Help me decide on an Indy fedora!

If I were a wealthy collector, I would certainly go after the AB hat with no question - but my budget for this hat is around $200 and given the options I have found I believe I can get a good Indy hat, but the question is, which one to get.
I am a real stickler for accuracy - and I would want fellow fans to appreciate the hat just as I do. I want the hat for costuming, display and casual wear and still be movie accurate (raiders style)
Here are the options I am looking at:
-Akubra Federation IV deluxe
-Christy's Adventurer
-Coyle's Uptowner

If any informed members here can give me thumbs up on one of these (or perhaps one I haven't listed) please help me out before I pull the trigger on my debit card.
All these hats seem to look good, though I am leaning towards the Adventurer. My untrained eye is having difficulty picking out the best option.

GeneralFROSTY said:

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If I were a wealthy collector, I would certainly go after the AB hat with no question - but my budget for this hat is around $200 and given the options I have found I believe I can get a good Indy hat, but the question is, which one to get.
I am a real stickler for accuracy - and I would want fellow fans to appreciate the hat just as I do. I want the hat for costuming, display and casual wear and still be movie accurate (raiders style)
Here are the options I am looking at:
-Akubra Federation IV deluxe
-Christy's Adventurer
-Coyle's Uptowner

If any informed members here can give me thumbs up on one of these (or perhaps one I haven't listed) please help me out before I pull the trigger on my debit card.
All these hats seem to look good, though I am leaning towards the Adventurer. My untrained eye is having difficulty picking out the best option.

Akubra, hands down. So easy to get a good lasting screen accurate Raiders bash on this hat. Damned near bulletproof too. Been tried and tested by fans for years now and has never failed.

akubra
but not hands down
it is a good starter
but if you get one of john penmans or any truly exceptional hat you will know why i say starter hat.
cheers and good luck
it is a big step and a tad akward at first.
p.s.
john is great on the phone and can answer the questions you do not know you have yet

The Pennman hat looks fantastic, but may be out of my price range for now, however it's not as overpriced as the AB so I may consider just saving a bit more and waiting a little extra to get one.
I have submitted my registration for Club Obi Wan, but waiting my confirmation. Until then, I will appreciate any help I can get from my fellow RPFers.
Were the original hats beaver or rabbit?
What would be considered a better/more accurate hat - a Pennman or the Henry?
Does anyone have any side-by-side comparison photos of the various hats on the market?

Well, Penman sells the Adventurebilt Henry, which is their factory hat. That's $300 with a beautiful Penman hat box.

Of those three, I would probably opt for the Akubra. I have a Fed IV in Carbon Grey, and it's a great hat. I also have a Christy's Adventurer. The felt on this hat is softer and feels nicer, but of the two, the Akubra will be hands down, far more durable. Some folks on Club Obi Wan report that their Christy's taper in heat and/or moisture. I haven't had any issues with mine yet.

The Adventurer has a slightly higher crown (5 5/8ths on the Fed, 5 3/4 on the Adventurer). But, you can adjust the specs on a Christy's hat.

Christy's



Fed IV (Regular) I know it's not in Indy colors, but I gave it a generic Raiders bash (no turn), so it's still a fair example of the shape you can get with the hat:



IMHO, the Akubra is better for a Raiders hat, whereas I feel the Christy's does a pretty good job at the Last Crusade hat.

The AB Henry is made on a block that used to be utilized by Herbert Johnson...whether or not it is "the" block is open to debate. Many happy customers of Penman hats on COW, and I will be one soon. Between the Penman and The Henry....well, if you went for the full monty and had John make you a nice custom Indy hat, it's going to be superior to the Henry. But the Henry is, by pretty much all accounts, the best factory hat on the market.

The Raiders hat was definitely rabbit, not sure on the others actually, perhaps someone else can chime in? The KOTCS hat was Beaver however.

Thank you for your reply - very helpfull.
Is it generally accepted (by serious Indy costumers) that the Akubra is 'the' Indy hat to own all around?
The Christy's looks pretty good to me and I haven't seen any good photos of the Akubra in the brown color.
The stickler in me wants to get the AB Henry, but I don't want to spend the money if I could just save up a little bit more and get the Henry.
One of the replies above states the Akubra is 'a good starter hat' which seems like sound advise since it is a much cheaper price but cheaper pricing does not mean better or equal quality.
I just want a great Raiders hat that would be considered a high-end accurate replica both for display and wear. A hat that can be worn around serious costumers at a con and not have someone say 'hey, great Indy hat, but not the best...'
Why can't buying a darn Indy fedora be cut and dry??

The Akubra is generally considered the workhorse hat. It's at a good price point, and great bang for the buck. Plus, it's one of the most durable hats you can buy, so it's in the "spirit of Indy" if you will.

Steve Delk, the hatter behind Adventurebilt, advised in the production of the Fed IV and has said (quoting from COW): "I personally don't care for the other factory Indy hats, except the Akubras, but that's just my own personal tastes, and does not reflect anything but that."

I think that's a pretty good endorsement.

The Christy's is a fine choice too with the caveat of them being temperamental to humidity and heat...but it is more of a dress hat than the Akubra would be. But I really like mine as a Last Crusade hat.

GeneralFROSTY said:

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Thank you for your reply - very helpfull.
Is it generally accepted (by serious Indy costumers) that the Akubra is 'the' Indy hat to own all around?
The Christy's looks pretty good to me and I haven't seen any good photos of the Akubra in the brown color.
The stickler in me wants to get the AB Henry, but I don't want to spend the money if I could just save up a little bit more and get the Henry.
One of the replies above states the Akubra is 'a good starter hat' which seems like sound advise since it is a much cheaper price but cheaper pricing does not mean better or equal quality.
I just want a great Raiders hat that would be considered a high-end accurate replica both for display and wear. A hat that can be worn around serious costumers at a con and not have someone say 'hey, great Indy hat, but not the best...'
Why can't buying a darn Indy fedora be cut and dry??

I don't think any of the gear heads at any event would say anything bad about anyones hat even if it was a cheap hat and not very SA. Those guys understand how hard it is to get the right Indy hat. Most have been there. heck I have owned every Indy hat offering that there has been.

The raiders hat was a custom made hat for the Movie and made from rabbit felt. The TOD and LC was a factory rabbit hat. The CS hat was made of pure beaver felt by Steve Delk and Marc Kitter of Advenutrebilt hats. They are the nicest of guys and There hats are well worth what they ask for it. I would be no where with out they support and help. I can't say enough about how good there work is. They are simple the best when it comes to Indy hats and if they were not swamped with orders of CS hats they would be simple the best at making any hat.


I always tell people if you are going to only buy one hat make it one that will last you and know you will be very happy with. Work from the top of the ladder and work your way down. Don't work from the bottom up.

I appreciate everyone's input. Me being such a stickler for accuracy and quality, nailing the right hat is a nightmare. With so many options and so many points of view, it really makes a purchase decision difficult. Of course, If I were a wealthy collector, I would have already placed an order for a hand made AB.
Though I am focusing on the fedora at this point, when it comes time to gather the rest of the gear, I intend on doing the combo special offered by Wested and the rest from Todd's Costumes (unless I get many suggestions that reccomend otherwise).
I will also be interested in building my Indy prop collection. But that's a whole other adventure!

When it comes to one of the cheaper high end feds you should go with the Akubra Federation IV deluxe. AMAZING fed...you wont regret it. If you can save the money buy a penmen. I personally would choose a penmen over an AB in a second because I don't wanna wait over a year (sometimes longer) for my hat. And the Penmen is made just as well if not better in my opinion. Here are 2 pics of my fed IV standard.

Thanks for the pics - looks great especially with the whip!
I'm trying to get in touch with John from Penman right now, but his phone must be turned off at the moment.
I plan on having an informative discussion with him about his hats and the others on the market.
I've pretty much decided on the Penman - just started posting at Club Obi Wan, the gearheads there are very nice and everyone has been giving praise to the Penman fedora.
The Akubra seems to be the best low-cost Indy on the market, however I want to get it right the first time and am willing to spend the extra cash on something more special.
Keep the pics coming, everyones help is appreciated.

It is the day before Thanksgiving. Everyone is preparing. Maybe you should try to get him on Friday.

Akubra Fed! My third and final Indy coif!

My first was a $19.00 Harrison from Burlington Coat Factory!














My second Dorfman Pacifica licensed by LFL as "the" Indy hat! With a rebashing attempt.








Akubra Fed


In action!

pics of a fed deluxe next to a custom penman
of course part of the cool is knowing that the hat was made for you and you alone

jlee562 said:

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The Akubra is generally considered the workhorse hat. It's at a good price point, and great bang for the buck. Plus, it's one of the most durable hats you can buy, so it's in the "spirit of Indy" if you will.

Steve Delk, the hatter behind Adventurebilt, advised in the production of the Fed IV and has said (quoting from COW): "I personally don't care for the other factory Indy hats, except the Akubras, but that's just my own personal tastes, and does not reflect anything but that."

I think that's a pretty good endorsement.

The Christy's is a fine choice too with the caveat of them being temperamental to humidity and heat...but it is more of a dress hat than the Akubra would be. But I really like mine as a Last Crusade hat.

What and where online can I purchase an Akubra and Adventurebilt
that are just like the movie versions?

I have heard someone mention on this forum before where their hat which I think was either an Akubra or Adventurebilt was actually rained on and wet and it actually looked better afterwards. Which hat is this exactly?

Has anyone taken to making their $300.00+ Adventurebilt more screen accurate by decorating it with dirt, sweat, dust, and Fullers earth?

How did it feel? Depressing?

Sort of like taking 70% isopropal alchohol to a $300.00 plus Wested or $500.00+ Nowak!

<prices may vary>

darthravenger said:

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What and where online can I purchase an Akubra and Adventurebilt
that are just like the movie versions?

I have heard someone mention on this forum before where their hat which I think was either an Akubra or Adventurebilt was actually rained on and wet and it actually looked better afterwards. Which hat is this exactly?

Adventurebilt hats were the actual hats used in crystal skull. They are expensive and the wait time is over a year because they are all hand made. But you get what you pay for. You can find info here http://www.adventurebilthats.com/

Akubra feds are the best bang for the buck and are proven to be one of the best cheap hats that are very accurate. They can be purchased from here http://www.hatsdirect.com/cgi-bin/pr...oup=Federation

So I was able to speak to John from Penmanhats today. He was very generous with his time and explained to me some of the biggest differences between his hats and the ones offered by Akubra, Christy's and AB.
Based on pictures, video on youtube, support from members at COW and of course my informative phone conversation with John, I have decided to place an order for one of his hand-made rabbit felt Raiders fedora.
The only option better than his would be the AB, but then again, the wait list is over a year on top of the steep price for the hand made versions.

Actually, if you order an AB at Steve's $650 price, he'll get a hat out to you in under six weeks. He works on his "day(s) off" to get these hats out because his site has a posted maximum lead time of 6 weeks. This also applies to his Raiders rabbit hats.

Those of us who are waiting on our ABs joined the waiting list before his last price increase, which brought the price to $650.

It was a pleasure to speak at great length again on the phone with John from Penman.
His knowlege, enthusiasm and honesty really sold me on the idea of one of his hats.
What I have learned in the short time I have been researching this hat is that there are of course MANY options available, a few of them are very good and are perfect Indy hats - it really all comes down to perferene of price and quality of materials, and if you want one hand made or one that was made in a factory.
According to John, the AB Henry is the best factory made Indy hat available anywhere in the world, with the Christy's being the worst. Since I still have time to debate in my head, I am still considering the AB Henry second only to John's custom Raiders.

Both are good choices...I personally like the Johns better. The Henry just looks darker than most to me. Plus John will bash the feds anyway you like...I'm sure he'll bash a henry for you too but I just love the raiders look of the Penman more than any other fed.

GeneralFROSTY said:

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Based on pictures, video on youtube, support from members at COW and of course my informative phone conversation with John, I have decided to place an order for one of his hand-made rabbit felt Raiders fedora.

You can't go wrong ordering one of his, I'm sure you will love it!!

Ok, So Indiana Jones, love it, always have, time to think about one or two pieces.

First off i thought maybe, a Fedora is the first thing to buy.

So i'm looking at the Dorfman Pacific hats offered by Sideshow - the $99 Fur Felt is within my budget (Sorry wife's budget - my xmas prezzie)

What i am looking for is a bit of advice from the IJ Experts.

For the money is this my best option?
For those who have the Dorfman Pacific Fedora, what's you option on it?

Also, please do chime in if you would recommend any other specific pieces, idol, whip etc etc

Thanks in advance.
Gordy