Akubra Overload

A hat stretcher is an inexpensive hat accessory that you may wish to have on hand. Since this is your first hat, it may be necessary for this or all your following hats.

 

Have you brought this situation to the seller? What is their response?

 

I really like this hat!!

 

Not yet, it was purchased from Everything Australian. They also didn't send foam spacers like David Morgan and Hats by the Hundred, which I had expected.

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I've ordered three hats from EA,and never received the foam either. They might if you asked, I don't know.

Sent directly from my mind to yours.

 

I was thinking more about your situation. Have you thought about measuring the hat for size to have an objective basis for any complaint?

 

Same here; have always bout my correct size with no problems.

 

Akubra "The Outback". This is a hat I have never seen before. (Not to be confused with the "akubra outback club"). I have found it for sale only in Germany (sold by some Australians there, super nice people to converse with). If someone knows of anyone else who sells it, please let me know. It is sold on Ebay by: the-australian-way.de They also have their own website under the same name. Description: Rabbit fur, sweatband, leather hatband, liner, bound brim, this color: Regency Fawn, Brim 2 5/8, Moderate Crown 4" and 4 1/2", medium pounce, 6.5 oz. True to size 57. Adorned with a real Australian Opal nicely attached (I value it at only around $20 because there is no Fire), and a perfectly positioned Akubra pin. I have included a comparison of this hat with an Akubra Regency Fawn International (It got splashed by a salt-water whale) and a Borsalino Marco Casual Crusher in Grey. Also it is compared to a Borsalino Marco in Lite Brown (last pic). This hat only becomes Fawn colored when it is exposed to sunlight, otherwise it is an appealing Carbon Grey Steel with a very slight hint of green indoors, in my opinion. I am very impressed with the quality of this off-the-shelf stock hat which is made of a heavier felt. At $220 +$34 shipping, it is an awesome hat. I really like it.


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Received the hat and it the correct size for me. Now I learn that my head shape is a long oval. Since this is my first sized hat it is news to me. Hat stretcher is already ordered and on the way.

 

Glad to hear it. Buying any kind of clothing over the internet forces you to find out your exact measurements in a way you never had to when you could just try things on, and it's also forced me to acquire tools I never needed before: I now have, in addition to my hat stretcher, a pants' waistband stretcher to use when washing jeans that I don't want to shrink or if I've gained an inch around the middle. Anyway, now that you know your hat size You're all set. Enjoy your hats.

 

That was my experience too, I suggest steam as you pull the length into it, and don't be discouraged if the brim gets distorted. Use steam and work the brim into shape, you'll see how as you go. I didn't use a stretcher, just held it over a large pot with a little boiling water in it, bathed it in steam while pulling front and back. Maybe the stretcher will work better than pulling the shape into it.

 

20190202Akubra Stylemaster by Mark70 posted Feb 3, 2019 at 12:19 PM

This Thursday my carbon grey Stylemaster in 59 arrived from Australian Gear. Still breaking it in, so far have no complaints. Did remove the feather.

 

Received my new hat stretcher. With some help from a very patient John at David Morgan got my hat to fit my long oval noggin. Love the hat. So does my wife. In fact, she likes it so much that she wants her own Akubra. Trouble is she wants the Leisure Time. David Morgan does not appear to stock it. What is the best way to get one of these? That is, what vendor can you recommend?

 

Everything Australian would normally be my first choice. I've received excellent service from them, and even including shipping costs their prices are usually lower than every other vendor. The downside is that if they don't have the hat (in the size and color) you want in stock they'll have to order it from Akubra, and your wife might have to wait two to three months while Akubra makes her hat.

My second choice would normally be Hats Direct/The Hattery. Their prices are usually quite a bit higher than E.A.'s, but at the moment the price difference on the hat your wife wants is only $4-$5 (taking the exchange rate into consideration). I've received excellent service from them as well and they almost always have full stock of the hats listed on their website, so your wife wouldn't have to wait nearly as long.

That said, between the two at the moment I'd go with Hats Direct. Odds are they'll have the hat in stock and can ship it immediately (within 24 hours, that is) and, based on my experience, you should receive it in 7 days or less.

One thing to keep in mind--Australia Post doesn't work on Saturday and/or Sunday, and there's quite a time difference between Australia and the U.S.. So if you place your order with either of those vendors later than mid-day Thursday shipping will take two extra days.

 

Reading previous comments about others transactions with Australian Gear, I was a bit reluctant to purchase from them but in the end did and had no problem with my recent purchase. Total time from ordering to receiving was 12 days.

I'll throw in the caveat that if the hat in the size you want is in stock, this is about right in terms of order to receive time. If it isn't, that's when you'll experience the long wait times. They explicitly tell you this on their pages that they send custom/out of stock orders in to Akubra monthly around the middle of the month.

I went with them because I was able to save about $30 on the Stylemaster I wanted and was fine if for some reason the wait ended up being 3 months.

 

I only used Hats Direct for my very first Akubra purchase, a Federation III over 15 years ago. (I have nothing against them - I always recommend them - but they are indeed typically more expensive than others.) Most of my other Akburas have come from Everything Australian, with a good buying experience at Aussie Bush Hats & Oilskins, and a terrible one at Hats By The Hundred. I've had to do the three-month wait a couple of times for a particular style/color... and I've tried to do it in the off-season for wearing the hat anyway

I got my Leisure Time (in Regency Fawn) from Everything Australian last spring: at that time, it was under a hundred bucks shipped, and being a stocked color, it arrived in about a week. As others have said, Sam is definitely a mensch!

 

Fed IV earlier this week

 

After each 3 week delay we were told that there was another 3 week delay. After the latest one and being told that they may only have the hat in hand mid March we cancelled the order and received a refund. For an extra USD20 (including hat, chin strap and shipping) we placed the order with the Hattery who have the hat in stock.

 

Fed IV today, this one has a c-crown. If it's wrong that I have multiples of the same hat, same color, different bashes, I don't want to be right!