Good consumer info re: your quality of fur.....

Posted by Gregg from unknown-46-4.chiron.com on July 05, 2000 at 19:25:34:

In Reply to: Can anyone elaborate for me? posted by Gregg on July 05, 2000 at 16:07:58:

Know what to ask for:
First, here's what Joe e-mailed me today.
"Gregg,
[Bulletproof felt]is like a 5X western fur felt mostly rabit with a little
beaver. If you want a higher quality ( more beaver) we can
do that to. Joe Peters Sr."

Info From Greely's Hatters:
"Caution!! Not all X's mean the same thing! When trappers began trading their beaver pelts to the eastern markets the higher the quality pelts received more X's. This, in turn, was used in making the quality of hats, and later was given a dollar figure. For example in 1940 a 5X hat was of great quality and cost $50.00, $5.00 per X. A 10X hat was 100% beaver and cost $100.00. Well, needless to say the marketing companies from the hat industry caught on. By the late 1960's the X's were going higher and the quality was going lower. Now, you can buy a 100X, 200X, 500X hat that is not even 100% beaver!! Beaver is the best quality hair/fur for hats. It is thin, lightweight, and weather resistant. Anytime you take beaver out of a hat and put in any other type of hair (even cashmere - that is just wool) you lower the quality of the hat. Today's X ratings (in hats) are not standardized, meaning, one companies 20X could be the same as another companies 8X. Very rarely is beaver even used in factory made hats under 20X, 30X or 40X. Another example would be from one of my vendors who told me the difference between their 20X and 30X hat was the buckle set on the side. That was their justification to add 10
more X's."

From Renton:
"The X-factor of Fur Felt Quality:
In the hatmaking field, felt has traditionally been graded according to its X-factor. The X-factor was originally determined
by the density and shape of the material, and ranged in grade from a low of 1X to a high of 10X. Wool hats had no X's
and wool/fur blends were 1X and 2X. Hats made of material rated between 3X and 5X generally contained a little or no
beaver. A 10X hat was made of 100% beaver fur and was the finest hat available. Today, however, the X-factor is rather
subjective although within each individual brand more X's represent a better hat. As you move up the X-factor, a hat will
generally have more beaver and belly fur and less rabbit and back fur. However, each manufacturer is still free to rate hats
differently. One manufacturers 5X hat may be better than a different company's 10X hat. Manufacturers have also
blended exotic furs (mink and chinchilla) into their felts and added precious metal and gem stone trims (silver, gold, ruby &
diamond) to their top-of-the-line hats and have rated them 100X, 200X and more. For a reliable assessment of hat quality
you may need to depend upon the knowledge and reputation of your local western retailer."

This has helped me, hope it helps someone else.
Gregg

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