Promotional Fedora

[strikeomen]

I am considering buying the Indiana Jones promotional fedora for my first hat.
http://www.hatsandcaps.co.uk/Indiana-Jo ... a-P130472/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
My reasons being: Its cheap, crushable and water resistant and I would only be wearing it on holiday possibly or in my home so I dont feel the need to get a fur felt hat. I was wondering if anyone has this hat or any experience with it. Also what style its in, I am assuming cs as its released when the 4th film was. Any other good hats in the UK for sale would aslo be appreciated.

[binkmeisterRick]

First of all, it sounds like you know what you want to spend on your hat, as well as how much you plan to actually wear it. While plenty of folks around here are bound to feed you any number of suggestions and opinions regarding your hat purchase, just remember that the choice is YOURS to make, and yours alone. If you are happy with your hat, that is all that matters. Just a caveat, as hat and jacket discussions can get a bit heated from time to time.

Now, that said, while the hat you link to may be perfect for your needs, the one thing to keep in mind is that these are far from screen accurate. Often enough, the promotional and officially licensed hats have a tear drop bash to them, as opposed to the center dent bash found on the film hats. The brim and general shape of these hats also vary from model to model. The average person on the streets will likely see it as an Indy hat, but for nit-picky gearheads like most of us around here, they'll tear it to shreds just telling you what's wrong with it! I would rattle these questions around in your head:

1. What is YOUR budget for a hat? Never mind that some will tell you to spend more, but what are YOU willing to pay?

2. Given your budget, how important is "screen accuracy" to you, meaning how true to the movie hats does it need to be? (This tends to affect the price of most hats.)

3. You've already stated your plan to wear this hat very little, putting high end fur felt out of the running for you. If the price was within your budget, would you consider a fur felt, like rabbit? Wool and treated hats may be water resistant, but this doesn't make them invincible from the elements, either. Wool will shrink up on you, if not careful, whereas fur felts put up with the elements more.

Anyhow, just a few things to ponder. Oh, and welcome aboard!

[AnubisScales]

For a little more, may I be the first to suggest a Fed IV or a Fed IV Deluxe from Akubra? Excellent quality hat, I love mine to death, and they are very hardy. I've had little to no shrinkage, and I've been caught in some torrential downpours in it. This hat would give you the style you're looking for, at a similar price point, without sacrificing quality or the true Indy style.

That's my two cents worth. But I'm completely in concurrence with Bink on this one. Get what YOU want and what YOU can afford.

Here's a link for Hats Direct, too, so you can price the Feds.
http://www.hatsdirect.com/cgi-bin/produ ... Federation" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[strikeomen]

First off thanks for the feedback guys gave me alot to think about. I looked into getting a Fed IV but I dont think I could spend £94 on something I would only use now and again. Its a bit annoying that the promotional hat wont be too screen accurate but I spose im not a full gearhead yet so it wont matter too much. I'll have a think on it and perhaps save some money up to get the Fed. In answer to Bink's 3rd question I would consider a fur felt if it ment my hat would withstand more and only adds a small amount to the price. I am assuming that the Fed IV is some kind of fur felt, but is there a hat which costs less than the Fed but still has quite high screen accuracy. Otherwise I may just have to dig deep and take the rage for buying the promotional hat.

[Ian]

Hello sir!!

May I recomend the Christy's Adventurer as a middle ground? Not very robust if you ask me, but more SA than the Dorfy not as expensive as the Fed.....

http://www.hornetshats.com/f_hatview.ph ... ur%20Felts

Ian

[strikeomen]

Ian you are AWESOME the Adventurer looks perfect. However how is it not robust, does it shrink easily, loose its shape. More info would be greatly apprectiated.

[Ian]

I've got an adventurer and it wasn't long before it tapered, due to getting damp and heat from my head.......but even after the taper, it still looked far more Indy than a Dorfy.....That said, they may not be any more delicate than a Dorfy...

In case you don't know, taper isn't generally liked very much when it comes to Indy lids...

There's plenny about the adventurer around here, just use the search function and knock yourself out, there's also a couple of vids on youtube...

Ian

[binkmeisterRick]

strikeomen, the Akubra hats are made out of rabbit/hare fur. In a nutshell, felt type and durability rate as follows, from the lowest to the best: wool -> rabbit -> beaver. When you get fur felts are a big step up from wool.

Todd's Costumes' Downtowner fedora is an option which is better than the Dorfman, more accurate, and is made from rabbit felt:
http://www.toddscostumes.com/product/35 ... er-Fedora/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

It tends to be a stiff hat, but the ones I've seen in person are a far better choice than the Dorfmans. With the current exchange rate, you're looking a about 50 GBP plus shipping.

There is a LOT of information in these threads, so you might want to pull up a chair and spend a little time with the search feature, combing through the archives. There are plenty of opinions for each hat! Given your criteria, I'd do some searches for the following hats:

Christys Adventurer
Downtowner
Akubra Federation (This is the FedIV)

Good luck!

[fifthchamber]

Just to underscore what was said by those in the know above, I'd avoid the Dorfman, even as a rare-use Indy hat...It'll come back to bite you when you see the thing being worn I suspect...As Ian said, the Christy's is dirt cheap (57 quid? Really? Wow....I wish I was back home now), and since you're in the UK, shipping wouldn't kill either? (Or you could find a shop that sells it perhaps?)... The Fed IV is a lovely hat, but it's a little more than that, and I'd guess you wouldn't want to put that much up since you'll not use it so much...I'd go with the Christy's... Good design for the price, and for what you want to use it for, a small amount of taper won't hurt...It's far and away a better choice than the licensed selection, and since it's not wool you'll have a better quality hat for a low price...No bad deal anyway you shake it...
I'd also add that the steps to "become a gearhead" are rather slippery, and once you get one hat, if it suits, you'll find a wish to get more..And better quality, better looking, and depending on how much you're bothered, better "accuracy" to the Indy films...So, given that's the case, I'd suggest starting with something well made and relatively cheap...The Christy is a great first hat..
(I'm not really a fan of the Downtowner's shape...But it's cheap and a decent hat...So that's up too..Although I'd always choose a hat with "open crown" since you can shape it yourself...Unless you're getting one made for you, that's a good way to start....)
Good luck!

[binkmeisterRick]

The biggest problem you'll find is that there are a lot more choices to be had these days than there were even a handful of years ago!

[fifthchamber]

No bad thing....But it does make choosing rather most time-consuming...

I'd like to be rich enough to not worry..And just buy them all...But I somehow think that's not my destiny...LOL...Two Fed's and an Adventurebilt in and I'm just falling deeper into the rabbit hole...



Cool place to be though..

[RaidersBash]

I am considering buying the Indiana Jones promotional fedora for my first hat.
http://www.hatsandcaps.co.uk/Indiana-Jo ... a-P130472/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;
My reasons being: Its cheap, crushable and water resistant and I would only be wearing it on holiday possibly or in my home so I dont feel the need to get a fur felt hat. I was wondering if anyone has this hat or any experience with it. Also what style its in, I am assuming cs as its released when the 4th film was. Any other good hats in the UK for sale would aslo be appreciated.

One of these was my first Indy hat, and I really liked it. It was comfy, I was pleased enough with the shape and it had a definite INDY VIBE, could be thrown around the jeep and CRUSHED ( ), slapped against my leg to dust it off, and it was inexpensive.

Sometimes I actually miss it just because it was sooooo comfy to wear.

The major down side for me was the generic sizing never really fit right. It was a little big, and even with some foam in the brim, still looked big.

I think I got mine for something like $30 on Ebay.

[Forrest For the Trees]

With your budget, and given that you're in England, the Christy's Adventurer is the way to go. It may not be the absolute best out there, but it is light years beyond the Dorfman.

[binkmeisterRick]

Good point on the shipping!