Stetson 1920's Homburg & 1950's Homburg.....A COMPARISON

[Joshbru3]

Now before I even start this comparison, I just want to state that I know Stetson made numerous brim sizes, crown shapes, crown heights, color combos, etc for homburgs. Not all of the features of either one of these hats are purely representative of either time period in which they were made, but many features are. I just wanted to do a short comparison with two VERY similar hats from different time periods in Stetsons production to show similarities and differences between 30 years of style and production.

Both hats are grey in color (albeit slightly different shades) with golden/white brim binding and black/charcoal ribbons. The 50's Homburg is from the early 50's and still retains a full crown profile and full (non stingy) size brim.

The Two hats side by side (1920's on the Left, 1950's on the Right):

As you can see, both hats are very similar in their overall appearance and color combinations.

Both crowns stand at exactly 5 1/2 inches tall with a fairly flat top. There is some curvature to the top of the crowns, but very little.

The 1920's Stetson has a fairly straight bow with frayed ends. The ribbon measures in at 2 inches wide. The bow (including the frayed part) measures in at 5 inches long.

The 1950's Stetson has a bow that has more waist suppression with a lack of fraying. The ribbon measures in at 1 3/4 inches wide. The bow measures in at 4 3/4 inches wide.


As far as the crown profiles, they are VERY similar:

The 1920's Stetson has very straight sides with no taper.

The 1950's Stetson also has a straight sided crown. However there is very slight taper going inwards.

Brims:

The brim curls are very similar on both hats, but the 1920's Stetson has a deeper curl which rises up higher off a flat surface.

Also note that on the 1920's Stetson, stitching is present from underneath the curl. On the 1950's Stetson, the stitching is not present.

The brim width on the 1920's Stetson measures 2 1/2 inches WITH the curl.
The brim with on the 1950's Stetson measures 2 3/4 inches WITH the curl.

 

[Joshbru3]

Stetson 1920's Homburg & 1950's Homburg.....A COMPARISON (cont....)

Sweatbands and Seams:

Both sweatbands use very soft leather with nice grain. The sweatbands are both reeded and use very similar spacing and length for the stitching that attaches them to the reed tape.

1920's sweatband width: 2 inches wide
1950's sweatband width: 1 7/8 inches wide

The 1920's Sweatband seem is taped and un-stitched. A paper size label was glued to the sweatband.

The 1950's Sweatband seem is stitched which alleviates the need for taping. However, the size tag is stitched to the back of the sweatband with what appears to be the same sewing as the seem. This size tags acts a backing for the un-taped/stitched sweatband seem.

Both seem bows are almost identical as well.

Sweatband Stamps:

Obviously both logos are different due to the changes in logos through the decades at Stetson. They both appear to be printed with the same kind of gold foil however. The depth of the stamping in the leather appears to be very similar as well.


This was just a quick comparison, but all in all both hats are very similar in felt finish/feel, workmanship, and quality. I do prefer the 1920's Homburg a little better because Stetson did use really nice raw silk liners, very thin but pliable sweatbands, and extremely straight blocks. But this comparison just goes to prove that not every 20's hat had a 6 inch crown with a 2 1/2 sweatband, and a 2 1/4 inch ribbon. It was possible to get a factory 20's/30's looking hat into the early 50's. Even though certain things like ribbon height and bow design differ, from the outside, I believe these two hats could be interchanged into both time periods and not stand out of place.

 

[bowlerman]

Wow, Josh. This is a fantastic comparison! I adore the 1920s homburg, if only for that magnificent shade of grey. I don't have the knowledge or capacity to participate, because I have no idea what vintage my St. Regis is! But this thread has some potential, IMHO.

 

[Joshbru3]

Wow, Josh. This is a fantastic comparison! I adore the 1920s homburg, if only for that magnificent shade of grey. I don't have the knowledge or capacity to participate, because I have no idea what vintage my St. Regis is! But this thread has some potential, IMHO.

Thanks very much, Jeff! The 1920's homburg is my favorite too. PM me with some pics of your St. Regis and I will try to put a date on it. Well, plus or minus 5 or so years.

 

[delectans]

Kudos for a very well done and thorough comparative analysis of two great Homburgs, Josh! :eusa_clap:clap2:

 

[DJH]

Josh, thank you for taking the time to post this information.

Really interesting to see how the Stetson product evolved over that 30 year (or so) period.

Personally, I prefer some of the features on the older design - the frayed ribbon, the stitching on the brim and the less tapered crown.

Hope you have a great 2012!!

 

[mayserwegener]

Josh, Great comparison work! You can also see the brim binding job is better on the 1920s model.

 

[rlk]

Thanks very much, Jeff! The 1920's homburg is my favorite too. PM me with some pics of your St. Regis and I will try to put a date on it. Well, plus or minus 5 or so years.

If I recall correctly the St Regis only goes back to 1948 so should be a safe bet. Homburgs were a pretty conservative style after the 30's with more limited range. The two examples may or may not have their original block and flange if they had been cleaned or adjusted but likely were pretty similar.

 

[bowlerman]

PM sent, Josh, but rlk has to be correct. My sweatband and dimensions look almost identical to your 1950s St. Regis. I wouldn't contest the experts around here-- I just like collecting 'em!

 

[Iyor]

Great post!

I would guess that through the years people who bought homburgs weren't buying them for the latest style rather as a conservative classic so there wasn't a need to change much.

 

[seabass]

Outstanding Presentation & Comparison !
Thank you

 

[Chepstow]

Thank you Josh, for your outstanding analysis the two Hats. For the time you spend on it, and the Infomation about the difference.

 

[hatophile]

Nice job, Josh.

 

[rrd]

How would you compare felt quality?

 

[Joshbru3]

Kudos for a very well done and thorough comparative analysis of two great Homburgs, Josh! :eusa_clap:clap2:

Josh, thank you for taking the time to post this information.

Really interesting to see how the Stetson product evolved over that 30 year (or so) period.

Personally, I prefer some of the features on the older design - the frayed ribbon, the stitching on the brim and the less tapered crown.

Hope you have a great 2012!!

Josh, Great comparison work! You can also see the brim binding job is better on the 1920s model.

Great post!

I would guess that through the years people who bought homburgs weren't buying them for the latest style rather as a conservative classic so there wasn't a need to change much.

Outstanding Presentation & Comparison !
Thank you

Thank you Josh, for your outstanding analysis the two Hats. For the time you spend on it, and the Infomation about the difference.

Nice job, Josh.

THANKS very much everyone for the extremely kind words!! It was a pleasure doing this comparison. I thought it might be nice to see some of these vintage examples side by side. Obviously, as I said, it is really impossible to compare overall quality from the two time periods in Stetsons history because they produced so many examples, quality designations, models, colors, felt mixtures, etc. It was my goal to compare two hats that were very similar in form and design from the two time periods. I will say though, after handling quite a few pre-1930 Stetsons, for me, their older hats were not only far superior, but the quality of materials used were far superior as well. I'm a little biased because I LOVE early hats of all types, but many on the lounge will agree with me that Stetson's felt and sweatbands were really something special prior to WW2. Thanks again everyone and HAPPY 2012!!!

 

[Joshbru3]

How would you compare felt quality?

Well it depends what you mean by "quality." Both are most likely 100% Rabbit or Wild Hare. Both hats have VERY similar pouncing and finish. In the hand, the softness of the felt is very similar with the two hats even though the 20's Homburg is a "Premier Quality" and the 50's Hat is "Royal Deluxe" quality. The type of shellac used in the 20's hat is far superior and the hat is able to hold a dry crease extremely well. When steamed, the ability to smooth the creases out of the crown are very easy and do not take a whole lot of steam to do so. I would say the 20's hat is my favorite, but the 50's hat is also made very well.