My Camp Draft arrived !

[RBH]

* UPDATE*

The Camp Draft held up very well to todays hellish rain here in Arkansas.
Although the wind was brisk, I did not need my wind trolly !

 

[Victor]

so no one has answered my question about the felt. is it a soft thin felt like a vintage open road or a stiff coarse felt like the cattleman?

 

[RBH]

so no one has answered my question about the felt. is it a soft thin felt like a vintage open road or a stiff coarse felt like the cattleman?

I would say it is closer to the thinness of the Stratoliner. My vintage Strat is a lot thinner than my vintage O R's.
As to the stiffness, it is a little stiffer than my Strat. I would think that the Stratoliners were stiff[er] when new than what we see in them now after the passage of time and use.

 

[Victor]

Thanks RBH. It sounds really good! That may be my next hat.

 

[The Duke]

very nice hat RBH! I have my eye on a stratoliner.

 

[RBH]

very nice hat RBH! I have my eye on a stratoliner.

Duke my friend, you cant go wrong with a Stratoliner.
On the town or on the farm, the Stratoliner fits the bill !

 

[indyjim]

Hmmmm. I've had my eye on several new hats from Hatsdirect, namely the Leisure Time and the Wentworth. But seeing the Campdraft is cause for a rethink here. That is a nice hat and I love the bash, RBH. It is available from Everythingaustralian in the fawn. BTW, anybody have any experience with the other 2 hats I mentioned? I don't want to hijack this thread. If anyone has the Leisure Time or Wentworth, maybe we could start a new thread.

 

[Russ]

I have owned both the Campdraft (assuming it is merely a new name for Akubra's Open Road) and the Wentworth. The Wentworth had too much taper for my liking. The Campdraft doesn't seem to have that taper. My Open Road didn't.

Here's a photo of my Wentworth (with home made pugaree)

 

[indyjim]

Ahh yes, I see what you mean about the taper on the Wentworth. Thank you, Russ, for that side view. I'm not sure that would suit me. One 3/4 view of a hat on a web page makes it very difficult to ascertain what that hat is going to look like on my head from all angles.

 

[Victor]

I just ordered a campdraft from hatdirect.com in the mid brown color. They also have teh 2 to 3month wait so I guess its a lesson in patience. Looking forward to january!

 

[John in Covina]

Super Hat

Man, that is one swell looking hat.

Akubra seems to get more positive comments than negative, as I can recall.


Best wishes with the new lid!

 

[Wolfie]

Very sharp!

I'll consider this manufacturer when I buy another new hat.

 

[RBH]

Thanks Wolfie...

and WELCOME TO THE LOUNGE !!!!
:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[Russ]

I was wrong

I said that I believed the Campdraft was merely Akubra's new name for the Open Road after they stopped making it under the Stetson license, but when I lookd at an old Akubra catalog that I received 16 years ago, lo and behold both the Campdraft and the Open Road were available. Back then the Campdraft had a different ribbon, which was apparently replaced in recent years with the Open Road type ribbon. They might stili come from the same block for all I know.

I'm looking seriously at this hat as one to match the hat my ancestor wore.

 

[Russ]

Oops I was wrong again!

I just found an blurb on the Yates Men's wear web site in Australia that says the Campdraft was indeed the old Open Road which had been previously made under the Stetson license. Somehow it was both a different hat and the same hat at the same time. Hmmm, this is kinda spooky...

http://yatesmenswear.com.au/onlineproducts/akubra/campdraft.html

 

[Matthew Dalton]

Did anything ever come of that "secret" plan to possibly have some special Campdrafts made in the Heritage felt?

 

[Tone]

Did anything ever come of that "secret" plan to possibly have some special Campdrafts made in the Heritage felt?

That is a good question. The popular Bluegrass Green color hat has since been introduced, but not sure if the minimum order for Akubra to make a special run of hats was met since for a batch o' Campdrafts on heritage. Then again, either Akubra felt on a well-proportioned hat tends to do alright. But yeah, that one was never answered.