MILLARD HIRSCH, HATTER "Twenty=Five"

[delectans]

Another of my hats from a small Oregon hatter. Firm, substantial felt that is easily dry creased. Bound edge, with non-reeded sweat and taped rear seam, and proportions typical of of the '30s. Felt color is a light tan. Ribbon is beige with a peach undertone.


Crown: 6-1/4" open. 5-5/8" as currently creased.
Ribbon: 2".
Brim: 2-1/2", with 3/8" edge binding.
Sweatband: 2".

 

[Aureliano]

Beautiful crown on that one, Al!

 

[HatsEnough]

Love it. Beautiful hat.

I think I would have made a Twenty Four just to under cut my competition.

 

[alanfgag]

Gorgeous!

 

[The Wiser Hatter]

Nice tall crown with a real cup to the brim. Nice one.

 

[hatophile]

Great hat, Al, I really like the colors on that one.

 

[Short Balding Guy]

Al; The hat has a very elegant overall look. The colors are very good together. The crown and brim sweep are different from what I have seen posted up lately. Stately overall impression.

Good hat for a warmer fall day. Best, Eric -

 

[Joshbru3]

AMAZING!!!!! :eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap:eusa_clap

 

[zetwal]

Very nice ... :yo:

 

[delectans]

My sincere thanks to all, gentlemen, for your kind words!

Ale: The crown is certainly not stingy!


HatsEnough: Thanks, and I agree. $25 would have been a substantial chunk of change back in the day, and for the small hatters they must have felt absolutely confident in the quality of their product to not compete on price with the giants of Danbury.


Alan: :yo:


Ed: Thanks again, my friend!


Perry: Thanks! The colors are quite extraordinary, but not easy to capture with a camera.


Eric: I appreciate your comments, and hope we continue to have the great weather we have had here in Minnesota. I love the less harsh and wistful light of Autumn...makes for better pictures.


Josh: Thank you, I knew this lid would be right up your alley!


z: Thanks! :yo:

 

[HatsEnough]

By the way, what is that sort of dent, or line or crease, or whatever you want to call it, all around the crown? Was it stretched at one point.

 

[Dinerman]

Great looking hat. I've seen that type of sweatband, liner and "long oval" tag on small-shop made/labeled hats from the '50s. While stylistically yours is closer in style to a '30s hat, all the trimming (along with the fonts and price point) makes me think it was made in the very late 1940s or 1950s. The line looks like it's from another hat having been stored on top of it.

 

[delectans]

By the way, what is that sort of dent, or line or crease, or whatever you want to call it, all around the crown? Was it stretched at one point.

As far as I can tell, the mark around the crown was a result of the hat being improperly stored, with other hats placed on top of it, for a long period of time. The mark is most distinct at the front, fading to the rear, and is absent at the very back of the crown. I do not believe it has ever been stretched.

 

[delectans]

Great looking hat. I've seen that type of sweatband, liner and "long oval" tag on small-shop made/labeled hats from the '50s. While stylistically yours is closer in style to a '30s hat, all the trimming (along with the fonts and price point) makes me think it was made in the very late 1940s or 1950s. The line looks like it's from another hat having been stored on top of it.

Thanks for your feedback, D'man, and you beat me to the punch, but that is what I get for working on my replies while concurrently taking care of other tasks.

When I first received the hat I was somewhat puzzled by the anachronism in its style and construction. If not for the taped rear seam in the sweatband I would have unequivocally felt that a '40s-'50s attribution would be appropriate. The liner tip cover and, as you astutely noted, 'Long Oval' tag, are more characteristic of post '30s lids, which is why I was careful not to state that the hat dates to the '30s.

I am still a bit perplexed by why the sweatband rear seam would be taped, rather than sewn?

 

[Dinerman]

Some of those smaller shops hung onto old techniques and details way longer than the big factories. Unreeded sweats, pleated liners, old-style stamps, old- style blocking, taped sweatband seams. They hung onto what they knew, didn't modernize their equipment (blocks, tools, flanges) as often, etc.

I saw at an antique shop recently a clearly '60s hat from a small Philly shop, with 2" ribbon, 1-7/8" brim, short, tapered crown, with a 2" '20s style sweatband with '20s graphics on one side and '60s on the other, and an ornate '30s style liner.

 

[delectans]

Makes sense to me. The hatter probably retained their working methods, tools and equipment, and continued to make hats the way they had for decades, with a nod to the more modern advances deemed fitting and appropriate.

I apologize if this has been discussed elsewhere previously, but I am wondering if there is a difference in production cost, comfort or durability between taped and sewn sweatband seams? Intuitively it would seem that a taped rear sweatband seam is easier to execute, but would not be as stable or durable as a sewn rear seam over time?

Again, I thank you for your insight, D'man!

 

[Brad Bowers]

I apologize if this has been discussed elsewhere previously, but I am wondering if there is a difference in production cost, comfort or durability between taped and sewn sweatband seams? Intuitively it would seem that a taped rear sweatband seam is easier to execute, but would not be as stable or durable as a sewn rear seam over time?

Again, I thank you for your insight, D'man!

I'm not Dinerman, but I'll throw in my two cents here.

A taped seam is pretty easy to do and is perhaps faster than stitching a seam, but both styles require a specialized machine (if we're talking factory work), so no advantage in equipment. Stitching would seem to be cheaper in the long run (thread cost versus tape and adhesive cost). But I suspect that part of the reason for the switchover comes from the increasing use of reeded sweats in hats. A reeded sweatband that is properly flanged to sit down inside of the hat has a fair amount of pressure or force exerted outward along the circumference of the sweat at the reed because the length of the reed is actually longer than the length of the leather. My guess is that stitched seams hold up better under that pressure than taped seams.

I've tried to duplicate taped sweats using iron-on fabric patches as tape, but the obvious problem there is that the adhesive is activated by heat, and so it loosens over time due to heat from my head and I end up with a slight gap on each seam. I need to research glues that might be strong enough to hold the sweatband together, maintain flexibility, and maintain their hold despite heat and sweat.

Brad

 

[delectans]

Thanks for your feedback, Brad. This is what I was looking for, namely, a logical and practical explanation for the switch to sewn rear seams. It appears, then, that certain hatters felt that the use of un-reeded sweatbands obviated the need for a sewn rear seam.

Clearly, however, there are exceptions to this generalization, or at least a transition period, as I have a Borsalino Alessandria with a sewn rear seam and an un-reeded sweat, suggesting either cost cutting or improved stability as the driving force for the change, even prior to the adoption of reeded sweatbands.

Many thanks once again, Brad. I really appreciate your observations and input!

 

[DJH]

That's a very nice hat, Al.

It combines a lot of the features that many of us like into a package from an uncommon maker and a cool colour scheme as well - must be good!
I very much like the styling.

Nice find!

 

[delectans]

Thanks, David. My favorite attribute of this lid, in addition to those that you mentioned, is that it is my size! lol