of crown height in the blink of an eye. I ruined one of Indy's HJs right off the bat when I started doing his hats. I found out real quick that I could not work this felt like I work the rabbit felt that I used to sell. To work the HJ felt requires working it off the regular system. That is, you can't treat their felt like the felt that most hatters use to make their hats from. And this is a red flag to any hatter.

The current factory HJs do not even use ferrules on their reeds anymore. Their reeds are not really usable reeds either. You can't flange a sweat with their reeds due to them being too flexible, more like a 17 pound test Stren fishing line. For sweatbands, they use split cowhide instead of the proper roan. Their liners are the cheapest that money can buy, unlike the older HJs. My trouble is, I have examples of what HJ use to make, and it makes you sick to the stomach to compare them then, to now.

I can make the HJ felt a little bit more shrink resistant, but I don't know exactly how much better they will fare. I am hoping to see some of the ones I made after a few months of wear so I can see how well they hold up. I know they have to fare better than stock HJs, because I am letting them do some of their shrinkage while still on the block, and that shrinkage is more or less taken away from the future shrinkage.

But again, if you want the most accurate Raiders felt in looks, the Todd and Indy Magnoli HJ felt will give that to you. And that is what I love about this felt. I just wish they would get this same felt, and have the feltmaker run into through the felting machine a few more times to get the body to do more of its shrinking and felting before they make hats from them. Fedora

Fedora - Sorry if this is a silly question, but if you like this felt so much, why can't you approach the feltmaker yourself to get a batch the way you want it?

Fedora - Sorry if this is a silly question, but if you like this felt so much, why can't you approach the feltmaker yourself to get a batch the way you want it?

I no longer offer rabbit is the main reason. And I am interested in only making hats that use the best fur for a hat. If I could get a primo hare/rabbit blend, I would reconsider, just due to the accuracy that rabbit felt lends to the Raiders fedora.
My trouble is, I just don't have the time to spend looking, or working with a feltmaker to give me something acceptable, that would meet my requirements. But, the field is wide open for a hatter who has the time to do that. But most small custom hatters tend to gravitate towards the better felt as their reputation is based upon their hats, since they actually make them.

To me the ideal rabbit would be a wild hare fur hat as it tends to be better fur than rabbit. The feltmakers like Akubra who only sell rabbit and hare hats tend to make the best felt in that line. In other factories that offer rabbit, blends and pure fur felts, the rabbit they make is generally their cheapest priced body,and is sold on the cheap, and therefore they don't necessarily try to make the best rabbit bodies, since it is their cheap line. And therein lies the problem. In the days of yesteryear, those Borsalino mercury felted rabbit bodies were wonderful. If you ever owned one, you will know what I mean. Back in those days, they tended to make excellent felt, regardless of the fur used. Nowadays, with the exception of Akubra, the rabbit line has become the lowest priced body that the factory sells. And low price equal low quality. It is more about the production techniques than it is the fur IMHO. Steve

Aeris_Canon wrote:Naah, doesn't look tapered, just pointy on top from that angle. They all do that.

Still looking good.
How you likin' it? Wearing it out much? Funny, they don't seem to fall apart as much as their reputation, do they?

I've only worn it out and about on a few hikes in the woods! Not brave enough to wear it in Belfast

Here's my HJ being used in the real world...

Also, check out my "Show Off" thread for a few more.

I got to see that HJ in person last weekend and was impressed with it. I like how floppy and thin the felt is. Feels like a nice rabbit to me.

Be Vewy vewy quiet...we're wearing wabbits......
-Elmer fudd on getting his new Fedora

Congrats Chewbacca-
I'm jealous, mine is supposed to be shipping soon. The look is awesome and looks like it is money and time well spent.

Cheers,
OWJ88

All of Indy's Hjs are shipped, except the last one that is a 59.5 cm. I had to remake it, but will leave here in the next day or so. So, he is caught up or will be tomorrow. Fedora

The new eta is based on ordering now. Steve is pretty much caught up with my hats, so everyone who has ordered one should have it before Halloween

Bear in mind that the Canadian orders are slow in gettng there. The US tells me it is the Canadian customs and their postal service that is the culprit. I can ship a hat faster to Germany than I can ship to Canada. And that I don't understand! Fedora

so i guess i'm just waiting on the notification that the next batch of hj's are at your door then steve........indy, my finger is on the 'checkout' button

So if I were to order one now, when should I expect to get one??

At the moment I believe we are totally sold out. The new shipment shouldn't be more than a month or so away. Then Steve probably needs a few weeks to get to it... so figure about two to three months.

Kind regards,
Indy

Fedora wrote:

The new eta is based on ordering now. Steve is pretty much caught up with my hats, so everyone who has ordered one should have it before Halloween

Bear in mind that the Canadian orders are slow in gettng there. The US tells me it is the Canadian customs and their postal service that is the culprit. I can ship a hat faster to Germany than I can ship to Canada. And that I don't understand! Fedora

Don't even get me started on that. I ordered an Akubra from hats direct on the 19th with their 2 day shipping option. Got here on the 31st, because customs had to play with it and Canada Post failed to realize that it was an express package and took their sweet time. I say ship UPS or FedEx, with a low value. Would get through better I'd think. Stupid Canada Post. More like Canada unbelievably slow and terrible Post...

Sorry for getting OT there.

KN.....hatsdirect warned me not to do the express shipping option and everything went pretty smooth. i was wondering why they didn't steer you away from this....hmmm....

anyways, i've learned that whenever your beloved indygear leaves the faithful vendor, the courier always screws at least one thing up....couriers! i hate these guys!

I got my Magnoli HJ today! I was very relieved that when I took it out of the box it was everything I had hoped. Plus, it fit perfectly. Magnoli and Steve, thanks for all your work. Anyone out there considering a purchase, I know Magnoli is currently sold out, but I recommend getting on his list. The hat's are beautiful. Worth every penny. It is the best of all worlds. An HJ that has been rebuilt and blocked by the best.
Photos will be coming soon...

Cheers,
OWJ88

Indiana G wrote:KN.....hatsdirect warned me not to do the express shipping option and everything went pretty smooth. i was wondering why they didn't steer you away from this....hmmm....

anyways, i've learned that whenever your beloved indygear leaves the faithful vendor, the courier always screws at least one thing up....couriers! i hate these guys!

Well they did, but they said it was because of customs charging too much. Never in any conversation did they mention that it might tie it up more. I just needed it there asap. They never said they were having problems with delivery times on that particular service.

Oh well, have to get a Manholi HJ soon!!