Club Obi Wan

Confession: I am a history teacher. I am an adjunct history professor. I am also a huge dork. I'm yet another history teacher that got into it when he saw Raiders when he was a kid.

How many of you wear an Indy fedora on a daily basis? I've been considering it, and honestly, my wife and students wouldn't be a bit surprised (and several wouldn't even really notice), but is it just a little too much?

Thanks, all, and wander well!

Hi and welcome.
I wear my beaver fedora daily.
I do have another style of hat I supplement it with but lately I have only been wearing my AB raiders.

I find that even in FL I no longer need to wear sunglasses when wearing it. It's nice and it just has become a part of who I am.

Wear lots of Indy type fedoras almost daily!

Welcome aboard!

Many daily hat wearers here, some for decades.

I've been a daily wearer for about 8 years. Now it's noticed when I don't have a hat.

Pick one out that works for you and wear it. The key is "wear the hat, don't let it wear you". You may feel a little self-conscious about it at first, but before long it'll just be a part of your look.

And try not to get too hung up on screen accuracy issues. The hat may look exactly like from a movie fresh out of the box, but as you wear it, it will morph from being Indy's hat to being your hat.



Regards,

Indiana Jeff

I'm the head of the foreign teachers at a private school in Tokyo, teaching English and wear a fedora most days I can, except in summer, when the temperatures and humidity kill anyone not in a swimming pool or the ocean really...

The school being a private school has meant that suits are standard, there's not much flex in Japan on that issue, but that favours me, since it makes the wearing of a hat, easier to pull off and fit in....I would suggest running with a combo like that for the first few weeks, and seeing what the reaction is (It'll be a good one I suspect)...Then, when you feel more confident, try other combinations...

Nothing beats a decent hat with a well fitted suit, nice tie and a waistcoat with a long overcoat and scarf in Winter either....It's not usual, even here in Tokyo, but standing out like that is also, no bad thing....

I wouldn't start with jeans, a tee shirt, and a nice fedora...That's just me..I think that combo looks wrong, even on people who CAN pull it off.....But that might just be my own personal taste on what I like to dress with....

I am kind of the opposite of fifth chamber. I wear my hats most days with shorts as I live in FL.
Be yourself and don't put too much weight on how others may think you look in your fedora. What matters is so you like how you look.

That said I get what you are saying fifth chamber and certainly the fedoras do look best when worn with the proper matching attire.
I know what you mean about the humidity.
My wife and I lived and worked at an international school on he island of Penang, Malaysia for a few years. I sweat just thinking about wearing my AB there on a regular basis.

That's why you have to have a good straw or two in your stable.


Regards,

Indiana Jeff

I just got my fedora and enjoy wearing it daily (less due to that wonderful Maryland humidity). When it rains, the hat has kept my glasses streak free. Plus it's a wonderful substitute to regular haircuts

As many of the others have expressed, wearing the hat is all about your own style. The fedora blends in very nicely with a suit and tie, but also is practical enough to be worn with shorts and tees. Personally, I haven't found the right combo of my shorts and tees to get the look right, and some of my long sleeved hiking shirts look a little strange with the hat, but I'm figuring out what looks right to my eye.

As Jeff said, let the hat become a part of who you are and what you wear. I wanted my hat to be a Raiders bash, however on my head it tends to turn into the Crusade style but I love it simply because it's mine.

I generally wear a fedora. Just not always a Raiders fedora (although I have a lot of them.)

Sometimes I wear a moss green Penman, sometimes a Casablanca or an Akubra. Today it's going to be 104 so I'll be wearing a Brent Black Panama.

On weekends I generally wear an ABL that's gotten very Cairo looking.

I wear an Indy style fedora everyday unless it is too hot and I switch to a straw. When I hit my fifties a few years ago, I stopped caring about what other people thought and just wore what I wanted. Should have done that years before.

The Indy fedora is really just an older type style of fedora. I have ordered a couple hand made generic brown fedora ones from Italy and they really look the same as the Indy ones. There are only slight differences like the ribbon size. I cannot wear a shorter crown fedora as my head shape makes them sit on top of my head with no space between.

I've had to admit to myself that I look pretty goofy with a wide-brimmed fedora, so no daily wear here. I couldn't resist ordering one of Penman's Everyman hats, though. My favorite hat to wear now is a Scottish tweed flat cap.

As long as you wear the hat, and the hat isn't wearing you, then you're fine!

Love the tweed hats.

You bring up an often used phrase. "The hat wears you". I always wondered about this one.
Does anyone have a pic or example of the hat "wearing" the individual? Is it the size of the hat in comparison to the noggin?

I have a small noggin myself so I doubt a sombrero would compliment me.

I have worn fedoras for well over 40 years....long before Indy ever hit the screen.

Regard! Michaelson

Jeremiah wrote:Is it the size of the hat in comparison to the noggin?

Yep. Just a matter of proportions. My head seems dwarfed by a brim wider than 2 1/4 inches and a crown height of taller than 4 1/2 inches. I think there's probably an ideal size and shape for each person's head and stature. An Indy just ain't mine.

Rats

Maybe take 1/2 inch or so off the sides. The dimensional cut can make a world of difference.

Wearing a fedora in itself is never "too much.". But like any dressing habits, each instance must be judged on it's own. Don't think of it as wearing a hat daily, or wearing a hat to work. Think of it as simply wearing another accessory, on any given day. Would you worry about wearing gloves on a cold day?
Whenever I have a job that allows me a place to put a fedora, I wear one at least a few times a week.

Jeremiah wrote:I am kind of the opposite of fifth chamber. I wear my hats most days with shorts as I live in FL.
Be yourself and don't put too much weight on how others may think you look in your fedora. What matters is so you like how you look.

I'm with you, J - I've not owned a suit for years. I wear my fedoras (both vintage and modern) with jeans or shorts all the time. Mainly straw hats at the moment, since the summer is cranking up in Texas.

It's all down to attitude, just wear what you want!


Cheers!
David!

david_h wrote:

Jeremiah wrote:I am kind of the opposite of fifth chamber. I wear my hats most days with shorts as I live in FL.
Be yourself and don't put too much weight on how others may think you look in your fedora. What matters is so you like how you look.

I'm with you, J - I've not owned a suit for years. I wear my fedoras (both vintage and modern) with jeans or shorts all the time. Mainly straw hats at the moment, since the summer is cranking up in Texas.

Cheers!
David!

I agree.

I used to wear my Dorfman Pacific almost everywhere when I was in High School, loved riding bike with it, wearing a T-shirt, shorts and sneakers. Now that I have my AB raiders and I have to go to work in a suit I use it whenever I have the need to cover myself from the sun, you could say it is for daily wear but actually is more for sun protection, you could consider it that way more than a fashion statement and it's a good excuse to wear it. Right now I have been seriously thinking of getting myself a Brent Black Panama hat, I think it goes with more clothing options and should be better in not getting my head too hot.

I wear it when traveling or to Disneyland. It's too hot out here to wear it every day, or at least for a guy like me.

I'm also a professor, I teach folklore and comparative lit. I was also influenced by Raiders at an early age...I was 11 when it came out. I've been wearing fedoras since 6th grade. About ten years ago, I started spending time in the Four Corners area doing research in Navajo Land. The first two years, I wore a Federation fedora. But, I was seduced by the cowboy hat. When I am out there I wear a Stetson cowboy hat--the Seneca. It is a beater hat. At home I wear either my brown Stetson Dune (Indy-ish) or my Dune in Silverbelly.

But, pretty much everyday I wear a hat.

Hi and I am glad to be a member of this community starting today. I have a Barons Cliffhanger beaver hat and wear that often over the last 8 years. This year I acquired an Adventurebilt Crystal Skull Fedora in Beaver felt and wear it often. I wear a fedora every day. I have a bunch. The ones I wear most are my Indy hats, a Penman Carlo Fedora in Beaver and a few others from JJ hats in NYC. I also just bought a JC Penney Marathon Open Road Fedora from the early 1950's on E Bay. Bottom line, I wear a Fedora every day and when it is hot here on Long Island NY, I wear my Peter Bros Straw Raiders Fedora or another Panama Fedora!

All the best!
Jack

Welcome. I am right there with ya on everyday wear. I find I don't wear my Indy hats as much as my vintage fedoras. You should check out the fedora lounge if you have not already. That place was started by someone from here.


A question. I too have a beaver adventurebilt raiders and a penman raiders in beaver. How do yours compare in feel and density. My adventurebilt is really velvet like smooth and dense. Very pliable without being floppy. My penman raiders on beaver feels complete opposite. Flimsy, floppy and rougher so much so that I question it being made of beaver.

Recently got into wearing hats (well, proper hats, I've worn ball caps off and on for ages). Anyway, I was going to jump into the proverbial deep end and go for a Raiders style fedora. But I also knew I wanted a Stetson Open Road. For those who might not know, it's a fedora that is commonly bashed with the cowboy hat-style cattleman's crease. Did some reading up and went with the Akubra Camp Draft, which is a new hat with the feel of a vintage Open Road (softer felt, slightly different dimensions). Anyway, went that route rather than go full-Indy. I'm very glad I did. I was worried I'd feel self-conscious in any hat, and thought the Indy fedora would make me feel ever moreso. Figured I'd dip my toe in the hat-wearing waters and that the Camp Draft wouldn't look as out of place here in Austin, Texas as it's got the western feel and it's not all that uncommon to see folks sporting cowboy hats around these parts. To my surprise, from Day 1 I've felt completely comfortable in the Camp Draft (except when it gets over 80 degrees in the Texas humidity, but that's a different kind of uncomfortable). Now I'm saving up the pennies to get an Indy fedora and I've no doubt that I'll feel every bit as comfortable in it as I do the Camp Draft.

Camp Draft is a great hat. I have 2 of them in different colors. I did a basic fedora bash on both of them but not identical. Squatter is also another open crown hat that is a nice one.

I tried a Stetson Open Road but it was way too small overall for my Frankenstein (block head) shape. I just can't wear the shorter crown hats.

To add to my original reply, I've also just pulled the trigger on a Stratoliner. I really got into Stranger Things over Christmas break and decided I needed a Jim Hopper hat. I'm thinking a summer hat or, simply, just because.

Jeremiah wrote:A question. I too have a beaver adventurebilt raiders and a penman raiders in beaver. How do yours compare in feel and density. My adventurebilt is really velvet like smooth and dense. Very pliable without being floppy. My penman raiders on beaver feels complete opposite. Flimsy, floppy and rougher so much so that I question it being made of beaver.

I have two AB hats in beaver that have different "hand feel" due to the pouncing and amount of stiffener used in the felt. The brim of my Sahara colored AB is as floppy as Indy's hat when he's on horseback in ROLA. In fact, it's my choice to wear on windy days because I know the brim will move around in the wind and not catch the wind to pull the hat off my head.


Regards,

Indiana Jeff

Yeah. I remember you mentioning some hats you had even had longer nap but were beaver.
I don't want to be accusatory but I just never felt that this one hat was in fact beaver. Maybe I am wrong. I really only have the one AB beaver to compare too. Thanks.