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Gibson Hat Company

Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
Art Fawcett introduced David Gibson a few months back. David has been doing most of the repair and refurbishment work at Vintage Silhouette (VS) Hats for some time. In addition, David has a a shop of his own and has been making complete hats for quite a while. With Art retiring, VS has requested that all new build and repair work go to David.

I’ve spoken with David on some of my rebuild work in the past and he’s been an easy guy to work with.

David is currently working on two projects for me: I’m having a black Borsalino originally made for the religious market remade into an OR style hat. My second is a hare hat body sourced from Agnoulita that Panos gifted me; this will be a complete build from scratch. I think David’s normal completion times run about 2-3 months, but as he’s transitioning during Art’s retirement his lead times are a bit longer. As time goes on I hope to have a better feel for what David offers and what materials he has access to. I hope that he’s able to continue the special felt colors that VS occasionally had, and I hope his grosgrain offerings are extensive. I also hope he develops a website sometime soon.

David is also on my short list for making me a nutria hat, but I want to wait until I see how the hare hat turns out.


David Gibson
D Gibson Custom Hats
PO Box 52
Eagle Point, OR 97524
(541) 778-6081

Davidgibso@gmail.com


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Héctor Fernández

One Too Many
Messages
1,267
Location
Greatest Country, U.S.A.
Art Fawcett introduced David Gibson a few months back. David has been doing most of the repair and refurbishment work at Vintage Silhouette (VS) Hats for some time. In addition, David has a a shop of his own and has been making complete hats for quite a while. With Art retiring, VS has requested that all new build and repair work go to David.

I’ve spoken with David on some of my rebuild work in the past and he’s been an easy guy to work with.

David is currently working on two projects for me: I’m having a black Borsalino originally made for the religious market remade into an OR style hat. My second is a hare hat body sourced from Agnoulita that Panos gifted me; this will be a complete build from scratch. I think David’s normal completion times run about 2-3 months, but as he’s transitioning during Art’s retirement his lead times are a bit longer. As time goes on I hope to have a better feel for what David offers and what materials he has access to. I hope that he’s able to continue the special felt colors that VS occasionally had, and I hope his grosgrain offerings are extensive. I also hope he develops a website sometime soon.

David is also on my short list for making me a nutria hat, but I want to wait until I see how the hare hat turns out.


David Gibson
D Gibson Custom Hats
PO Box 52
Eagle Point, OR 97524
(541) 778-6081

Davidgibso@gmail.com


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
He's currently working on a repair of mine and I can say he has been a really nice gent throughout.

I also want him to make something for me, I just don't know what yet.

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drmaxtejeda

I'll Lock Up
Messages
8,329
Location
Mexico City
Art Fawcett introduced David Gibson a few months back. David has been doing most of the repair and refurbishment work at Vintage Silhouette (VS) Hats for some time. In addition, David has a a shop of his own and has been making complete hats for quite a while. With Art retiring, VS has requested that all new build and repair work go to David.

I’ve spoken with David on some of my rebuild work in the past and he’s been an easy guy to work with.

David is currently working on two projects for me: I’m having a black Borsalino originally made for the religious market remade into an OR style hat. My second is a hare hat body sourced from Agnoulita that Panos gifted me; this will be a complete build from scratch. I think David’s normal completion times run about 2-3 months, but as he’s transitioning during Art’s retirement his lead times are a bit longer. As time goes on I hope to have a better feel for what David offers and what materials he has access to. I hope that he’s able to continue the special felt colors that VS occasionally had, and I hope his grosgrain offerings are extensive. I also hope he develops a website sometime soon.

David is also on my short list for making me a nutria hat, but I want to wait until I see how the hare hat turns out.


David Gibson
D Gibson Custom Hats
PO Box 52
Eagle Point, OR 97524
(541) 778-6081

Davidgibso@gmail.com


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro
How typical of you to help others, Brent.
I spoke to Dave on the phone once and I really liked him.

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Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
Is he building and branding his own hats yet? Getting a Gibson first year hat would be nice!


My understanding is that he has been making hats under his own name for years as well as helping with repair and refurbishment work at VS. I seem to recall that he also has extensive experience with western hats.

I’m not sure if he’s taking over VS or not. I know it was talked about at one point, but David has a lot of his own tooling and a clientele base under his own name. The last I heard from Art, the entity that was going to buy him out couldn’t come up with financing so I really don’t know what’s going to happen with VS.

I’ve had a dozen or more hats refurbished by VS and Art told me that David did all the work. The quality has always been top rate so I don’t have any concerns about having David making hats for me.


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Tukwila

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,382
Location
SW of Antifa Central (PDX)
I met David when we visited Art's Medford, OR, shop in 2016. While perusing hats on the shelf for sale, without exception, every one I picked up or commented on was followed by Art telling me, "Oh, David made that one." I can tell you David does good work, and puts out a fine hat.
 
Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
As I recall, all the the Off the Rack hats sold at VS were made by David. He also makes hats for another shop. No doubt that he knows how to put together a fine hat.


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Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
I was referring to the specific hats VS had on its web site listed as “Off the Rack,” which consisted of only felt hats. I’ve never been to the shop, did they stock milan ready made hats? I wonder what is to become of all the inventory....


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Tukwila

My Mail is Forwarded Here
Messages
3,382
Location
SW of Antifa Central (PDX)
I was referring to the specific hats VS had on its web site listed as “Off the Rack,” which consisted of only felt hats. I’ve never been to the shop, did they stock milan ready made hats? I wonder what is to become of all the inventory....


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I was there in 2016 and there were a couple Milans there for sale.
 

Mason Rudesheim

New in Town
Messages
28
Location
Medford, Oregon
As I recall, all the the Off the Rack hats sold at VS were made by David. He also makes hats for another shop. No doubt that he knows how to put together a fine hat.
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I interned at VS since summer of 2017. The process for the off the rack dove and chocolate hats was that Art would block the felts and then hand them off to me to finish them off (sweatbands, ribbon, etc.) so that I could learn the ins and outs of hatmaking. Art worked on the custom orders, David on refurbishments, and I got the off-the-rack hats and whatever was left over. This is of course not to take away from David's craftsmanship or to divert the conversation, just a small correction.
 
Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
I interned at VS since summer of 2017. The process for the off the rack dove and chocolate hats was that Art would block the felts and then hand them off to me to finish them off (sweatbands, ribbon, etc.) so that I could learn the ins and outs of hatmaking. Art worked on the custom orders, David on refurbishments, and I got the off-the-rack hats and whatever was left over. This is of course not to take away from David's craftsmanship or to divert the conversation, just a small correction.

Thanks for adding to the discussion. I guess this thread is sort of moot since David ended up taking over VS.

Do you know who continued making the Off the Rack (OTR) hats after the summer of 2017? I did go back and find that Art said the OTR hats were a collaboration between him and you, but I guess I thought David took it up after you left.

Are you still making hats? If so, we’d love to see your work.
 

Mason Rudesheim

New in Town
Messages
28
Location
Medford, Oregon
Thanks for adding to the discussion. I guess this thread is sort of moot since David ended up taking over VS.

Do you know who continued making the Off the Rack (OTR) hats after the summer of 2017? I did go back and find that Art said the OTR hats were a collaboration between him and you, but I guess I thought David took it up after you left.

Are you still making hats? If so, we’d love to see your work.

Maybe I worded my response poorly, I started in summer of 2017 and I continued until Art retired, so I worked on all of the off the rack hats (and occasionally some renovations when there were no more otr hats to work on). I live in Medford and am currently going to university. Unfortunately, I don't have any of the materials to make my own hats, just the skills. However, since I still live just a town over from the hat shop in Central Point I'll see if I can work with David or help him out. Who knows?
 
Messages
18,937
Location
Central California
Maybe I worded my response poorly, I started in summer of 2017 and I continued until Art retired, so I worked on all of the off the rack hats (and occasionally some renovations when there were no more otr hats to work on). I live in Medford and am currently going to university. Unfortunately, I don't have any of the materials to make my own hats, just the skills. However, since I still live just a town over from the hat shop in Central Point I'll see if I can work with David or help him out. Who knows?

Alright, I have to ask: why didn’t you offer the dove grey OTR hats with the same dimensions as the chocolate brown? I wanted the taller crown and wider brim in dove, but Art said that was only available in the brown.
 

Mason Rudesheim

New in Town
Messages
28
Location
Medford, Oregon
Alright, I have to ask: why didn’t you offer the dove grey OTR hats with the same dimensions as the chocolate brown? I wanted the taller crown and wider brim in dove, but Art said that was only available in the brown.

To be honest, I have no idea. If I had to guess it would either be due to irregularities with the dove hat bodies from the supplier, or just a design choice. Art had a lot of problems with the color of that felt in the past year or so. If it was just a design choice, then you kinda just have to stick with it; it's important that an otr line of clothes/hats all have the same dimensions or proportions. I didn't have much of a say in the design of the hats, I just built them for the most part.
 

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