Adventurebilt Henry - Any one got one?

[FurFeltFedora]

Thanks Ian - can you paraphrase? I'm not a member of COW so I can't see the thread.

 

[Harry Street]

Steve Delk (paraphased)

FFF, paraphasing as requested:

The Henry is blocked at 5 1/2" open crown if it's a 7 1/4" and then increasing with bigger sizes et vice versa to keep the proportions. The same was done to the brim.

From my own Henry, (size 7 1/8" (57) the brim is 2 3/4" x 2 9/16". The open crown is approx. 5 1/2" (difficult to be more precise because of the bash).

I am pretty sure the I remember reading that the sweat is sewn in by machine, operated by hand.

Some more quotes from Steve Delk from COW on the Henry, my apologies if this was posted elsewhere:

This hat, the Henry is the finest made factory hat I have ever owned. And I have owned em' all. If they had a factory hatmaking contest, judged by hatters, I really do think this hat would win, hands down. But of course, that was our intention when we developed it. I say "we" loosely, because Marc did all of the work, in communicating to the factory what was and was not acceptable by us.

My own hat is still the most comfortable new hat that I own. I love Marc's choice of leather for the sweatbands. Unlike most, it is NOT the grayish blue color on the back side, that you see in sweats made today. Very vintage like. The only exception is the Akubras, to my knowledge.

and

The Henry, being what it is, is probably the most expensive hat for any factory to make. It's on a totally different level than the other factory hats, from the Portugal body to the sweatband, and bow work. It just costs alot more to get a really good hat made today. And you don't really see many in the same class. I imagine the body sent in from Portugal, costs more than a completed hat in another brand. Well, I know it does. The Henry costs us more than the retail on many factory hats. If we were to mark them up the usual markup, for hats, the Henry would be just too expensive to sell. It would cost as much as one of my handmade hats. So, eventhough it seems expensive, the markup we have is low compared to other factory hats.

 

[Joeyeah_right]

Henry or FedIV...

I have been following this thread and have joined COW also and have been reading the thread about the Henry there and am torn now as to whether i should get the FedIV Deluxe in Brown as my next hat (I have a carbon grey FedIV at the moment and want a brown hat next), or whether I should spend that bit extra and go for the Henry. It really is tough to choose as I don't have much money at the moment but really want a brown hat, and I know the Henry will be great, but is it worth the extra over the FedIV Deluxe?

 

[jlee562]

I have been following this thread and have joined COW also and have been reading the thread about the Henry there and am torn now as to whether i should get the FedIV Deluxe in Brown as my next hat (I have a carbon grey FedIV at the moment and want a brown hat next), or whether I should spend that bit extra and go for the Henry. It really is tough to choose as I don't have much money at the moment but really want a brown hat, and I know the Henry will be great, but is it worth the extra over the FedIV Deluxe?

I have a carbon grey Fed IV too....and if I had the money, I would certainly buy a Henry....but I'm saving for one of Art Fawcett's hats at the moment.

 

[FurFeltFedora]

Thanks for the info Harry, it's appreciated. One more question of you (being a Henry owner yourself) - is the liner sewn in or glued in? And are there any marking on the liner? I heard somewhere that it's just plain white.

 

[bendingoak]

The liner are now sewn in. They used to be glued in but that is changed. The liners are just plane white.

 

[jlee562]

They're plain white to match the on-screen Indy IV hat (the hat from the last scene at the wedding was actually a stuntman's hat as it had a gold liner)

 

[Ian]

Hi all. Just finished with bashing and tweaking my new Henry. Although for me bashing is an ongoing process. So, for now, I've finished.

I had to use some water mist on this to hold the bash because the felt is so soft that without water it just wouldn't hold at all.

Really pleased with this lid, the quality is amazing and I love the proportions. Just a note, that in my size, 59cm, it seems to run a little big, more like a 59.5 or even a 60.

Ian

 

[gtdean48]

You have too many http's in your links.
How about a photo of the inside to show liner & sweatband, please?

 

[bendingoak]

Here's photo's for you

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=90490&id=94550378449
http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=90491&id=94550378449


I hope to add some grey Henry's as well.

 

[Ian]

Pics of the liner, sweat and bow.

Ian

 

[Ian]

Thanks for the info Harry, it's appreciated. One more question of you (being a Henry owner yourself) - is the liner sewn in or glued in? And are there any marking on the liner? I heard somewhere that it's just plain white.

I guess mine is from an old batch before they started to sew the liner in - Not a problem, but it is glued in.

Comparing it to the Fed IV deluxe, the felt is way softer and is pounced finer. From the feel of it you would expect it to be more delecate than the fed IV deluxe, but I guess the beaver would see that theory off.

At the moment, I still want to 'baby' it, probably because it's new - I was like this with the Fed IV deluxe at first, but now I know it can take the abuse. I guess it'll be like that with the Henry.

The bash is taking hold nicely now and doesn't come out when I pick it up. Now, I just need to either try to shrink the sweat or put pads in it (Don't really like doing that).

Ian

 

[crittermedic]

Magnoli HJ fedora

Steve Delk used to do the Magnoli HJs, but he recently quit, not sure who is working on them now.

The Henry was in planning stages and was released right around the time of the premiere of the movie, slightly afterwards perhaps. I'm not sure of the chronology and how that fits with when the Fed IV was introduced. But the Fed IV was a vintage block, not a redesign per se.

I just received my Magnoli HJ fedora a few days ago (March 10, 2010). It was mailed to me from Steve Delk.
Steve hand wrote on the reverse of the leather band to say it was reblocked on his 'Raiders' block, by him, and signed it.
You have to turn the band down to see his inscription on the back of the leather band.
If you have one, or come across a Magnoli HJ, turn the band down and check the reverse.

 

[Tone]

Hey, let's have a look at what the Magnoli looks like off the Raiders specs - er, block.

Now, does the FED IV offer options to spec it like the Henry, Magnoli, and Todd's proportions, too, or are you stuck with the shorter 2 3/4" X 2 1/2" brim that had been advised for its particular crown height?

 

[crittermedic]

Although Steve re-blocked it on his Raiders block, mine is styled like the 'Kingdom Of The Crystal Skull' Indy hat.
I love the hat and am not fussed whether it's 'Raiders' or 'skulls' style. I think both hats are great.

As long as it's got that typical tall, boxy '30's style.

 

[Tone]

Missed that part. What does the Magnoli look like before the "reblock", exactly?

 

[jlee562]

Missed that part. What does the Magnoli look like before the "reblock", exactly?

A current Herbert Johnson Poet or Christy's Adventurer (Steve has said that both are basically the same hat).

 

[Tone]

lol Seriously. What's the real difference between these? That's funny, though. But what are they doing for any real difference among them? We're talking about jacking the price up a whole $250.00 here!

 

[jlee562]

lol Seriously. What's the real difference between these? That's funny, though. But what are they doing for any real difference among them? We're talking about jacking the price up a whole $250.00 here!

Well, they have a different felt, they're blocked on Steve's block, repounced, and the ribbon work redone, AFIAK.

From COW, Steve says:

Indy Mag and I finally got that new felt in from HJ yesterday. This new felt will solve the quality issues I have had with their other felt. The new felt appears to be the same thickness as the Raiders felt, and is a much more stable felt. I am impressed with it. It doesn't shrink like crazy when you hit it with heat or steam, and has more meat than what HJ has been putting out in the last few years. I absolutely love it. It is more expensive for him to buy, but worth every cent. Heads above their regular offering. I can finally feel really good about these HJs I do for Indy. It's the best rabbit felt I have seen since I sold my last vintage HJ. His customers will be very surprised, and very happy. Fedora