New user and question...

Hey guys,

I started posting over at Club Obi Wan a few weeks back and have found my way over here. The question I have is more about fedoras in general than the Indy hat so I thought it would be more appropriate to ask over here.

Basically, I'm looking for some advice on buying a new fedora. I love my Akubra Fed but I have a hard time matching it with the rest of my wardrobe which unfortunately contains a lot of blue.

What I am looking for is a fedora style hat that can be both casual and dressy, in a color that goes with anything (I'm thinking a dark grey but not black), conservative proportions, good quality soft fur felt that I can wear every day (I hate baseball caps!). Tall order to fill?

I stopped by a local hat shop here in Hollywood and they had a few brands like Scala, Bailey, Christy's and one made in Germany but I can't remember the name. There were a couple of possibilities but with so many brands I was lost.

So...does anyone have a recommendation on a good make/model fedora? I know a lot of discussion here is about vintage hats, which I would love to check out but I wear a large hat size which is almost impossible to find in vintage stuff.

I am thinking now of ordering another Regular Fed from Hatsdirect in Carbon Grey and giving it a little more, umm conservative bash than my Indy brown and maybe trimming the brim down a little. Of course this would also give me an excuse to get that Banjo Paterson I've always wanted.

Any ideas?

Thanks!

How much dough are you looking to spend?

Also, are you wanting something that is indy-styled, or are you open to other types of crowns/brims? I think that the reason many people are here at MK's is because they've tired of the same brown felt, with the same styled crown, and a raw edge brim. Over here, we can discuss all sorts of hats with short crowns, tall crowns, grey, green, blue felts, and even bound brims.

I think that a medium grey looks great with a blue suit.
If you get a carbon grey Fed, it'll look good, but it'll be another indy hat (if you don't mind that).

P.S.
If you're in Hollywood, you may want to get together with some of the fellows out there. They have LOTS of different styled hats, in a myriad of colors. Being in that area of the world, you can gleam a lot of information from certain neighbors in the know.

Zohar,

As far as $ goes I don't want something really expensive since this is for everday use, I would be afraid of losing something like an Optimo. Let's say around $100, but I'd go a little more if necessary. The Scalas I was looking at the other day were in the $80-$100 range but they're probably cheaper online. I know nothing about the brand though. Are they any good?

I am not looking for something Indy styled, in fact something a bit more ummm, conservative I guess is the word. I was thinking that with a little more conservative bash and a slightly narrower brim the Carbon Grey Fed would look a bit less Indy. I would like a lighter, softer even floppier felt though.

I'm open to other styles too though I have a large size cranium so a shorter crown is probably out. I'm open to suggestions!

I'd also love to meet with folks in the area, who else is in HollywoodLand?

I don't know much about Scala hats.

For $100, I'd go with something from HatsDirect. I recently bought a Stylemaster in Steel Grey from them for my brother in law, and I thought it looked pretty good. It has a bound brim, and a teardrop crown.

Softer and floppier felt is going to cost you some money. The only soft floppies I know of out there are the PBBM's, and the Optimos, unless you can somehow get a vintage hat (not impossible, thanks to ebay.com)

For meeting up with the guys out there, I suggest you start talking to MK. As far as I know, there are at least 6 or 7 guys out there in relatively close proximity to each other. If you check out the Events forum, you can see where they plan their get togethers.

By the way, what size do you wear?

Size-wize I wear a 7-5/8 or 7-3/4, depending on the hat. I ordered my Indy Akubra in a 63 which of course was too big, so I used the sizing foam to bring it down a size. If I order another it will definitely be a 62. I am a melonhead, I know!

You should also check out Baron Hats in Burbank.

Originally posted by MK
You should also check out Baron Hats in Burbank.

Click to expand...

I have driven by there many times, I'm going to try to stop in there today.

I've got a tan Scala hat which I've worn about 1/3 of the days in the past 2 years. It's still in the same general condition it was when I got it. The liner and sweatband are also pretty heavy compared to the other hats I've had. It is also pretty soft/floppy so the crown features aren't extremely distinct and it takes a while to get the brim to shape. I haven't really gotten it soaked, or had much sweat in it, but I think it would still be in great condition now. I've got a few pictures of it on my website if you want to take a look.

Since you've got a bunch of blue, I say pick out your favoirte blue whatever, and match the hat to it. The rest of the blue will follow it's match. I think the shade of gray depends more on the mfg place unless they've got more distinctive colors in their line. So if you find a hat you really like, you're probably best off just picking it.

The crown, edge, and band are mostly matters of personal preference, and the shop can probably change them if necessary. Otherwise they'll grow on you.