I'm thinking of a hat...

**Stevew443** · 08-11-2012, 11:10 PM

Here is where I purchased my Panama. http://store.panamas.biz/
A Panama can be made in various styles, but it is a woven hat. My Panama happens to be a fedora style instead of one of the other styles. I do wear a felt fedora when the Panama is a bit too casual, like evening wear. I showed my casual summer hat in a previous post.

I just happen to love wearing hats. I also wear a beret when the occasion allows, a very casual bucket hat for yard work, and a very loosely woven very wide brimmed fedora style when mowing the yard and I need to have protection from the sun. People sometimes give me baseball caps, but I rarely wear them. I live in an area of the country where a baseball cap could almost be considered a "formal" hat. I have seen men dressed as well as they normally dress wearing a ball cap.

**thatonesmine** · 08-12-2012, 01:53 AM

Check out Robert Graham hat's, very individual styles to suit all tastes. Goes well with their shirts.

Charles U.K

**lingawakad** · 08-12-2012, 06:06 AM

I've heard nothing but good things about Brazil Tarp Hats from Real Deal Brazil. Made of old tarps, and there's a wire in the brim to help with shaping.

**Isaac** · 08-12-2012, 08:04 AM

If you decide to go with a custom hat, I can not say enough good things about Art Fawcett. He will send you a conformer to more or less make a hat just for you. I should be posting up a thread of all my hats here soon.

**OldSaw** · 08-12-2012, 10:13 AM

Originally Posted by Topgumby

You've pretty much got the gist of it...a Panama is a fedora shaped hat made of strawlike material, but a good Panama is a finely woven work of art, and has little in common with a cheap straw hat that you'll find at Wallyworld. There are subtle and not so subtle differences in shapes within the Panama hat world, but you've got the basic idea.

Best Summer hat I've had is made of.... polypropylene! It's an Akubra Capricorn in the fawn color. It looks for all the world like a Milan straw hat, and it wears light and cool.

I wore mine at Disneyland and stuffed it under seats or in those crazy pouches they have in the cars on rides and it just shrugged off the abuse. I've worn it every day during two Summers, and it does yard work duty too. If it gets dirty, I hose it off and it's good to go again.

Tilley makes a fine hat, but around here it's almost a badge that I associate with an outlook on things that I don't want to be associated with, so I went with something different. The Akubra can do double duty as a "nice" hat and a outdoorsy hat, something most of the Tilley hats can't, IMHO.

Hmm, that's interesting. I always thought of the Tilley as the khakis of the hat world, kinda goes with everything, were as the boonie is more akin to blue jeans and all the fedora style hats are a little dressier.

What exactly is the Tilley hat association that you are afraid of?

**closer** · 08-12-2012, 11:25 AM

Originally Posted by Topgumby

Tilley makes a fine hat, but around here it's almost a badge that I associate with an outlook on things that I don't want to be associated with

I'm not sure what this might be, but fwiw, I picked up a Tilley LTM3 last week from Eastern Mountain Sports. I'm still learning to adjust the straps for wind, but happy with it so far, through two rounds of golf. Its definitely light, and my head felt less warm compared to when I wear my usual ballcap cinched tight.

**OldSaw** · 08-12-2012, 11:34 AM

Originally Posted by closer

I'm not sure what this might be, but fwiw, I picked up a Tilley LTM3 last week from Eastern Mountain Sports. I'm still learning to adjust the straps for wind, but happy with it so far, through two rounds of golf. Its definitely light, and my head felt less warm compared to when I wear my usual ballcap cinched tight.

I took my sister's kids to an amusement park yesterday and the Tilley stayed on during all the rides, including a roller coaster and the Scrambler. At the end of each ride I quickly take off the hat and let the strap drop back inside & out of sight and put it back on. I love the double strap for its intended purpose and use it in windy environments, such as sailing, but stow it away most all other times.

**Topgumby** · 08-12-2012, 11:58 AM

Originally Posted by OldSaw

What exactly is the Tilley hat association that you are afraid of?

In Seattle, if there was a protest in front of a Starbucks because they were depleting environmental resources, and the guy leading it parked his brand new giant SUV a couple blocks away 'cause it wouldn't look right, I'd expect him to be wearing socks with sandals and a Tilley hat.

Completely unfair, and I'm sure they are fine hats, but it's just part of that uniform around here.

**OldSaw** · 08-12-2012, 12:03 PM

Originally Posted by Topgumby

In Seattle, if there was a protest in front of a Starbucks because they were depleting environmental resources, and the guy leading it parked his brand new giant SUV a couple blocks away 'cause it wouldn't look right, I'd expect him to be wearing socks with sandals and a Tilley hat.

Completely unfair, and I'm sure they are fine hats, but it's just part of that uniform around here.

Ah yes, I see what you mean. Around here anyway, most of the other Tilley wearers who I see are "middle aged" (we're all going to make it past a hundred, right?) guys like myself, but some of them are much older, so I thought maybe it was an "old man" thing or something like that.

**Topgumby** · 08-12-2012, 12:13 PM

Old man? Indeed, quite the opposite, and I'm quite sure if I was in another part of the country the association wouldn't be there.

Anyway...back to the OP. I think a straw hat in a fedora type shape can look great with short sleeves and shorts.

**A3M0N** · 08-12-2012, 12:27 PM

Thanks fellas. I'm thinking I will try out a straw fedora I saw at Target (don't judge me ;)) and see if I like it. If I do indeed like the hat and will wear it often, I'll look into a nicer hat for the "winter" and next season. I'm not a big fashon guy, so I will probably wear the straw hat well into what we call winter down here.

For some reason, that Real Deal Brazil hat looks cool to me. Maybe later on...

**ricardo9505** · 08-12-2012, 12:33 PM

have you considered the caribbean panama hat? classy and casual. white reflects the sun and very popular in my Caribbean family mbrs. and as always, a white handkerchief in your pocket,

**Topgumby** · 08-12-2012, 12:33 PM

Not a bad way to go at all. My first straw was a inexpensive golf hat. If the hat bug bites, you can indulge later.

**Sled Dog** · 08-12-2012, 12:56 PM

Originally Posted by Topgumby

I think a straw hat in a fedora type shape can look great with short sleeves and shorts.

Kinda like this Tilley

**john parker** · 08-12-2012, 02:21 PM

Sled Dog, can you tell me where this one is on the web, please? Found it once a couple months ago but wasn't smart enough to bookmark it so I could find it again!

Originally Posted by Sled Dog

Kinda like this Tilley

**Topgumby** · 08-12-2012, 02:53 PM

Originally Posted by Sled Dog

Kinda like this Tilley

Haha! Yes, while that rather nice shantung fedora is sold by Tilley, it's not the classic Tilley fabric hat I was referencing.

John, it's a $99 model S7 and it looks like they are out of large and XL until late August.

Here's a Stetson for about half the dough. In the $70 range, here's a Bailey.

Shantung is really a paper fiber...it's been used for hats for quite some time, but somehow paying a C-note for a "paper hat" doesn't sound quite right. Remember, this is coming from a guy who shelled out about that much for a "plastic hat".

**john parker** · 08-12-2012, 03:04 PM

Thanks, Topgumby!! I will look them over!

**A3M0N** · 08-12-2012, 03:47 PM

Originally Posted by ricardo9505

have you considered the caribbean panama hat? classy and casual. white reflects the sun and very popular in my Caribbean family mbrs. and as always, a white handkerchief in your pocket,

I like this. Where at and how much? For future reference.

**cb91710** · 08-12-2012, 03:52 PM

Originally Posted by Topgumby

Here's a Stetson for about half the dough.

I've got that Stetson and am not totally happy with it.

I like the traditional Fedora look with the back of the brim flipped up and the front down (Trilby).
When this one arrived, it was flipped up all the way around and looked kinda goofy... like I belonged in a musical.

After weeks of working it, I was able to get the entire brim to stay down, but it still wants to pop back up, and I can't raise the back without it also pulling the front up... and the brim is not even... never was, even before I started working it.
I bought it because of Stetson's reputation.

**Isaac** · 08-12-2012, 05:27 PM

Originally Posted by cb91710

I've got that Stetson and am not totally happy with it.

I like the traditional Fedora look with the back of the brim flipped up and the front down (Trilby).
When this one arrived, it was flipped up all the way around and looked kinda goofy... like I belonged in a musical.

After weeks of working it, I was able to get the entire brim to stay down, but it still wants to pop back up, and I can't raise the back without it also pulling the front up... and the brim is not even... never was, even before I started working it.
I bought it because of Stetson's reputation.

I have to say that while Stetson ha true brand name recognition, their products lack the quality of old. I sold Resistol and Stetson hats , both fall under HatCo., and well even their top of the line hats were really lacking. It is a nice way to introduce yourself to a different breed of hats, but do not spen too much on them.

This of course is just my opinion.