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Do you need a new hat?


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FYI Pards. D bar J Hats out of Las Vegas is running a probably first of its kind with then sale. All there hats on there website are 50% off. All of them! It is David's Birthday today and he's been a great supporter to SASS. You probably seen him vending his hats and accessories at Winter Range and End Of Trail. Anyways I'd thought I'd throw that out there.

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4 minutes ago, Marshal Hangtree said:

Nice lookin' hats, but my noggin ain't worth those prices.

 

Ollllllllllld motorcycle story.  Whenever a new rider asks how much they should spend on a helmet the experienced rider asks, "How much is your head worth?" ;)

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3 minutes ago, Allie Mo, SASS No. 25217 said:

I have a few of David's :wub: hats. This is my favorite, as is this cowboy. ;)

 

Shooting Bull and Allie Mo.jpg

 

 

I've met him.  You can do better :lol:

 

P.S.  Even though Dave made me promise I'd never tell, that's a D Bar J hat. :ph34r:

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3 hours ago, Shooting Bull said:

 

Ollllllllllld motorcycle story.  Whenever a new rider asks how much they should spend on a helmet the experienced rider asks, "How much is your head worth?" ;)

 

My head is actually worth a lot.  If my hat was a piece of life saving equipment, I'll buy the best there is.  But it's not.  It's a piece of a costume.  I don't have unlimited funds to spend on a pretend game.  My $60 hat does its job just fine.  I'm not knocking the folks who want to spend that much on a hat at all.  More power to them.  I'll just spend my bucks on other things.

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3 hours ago, Trooper Ozzy said:

I don't speak sombrero...What's mine telling me?

69347807_2646366458707014_7397658495333433344_o_20200407192142480.jpg

I don’t speak sombrero either, but that’s a mighty fine looking hat. Looks to me like you take pride in it and gave it a very unique character. 

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I wanna ask this question without offending anyone. Because I think everyone should spend their money on what makes them happy.

Is the difference between a $60 hat and this one the difference between cheap sheets and expensive high thread count sheets ? Is it a prestige thing ? I see the 10% to 100% beaver materials. Is beaver that expensive and that good or is it because it’s hand made .

 

Some expensive items are worth it . Is this just the equivalent to buying a custom firearm? Or a expensive suit vs men’s warehouse.

 

I just ask this because in the past I’ve purchased cheap hunting clothing and expensive and as long as you choose correctly I feel the 

expensive hunting clothing has been “cheaper” in the long run just because of how long it lasts and the comfort level it gives. 

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A top quality hat can be handed down to your grandkids if you don't burn it up or cut it up or otherwise intentionally damage or destroy it!!  YESSIR!!  Beaver is better!  Far better than wool and more durable than straw or cloth.  The more beaver fur in the felt, the better the hat body will be.  I've cleaned, blocked, and restored a couple of pure beaver felt hats that were over 100 years old and with minimum care, someone just might restore 'em again in another hundred years!!

 

I don't set the prices and I've retired from hat making/shaping.  I watched a 100% beaver hat, shaped and trimmed, go from $400.00 to over $1,000.00 in some places and that's just in the last fifteen years!!  I think the prices are exorbitant!!  They likely charge those prices just because they can.  I've not heard of any alarming shortage of beaver. The blended, (10/15% and 50%) hat bodies are far and away better and more durable than other materials and can last for many years in spite of rough treatment or neglect.

 

So, Yes!!  It's the difference between cheap sheets and the high thread count sheets!  YES!!  To some it's a prestige thing!  And YESS!!!  Beaver is just better!!  The more beaver the better!!!

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4 hours ago, Buckshot Bob said:

I see the 10% to 100% beaver materials. Is beaver that expensive and that good or is it because it’s hand made .

 

 

Fair question.   The higher the beaver fur content in the felt the higher the quality of the felt.  Higher the quality felt, the longer the hat will last under hard use.   SASS is all about costumes for some.  No harm in that.   A 100% beaver hat is a high quality tool when used as intended and can still be a great piece of a costume.  I've built plenty of hats.  And seen them go from generation to generation.  I've never handled a hundred year old hat but have seen plenty of 50 year old cowboy hats.    Working cowboys can easily destroy a $250/ 10X (what ever  the X means to the maker) in a year's time from just every day wear.    The same 100% beaver hat, built well, might last 2 or three times that time frame.  Or it may not.  Folks that buy 100% beaver hats typically also take care of them better than say a $100 hat.   But a 100% beaver hat that was built correctly won't get soft and floppy easily, it will hold it's shape in any condition to a point.  Water and heat will eventually wreck a 100% beaver felt just like it will wool.  Just takes a lot longer.  If you treat a beaver hat with a little respect you can always rebuilt a decent beaver hat felt and make it "like new" again.

Current 100% beaver hats can easily be had by a few custom makers for $400/$450.  and worth every penny IMO.   Double that price and it is a rip off....IMO.   I don't care who is making it.  But good on them to get their labor paid for!    Everyone building true 100% beaver felt hats in the USA is likely getting their felt from Winchester Hat Corp.   So everyone starts with the same piece of  quality beaver felt.  What the hat maker does with it is the secret sauce that makes a custom hat.

 

This is called "firing a live felt" which is just a  part of building a good 100% beaver cowboy hat.

 

IMG_2645.JPG

 

And that hat in use 3 years later.

 

galenaride.jpg 

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You talked me into it. This one was calling my name...

 

 

Hat.JPG

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1 hour ago, levi littleton said:

 

Fair question.   The higher the beaver fur content in the felt the higher the quality of the felt.  Higher the quality felt, the longer the hat will last under hard use.   SASS is all about costumes for some.  No harm in that.   A 100% beaver hat is a high quality tool when used as intended and can still be a great piece of a costume.  I've built plenty of hats.  And seen them go from generation to generation.  I've never handled a hundred year old hat but have seen plenty of 50 year old cowboy hats.    Working cowboys can easily destroy a $250/ 10X (what ever  the X means to the maker) in a year's time from just every day wear.    The same 100% beaver hat, built well, might last 2 or three times that time frame.  Or it may not.  Folks that buy 100% beaver hats typically also take care of them better than say a $100 hat.   But a 100% beaver hat that was built correctly won't get soft and floppy easily, it will hold it's shape in any condition to a point.  Water and heat will eventually wreck a 100% beaver felt just like it will wool.  Just takes a lot longer.  If you treat a beaver hat with a little respect you can always rebuilt a decent beaver hat felt and make it "like new" again.

Current 100% beaver hats can easily be had by a few custom makers for $400/$450.  and worth every penny IMO.   Double that price and it is a rip off....IMO.   I don't care who is making it.  But good on them to get their labor paid for!    Everyone building true 100% beaver felt hats in the USA is likely getting their felt from Winchester Hat Corp.   So everyone starts with the same piece of  quality beaver felt.  What the hat maker does with it is the secret sauce that makes a custom hat.

 

This is called "firing a live felt" which is just a  part of building a good 100% beaver cowboy hat.

 

IMG_2645.JPG

 

And that hat in use 3 years later.

 

galenaride.jpg 

That's incredible. I sure wish I had one of those hats. Or two ;)

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On 4/8/2020 at 10:59 AM, Cholla said:

You talked me into it. This one was calling my name...

 

 

Hat.JPG

 

 

I bought one very close to that from D-bar J. It is 100% beaver felt.   At the Geronimo Trail match I wore it in downpours.  It never lost its shape and my head stayed dry.  It has loops for two bullets.  I wore it deer hunting and reloaded my rifle off my hat just to stay I had done so.   Below is my crappy hat decorated for the holidays.

 

 

IMG_0256 (002).jpg

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Speaking of D bar J and beaver, I bought a hat from them a few years ago at the California state match. David was telling me a story of a customer that somehow lost his hat in a creek on his property. No idea how that happened. Probably a story that was too embarrassing to share. Anyway, he found his hat in that same creek about a year later and the material was still in perfect shape, if not the hat itself.. He sent it back to D bar J to have it reshaped, and they did it no problem. I guess that explains why those beavers are so happy playing in the water and building dams while not damaging their fur.

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FWIW. first 100% beaver I bought was from D-J.    That was in 1993 while in Vegas for a SASS match.   Why else right?    Cost was $425 delivered and the hat is still pretty much like new.  I've tried to take  care of it over the years so its never been used hard..  I've since built hats that are equal to it, but none any better.  

 

 

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have a hard time imagining a new hat , i get attached to that far more than my boots , but nice to know if its needed there are folks doing this job in the true cowboy way , i might one day need one 

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I've been wearing the same D bar J hat for 12years and will continue to wear it when i shoot ! However I'm getting a New D bar J Hat, don't really need one, but i won one at Winter Range. 

Hells Comin 

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On 4/7/2020 at 4:43 PM, Shooting Bull said:

 

Ollllllllllld motorcycle story.  Whenever a new rider asks how much they should spend on a helmet the experienced rider asks, "How much is your head worth?" ;)

They say that in racing, too, but it doesn't really apply to a cowboy hat.

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Got my first D-J hat at EOT in 2018. 
 

Got my 2nd one, a 100x Crappy hat, in 2019. 
 

It’s amazing how much lighter they are than my previous hats. 
 

I love them. 
 

Dutch

FB7FED4B-8E12-4DD2-AD30-5736DC9D7A17.jpeg

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On 4/8/2020 at 1:06 PM, levi littleton said:

FWIW. first 100% beaver I bought was from D-J.    That was in 1993 while in Vegas for a SASS match.   Why else right?    Cost was $425 delivered and the hat is still pretty much like new.  I've tried to take  care of it over the years so its never been used hard..  I've since built hats that are equal to it, but none any better.  

 

 

I have to disagree with this statement. Being the proud owner of both, I would say two of mine are indeed better. Even if only slightly.

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1 hour ago, Captain Bill Burt said:

I don't 'need' another hat, but I sure wouldn't mind having a D bar J hat.  Unfortunately the only pure beaver 7 5/8 hat he has is almost identical to my current hat.   Those Cavalry hats do appeal to me though, just wish they were 100X.

That’s because beaver don’t grow that big. Damn that’s a noggin. Sorry couldn’t resist. 

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19 hours ago, Captain Bill Burt said:

I don't 'need' another hat, but I sure wouldn't mind having a D bar J hat.  Unfortunately the only pure beaver 7 5/8 hat he has is almost identical to my current hat.   Those Cavalry hats do appeal to me though, just wish they were 100X.

He will make you one! It may not be on sale though.

 

When I bought my first one from him, it was $630 and circa 2002. Hubby said he was going to charge people to look at it.  I think it is pretty special. The carving/painting is by Blue Sky. It is a one-of-a-kind hat.

 

This is it.

 

 

 

Allie Shooting Duo.jpg

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That was a good one Cap :)     I just gotta say it.  I like hats more than most folk but once a custom 100% beaver hat gets over $500 the person selling and the person buying aint thinking straight.   I don't sell hats but I have built lots of them.  Everyone in the USA pretty much buys their beavers from the same place.   I own a D bar J and it is a nice hat.  I paid $400 and change for mine when you could get a damn nice "7X" hat for $150.  I still have that 7X Bailey that has seen a lot more use than my $400 hat.   Sadly Bailey doesn't make hats of that same "7X" quality any more.  The current crème in the cowboy hat world, is  100% beaver and cost right at a cool $1000.+  Still no better hat than a 100% beaver blank you can pay $450 for every day of the week if you look around some.

 

DbarJ has supported SASS for decades now.  I applaud that!     Not begrudging them  selling a $700 hat.  Just some straight talk on 100% beaver hats from a guy that has been around hats for awhile.    That's my  D bar J beaver hat on a chilly Fall sunrise,  just prior to 16 hrs and 50 miles in the saddle. 

 

As they say, " $500 saddle on a $20 horse".

 

DSC02798.JPG

 

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57 minutes ago, levi littleton said:

That was a good one Cap :)     I just gotta say it.  I like hats more than most folk but once a custom 100% beaver hat gets over $500 the person selling and the person buying aint thinking straight.   I don't sell hats but I have built lots of them.  Everyone in the USA pretty much buys their beavers from the same place.   I own a D bar J and it is a nice hat.  I paid $400 and change for mine when you could get a damn nice "7X" hat for $150.  I still have that 7X Bailey that has seen a lot more use than my $400 hat.   Sadly Bailey doesn't make hats of that same "7X" quality any more.  The current crème in the cowboy hat world, is  100% beaver and cost right at a cool $1000.+  Still no better hat than a 100% beaver blank you can pay $450 for every day of the week if you look around some.

 

DbarJ has supported SASS for decades now.  I applaud that!     Not begrudging them  selling a $700 hat.  Just some straight talk on 100% beaver hats from a guy that has been around hats for awhile.    My  D bar J beaver hat on a cool Fall sunrise just prior to 16 hrs and 50 miles in the saddle. 

Huh! Never mind...

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On April 9, 2020 at 4:01 PM, Captain Bill Burt said:

I don't 'need' another hat, but I sure wouldn't mind having a D bar J hat.  Unfortunately the only pure beaver 7 5/8 hat he has is almost identical to my current hat.   Those Cavalry hats do appeal to me though, just wish they were 100X.

 

I wear a 7 3/4 hat and have made all of mine myself except for one.  I re-blocked and re-shaped that one because it wasn't shaped to my order when I got it, (even after waiting 19 weeks for it)!!   Round, oval, and long oval ain't the only head shapes a hatter has to deal with.     

 

The larger the hat size, the harder it is to get a body with a big brim, so I've had to wait on two separate occasions for Winchester to run some bigger raw bodies.  I know that recently, some hatters are buying foreign bodies, (made in eastern Europe) but I don't know how available the larger bodies are.  

 

The biggest cost increase I had to adjust for was after I lost access to blocking and finishing and had to pay  wholesalers to supply open crowns for me to shape for my customers.  Between the hassle of the tax man and other gooberment entities holding out their grubby paws for a piece of my pie and the hassle of dealing with wholesalers charging me nearly retail prices for materials, it was more than I was willing to pass along to the customer!! 

 

I've made a hat or two for cowboys that wore a size 8!!  I thought I had a big punkin 'til I measured those noggins!!!  A good steamer and a heated stretcher were my friends more than once!!

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