8 1/2 Mallory has arrived

[big kahuna]

The size 8 1/2 Mallory arrived today...Thanks, Dinerman, for offering it to me.:cool2:

Here's a pic:

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Sure fits me better than how it fit Dinerman: http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=17021&page=2

The hat is just a tad big, and the sweat band, although it looks ok, is very thin and frail, and has come detatched. I'm gonna have the sweat band replaced and "thickened" to give a bit more snug of a fit.

As reported, the hat body is in good shape...can use a bit of cleaning but the binding is in remarkably good shape for its age.

Lastly, lets here from you out there about the brim. I think that when I have it refurbed I'll keep it as a homburg...waddya think??

 

[Chanfan]

Lookin' good!

 

[feltfan]

Lastly, lets here from you out there about the brim. I think that when I have it refurbed I'll keep it as a homburg...waddya think??

Sorry to hear you have to replace the sweatband.
It had some cool writing on it.

What do you mean "keep it as a homburg".
It's a fedora now, right? You gonna have
it rolled back into a homburg brim?

Definitely a good hat for you, BTW.

 

[Dinerman]

I'm glad it worked out for you.

 

[PADDY]

It looks good on you!

Works for you, which is what you want.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

Make sure you retrieve the sweatband from whoever does the work on it. those things are cool to have around - if only to prove that it is indeed a vintage Mallory in 8 1/2. I'm still in shock.

bk

 

[GentlemanFarmer]

I think you should play with the brim. Snap the front brim down and see how you look.

 

[big kahuna]

Da Brim

Hey Gentlemanfarmer:

I did snap the brim down...however, the sheer height of the crown (approx. 7 inches) and 2 1/2 wide brim, the fedora style-brim really gives that hat a disproportional look. Oddly enough, with the brim flipped up , the hat has a better proportion (and when the curl is returned, it will look even more "balanced").

I will ask whomever fixes the sweatband to save the band...the paper tickets under the brand that indicate that it is union made and indicate size are in remarkably great shape, as is the gold embossing on the sweatband...I don't think the hat was worn much, and the dirt on the hat is mainly from sitting around for 70 years or so.

Thanks again, Dinerman..:eusa_clap

 

[Marc Chevalier]

It looks great, Big Kahuna! You are one of the very few men today who has a vintage, top quality 1930s Mallory in your size. That hat is a diamond. Enjoy!

.

 

[Stoney]

Look great indeed. It's a shame modern hat manufacturers do not make larger hats like this since there seems to be many folks these days who require one.

 

[Mr. Lucky]

As a 7 3/4 myself, I congratulate you! Great hat! Oh, and brim UP! Brim up!

 

[big kahuna]

Stoney, you are right..

I come from somewhat big people, however, when growing up, I was WAY bigger than my peers, and larger-sized stuff was hard to find. However, there are a lot of "youngsters" coming up that are big, due to better nutrition, etc, and they too will someday want to wear a nice quality hat that fits.

Any of you that are "big 'n tall" can remember when it was hard to find shoes bigger than 12 or 13, or 2x or larger size clothes. Now, big sizes are more prevalent,however, this does not seem to be true for hats. Sure, you can find custom makers that can make a bucket size brim (especially western hat makers), but there are few entry-level hats there in big sizes. Dorfman-Pacific does make the "official-last-crusade-Indy-100%-fur-hat" in 2x that fits my 8 1/8 head (and some other inexpensive straw and canvas models), but choices are slim.

I have a 600 wpi monticristi panama ...tall crown, wide brimmed, and is truly a thing of beauty and will last my lifetime. However, I am blessed to be in a position wherein I can have a hat of that size and quality made (at age 25 or perhaps 35, I would not have even considered spending this amount of money for a hat). Although the hat was purchased due to doctor's orders (it's receipt kindled my interest in hats), I went the custom route because the only straw hats I could find big enough were $10 cheapies usually worn by agricultural workers.

To put it plainly, there is a dearth of large-sized relatively inexpensive hats out there.

So..I hope there are some hat manufacturers out there that are listening and that will think about making "off the shelf" hats for the larger sized-folks.

 

[DOUGLAS]

Damn, that hat looks great on you!! Definitely a gem of a hat. You are a lucky man to have a VINTAGE in your size. Congrats Man:eusa_clap

 

[Mr. 'H']

That is a cooool look. I'm glad you have that hat.