Club Obi Wan

I just discovered, that in 1971, HJ sold Stetsons. Yep, Stetsons. Perhaps this is the reason the felt on the Raiders fedora looks different, ie vintage, than the thicker courser felts of the following movies. Maybe Ford had a beaver blend hat on his head. regards, Fedora

It is finished, and looks just like the rest of my hats. I have a bunch of clones. I ended up pulling it off the new 52 block and putting it on my own custom block. Those pics already posted were from my own block. The 52 block has just a little too much taper on the front and back to suit me. This brings up a question that has been kicked around before. The question of blocks used for the Raiders hat, and why the later hats seem to be a different hat, a differently blocked hat? And yes I know, some think it was only the felt factor, but I have come to think there is more to it than this. I don't think the same block was used. Look at the new HJ, the one we saw pics of from the Spaniard. In the open crown state, there was a huge amount of taper, front and back. I am almost 100 per cent sure that the original block was almost stovepiped on the front and back. First, you don't get reverse taper on the back if the block was slanted. The action of bashing the top in straightens out a tapered block, sure, but you never get a reverse taper with a slanted block. Also, some of the Raiders fedoras had pretty deep front bash, with the tight pinch. If you take a tapered blocked hat, and do this to it, you end up with what Lee's early hats looked like on the front. Almost a 45 degree slant as viewed from the side. Now, if it is as assumed, that Ford's long oval head cause the swoop, then why did his hat not automatically taper on the front and back the way that Rick's hats do? This is nonsensical. Something else bothers me. I have never owned a rabbit felted hat that does not taper on the top, and fairly quickly, if worn in the elements. The Raiders fedora did not do this!! That one hat with the sweat stain on the right side and the indentation on the same side was used throughout the film. I doubt if more than 2 hats were used by Ford for the whole film. Now, HJ sold Stetsons at one time in their history, what would stop them from pulling down Stetson hats, putting their own liner and band in and then calling them Poets? Especially when most hatters even today, have to preorder their hats ahead of time? You all know of the wait on an HJ in times past. You know how Optimo does business. I am thinking that HJ did not have enough hat bodies to supply the film, and pulled down a few Stetsons and used them. That would explain the felt on the Raiders fedora, very vintage looking, and unlike the later felt used. What if Indy did in fact wear a Stetson, a beaver blend Stetson? I really think this is a possibility. And it would explain the differences that we see in later hats. Something to think about and ponder. Fedora

This sounds kinda mysterious - it is. The idea Indy's hat is a vintage Stetson sounds not that wrong. I think at least one original HJ must have served in ROTLA but sometimes I really have the feeling I see another felt on that hats. (and I don't mean the grey one)
That could explain some things. Are we on something? Try buying vintage Stetsons of the early 80's!

Fabian

My post was mostly tongue in cheek to just show how little we know about "the hat" I know of at least two stories on the specs and supplier of the Poet. Mr. Swales seemed to be the sort of character that detested selling to those American idiots who wanted a hat used by a fictional hero. He was not into providing replicas of one of his hats, styled by some costume designer. He may have sent anything he had on the shelf at the time you ordered, and judging from the ones that I have personally held in my hand, there certainly was no consistency of felt or block. So take what I said with a big grain of salt. But, it is a posssibility, although remote. Fedora

What I want to know is the stright dope on what happened to Stetson and when did they start making @#$%. Every new hat I've seen with the exception of TWO has been @#$%.

Renderking Fisk wrote:What I want to know is the stright dope on what happened to Stetson and when did they start making @#$%. Every new hat I've seen with the exception of TWO has been @#$%.

They wen't out of business about 30 years ago and the name was bought by hatco. Stetson is not Stetson anymore. I measure it a step above what Borsalino offers.


What, you don't like the 1,500 tatooed hats?

When Stetson went out of business, the name was sold. Sorta like when Gibson Guitars was bought. A fellow bought the name because he knew it would sell guitars, moved the plant to Nashville, and the guitars were never the same again. IMHO. I have not seen a current Stetson that I would own. So, what you are buying when you buy a Stetson today, is just the name. There ought to be a law against using a name that sold the first western hat, became a giant with retail operations in Europe and other countries. and became a household name in times past, and offered quality hats from 5 bucks to 15 thousand bucks. I collect vintage Stetsons, and and have never ever bought a bad one, or one with that dastardly colored finishing powder in them either. Fedora

In all honnesty... I would think that would be what the "husband" would wear on his way with his "wife" to the San Fran city hall to get a Marriage license...

I'll have you know that one of the finest hats I ever had bleed dye down between my eyes during a heavy rainstorm was a Stetson TofD, thank you very much! Regards. Michaelson

Michaelson wrote:I'll have you know that one of the finest hats I ever had bleed dye down between my eyes during a heavy rainstorm was a Stetson TofD, thank you very much! Regards. Michaelson

Wern't those the ones you could also watch how they taper before your very eyes?

I've always wanted to know... were you able to save that shirt or was it ruined?

Yep, that's the one. Fortunately, I had an old work coat on that day, so there was no problem regarding the bleed, but the kids thought it was the funniest thing they had ever seen. I was not to amused, needless to say. Regards. Michaelson

Dastardly Powder..Oooouch...the wound is still pretty fresh! , I've learned the hard way in a recent purchase of a less than vintage Stetson. "Powder on your fedora sir?"...No thank you... .

Kilgour Trout

always wash your stetsons before wearing (kidding)

The true head gear of a birdbrain. Fedora

You are SUPPOSED to WASH the Stetson hat first, just like the original Levis Jeans.!! Remember if you didn't wash the jeans first, they would bleed indego blue on your whites!?!?!?!!!!

So first wash and rinse out the Stetson.....then you won't have it bleed down your face in inclement weather.

Being a conspiracy theorist now, I believe there's a more sinister plot going on here. If you'll take yet another look at the hat shown in these posts, could it be possible that this 'bird' hat may have originally been dyed with the infamous powder to make it totally brown, only to have this actual 'Stetson' advertisement appear after it's first soaking in the rain? Here all these years we thought it was just a poor dye job, when all the time we were wearing a Stetson hat billboard on our heads without knowing, only to find out after the dye ran down between our eyes in the first heavy rain! Makes one shutter to think..... Regards. Michaelson