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The Official Stetson 25 Thread

suitedcboy

One Too Many
Messages
1,348
Location
Fort Worth Texas or thereabouts
Felt beaver content is one of the most consistently inconsistent grading systems I've ever run across. The variables of where on the beaver's body the fur is sourced, shellac content, mercury and non mercury felting, and pouncing and you have quite a mess. I'm only referring to the first half of the twentieth century too. The other factor affecting this is the effects of age and on the felt. I can't recall having anyone in the 80s or 90s speak to what some of the high end hats, 7x and 100s, etc. were like as new hats compared to how well kept example's felt feels today.
 

wsmontana

Practically Family
Messages
522
Location
Montana
Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

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Rmccamey

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,905
Location
Central Texas
A Twenty Five OR is a mighty special hat. Congrats.

Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

View attachment 559420 View attachment 559421 View attachment 559422 View attachment 559423 View attachment 559424 View attachment 559425
 

Rmccamey

I'll Lock Up
Messages
5,905
Location
Central Texas
A Twenty Five OR is a mighty special hat. Congrats.

Here is a recent find of a 1950’s Twenty-Five OR with a 2 5/8” brim and 6” open crown. It is in great condition except for a few popped stitches on the sweatband (which I made worse by digging behind … argh!). The felt is great but not as moldable as the 40’s hat I posted earlier. There is also no labelling of Beaver content like on the 40’s hat.

View attachment 559420 View attachment 559421 View attachment 559422 View attachment 559423 View attachment 559424 View attachment 559425
 

DaveProc

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,147
Location
Rhode Island
Just got my first 25 OR. Looking at another. This one needs a good bash but I haven't decided on cattleman (OR Style) or a teardrop. It appears to be from the 40-50s judging by the size tag. The brim is also 3.25, wider than the standard OR 2.75. View attachment 654053 View attachment 654054
Can you provide pics of the inventory tag behind the sweatband, it should help identifying approximately when it was made
 

Weatherman

Familiar Face
Messages
69
Location
georgia
No inventory tag. But, note that the liner is held in place with stitching and some type of paper tape.
The type of size tag in this hat according to information I was able to find online started in the 30s and lasted approximately to the 60s although they were already using a tan and black tag by the '50s.

https://publiusforum1.wpenginepower...-on-fedora-sweatbands-and-fedora-dating-tips/
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Can you provide pics of the inventory tag behind the sweatband, it should help identifying approximately when it was made
 

DaveProc

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,147
Location
Rhode Island
No inventory tag. But, note that the liner is held in place with stitching and some type of paper tape.
The type of size tag in this hat according to information I was able to find online started in the 30s and lasted approximately to the 60s although they were already using a tan and black tag by the '50s.

https://publiusforum1.wpenginepower...-on-fedora-sweatbands-and-fedora-dating-tips/
View attachment 654063 View attachment 654064
Looking at the tip and liner I suspected the hat was later the the 1940s and possibly late 1950s or 1960s which the same Publius Forum site confirmed
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Weatherman

Familiar Face
Messages
69
Location
georgia
Looking at the tip and liner I suspected the hat was later the the 1940s and possibly late 1950s or 1960s which the same Publius Forum site confirmed
View attachment 654067
I don't believe so. If you look closely at the information on that page they're showing the wrong picture, a picture of a black and tan tag while describing only a tan tag with black ink which they say "By the 1930s, Stetson went with a manila card stock with only black ink printed on it. This one lasted until 1960."
while their information says the tag lasted to the '60s, Stetson was clearly using other tags starting in the fifties, the black and tan with only the partial size and then later on the black and tan with the full size and in the 60s they went to the black tag with the gold lettering.
 

DaveProc

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,147
Location
Rhode Island
I don't believe so. If you look closely at the information on that page they're showing the wrong picture, a picture of a black and tan tag while describing only a tan tag with black ink which they say "By the 1930s, Stetson went with a manila card stock with only black ink printed on it. This one lasted until 1960."
while their information says the tag lasted to the '60s, Stetson was clearly using other tags starting in the fifties, the black and tan with only the partial size and then later on the black and tan with the full size and in the 60s they went to the black tag with the gold lettering.
The long oval tags don't follow the "rules" as the regular tags.
Somewhere on this site it is discussed in depth.
 

Weatherman

Familiar Face
Messages
69
Location
georgia
That's going to be a late 50's hat at the earliest, if not early 60's or so. It's absolutely not from the 40's.
I would agree with the mid to late fifties but I'm fairly certain that by the 60s they had already changed to the square tag that was black with gold numbers. I also have not been able to find any information as to how long they made the 25. The original creation of the 25 was because it was made of Superior Products and sold for $25 when other hats of the era were selling for 10 dollars. I'm still researching past articles and posts on this page as well as others but there seems to be a lot of conflicting information. Either way it's obviously made of Premium materials and the sweatband is thick and supple as opposed to the sweat bands they started making in the late 60s and early '70s out of cheaper, thinner leather. Here's a royal Stetson that I also just purchased that I'm not sure about the age but I know is quite vintage. There's no plastic in the top of the liner that I believe started going into those hats in the '50s and '60s because of the hair gel that guys wore at the time and the liner points to the 40s or so from what I can tell.
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MikeinRome

One Too Many
Messages
1,029
I would agree with the mid to late fifties but I'm fairly certain that by the 60s they had already changed to the square tag that was black with gold numbers. I also have not been able to find any information as to how long they made the 25. The original creation of the 25 was because it was made of Superior Products and sold for $25 when other hats of the era were selling for 10 dollars. I'm still researching past articles and posts on this page as well as others but there seems to be a lot of conflicting information. Either way it's obviously made of Premium materials and the sweatband is thick and supple as opposed to the sweat bands they started making in the late 60s and early '70s out of cheaper, thinner leather. Here's a royal Stetson that I also just purchased that I'm not sure about the age but I know is quite vintage. There's no plastic in the top of the liner that I believe started going into those hats in the '50s and '60s because of the hair gel that guys wore at the time and the liner points to the 40s or so from what I can tell. View attachment 654083 View attachment 654084
You're fighting a losing battle. I've seen at least a couple of dated or documented Stetsons from the early 60's that have the keyhole tags instead of black square tags. Not going to waste time on this subject. That second hat of yours is interesting. What paper tags are behind the sweatband? I'd estimate that heavy plastic on the liner started by 1955, if not a couple of years before.
 
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