New MLB 59Fiftys for 2006

[FiddySicks]

So my store just got what id suspect will be the new 59FIFTYS for next year. Overall not a huge chance, but ill point out the biggest differences.

1) Material change. The new hats are 100% polyester, rather than wool. At first I hated this idea, but the look is almost identical to the old and the new material is WAY more comfortable.

2) Black underbill and sweatband. So prior to next year the only two teams who did this were Anaheim and (inconsistantly) Seattle. Along with that is the sweatbands ahve been changed from white to black. I like this because it keeps the hat looking cleaner longer

3) Raised MLB logo on the back. Not a big suprise considering all of the fashion hats already have raised MLB logos.

4) inside of the cap

So when I first saw these with the World Series patches I thought they looked like cheap knockoff rushjobs. And truth is, they were cheap rushjob knockoffs. But now that I see these properly executed,theyre not bad, and pretty good. Same crappy sizing problems though.....

[Guest]

Good thing I replaced my Cubs hat before they went polyester. Crappy changes.

[Coast2CoastAM2006]

Least its made in the USA and not in the pacific ocean

[edensker]

Does the polyester feel different than the wool?

[slapshot]

I don't think the material change will be a significant as people fear it will be. I have a few polyester caps that feel like wool, and it's hard to tell the difference.

I also have a polyester batting caps and stretch-fit caps, and those are clearly not wool.

I think it depends on the cap. In the case of the new 5950s, it appears that it's the former.

[BallWonk]

Questions:

1. Is the poly material more "flexible" than the old wool?

2. How does black sweatband make the hat look cleaner longer? Are people wearing sweatbands on the outside now?

3. Please describe the bill -- is it still flexible cardboard? When you lay it flat, is it still rounded like an old 5950, or does it have three sides with two distinct "corners" like pretty much every other cap out there, including the most recent BP cap style? Can you lay it flat, or is it precurved?

So far, the only thing that really disappoints me is the black undervisor. I have a circa-2003 5950 Brewers cap with a black undervisor (!?) and I'm not a fan of it, compared to green or gray. But that's a wholly subjective question of taste, not a substantive complaint.

[BadSeed84]

3. Please describe the bill -- is it still flexible cardboard? When you lay it flat, is it still rounded like an old 5950, or does it have three sides with two distinct "corners" like pretty much every other cap out there, including the most recent BP cap style? Can you lay it flat, or is it precurved?

Its probably the more flat kind, GOD FORBID we piss off the thugish people who wear them, who probably never watch baseball.

Seriously tho, it would be too awesome if it was curved like the bp hats and every other normal hat.

[Royals Insider]

What teams do you have in?

[huggermugger]

People should not be asking any questions. We should shun this thread because it is not officially released information. I thought we were all against leaks. Please think about how the people at New Era would feel that all their hard work is being leaked. Please! Please! Please!

[Gothamite]

People should not be asking any questions. We should shun this thread because it is not officially released information. I thought we were all against leaks. Please think about how the people at New Era would feel that all their hard work is being leaked. Please! Please! Please!

Nice strawman, pal. Anything of substance to add?

Myself, I'm surprised that they didn't overhaul the silhouette - that was my bet.

[Guest]

Questions:

1. Is the poly material more "flexible" than the old wool?

2. How does black sweatband make the hat look cleaner longer? Are people wearing sweatbands on the outside now?

3. Please describe the bill -- is it still flexible cardboard? When you lay it flat, is it still rounded like an old 5950, or does it have three sides with two distinct "corners" like pretty much every other cap out there, including the most recent BP cap style? Can you lay it flat, or is it precurved?

So far, the only thing that really disappoints me is the black undervisor. I have a circa-2003 5950 Brewers cap with a black undervisor (!?) and I'm not a fan of it, compared to green or gray. But that's a wholly subjective question of taste, not a substantive complaint.

My hat has grey, but I think I'd prefer green.

[huggermugger]

People should not be asking any questions. We should shun this thread because it is not officially released information. I thought we were all against leaks. Please think about how the people at New Era would feel that all their hard work is being leaked. Please! Please! Please!

Wait you shouldn't be even reading this post! You were one of the leaders of the anti-leak squad.

[FiddySicks]

Questions:

1. Is the poly material more "flexible" than the old wool?

2. How does black sweatband make the hat look cleaner longer? Are people wearing sweatbands on the outside now?

3. Please describe the bill -- is it still flexible cardboard? When you lay it flat, is it still rounded like an old 5950, or does it have three sides with two distinct "corners" like pretty much every other cap out there, including the most recent BP cap style? Can you lay it flat, or is it precurved?

So far, the only thing that really disappoints me is the black undervisor. I have a circa-2003 5950 Brewers cap with a black undervisor (!?) and I'm not a fan of it, compared to green or gray. But that's a wholly subjective question of taste, not a substantive complaint.

1. The material isnt really different at all. It feels a bit cleaner and doesnt make your head sweat quite as bad as the wool does. mainly, its just less scratchy and its a bit cooler. mainly jpslapshot nailed it. its not nearly as signifigant as everyone thought.

2. Hte black sweatband keeps the cap looking cleaner longer because its harder to see dirt on black fabric. My biggest gripe about the old hats is how quickly the white sweatband got dirty and make the cap look grungy. More of an asthetics thing.

3. Bill seems to be the same as it was before, which I love. The main reaosn the bills are flat, believe it or not, isnt because of the whole pop culture thing. The bill is flat to make packing and shipping hats in bulk easier, and so you could add a custom bend to the bill. The flat billed thing came in years later.

And even though it ws probably just some well placed sarcasm, this cant really be considered a leak. New Era shipped the hats after the World Series and tried to sneak them onto store shelves without people noticig. Andto answer the question of what teams we got in stock. We got Detroit (pictued) Anaheim, Los Angeles (still ugly as ever!!!) San Francisco, and a big box with red tape and a note stating "Do not open till coorperate approval has been recieved". Now with that I guess we recieved either Arizona or Cincinati. I cant wait to open that frickin box............

[amare32]

My concern is the "shrinkage factor," to borrow a term from George Costanza.

I always buy my wool caps too big, then wash them and wear them while they dry so they'll shrink to fit my head.

I would imagine that the polyester caps won't shrink, so I'm gonna have to buy smaller sizes than I would if they were still made of wool.

That's not a major problem, except that part of the process of shrinking them was that I could break down the high crown -- the end result being somewhere between an original condition 5950 and a low-profile version of the same.

Here's hoping they've made some adjustment to the structure of the crown for those of us who don't like their caps to look like billboards.

Any word, bucfan56?

[FiddySicks]

Honestly, they look almost exactly the same as last years caps. Ive hear rumors of them bringing back the low profile caps for the public, but I dont know anyhting further on that. And does polyester seriously not shrink? I was always of the assumption that it shriks just as bad, if not worse than wool.

EDIT: Wow. I looked it up and polyester doesnt shrink. Thats awesome. Thats going to make maintinence of the caps about 100 times easier.

[griffelh]

I wonder when these "new" caps will show up at my local SportsAuthrity or Lids. I can't wait to check them out, being an avid cap collector. I own close to 200 New Era fitteds.

[BallWonk]

3. Bill seems to be the same as it was before, which I love. The main reaosn the bills are flat, believe it or not, isnt because of the whole pop culture thing. The bill is flat to make packing and shipping hats in bulk easier, and so you could add a custom bend to the bill. The flat billed thing came in years later.

And even though it ws probably just some well placed sarcasm, this cant really be considered a leak. New Era shipped the hats after the World Series and tried to sneak them onto store shelves without people noticig. Andto answer the question of what teams we got in stock. We got Detroit (pictued) Anaheim, Los Angeles (still ugly as ever!!!) San Francisco, and a big box with red tape and a note stating "Do not open till coorperate approval has been recieved". Now with that I guess we recieved either Arizona or Cincinati. I cant wait to open that frickin box............

Open the box, dammit!

Anyway, thanks for the info on the bill. That was my biggest concern. Precurved bills are the work of the devil, and the "cornerless" bill of the 5950 is my single favorite feature of the cap. All other bills look mickey-mouse to me, with their straight side edges and flat fronts.

The flatness of the cap in shipping may be purely utilitarian in origin, but the fact that it allows each wearer to set his own curve is awesome, since everyone's taste in bill curvature is different. Thank heavens New Era kept this feature intact.

Regarding the shrinkage issue, this might be a real problem. I have a cap that is 80/20 wool/poly, and when I tried to shrink it a bit there was no effect. Anything short of 100 percent wool isn't going to shrink appreciably, and 100 percent poly shouldn't shrink at all ever. Just means we'll all have to start trying on more caps until we find the one that's made exactly the right amount too small or too large.

[griffelh]

Just means we'll all have to start trying on more caps until we find the one that's made exactly the right amount too small or too large.

yeah, and in a lot of stores they start getting pissed off if you ask to try on more than 2 of the same cap.

[cappital92]

I wonder when these "new" caps will show up at my local SportsAuthrity or Lids. I can't wait to check them out, being an avid cap collector. I own close to 200 New Era fitteds.

200! Wow, I thought I had a lot of hats.

[griffelh]

I wonder when these "new" caps will show up at my local SportsAuthrity or Lids. I can't wait to check them out, being an avid cap collector. I own close to 200 New Era fitteds.

200! Wow, I thought I had a lot of hats.

I have over 400 all together, probably getting close to 500, but only about half are New Era fitteds.