What do you think of the Indiana Jones hats?

citRon · Jan 20, 2008

Pics of 1984 Stetson & 1989 Last Crusade 'official' copies

here are pics of my 2 'souveneir' hats. The one on the left is the Stetson made version, the one on the right has no nametag anywhere on it or on the tags it came with. My old Lucasfilm Fan Club mags sold this one under the name of Vatex Headwear. Anyway, the Stetson is complete junk -very very stiff; cardbaord like and thin.
The one on the right is a softer, more pliable. Both are wool. The colors are way off between the two as well. The Stetson is more of a milk chocolate, the LC is a very dark brown. Both are styled exactly as they came- I haven't messed with them at all. I really like the shape of the LC one.

Jerekson · Jan 21, 2008

By all means, the LC version isn't that far off.

At least that hat makes for a valid comparison to the real thing.

RBH · Jan 23, 2008

The recent posts are fantastic!.
Its so funny how so many hats have that Indy style to them.
I say Indy style not that his were the first to have the high crown - sharp pinch - center dent and wide brim.... but Indy has become an icon.
For better or worse......
I for one think for the better. As the Indy nutters soon become the fedora fanatic.

citRon · Jan 23, 2008

RBH said:
The recent posts are fantastic!.
Its so funny how so many hats have that Indy style to them.
I say Indy style not that his were the first to have the high crown - sharp pinch - center dent and wide brim.... but Indy has become an icon.
For better or worse......
I for one think for the better. As the Indy nutters soon become the fedora fanatic.

...Indy was my gateway drug to the Fedora!

RBH · Jan 23, 2008

citRon said:
...Indy was my gateway drug to the Fedora!

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

NonEntity · Jan 24, 2008

Thanks for the interesting side-by-side comparison, citRon.

This and other posts elsewhere on FL underscore that there is no one definitive Indiana Jones-style fedora. In the three films so far, they look different in each, and word has it that the one in the upcoming movie is different still.

I much prefer the LC. You said it was sold under the Vatex Headwear name; was that part of Dorfman Pacific? I know DP had the Indy hat contract at some point, and was just wondering whether or not yours was during that era.

citRon · Jan 24, 2008

NonEntity said:
Thanks for the interesting side-by-side comparison, citRon.

This and other posts elsewhere on FL underscore that there is no one definitive Indiana Jones-style fedora. In the three films so far, they look different in each, and word has it that the one in the upcoming movie is different still.

I much prefer the LC. You said it was sold under the Vatex Headwear name; was that part of Dorfman Pacific? I know DP had the Indy hat contract at some point, and was just wondering whether or not yours was during that era.

I'm assuming so...the tags I've seen online from some of the DP's look the same as one of the tags that was on mine-I'll post a pic late tonight of the tag.
I agree the LC look is my favorite of them all. When I finally decide on what I'm getting, I'll bash it into that style.

MississippiLong · Mar 18, 2008

citRon said:
...Indy was my gateway drug to the Fedora!

you and me both.

avedwards · Jan 5, 2009

I don't know if someone has mentioned this already, so I will anyway. The Dorfman Pacific hat is currently the officially licensed IJ hat. I have the woolfelt version. To say it is poor is an understatement.

To start off, it looks more like a cowboy hat rather than a fedora. Next, it has a safari brim while IJ's hat has a very slight snap brim at the back. Next, it has a teardrop crown, while the real one definitely has a centre dent. Next, the ribbon is brown, while IJ's is black, as it was fashionable to have a brown hat with a black ribbon in the 1930, as this goes well with most hat/suit colour combinations. Finally, the hat couldn't even stand a bit of water when I was on D of E award (3 day camping expedition), as it deshaped after about an hour of rain, leaving me with a rag on my head for the rest of the expedition.

If you want a proper IJ hat get either a Herbert Johnson "Poet" (used in films one and three), a Stetson Temple (used in film two I think) or an adventurebuilt (used in film four). These are what Harrison Ford actually wore, so they are the real IJ hats, even if they are not licensed.

HatMagnet · Jan 5, 2009

Penman Hats

http://www.penmanhats.com/ makes Indy style hats that are excellent,pure beaver and screen accurate.

Gilgamark · Jan 5, 2009

I have a couple of the wool felt Indiana Jones hats (see one below). You can get them for about $45 plus shipping at several places online. They are fine everyday hats on the lower end of the price range, but I wouldn't buy a fur felt IJ brand. There are a lot of better-quality hats out there for the money. And someone else has said this, but it's true: the Indiana Jones brand hats do not look like anything worn in the movies.

OldSkoolFrat · Jan 5, 2009

HatMagnet said:
http://www.penmanhats.com/ makes Indy style hats that are excellent,pure beaver and screen accurate.

John's hats are outstanding and not just for the Indy fan. He can make nearly any style from the 1920's thru the 1950's

lostinperiphery · Dec 22, 2009

this was my furst fur hat, an officially licensed IJ hat... purchased about 8 years ago. This was before I knew anything about fedora's, and it looked authentic enough for me, so I jumped on it. Now that I have about a half dozen other fedoras to compare it too, its not great, but its not aweful either. additionally, for a number of years I thought it was fantastic until I started getting into other fedoras.... I've never owned an akubra to compare, but the IJ seems similar in quality to my stetson downs, my only other modern fedora.

All in all, I've been quite happy with it over the years. my money may have been better spent on another brand, but this one has done me just fine. However, I don't wear it frequently, as the wide brim simply doesn't look so swell on me.

for anyone who cares, the bullwhip is an 8ft nylon whip made by Rhett Kelly. again, hardly authentic, but I love it...

cybergentleman · Dec 22, 2009

here

http://aeris.adventure-realm.com/

christys adventurer gets a good review for meeting the criteria of an indy hat...but they are also not known to be the toughest of hats....adventure built and penman are the more expensive ones and known to be tough.

the akubra fed is also decent- but the brown band makes it slight non indy, plus it doesnt always look right with the center dent.

i'd say go with the christy's adventurer with black band if you want a decent lookign indy hat (may need to resize the brim a tad) if you are willing to pay the money go with penman or adventure built.

bendingoak · Dec 28, 2009

avedwards said:
I don't know if someone has mentioned this already, so I will anyway. The Dorfman Pacific hat is currently the officially licensed IJ hat. I have the woolfelt version. To say it is poor is an understatement.

To start off, it looks more like a cowboy hat rather than a fedora. Next, it has a safari brim while IJ's hat has a very slight snap brim at the back. Next, it has a teardrop crown, while the real one definitely has a centre dent. Next, the ribbon is brown, while IJ's is black, as it was fashionable to have a brown hat with a black ribbon in the 1930, as this goes well with most hat/suit colour combinations. Finally, the hat couldn't even stand a bit of water when I was on D of E award (3 day camping expedition), as it deshaped after about an hour of rain, leaving me with a rag on my head for the rest of the expedition.

If you want a proper IJ hat get either a Herbert Johnson "Poet" (used in films one and three), a Stetson Temple (used in film two I think) or an adventurebuilt (used in film four). These are what Harrison Ford actually wore,

so they are the real IJ hats, even if they are not licensed.

just wanted to pop in here and correct one thing. The Indy hats had a very
dark brown grosgrain ribbon not black. It looks like it's black but if you put something black next to it, it's clear that it is brown.

Fedora · Dec 28, 2009

I think the Raiders fedora and the CS fedora are the coolest looking hats made. Much of this comes from the dimensional cut brim, which gives the hat a more streamline look, when compared with a regular cut brim. It changes the looks of the fedora, in a postive way, IMO.

While the Indy fedora is a bit uncommon, it was nothing new. The dimensional cut brim, is not new. I have a vintage flange made for this type of brim. The front is longer than the sides, and is stamped on the sides of the flange. I have only seen one though, so this tells ya, it wasn't used much in the days of yesteryear. But shows again, there really isn't anything new in hatting.

The tight pinched front crease of the Raiders fedora isn't new either. I have seen this in many old films. On fedoras.

The Indy fedora got me interested in fedoras, as up until then, I wore Australian type hats, and Panamas. So, the film brought me into the fedora fold, and I have worn nothing but fedoras since that time. But, Indy's taller crown had something to do with it too. I was used to seeing stingy brimmed short crowned fedoras, which I never liked. The extra brim and height of the Indy fedora was enough to attract me to this hat. Then I discovered that in the old days, taller crowns and wider brims were popular, I just missed that era, or would have worn fedoras much earlier. Fedora

AlterEgo · Dec 28, 2009

Akubra Federation IV Deluxe

A couple months ago I got a Fed IV Deluxe, in spite of it's being an "Indiana Jones" hat. In moonstone (a beautiful mid-gray), it's much less "Indyish."

This is my first tall-crowned, straight-sided fedora. I never though such hats looked good on my smallish head atop a tall thin frame, but I figured I'd break out and do something different.

I curled the back of the brim up yet no flair at the sides, but otherwise put a traditional Indy bash in it--center dent, sharp front crown pinch, and the front of the brim turned down.

Well, sure enough, I looked like a lampshade. Thinking I'd get used to the new look, I continued wearing it like that, but every time I'd see a reflection of myself, like in a window, I'd say, "That guy sure looks stupid!" and then put my Stylemaster or Sydney or Banjo or ... back on at the first opportunity.

After wearing the Fed IV on a very long walk through the city in the rain and being startled again and again by images of myself in windows, I came home, checked some Fed threads here, and decided I HAD to take some of the crown height out.

So I experimented with a bunch of different bashes--pretty much ALL of them--and finally settled on a teardrop with the telescope so deep it just clears the top of my head. Kept the sharp front crease, though, but took some of the dish out of the side dents. Gave it a mild front- (4-inch) to-back (3 5/8-inch) rake.

Now I really like the hat. And not once has anyone called me Indiana Jones!

gtdean48 · Jan 8, 2010

Indy Hat advertisement in catalog...

My wife gets a catalog = Herrington, The Enthusiasts' Catalog
Lots of stuff, good read while in the Library...
Hats always catch my attention & felt I had to post this one...
In bold print title = Wear the Same Hat Worn by Harrison Ford as He Embarked on His 4th Indiana Jones Quest: Kingdom of the Crystal Skull!
Text later on in the description =
"Our wool fedora is the same hat worn by Harrison Ford in all 4 adventures, including last year's blockbuster, right down to the pinched crown and 2 1/2 inch brim."
Talk about inaccurate claims...

Sam Craig · Jan 8, 2010

I wish I looked like Harrison Ford

I have three medium to dark brown fedoras I wear on a regular basis, including one cowboy conversion that, I'll admit, was heavily influenced by the Last Crusade hat, but I've never had anyone suggest I look like Indy, even when I wear a leather jacket.

That's probably cuz I don't ... really don't.

But I have a terrific late old wide brimmed Champ fedora, Camel Down finish in Lemon with a dark ribbon. It's a beautiful hat, but in rural America you have to be careful wearing pastel hats.

I have been accused of wearing a Dick Tracy hat — not so much now as when the movie came out.

I can either just say, "thanks" or take the time to explain to them what a unique piece of Americana this old yellow hat really is.

Let's face it, most of America doesn't get wearing hats in the first place.

JimWagner · Jan 8, 2010

Like some of the earlier posters I have one of the early 80's wool felt IJ hats. Wearing it today as the weather is a little nasty here. It was my intro to fedoras and still looks as good today as when I bought it. I guess it's pushing 30 years old now.

I hope some of my newer hat hold up as well. For that matter, I wouldn't mind holding up another 30 years myself.

What do you think of the Indiana Jones hats?

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