High-priced felt

[ideaguy]

Did anyone catch the Whippet that sold on eBay for over $600.00??
Now that's just a bit much for a $10.00 lid. Wonder what that's
going to do the "market" for fedoras? Guy that sold it didn't seem
to be an expert in the business, just got lucky. We should all have
that kind of luck.

 

[fedoralover]

I saw it and posted about it in the Ebay thread. Absolutely insane! The Stetson Sovereign 20s are 3 times the quality of the Whippets and they never bring that kind of money. I have a gray Whippet in like new condition, if anyone wants it I'll cut you a real deal and sell it for $400.

fedoralover

 

[Florida_Marlin]

Had it on my watch list. Watched it go to the stratosphere. You never know.

 

[jlee562]

Conversely, I picked up a Stetson 100 for around $80, which was Stetson's top of the line hat. Crazy!

 

[m0nk]

And I've posted this in response to the $600 Whippet... I got a much nicer looking one for $41 on ebay. Right place, right time. You never know which way those things are going to go. I used to deal in antique books, and it was amazing how one week a first edition of any Hemingway could go for $1000, and the next it could go for $100. It's all timing...

So here's mine:

 

[Historyteach24]

im starting to worry vinage hats will be priced out of my budget soon.

 

[alanfgag]

Auction prices always escalate near the holidays. Good time to sell a few hats... then buy your whippet in February.

 

[m0nk]

I'll agree with that, it's holiday season, and auctions aren't the best way to get a deal when a lot of people are after the same thing. It's almost like buying a boat... this is actually a really good time of year to get a great deal on a used boat; not much competition, and if someone really wants to sell theirs, you can get it at a good price.

 

[Woodfluter]

Seems to me there's folks out there who are buying name recognition. They've heard of Whippet and seen the vintage celebrity ads, so they just gotta have one. I'm sure it's an OK hat but as others noted, there's better quality lids available for far less.

 

[tonyb]

... Crazy!

Yep.

But then, if you just gotta have a Whippet, at least you'd have something to show for your $600. I'm well acquainted with people who've been known to drop that much and more on wild nights on the town. I'm talkin' people who really can't afford such extravagance, at least not by my way of seeing things.

 

[tonyb]

im starting to worry vinage hats will be priced out of my budget soon.

We saw such prices pre-'08 crash. Since then, prices have generally been in what most of us would consider a more reasonable range. But even in up markets, good deals are to be had, provided you don't mind shopping around a bit more, and if you're willing to walk away.

 

[Mulceber]

We saw such prices pre-'08 crash.

Can I get a "knock on wood" please?

 

[John in Covina]

It's a case of more money than sense.

 

[countryclubjoe]

I'll agree with that, it's holiday season, and auctions aren't the best way to get a deal when a lot of people are after the same thing. It's almost like buying a boat... this is actually a really good time of year to get a great deal on a used boat; not much competition, and if someone really wants to sell theirs, you can get it at a good price.

Hi Folks
Hi Monk-- Very true. Same with convertible auto's, always shop for one in the winter months.
Best regards
CCJ

 

[fedorafiend]

Just wondering, but was that $600 Whippet more coveted because the name was on the sweatband rather than on the liner? was it an earlier version of the model? I just could not believe the price it sold at and am looking for possible reasons. I own three Whippets and am now thinking of selling two of them although they are all different colors.

 

[alanfgag]

It's tempting to draw market analysis from auction results, but at the end of the day, most unusually high prices result from a tango of two buyers tossing in an "I don't want to lose this" bid. That was the case in this auction.

Whether a whippet is nobler in the mind than in the hand is another matter.

 

[randooch]

Whether a whippet is nobler in the mind than in the hand is another matter.

And at this rate, I'll never get the chance to answer that.

 

[Walt]

It's tempting to draw market analysis from auction results, but at the end of the day, most unusually high prices result from a tango of two buyers tossing in an "I don't want to lose this" bid. That was the case in this auction.

I concur. I think the vast majority are also probably making the foolish calculation that surely no one else will bid crazy high so they will end up at most paying just a slightly high price or a few dollars over that. Once two people use that logic "kaboom" goes the price into the ultra-high range. Another thing which supports that theory is that most of these crazy high auctions with just two ultra high bidders is that the 3rd place bidder is substantially lower than 1 & 2.

Of course the only way to know for sure would be if it were possible to go back in time and rehold the auction with a live auctioneer where one has time to think "Do I really want to pay this much for this?" instead of an e-auction where the high bidding happens in seconds and the only way to increase the chance of winning to an extremely high probability is to bid crazy high. Another reason for that high bidding.

A lot more nice vintage hats could have been bought or even a couple of nice customs for that price with maybe money left over to buy at least a vintage as well!


I think I would have bidders remorse over paying so much for this. But then I don't have millions in the bank otherwise $600 might just be just a typical dinner for this high bidder!

 

[RBH]

..... I own three Whippets ......

If I had 3 Whippets...
I would soon have no Whippets.

 

[Historyteach24]

I would sell em with the quickness in this market evidently