Stetson Surplus

[1961MJS]

Hi

I bought a Stetson Temple at the Saint Joseph Missouri Stetson outlet on Saturday the 20th of November. It has powder in it. I had to ask to see one which I found odd for an outlet store. I'll post pictures of it when I get a chance. It's a lot less stiff than my Beaver Brand hat is.

I also picked up a wool stetson from the 1950's or earlier, from my Dad's garage. It doesn't say Stetson on the inside, but Dad said it is one. My great uncle wore it on vacation in 1953, I have pictures. It's in kind of bad shape slightly crushed and with moth holes, but I intend to get it re-blocked. I'll post pictures of that whole thing too.

Later

 

[Alive'n'Amplified]

This is a nice vintage Stetson lightweight that I had recently purchased from Robert when he first posted his massive hat sale in the classifieds. No specific model, but it reminds me of a Privateer. I really liked the ribbed pug that it came with. He was straightforward and told me that the felt was soft and floppy; needed a cleaning and a re-block. After I had received it I steamed it and brushed it and it looked decent, but after a day the felt was as floppy as a Mylar balloon losing its air.

So I gave it a go last week. I took everything apart and gave it a proper treatment of tender loving care. The original block must have been a 51-style, with a slightly tapered 5 1/2" (maybe just under) crown. Re-blocked it with a 52-block and added some height, cleaned it, added felt stiffener, and re-installed the pug, sweat, and liner. I was going to install a standard grosgrain ribbon with a bow, 1", but after comparing a few colors, I didn't think that they compared with the original pug. Here are some before and after shots. Maybe this belongs in the Hat Comparison thread, but I want to place this in its proper Stetson home.

Model: Unknown, though similar to a Privateer
Color: Silverbelly
Crown: Was 5 1/2", 51-block --- Now closer to 5 3/4" OC, 52-block
Brim: Was 2 7/8" --- Now 2 3/4"
Note: Everything was kept original

You can't really tell by these shots, but the felt couldn't really hold its own weight, so the front always had a natural swoop. Looked fine, but I couldn't do much else with it. The crease would crush upon itself if you tried to grab it, which was annoying.

After the cleaning and re-block...

 

[Rick Blaine]

outstanding! :eusa_clap

 

[Alive'n'Amplified]

Thanks, Rick!!

 

[TheDane]

Beeeeeeautiful hat and a great pug. Also very sharp with the brim up! The soft OR-like flange complements the crown/crease perfectly. Very well done! :eusa_clap

 

[Lotsahats]

Fantastic, AnA! That pug is really special, and now the hat fits it so well.

 

[mayserwegener]

Super! Great find!

 

[g.durand]

Nice work AnA!

 

[ManofKent]

Excellent work AnA - looks really sharp

 

[hatophile]

Super hat, I'd love to find one of those on Ebay!

 

[mikespens]

Great result David and wise choice to keep the pug, it makes the hat special.

 

[Matthew MO]

Found this the other day and was wondering if anyone new the year (roughly) it was made. Came out of a relatives attic and is in perfect condition.
I'm a bit of a luddite, so we'll see how my backyard photography looks on here.

[/URL][/IMG]

[/URL][/IMG]

[/URL][/IMG]

[/URL][/IMG]

 

[Rogera]

Definitely a modern tag and liner. 80's?

 

[Alive'n'Amplified]

Beeeeeeautiful hat and a great pug. Also very sharp with the brim up! The soft OR-like flange complements the crown/crease perfectly. Very well done! :eusa_clap

Thanks, Dane. I had to apply additional stiffener to the felt, and it still might require a little more. All in all, I'm very pleased with the outcome.

Fantastic, AnA! That pug is really special, and now the hat fits it so well.

Yes, the pug looks great. I had narrowed down two grosgrain ribbons in a sand color and a charcoal grey. Both looked "nice", but they just didn't compare to the character of the pug. I spot cleaned it and pressed it; came out nice.

Super! Great find!

Nice work AnA!

Excellent work AnA - looks really sharp

Super hat, I'd love to find one of those on Ebay!

Great result David and wise choice to keep the pug, it makes the hat special.

Steve, g.d., MoK, hatto, Mike - Thank you for the encouraging comments! Like some of the other veteran members here, I'm hoping to hone my skills a little more with these vintage hat renovations to get the right style and fit for my head. And who knows, I might just start offering these up on the 'Lounge! But not too soon!! :thumb:

 

[Alive'n'Amplified]

Great shot!!! Fitting scenery.

 

[ManofKent]

Great shot!!! Fitting scenery.

+1. I'm no Stetson expert but I'd guess 80's too. Wear and enjoy.

 

[Matthew MO]

+1. I'm no Stetson expert but I'd guess 80's too. Wear and enjoy.

Thanks guys. Family history had it stuffed away between 80 and 85 but I wanted to see what the experts had to say. I appreciate everyone taking the time to weigh in.

 

[buler]

The Stetson State

Here is a mid-40s to early 50s Royal De Luxe Stetson that is nearly identical to the Whippet. It fortunately has a tag behind the sweatband that names this a State model. I couldn't find any ads for this model. I had pictures of this next to a Whippet (but can't find them) and the crown blocking was identical, as was the brim width and flange. It also has a bound brim. The only real difference from the Whippet is the ribbon width and bow are slightly different than a typical Whippet.

B

Click on thumbnails for larger pics

 

[carouselvic]

way koool

 

[RJR]

+1