At the Dog Track... The Whippets

[Spats McGee]

I've been AWOL from the Lounge for a while, but I have to stop in long enough to say that those are some great hats!

 

[BR Gordon]

Looks as though those Whippets may not be house broken, following then around with rolls of paper towels.

House broken or not, they're both beautiful.

 

[Blackthorn]

Those are good examples of why Whippets are still so popular.

 

[randooch]

Looks as though those Whippets may not be house broken, following then around with rolls of paper towels.

House broken or not, they're both beautiful.

lol

Good one, BR!

 

[bond]

Whippets from the 40-50s are amazing. I have had a few pass through my hands and the felts from those yrs of the 40-50s have nothing to
compare to. Borsalinos are different animals altogether and their felts are fine but much different in thickness and quality,where as the whippets
have much more heft to them. I still havent found a Bluegrass in 3/8 but Iam still searching.

 

[DJH]

Vic, I've been lucky enough to have a few good Whippets to pass through here, but I have to say, that black one is stunning.

 

[Dressedtothe9s]

Hi Everybody! I have been doing some research for a couple Borsalinos that I have and so I decided to go thru my other mens hats and learn a bit about them too. I have to say that I am a bit confused with the whole "whippet" thang...I have looked on this site, ebay, etc and so many of them seem SO different! Would someone like to enlighten me to the TRUE aspects of just what differintiates them from just a standard fedora? Thanks for any help, Bobbi

 

[randooch]

Bobbi, I know it's a somewhat daunting task, but reading through the 34 pages of this thread will probably enlighten you.

G'luck!

 

[danofarlington]

A Whippet is a vintage men's hat that mysteriously lures gullible men to lay out multiples of what the hat is actually worth to buy it. Whippets are a menace to a bank account.

 

[DJH]

Hi Bobbi, yes Randall is right - you'll see a ton of Whippet examples in this thread.

Basically, it is a regular fedora hat, made by Stetson. It started production in the 1930's and a version is still made today (Personally, I wouldn't buy one of the modern ones, but I know some people like them).

The Whippet is quite popular because it is a pretty solid design - crown nice and straight, about 5 1/2 or so inches high with a bound brim. The brim size has changed over the years, starting at about 2 5/8 (maybe even a little more) and getting to closer to 2 inches in the 60's.

The Whippets were at the low end of Stetson's quality and price hierarchy, and had the Royal Stetson designation (sounds grand, but was the low price mass market quality level). Along with the Stratoliner and Open Road, the Whippet is one of the best known and most sought after Stetson models among fedora enthusiasts.

People seem to be prepared to pay handsomely for all three models, especially the Whippets. For a larger size (7 3/8 and up) the prices at eBay reach surprisingly high levels. If you search on eBay, you'll see that people trying to sell similar hats from other brands (and other Stetson models) often try and get some Whippet cache, describing their hats as "Whippet style!"

I'm lucky in that I wear a smaller size so have been able to buy (and sell too) some of these hats for very sensible prices. Here are the ones I have at the moment, 2 of them were previously owned by fellow Lounge members.

 

[randooch]

Nicely explained, David. Yours are beauties!

(Dano, I'm currently the highest bidder on a nice one on Ebay, buy have no doubt that I'll lose the auction, which is okay. It would be far more thrilling to stumble upon a decent example in an antique shop someday, and for a happier price. I'm not gullible, but I do wish to own one of these iconic lids.)

 

[Rabbit]

Well said, David.

The Whippet is a standard Fedora if there ever was one. Most everyone looks good in a Whippet; the model had those well-balanced dimensions of 5.5" x 2 1/2" to 2 5/8" with 1 1/2" to 1 3/4" ribbon for most of the time until about mid-1950s.

The marketing strategy of Stetson - catching names for low-end models that are easy to say and hard to forget - worked very well...
Give me a nice Whippet and a no-name better quality 1930s-50s Fedora, and you can keep the Whippet.

 

[mikespens]

I was finally able to adopt my own healthy pooch courtesy of Robert who I thank deeply. Took a bit of a chance on the size, it's a 7 1/8 LO and I normally(?) wear a 7 1/4 and although snug I am extremely happy with it.

It's gray, not blue dang it. Not complaining though.

 

[alanfgag]

it's beautiful and a great color palette of felt/ribbon. Enjoy it!

 

[delectans]

Very nice, Mike. Congratulations!

 

[gtdean48]

... Took a bit of a chance on the size, it's a 7 1/8 LO and I normally(?) wear a 7 1/4 and although snug I am extremely happy with it....

A band block from Art would train that dog just right! I have 7 1/2 7X CB & 100 that mine keeps heeled.
Good Whippet!

 

[DJH]

Love it Mike (I would since I have its twin), great Whippet.

I'd second Tom's advice about getting a bandblock from Art. I use mine a lot to keep my hats fitting just right.

 

[mikespens]

Thanks Alan and Al, with your proven taste your comments are appreciated.

Tom and David, Thanks and I will take your advice and get a hold of Art for a bandblock to keep it tame.

 

[Purplesage]

I am new to the lounge. I have a Whippet for sale in the classifieds (see classifieds).
DLS

 

[Purplesage]

Don't think my last photo posted.