Post New Hats Here!

steur said:

Nice catch! Needs a bit of TLC but looks to be a good make. I like that colour. Is there no label at all inside the hat, Mike? These English labels are pretty generic, but it could give us a clue.

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alanfgag said:

wo new hats have arrived from a good gentleman of Verona... a Borsalino bombetta in misto grey and a soft black velour. The bombetta has an early label version, rolled sweatband construction and deep imprints that most certainly suggest it was made prior to WWII. It will become the earliest Borsalino in my collection. The velour gives away very few of its secrets of manufacture - only the store in which it was sold but the rich soft character of the longhair velour seems to suggest an origin in Austria/Germany/Czechoslovakia. Only Steve would know for certain.

Two lovely hats that fit me well... I am excited to have them after their long trip.

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steur said:

The Holland-Italy exchange program came up on top again. Here are the results.
First a Barbisio lobbia in the colour Umbria. Qualitá extra extra. This one was NOS, but had me confused. Like a kid lying about their age to get a drink, this one lied about its size. First I thought it had shrunk and I did put it on the rack. Not to make it confess (it didn't expect the inquisition), but to get it to the size it told me it was. Hatters are human too: the size label on he sweat is one size up (56) from the one that was hidden underneath the liner (55). It fits me now, albeit that the backseam of the sweat shows a small gap. The brim is beautifully curved and sits at 5cm and the crown reaches 10,5cm at the pinch.
Fairly stiff for an Italian made lobbia. It could pass for a bowler if creased open crown.

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steur said:

Fourth one. Sools de Luxe fedora in sand/grey. Very hard to make out the exact colour. Again no label inside the hat. This hat is a very early one, probably thirties. Brim with overwelt edge with four rows of stitching sits at 6,5cm and the very tall crown is creased now with the (deep) pinch at 11,5cm (to match their advertising poster). Wide ribbon on this one. Unlined with just a cloth patch inside the crown. Very soft hat with a lovely hand to the felt. Daniele thinks that either Mossant or Fléchet could be the maker. As Gérard Sools was a high end retailer it would have been the makers' top of the line.

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steur said:

Fourth one. Sools de Luxe fedora in sand/grey. Very hard to make out the exact colour. Again no label inside the hat. This hat is a very early one, probably thirties. Brim with overwelt edge with four rows of stitching sits at 6,5cm and the very tall crown is creased now with the (deep) pinch at 11,5cm (to match their advertising poster). Wide ribbon on this one. Unlined with just a cloth patch inside the crown. Very soft hat with a lovely hand to the felt. Daniele thinks that either Mossant or Fléchet could be the maker. As Gérard Sools was a high end retailer it would have been the makers' top of the line.

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steur said:

Third one. Borsalino Lobbia in brown. The label inside the hat gives no information and comparing the colour didn't give an exact match. It's abit lighter than the Caffe and somewhat less saturated than the Folco, but it's closest to these. Let's just call it Marrone. I'm fairly certain it's a Gulaela model, with the brim at a good 5,5cm and the crown at 11cm at the pinch. Qualitá extra superiore. It doesn't like the pinches and only takes the shallowest of these. The sweatband has some texturing, which is seen more often on earlier models.

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deadlyhandsome said:

John Cavanagh:
The felt is in incredible condition and it’s dense and wonderful and shifts from olive to mid brown depending on the light. The liner has some marks and soiling but not too bad.

The sweat is a wide supple and appears to be a replacement piece (no markings) that was only attached by basting stitches...odd. The sweat is soft and the reed is perfect. The installation was just never completed. This is my oldest Cavanagh and my first John Cavanagh. Even with the sweat issue I’m glad I got it.

I’m not sure what to make of the stamp on the back of the sweatband.

Thanks again @TheOldFashioned


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deadlyhandsome said:

John Cavanagh:
The felt is in incredible condition and it’s dense and wonderful and shifts from olive to mid brown depending on the light. The liner has some marks and soiling but not too bad.

The sweat is a wide supple and appears to be a replacement piece (no markings) that was only attached by basting stitches...odd. The sweat is soft and the reed is perfect. The installation was just never completed. This is my oldest Cavanagh and my first John Cavanagh. Even with the sweat issue I’m glad I got it.

I’m not sure what to make of the stamp on the back of the sweatband.

Thanks again @TheOldFashioned


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

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deadlyhandsome said:

John Cavanagh:
The felt is in incredible condition and it’s dense and wonderful and shifts from olive to mid brown depending on the light. The liner has some marks and soiling but not too bad.

The sweat is a wide supple and appears to be a replacement piece (no markings) that was only attached by basting stitches...odd. The sweat is soft and the reed is perfect. The installation was just never completed. This is my oldest Cavanagh and my first John Cavanagh. Even with the sweat issue I’m glad I got it.

I’m not sure what to make of the stamp on the back of the sweatband.

Thanks again @TheOldFashioned


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Desert dog said:

Resistol Waco. A big thanks to @BobHufford, for giving me a heads up on this one!

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deadlyhandsome said:

John Cavanagh:
The felt is in incredible condition and it’s dense and wonderful and shifts from olive to mid brown depending on the light. The liner has some marks and soiling but not too bad.

The sweat is a wide supple and appears to be a replacement piece (no markings) that was only attached by basting stitches...odd. The sweat is soft and the reed is perfect. The installation was just never completed. This is my oldest Cavanagh and my first John Cavanagh. Even with the sweat issue I’m glad I got it.

I’m not sure what to make of the stamp on the back of the sweatband.

Thanks again @TheOldFashioned


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Click to expand...

deadlyhandsome said:

John Cavanagh:
The felt is in incredible condition and it’s dense and wonderful and shifts from olive to mid brown depending on the light. The liner has some marks and soiling but not too bad.

The sweat is a wide supple and appears to be a replacement piece (no markings) that was only attached by basting stitches...odd. The sweat is soft and the reed is perfect. The installation was just never completed. This is my oldest Cavanagh and my first John Cavanagh. Even with the sweat issue I’m glad I got it.

I’m not sure what to make of the stamp on the back of the sweatband.

Thanks again @TheOldFashioned


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

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ofcoursemyhorse said:

Cavanagh was known for a few sweatband innovations. One of them was a button fastening system for the sweatband that was apparently designed to make sweatband replacements a more simple procedure.

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TheOldFashioned said:

I posted a link to the patent just above (see post #39450). Looking at the drawing and reading the text it's as you describe regarding the use of buttons for quick change functionality.

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michael78 said:

Hi Stefan, love this Sools, that crown to die for!!!....just send it to me when you get fed-up with it!!..Hee Heee!!!

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Frunobulax said:

That's a thing of beauty, Stefan. I'd echo Michael if we shared the same size.

Sent directly from my mind to yours.

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alanfgag said:

The crown shape is beautiful open and without pinches!

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