I ran upon these pics on TFL, and was pleased to see a gray HJ that looks like the one that we have argued over-for years. It is a long hair model, but a stock HJ color. First, check out the bow. Unlike post Raider HJs, this one has the flying V going on, with no tacking of the center part of the bow with the 4 stitches, as seen in the TOD, and LC fedora, as well as what we bought from HJ years later. I found this very interesting.
Here's a couple more pics of the gray/gray HJ.
I find it interesting that this Hj is gray, with a brown ribbon. And, yes, this hat is truly gray as witnessed to by the guy who posted the pics on TFL. If you want to see the other pics, just go to TFL and check out the HJ post. Fedora
I've always said that the hat seemed to change colors but the ribbon always seemed brown to me. This just bolsters my theory.
I just saw this thread over at TFL and I was very surprised and happy to see it. I think it adds a little credence to the whole affair, although it doesn't close the books.
i don't know still.....looks brown, like in the seaplane i see three lights.....
thats a gorgeous hat for sure. i can't picture long fur hats worn back in the day though. were these as common as the regular felt hats? when i see hats like that, i think of the 70's, platform heals, disco, and real long caddy's.
If you gave that puppy a shave, I'd say we have a winner.
It would look just like the GRAY hat that Ford word on the Seaplane, right down to the ribbon color. It's definitely an odd shade of gray...sometimes it has that brownish hue to it that has led oh so many gearhead astray. This one seems to have that weird gray/brown effect even more so, probably because of the longer hairs. Nice find!
Looks more gray/grey in this one. The ribbon is still brown. I am back in the gray camp. Too coincidental that Swales said he sold one, and now we see an HJ color that is close to what we see on the film. Not another brand, but an HJ. You other guys can spit into the wind. As in, "you don't tug on superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't mess around with the old lone ranger............. I have never seen a gray hat from another brand that put on a brown ribbon!! Too many coincidences going on here. At some point you have to give those some credence, IMHO.
Last edited by Fedora on Sat Nov 11, 2006 12:55 pm, edited 2 times in total.
Wow, what a lovely vintage hat! Too find a long hair fedora from the golden era in such a great condition is nearly impossible. Just right for the winter!
Check out the thread at the FL and look at the rest of the pics. Some are brown and some are grey, but all are of the same hat. I think this may be the lone gun we've been waiting for, other than the actual screen used hat showing up somewhere.
Michaelson, I think you can stop your search for that HJ catalog.
After giving this some more thought, and looking again at the pics, I am firmly in the gray camp, once again. I wavered for a little while, but I am believing my eyes once again. The gray HJ shown here with the brown ribbon is the cincher for me. I am also intrigued by the likeness of the bow on this hat. Flying V, no tack points on the middle bow. Just like the Raiders fedoras. When they started tacking the bow, the hats also changed. I sorta thought for awhile that the costumer did the ribbon change, as the bow on the Raiders fedora was not like what followed. Now I know that the Raiders bow was how HJ USED to make them. I just got an email from a guy who is looking into this HJ deal, and he mentioned major changes occurred in the early 80's with HJ. I think the post Raiders hats were victims of this major change. Fedora
I try not to get involved in this issue anymore, but Steve, with these photos, it's kind of skewed.
Sure the hat is called "vintage grey" or grey of some sort, but the color comes across to our eyes as obviously brown, even in the close up shot. Even when taken into certain light to bring out the grey color, it only looks as grey as a brown one brought into just the right light to make it look grey. So what do we take as really the color,,the name given to the hat 'color' or the color we see with our own eyes?
It's basically like saying BOTH camps are right, the grey side 'cause the hat is called grey and the brown side 'cause the hat is brown(looking).
As in, "you don't tug on superman's cape, you don't spit into the wind, you don't mess around with the old lone ranger............. 
