I love those old Harley riders caps. So I was rather pleased to find Freddies of Pinewood selling replicas of the iconic hat that Marlon Brando wore in The Wild One.
I saw these at the War and Peace show a couple of years back, bought one, yes I tried it on but they did not have a mirror at that time.
£50 for this hat is to say it is a little over the top
When I tried it on in front of a mirror at home the hat had no real substance. This may have been due to the liner being too small but also no reinforcement as the Harley Davidson caps have.
Crown is made from cotton, peak is a shiny plastic edged correctly, sweat bad is synthetic leather look.
I have spent ages pulling the crown cover into shape but it will not stay like this for long. In the pictures I have added a wire loop as found in old service caps but the hat will still not retain a decent shape for long.
Here are a few pics.
Brando's hat in 'The Wild One does not appear to be a Harley Davidson cap but more reminiscent of a California Highway patrol cap from the era.
Placed directly on head:-
After a little pulling into shape:-
The side view is not bad and resembles old US Police forces crush caps:-
Not the greatest pics but the best I could do.
So to sum it up:
The metal band is cheap looking, the crown cover sags and in no way resembles the cap as featured in the film. If I had bought it on eBay I would ask for a refund.
Good on Freddies for attempting this at a reasonable cost and it is reasonably well made, but please assess and maybe a re design is in order as I would have paid more for something better.
Seeya, J
I saw these at the War and Peace show a couple of years back, bought one, yes I tried it on but they did not have a mirror at that time.
£50 for this hat is to say it is a little over the top
When I tried it on in front of a mirror at home the hat had no real substance. This may have been due to the liner being too small but also no reinforcement as the Harley Davidson caps have. Crown is made from cotton, peak is a shiny plastic edged correctly, sweat bad is synthetic leather look.
I have spent ages pulling the crown cover into shape but it will not stay like this for long. In the pictures I have added a wire loop as found in old service caps but the hat will still not retain a decent shape for long.
Here are a few pics.
Brando's hat in 'The Wild One does not appear to be a Harley Davidson cap but more reminiscent of a California Highway patrol cap from the era.
Placed directly on head:-
After a little pulling into shape:-
The side view is not bad and resembles old US Police forces crush caps:-
Not the greatest pics but the best I could do.
So to sum it up:
The metal band is cheap looking, the crown cover sags and in no way resembles the cap as featured in the film. If I had bought it on eBay I would ask for a refund.
Good on Freddies for attempting this at a reasonable cost and it is reasonably well made, but please assess and maybe a re design is in order as I would have paid more for something better.
Seeya, J
Last edited:
