Optimo's Dillinger not as advertised?

[Bruce Wayne]

Not really. It's better, but the ribbon is still too narrow, the brim is too wide and the crown too tapered. It is a very nice hat though. -M

Is that all that is wrong with it? I requested the 2 3/4 inch underwelt brim & the ribbon is what they had in stock at the time. Like I said in a previousl post, they are running dangerously low on in-stock ribbon & Graham has to go on a run for ribbon in I believe it is Europe.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

I agree. The two hats are not the same. I recently purchased this hat from Optimo.

It certainly does not have the look of the Public Enemies hat, though I didn't intend for it to. It does have the same color scheme, but definitely not the '30's look of the movie hat.

Your hat is clearly in a lower crown. Do you have the order slip for the hat. it should read number 5 or No.5 or something to that extent.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Side-by-side.

 

[Richard Warren]

I can believe the hat being sold is the same hat the actor is wearing. In my experience, strictly as a consumer and constant tinkerer with hat shapes, a lower, wider pinch (which the actor seems to me to be wearing) changes the apparent taper as well as brim and ribbon width to a remarkable degree. Also, while it sometimes seems that a high, straight crown is thought to be a universal desideratum, I have come to see that the people in the business of making hats know what they are doing when they design lower, somewhat tapered hats for ordinary mortals like myself.

 

[marvelgoose]

Graham has to go on a run for ribbon in I believe it is Europe.

A tax free trip to Europe you can expense to the business. If Graham is busy, I'll be happy to go in his place

 

[ScottF]

Those four are competition for eachother. I'm not their competition when it comes to hats.

If you get one and see it as competition... great.
But I'm not doing custom made felt hats.

To heck with that - just go buy a 1930's Stetson

"Uh oh...I forgot my gun..."

 

[barrowjh]

BobC's Comment

Per BobC, regarding a visit to Optimo-

During my visit, Kevin, the gentleman I spoke with, was most gracious to offer any hat I wanted to try. He even opened a boxed hat that had been made for a client for me to see and try. He also offered his opinion as to which hats looked best on me taking into consideration my dress and skin color. In the end after seeing and trying 15 or 20 examples, my choices prevailed. Time and again after trying other hats, I kept coming back to the oxblood color scheme of the Public Enemy hat but in a block and style more like the '50's than the '30's with a 9 ligne brim binding that appeals to me so much.

I found that the folks at Optimo tend to recommend smaller crown, less brim than many of us prefer. I prefer 2 1/2, or maybe 2 5/8 on a thin-ribbon, but Optimo recommended 2 1/4, no larger than 2 3/8 for me. I wonder if it is a cultural thing, and maybe an outgrowth of the man he learned his trade from and what sells to the masses in Chicago. The individual (prior owner) that he learned from would have been in his prime during the 50's 60's rat-pack period. These things may influence their tastes to be a bit different from what vintage hat collectors might fancy. Optimo is selling hats to conservative business folks; unlikely those customers spend much time watching the 'hat' channel on TV!

 

[BobC]

Side-by-side.

Interesting, BW. Definitely different blocks. I no longer have my order slip, but I believe my crown is a No.1 if my memory serves.

 

[rlk]

Since he made the hat for the movie it is ridiculous to argue that he can't . The website hat is a more generic version more in keeping with perceived popular taste at the moment. The Public Enemies image is also modified(retouched/photoshopped,etc.) and may not match the real hat to begin with. Give me $550.00 and I'll bet I can get him to make a 1930's style hat with the same color and dimensions.
A Custom Hat is modified to suit the individual it is made for. Matching a historical or fictional object worn by another is a different issue. Some people look good in their Indy Hats(sub. Dillinger) and others less so...

 

[J.J. Gittes]

Since he made the hat for the movie it is ridiculous to argue that he can't . The website hat is a more generic version more in keeping with popular taste at the moment. The Public Enemies image is also modified(retouched/photoshopped,etc.) and may not match the real hat to begin with. Give me $550.00 and I'll bet I can get him to make a 1930's style hat with the same color and dimensions.

^
What he said.

 

[Mulceber]

Since he made the hat for the movie it is ridiculous to argue that he can't.

I don't think anyone's suggesting that he can't. I think we're looking at the picture on his site and noticing that it doesn't really resemble the screen hat. Now we're trying to figure out why. Several suggestions for the reason behind this have been:

a) it's just movie magic making an okay-looking hat look great. Personally I think the differences between the two hats are too great to be written off as movie-magic.

b) it's more profitable to him to make a different version of it, because it will appeal to modern hat wearers more.

c) if he were to sell "the real deal," he'd have to wait until he got more of the real ribbon. Since he doesn't have any more, it's easier to just make the hat with similarly-colored ribbon and not mention it unless people ask.

Maybe it's just the Indy fan in me, but I don't know why people would spend $550 on a Public Enemies hat if it isn't accurate to what they see on screen. Now, to the people who are just buying a hat from Graham and choose oxblood because they like the color, that I can understand. But to me, it's false advertising to sell the hat on their site as "The Dillinger." Because a lot of people will look at that hat and think that that is an exact replica of the hat Johnny Depp wore in Public Enemies when it's not. -M

 

[Garrett]

To heck with that - just go buy a 1930's Stetson

"Uh oh...I forgot my gun..."

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

 

[jimmy the lid]

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

:arated:

Great look, Scott!

Cheers,
JtL

 

[Matt Deckard]

I see you mean Mulcebar.

He should have the actual hat or a straight repro shown on the site.

 

[colps]

I have my receipt, only thing i see is crown height #4.

 

[cptjeff]

The ribbon may be different, but it's similar, and the body of the hat is the same, just with a different crease then the one he sent it with to the studio. If there's a shortage of the ribbon that he used on the original, what do you want him to do? If he doesn't have any, he doesn't have any. Stocks of good ribbon are limited.

If you want the crease to match the one in the movie, it's easy enough to do yourself. He's selling the hat as close as he can get it to the one he sent to the studio. It's very, very close.

He could sell the hat with the modified crease. Perhaps he could offer to send it to the buyer in either crease, the original or the screen version. Short of that, what would you have him do?

 

[RBH]

To heck with that - just go buy a 1930's Stetson

"Uh oh...I forgot my gun..."

Great to have you join us BOGIE!!!!

Now you know how to wear a hat!

 

[colps]

You know where i can get a 1930 stetson in a 7 1/2?

 

[Matt Deckard]

Ebay... Wait 3 months.

 

[newspapercowboy]

slick

Slick lookin' hats