quote:

Originally posted by Beancooker:

Artie, being that we want to end up in Florida I have debated the felt hat a lot. I had a Resistol Logan 7x for a week before i returned it. I have been dead set on an American 40x, or better, but having a beautiful hat that I rarely wear seems like a big waste. Maybe just settle for the Resistol and call it a day.

I do feel the need to get a felt hat, solely for the few times that a straw is just too informal. Just as well, l’ll absolutely have to have a felt for winter. Too cold to suffer through another winter without a hat, and i just don’t care to wear a beanie ever again.

You will get the most mileage out of the vented straw hats. Even an enclosed straw is pretty hot in high summer. Florida isn't as hot as Arizona, but it is a hell of a lot more humid, and without good venting, any hat turns into a steam dome on your head.

Honestly, I'd like a nice felt hat, but I'd be dropping a few hundred bucks on something that would get worn only a few times per year.

Plus, very few places have a spot for your hat anymore. Most restaurants don't have a wall hook at a booth, etc., for hanging a hat, and having been in the military, I am not comfortable wearing a hat indoors, consequently, I often don't wear a hat when I go out, as there is no convenient place to put one.

I'm about an hour west of central Orlando, and cowboy hats are pretty common out here, and even more so north west of me, and in the Ocala area.

Nice hats everybody. I am down to 6 now. My 1st Resistol I purchased about 32 years ago now. I recently got it back out and had it streched a little.

My second was a straw hat, but cannot remember the brand. Sadly #2 feel in a fire and was lost.

My 3rd is a Resistol that belonged to my uncle. I wear this one a lot when I participate in SASS.

#4 is a Renegade Calvary II I bought from our very own Rolan Kraps. I was going to use this for SASS, but it just a little to big. I have used it now for display.

#5 Is an inexpesive Bailey I use for SASS too. Found it at Goodwill of all places.

#6 Purchased in February, is Stetson Skyline in Silver Belly color

#7 my newest is a Stetson Crowley straw.

Both Stetsons where purchased from Heritage Hats, the best hat shop in Phoenix. I highly recommend them. Rich has an excellent stock of cowboy, fedora, and other hats.

I have found in hot, dry climates, a tall crown, wide brimmed, light colored (white, light sand, silver belly) quality fur felt hat (not wool), works well.
In hot, humid climates, un-lacquered straw hats with tall crowns, eyelet vents and wide brims work better.

Save the low crown, dark colored hats for winter wear.

quote:

#4 is a Renegade Calvary II I bought from our very own Rolan Kraps. I was going to use this for SASS, but it just a little to big. I have used it now for display.

Try sitting it on the dash of your pickup on a hot, sunny day and see if it doesn’t shrink down a bit. If that’s not enough and you’d like to wear it, get a spray bottle and mist it pretty thoroughly at the base of the crown and try the hot day on the dash again.

Cardinal rule is to NEVER leave your hat in the car. Sure way to ruin it.

If you want to either bash or slightly shrink your felt or wool hat steam is the way to go. From a tea kettle or an espresso machine steam wand. But go gently and don't overdo it.

Well there you go. You have a dilemma.

This thread has me thinking, and researching. Turns out, I may be able to get my old man’s Resistol to fit with a combination of shrinking and weather stripping inside the sweatband. I told my mother to set it aside somewhere safe for me so I can bring it home next time I’m up. He had that one and I believe a Stetson or two. Need to head over to that shop and try on some vented straw hats soon, too.

For cold/wet weather that I can't avoid having to go out in (not so much these days), I have an Australian drover hat. They are cowboys too.

My two cents on the hats that are too large, the dashboard trick works well. You’re not baking it all day. That would not do it well. Wear it a while so it’s not dry, you want the sweatband a little moist. Put it on the dash on a HOT day for an hour. It’ll shrink.

Steam alone won’t shrink your hat. If it would, all my hats would have shrunk. Every hat I have has seen a fair bit of steam. The ones that were bought open crown and flat brim, were steamed to high heaven to get them shaped.

quote:

Originally posted by P220 Smudge:
This thread has me thinking, and researching. Turns out, I may be able to get my old man’s Resistol to fit with a combination of shrinking and weather stripping inside the sweatband. I told my mother to set it aside somewhere safe for me so I can bring it home next time I’m up. He had that one and I believe a Stetson or two. Need to head over to that shop and try on some vented straw hats soon, too.

Ed, try shrinking it down, and you can also use masking tape. Flip the sweatband out. Take a piece of 2” wide masking tape about 8” long. Tape the seam where the sweatband meets the hat. When you fold the sweatband back in, it doubles the thickness of the tape. Do this in the front and back. You can double up the tape to size it farther down. This method you can reduce your hat by 1-2 eighth sizes. (7 1/2 down to 7 3/8 or down to 7 1/4).

Here is a video (should start at 12:57) where Jobe shows how to use tape to shrink up a hat. He also discusses the dashboard method. Jobe sells a lot of hats, and is an amazing hat shaper. I do trust what he has to say.

At 18:20 is where he starts talking about hats on the dashboard. And his “not advice” on shrinking them on the dash.




https://youtu.be/O2usJ72hPWw?s...G5O5xP_ScW_uEo&t=777

Like I said, leaving your good felt - fur hat in a hot car is a recipe for disaster.

I love cowboy hats. I look like a dork in one though.

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
Like I said, leaving your good felt - fur hat in a hot car is a recipe for disaster.

Bob, you realize that video just proved my point about shrinking a hat. Just as Jobe said, don’t leave it all day. 20 minutes. I said an hour.
Leaving it on the dash will shrink it.
If your hat fits perfectly, yes, you ruined it.
In Ed’s case, he’s TRYING to shrink it.
The heat won’t ruin the fur or felt. That’s how it’s made. It takes steam and heat to felt fur.
Now I’m not saying baking a hat on the dash is a good thing for the felt, but if you want to shrink one a bit, that’s a decent way to do it.

Resistol fits my heat better than Stetson hats. Cowboy hats used to be fairly common where I currently live, but now you don't really see them except during rodeo week.
I'm pretty excited that my first ever custom hat is finally ready. I had one made by Brooke & Powder River Hats in Elizabeth, CO.

Personally, I am a wider brim fedora wearer. Not a Frank Sinatra stingy brim kind of guy. I live in Iowa where there are many cowboy hat wearers but the vast majority are farmers and auctioneers. I have no cattle and not a lot of land so prefer to not represent myself as such. LOL! I think the cowboy hat is a good look for those that like it. I was fortunate enough to have Art Fawcett make me three hats before he retired, two felts and one straw. I will will them to my grandson if he wants to wear them.

Bad dog, and Betty’s nephew…
Post up some pics of these beauties! Seriously!

quote:

Originally posted by darthfuster:
I love cowboy hats. I look like a dork in one though.

I think most of looking good in a cowboy hat, is having the confidence to wear it. Next time you go on vacation, and no one will know who you are, buy a hat and wear it with confidence. A good hat shaper can help get the right hat for your face shape. You’ll get a lot of compliments and that’ll boost your confidence. Then wearing it at home and work around your regular people is easy.

quote:

Originally posted by Beancooker:

quote:

Originally posted by bald1:
Like I said, leaving your good felt - fur hat in a hot car is a recipe for disaster.

Bob, you realize that video just proved my point about shrinking a hat. Just as Jobe said, don’t leave it all day. 20 minutes. I said an hour.
Leaving it on the dash will shrink it.
If your hat fits perfectly, yes, you ruined it.
In Ed’s case, he’s TRYING to shrink it.
The heat won’t ruin the fur or felt. That’s how it’s made. It takes steam and heat to felt fur.
Now I’m not saying baking a hat on the dash is a good thing for the felt, but if you want to shrink one a bit, that’s a decent way to do it.

But the big caveat is that using steam you can incrementally achieve the desired results. Leaving a hat in a hot car begs the risk of overcorrection especially if you're not babysitting it.

So again I stand by much preferring steam to any hot car approach as the later risks ruining your prized hat.