ThinkGeek's "Officially Licensed" Indiana Jones Fedora

[Mulceber]

No other hat should really be called an Indiana Jones hat

Adventurebilt. 'nuf said. -M

 

[Matt Deckard]

The real Indiana Jones hat is made by the London hatter Herbert Johnson. It's their Australian model called the Poet. It was used in Raiders, so it was the original hat. No other hat should really be called an Indiana Jones hat, the makers and sellers deserve to be shot with a Smith & Wesson .45 ACP with the barrel cut down.

I got two hats from the guy who blocked and trimmed the brim on Ford's hat. They couldn't do it right then, and now he's retired. If they can now I'm guessing they are outsourcing because from what I saw last time I was in London they don't Block or alter their own hats anymore.

So yeah, Adventurebuilt.

 

[avedwards]

Yes, Adventurebuilt is a proper Indiana Jones hat, as it was used in a film. My point is that makers like Dorfman Pacific and Stetson have no right to have no right to make proper Indiana Jones hats because they had nothing to do with the films and their hats look nothing like the original.

But the Herbert Johnson hat is still available, at least I have found websites which sell it (albeit for a lot of money). There is also nothing wrong with hatmakers making hats which actually look like an Indiana Jones hat. What I don't like is makers claiming to sell IJ hats with are nothing like the original in style and quality. These people should be shot with Indy's proper gun (as I mentioned previously).

 

[Matt Deckard]

Actually I believe Stetson was screen used for a few scenes of Temple of Doom.

 

[avedwards]

Actually I believe Stetson was screen used for a few scenes of Temple of Doom.

I take back my word about Stetson then. But I think that the modern Stetson Temple may look the part, but is probably not as durable as a Herbert Johnson or Adventurebuilt.

 

[Mike K.]

C'mon guys...they are ALL Indiana Jones hats!!
It doesn't matter what the brim size, color, hat band style, etc. If it is a fedora, especially a brown one, it has to be an Indiana Jones hat. It just has to be! Check the "Dumbest Comments" thread for absolute proof from the uneducated general public.
lol lol lol

 

[Mike K.]

...but seriously

Can anyone offer a constructive review of the "Official Indiana Jones" fedora - the fur felt one? All comments about screen authenticity aside, how does this hat rank just as a hat? Softness & quality of the felt, ability to hold its shape or be reshaped, quality of the sweatband, sizing issues, etc. Forget it even has the Indy tag attached and let's hear how it stands as a general fedora.

 

[jpbales]

well I can

Can anyone offer a constructive review of the "Official Indiana Jones" fedora - the fur felt one? All comments about screen authenticity aside, how does this hat rank just as a hat? Softness & quality of the felt, ability to hold its shape or be reshaped, quality of the sweatband, sizing issues, etc. Forget it even has the Indy tag attached and let's hear how it stands as a general fedora.

Well, I do have one of these hats, and it's the first fedora I ever wore and it's what got me to this forum and into hats in general. I have the fur felt version and it cost me around 90$ (i originally bought the wool crushable one, was dissapointed, and traded up for the fur one- but i had to pay more shipping and teh difference in the cost).
anyway, here's my rundown of the hat,

The felt is really thick, and really, really stiff. I guess it can probably take a good beating, but it's hard to re-bash and impossible to do so without a lot of steam. I tried to rebash it in a more Indy shape by putting a center crease with tight front pinches, but it looked goofy because it's low crown and all of the taper.

The ribbon looks like a decent ribbon (I don't know much about ribbon types/quality) and I've seen worse ribbons. It required a little touching up though (like trimming little strings of where it was sewn on, and getting the bow to look nice and symmetrical).

The liner seems fine, made of satin with the clear plastic covering the Indy crest on the top. Hot glued in place beneath the sweatband.

The leather sweat is thin and soft, but I wouldn't expect it to last forever. The gold lettering on the sweat is already badly worn off, and I've only worn this hat a little.

I've had to play with the sizing a lot to get it to fit. I'm a 7 3/8 and I ordered a "L" one and it was too tight. I've stretched it a little and worn it, now it seems to fit alright.

The "flange" of the hat isn't right (I'm not positive if that's the correct terminology). The brim of the hat, instead of going straight out once the felt reaches the brim, goes at a downward angle (it's hard to describe, so I'll post a pic) and it looks funny.

The brim also is cut funny and it's hard to get it to look right. It's like it was cut unevenly.

It comes with an official indy pin, but beware. If you order it with the pin attached, they put it through the ribbon and if you try to remove it you get two big ol' holes in the bow. So I ordered my second one with it not attached (I don't want to look like an Indy wanna-be anyway )

Anyway, that's my rundown of the Official Indiana Jones Fedora. Good if you're a kid looking for a neat hat, but not very nice for a serious hat wearer.

 

[MattJH]

It basically sounds like a very inaccurate costume hat undeserving of its fur felt construction.

Probably good for yardwork or school plays.

 

[JohnnyB53]

What I don't like is makers claiming to sell IJ hats with are nothing like the original in style and quality. These people should be shot with Indy's proper gun (as I mentioned previously).

Dorfman-Pacific couldn't have an Indiana Jones line of hats unless they had an agreement with Lucasfilms Ltd.

Ultimately the responsibility lies with the organization that made the films, has the intellectual property rights, and licenses the official products with the logo.

They could just as easily have decided to design a hat with a 6" crown, raw dimensional brim of 3" x 2-5/8", and premium, very pliable felt to sell for $350, but their primary market is the public at large, not Fedora Lounger retro enthusiasts. Even with the Adventurebilt experience, it didn't change what Lucasfilms Ltd. approved and licensed as the official product.

 

[jpbales]

here's those pics

side profile:

it looks a little more tapered than it originally did because I had to stretch it a little to make it fit.

that's about as straight as you can make the front of the brim go

the felt needs to go more out than it does down.
you can really see how thick the felt is from this pic

 

[jpbales]

Dorfman-Pacific couldn't have an Indiana Jones line of hats unless they had an agreement with Lucasfilms Ltd.

Ultimately the responsibility lies with the organization that made the films, has the intellectual property rights, and licenses the official products with the logo.

They could just as easily have decided to design a hat with a 6" crown, raw dimensional brim of 3" x 2-5/8", and premium, very pliable felt to sell for $350, but their primary market is the public at large, not Fedora Lounger retro enthusiasts. Even with the Adventurebilt experience, it didn't change what Lucasfilms Ltd. approved and licensed as the official product.

I agree, it is definitely the fault of Lucas films for licensing such a cruddy hat. I wonder if the 500$ beaver version is any better.
http://www.thefedorastore.com/Official-100-Beaver-Felt-Indy-p/ij500.htm

The brim dimensions are better, 2 5/8 inches as opposed to the 2" on the fur one I have, and it actually has a center dent crease, as opposed to the blocked c-crown/teardrop of the fur felt one.
Look at the ribbon job on it:

It looks like they just put a ribbon going all the way around the hat and then sewed a bow on top of it!

No doubt, for 500$ I would definitely go to Adventurebilt and get something infinitely better (and for only 400$!!)!!!!

 

[Ordinary Guy]

The felt is really thick, and really, really stiff. I guess it can probably take a good beating, but it's hard to re-bash and impossible to do so without a lot of steam.

The ribbon looks like a decent ribbon (I don't know much about ribbon types/quality) and I've seen worse ribbons.

The liner seems fine, made of satin with the clear plastic covering the Indy crest on the top. Hot glued in place beneath the sweatband.

The leather sweat is thin and soft, but I wouldn't expect it to last forever.
I've had to play with the sizing a lot to get it to fit. I'm a 7 3/8 and I ordered a "L" one and it was too tight. I've stretched it a little and worn it, now it seems to fit alright.


It comes with an official indy pin, but beware. If you order it with the pin attached, they put it through the ribbon and if you try to remove it you get two big ol' holes in the bow. So I ordered my second one with it not attached (I don't want to look like an Indy wanna-be anyway )

I also bought a brown Indy like jpbales... I edited his post so I could say I agree with all of the above....

With a few exceptions.... I had been looking for a fedora like this in fur felt, I didn't care if it was Indy or not just wanted this exact style. I measure a 57 and was told to order a Large. I did and it fit like it was made for me. I will say it came with the pin and I had to remove that but everything else was perfectly fine and I didn't have to do anything but put it on my nogin....

I ordered mine last may and liked it so much that last month I ordered a black from a different hat company and was highly disappointed and actually returned the hat. The ribbon had wrinkles where it was sewed and the hat was way too big even though I ordered the Large like before. The brim (for lack of better words ) had waves in it all around and as mentioned this one was rather stiff and I didn't want to mess with it and then not be happy and can't return it... The workmanship just wasn't the same as my original..

I ordered another black but this time from the village hat shop after discussing my issues with them for quite some time. My brown hat ordered in May came from them. Even though both hats are made by Dorfman Pacific. If this isn't like my first one, I will return it and order an Akubra, which I probably should have done from the first... But I guess I was spoiled and very happy with my order in May.

 

[jpbales]

well I'm glad that you like yours, Ordinary Guy! I'd say that there's probably multiple places making the same hat, and there's probably a lot of inconsistency between each hat as well. I'll also add that an Akubra will be a worth-while investment, especially over the official Indy fedora, and the price aint bad either.

 

[Wolfwood]

Well, I do have one of these hats, and it's the first fedora I ever wore and it's what got me to this forum and into hats in general. I have the fur felt version and it cost me around 90$ (i originally bought the wool crushable one, was dissapointed, and traded up for the fur one- but i had to pay more shipping and teh difference in the cost).
anyway, here's my rundown of the hat,

The felt is really thick, and really, really stiff. I guess it can probably take a good beating, but it's hard to re-bash and impossible to do so without a lot of steam. I tried to rebash it in a more Indy shape by putting a center crease with tight front pinches, but it looked goofy because it's low crown and all of the taper.

The ribbon looks like a decent ribbon (I don't know much about ribbon types/quality) and I've seen worse ribbons. It required a little touching up though (like trimming little strings of where it was sewn on, and getting the bow to look nice and symmetrical).

The liner seems fine, made of satin with the clear plastic covering the Indy crest on the top. Hot glued in place beneath the sweatband.

The leather sweat is thin and soft, but I wouldn't expect it to last forever. The gold lettering on the sweat is already badly worn off, and I've only worn this hat a little.

I've had to play with the sizing a lot to get it to fit. I'm a 7 3/8 and I ordered a "L" one and it was too tight. I've stretched it a little and worn it, now it seems to fit alright.

The "flange" of the hat isn't right (I'm not positive if that's the correct terminology). The brim of the hat, instead of going straight out once the felt reaches the brim, goes at a downward angle (it's hard to describe, so I'll post a pic) and it looks funny.

The brim also is cut funny and it's hard to get it to look right. It's like it was cut unevenly.

It comes with an official indy pin, but beware. If you order it with the pin attached, they put it through the ribbon and if you try to remove it you get two big ol' holes in the bow. So I ordered my second one with it not attached (I don't want to look like an Indy wanna-be anyway )

Anyway, that's my rundown of the Official Indiana Jones Fedora. Good if you're a kid looking for a neat hat, but not very nice for a serious hat wearer.

I undersign everything written above from my experience with the hat. The felt is hard as cardboard and I was constantly afraid that it would crack if crushed instead of yielding like felt should. Also, I was afraid to wear it when it was raining outside, since I had read so much about it getting distorted.

The only thing I don't sign is the "gaping holes result from the removal of the pin" point. I removed it rather easily with little damage to the ribbon.

Given the price, I'd much rather recommend Akubra Fed IV. At least you'd get a real hat.

 

[jpbales]

The only thing I don't sign is the "gaping holes result from the removal of the pin" point. I removed it rather easily with little damage to the ribbon.

Given the price, I'd much rather recommend Akubra Fed IV. At least you'd get a real hat.

that's strange about the pin. On the first one I got then returned, the two little points of the pin were pushed straight through the ribbon in the bow, but maybe they put it on wrong or something. I dunno, but it doesn't really matter anyhow.

I second that statement about the Fed IV though!

 

[avedwards]

Maybe Akurbra should have the license for the IJ hats. They are of good enough quality but more affordable than a Herbert Johnson or an Adventurebuilt. Do they have any hats resembling the ones from the films?

 

[Mike K.]

You are going to LOVE this!!!!!

I am not posting any links to Ebay per FL rules, but here is a hat being auctioned as "Handmade Straw and Leather Indiana Jones, Fedora Hat"
Just for the sheer humor of it, I had to share it with you.
I can't wait to place my order so I can look just like Indy himself!!
lol lol lol lol

 

[UWS Cowboy]

I am not posting any links to Ebay per FL rules, but here is a hat being auctioned as "Handmade Straw and Leather Indiana Jones, Fedora Hat"
Just for the sheer humor of it, I had to share it with you.
I can't wait to place my order so I can look just like Indy himself!!
lol lol lol lol

Man, that's about as close to Indy as any hat I've seen! More than Akubra and Adventurebuilt!! lol

 

[JohnnyB53]

Maybe Akurbra should have the license for the IJ hats. They are of good enough quality but more affordable than a Herbert Johnson or an Adventurebuilt. Do they have any hats resembling the ones from the films?

Yeah, it's called the Federation. It's not a standard Akubra model, but it's Akubra-made and branded, and sold exclusively by www.hatsdirect.com. Steve Delk, cofounder of Adventurebilt and a couple of other Indy enthusiast/authorities at Club Obi-Wan worked with HatsDirect on the proportions, crown height and angle, ribbon width, brim dimensions, etc.

The Federation is now in its fourth iteration, known as the Federation IV. The Federation III had a 3/8" higher crown (6") and is probably truer to at least the first and fourth IJ films. The Fed IV probably works better on more people, though, and it's a higher, more straight-sided crown than you can get from most other hat manufacturers without going to a custom hatter.

The US distributor for Akubra, David Morgan, also has his own Indy-style hat called the Adventurer. It is a little more money, but still reasonable at $125. It is a little lower in the crown (5-1/2" open crown) than the Federation IV (5-5/8") and the brim is a little wider as well. It is a deep chocolate brown.

The slightly lower crown and wider brim make it a little less Indy looking than the Fed, but it is a really cool hat in its own right. David Morgan's quality control is very high and the quality of the felt and sweat band are excellent at his asking price, even if it's a little more money than a Fed IV ordered from Hats Direct. I only wish he offered the Adventurer in some other colors, particularly moonstone and/or carbon grey.