GOOD JOB AKUBRA!

[RBH]

My Federation was stiff, but with a little working of the felt is now quite soft.
I am sure with time it will get even softer.

 

[Shaul-Ike Cohen]

Denatured Alcohol will remove the stiffner from your hats...

Without dissolving the dye?

 

[Jerekson]

I sat on my Akubra, crumpled it into a ball, smacked it against the wall, and beat it with a small novelty baseball bat. Nice and soft now.

It's an Akubra; it can handle it.

 

[czack]

Akubra rocks.

Nuff said.

 

[Jerekson]

Nuff said.

Quoted for emphasis.

 

[SHARPETOYS]

Without dissolving the dye?

Yes...It won't hurt a Akubra....

 

[MattC]

Good Point Dumbjaw

I was saying not to generalize about modern Borsalinos, and then did it about Akubras myself.

 

[Atomic Glee]

Akubras are fine hats, but the felt is not really top drawer; it is rough, and they load it up with stiffener.

Actually, it depends. My brown Federaton is stiff (though gets better every time I wear it), my Campdraft only moderately so and getting better. My grey Federation, though, is very soft.

 

[Matt Deckard]

Okay I know youse all want to break out the meat pies with all the Akubras youse blokes are talking up but (forget price) are they better per se than a modern Borsa? Please advise.

yes

 

[Bebop]

I love the "I LOVE AKUBRA" threads! I have a Fedora, Federation, Banjo Patterson, Lightning Ridge, and a Squatter. They all seem to wear comfortably and I can't seem to wear them out. They are simple and well made. I had not heard of Akubra until I joined the Lounge. Another reason I am glad I logged on a while back.
I can't understand why other hat companies don't follow Akubra's method.

 

[John in Covina]

For the Money.

For the money they are tough to beat in New. I have a dark brown Bushman and the blue/green/grey Squatter and they are a joy to wear. I bought both from David Morgan at the end of December 2006 and I wear them frequently just about daily. At this time the stiffness is slowly softening up and the two hats are aquiring a good shape.

I'd like to get a fawn Campdraft and a brown Fedration Deluxe to add as much welcomed additions to the collection.

Yes, Akubra Hats do Rock!

 

[tonyb]

Akubra hats are good quality hats. The problem is they signed a contract with a certain distributor who has also become a retailer. Thats the days we dropped the entire line. I still get plenty of calls for them and I recommend "Hats Direct" for the hats. They can be bought less expensive online than buying one here in the US.

That goes some way toward explaining why I never see new Akubras in stores.
Judging by the photos I've seen posted here, Akubra makes a better-looking hat than the other large manufacturers do, which is to say their stylings more resemble the "Golden Era" look that I prefer. Too bad I can't drop into the local hat store and try one on, eh?
Mail order (and now online retailing, which is but an update on the same thing) is fine in its own way, but people still like to handle the merchandise, to try it on for size, before they buy. What looks good in a picture doesn't necessarily look good on the buyer, and vice versa. If I'm taking a chance on purchasing a hat I've never held in my hands, I'll go for something vintage. It'll likely be higher quality than an Akubra, much more collectible than an Akubra, and generally more desirable (to me, anyway) than an Akubra. And it'll cost me less.

 

[Atomic Glee]

If I'm taking a chance on purchasing a hat I've never held in my hands, I'll go for something vintage. It'll likely be higher quality than an Akubra, much more collectible than an Akubra, and generally more desirable (to me, anyway) than an Akubra. And it'll cost me less.

That doesn't work for people with 7 7/8 somewhat Long Oval heads like me - a vintage hat that size usually goes for the price of a small car, it seems.

 

[tonyb]

Yeah, I can see how that might present a challenge. I've let many a vintage hat get away because I feared I couldn't make 'em fit even my relatively modest sized noggin without regretting it. Plain truth of it is, guys were smaller on average 50 and 60 and 70 years ago, which leaves our larger contemporaries with precious little choice in vintage attire. I see these great old suits and whatnot that some of the guys here fit into just fine and I almost wanna cry, cuz I haven't been so short and slight since I was 11 years old.

 

[Kentucky Blues]

If it makes you feel any better, I'm too tall and too skinny to find any vintage suits that fit well... and the akubra brim is almost too wide on me anyway (though I still love the one I have with a hole in the crown)

 

[oddlots]

I don't necessarily have anything groundbreaking to add, but sign me up for the "Loves Akubra" list!

I recieved my first one in the mail today from a Lounger and it's amazing! It's very comfortable, great looking, and holds a bash a little easier than my vintage Stetson from the 'Bay.

 

[Slugwart]

Mail order (and now online retailing, which is but an update on the same thing) is fine in its own way, but people still like to handle the merchandise, to try it on for size, before they buy.

I think those of us in OZ who can physically get to Hats Direct physical store are spoilt. I got my Fed Delux there physically and having it professionally fitted made all the difference. I also have a Lawson which I ordered over the net and the fit is nowhere near as nice.

 

[carter]

I have to echo these responses.

I have a grey Federation that I bought from Matt on the Lounge. Fits great and I found it really easy to bash.

Now I'm looking forward to another style. Any suggestions?

 

[Benny Holiday]

I hope the folks at Akubra are getting fat and rich from selling tons and tons of hats, because they deserve it. I'm a Stylemaster fanatic, you all know that by now. It's got the look, the quality, and it sure has got the durability. Scorching sun, pouring rain, icy winds, my Akurbas handle them all and laugh them off.

My first hat, a black Stylemaster, is 12 and a half years old now, and looks brand new. I've got four vintage hats, which I wear cautiously, in fear of any mark or foul weather befalling them. They are like precious links to a Golden Age and are wearable history to me. So for everyday, rough-and-tubmle wear, with a vintage look and reliable toughness, I turn to the Akubras.

I'm extremely proud they're an Aussie company.

 

[Fast]

More Akubra Love

Read and read and read and read. Figured 6.5 in of crown was toooooo much. Wanted plenty of brim and figured to cut if it was a stupid mistake. Called Morgan Thursday and got the hat today, Monday.

It's a squatter. It's grey, moonstone, and in that just what I wanted. The crown is just stiff enough to stand up after you bash it, otherwise soft. The hat is just a tad big and will probably come down in a day of SoCal heat. The Ribbon snuggles right down against the brim.

The brim is a little stiff, but that's no problem.

The thing is unsurpassable. If I want something more formal, I'll get a hombourg.

Fast