The Resistol Roundup

[BrianCLindley]

Still trying to date this Resistol western from PMM western wear in Denver. Also curious what “trim brim” means. Seems like my other cowboy hats are?

I believe TRIMBRIM is exactly as it sounds. The brim is trimmed.

 

[M Hatman]

Still trying to date this Resistol western from PMM western wear in Denver. Also curious what “trim brim” means. Seems like my other cowboy hats are?

This hat was not made before 1983........look closely at the blocking tag.

 

[MikeP]

Thanks, I’m thinking late 80’s as I mentioned in the post.

 

[M Hatman]

Thanks, I’m thinking late 80’s as I mentioned in the post.

So then you have the information......why were you still asking about dating it then. Unless the sweat is dated (as Stetson has done at different times) you are never going to get an exact year......just an approximate give or take of five or ten years.

 

[MikeP]

Resistol 5X with 5 inch brim and 6 3/4 inch open crown.

I notice the white liner with plastic crown protector. Any idea year of production? Nice hat!

 

[MikeinRome]

I notice the white liner with plastic crown protector. Any idea year of production? Nice hat!

Thanks. I really haven't researched hats this late. Maybe 70's or 80's, just guessing? The felt is pretty good, though.

 

[Dani Rose]

Super interesting find (at least to me). It may be a big bunch of nothing but I don't have a stylized "O" resistol and have wanted one. Seems a bulk custom (so likely just the special band) I'd probably say maybe early 50s, maybe late 40s or mid-50s. Uncertain if there is/was plastic on the liner, and as soon as it is in my hands I'll be carefully looking into all the little nooks for more clues. I'm hoping to find a reorder tag or such. I've got a bunch of XdoubleX red liner, brown post-Melorol band hats and they're some of my favorites, holding up close to as well as my prized 80s Diamond Horseshoe. There's a chance this is pre-war, if there's no plastic in there, and tbh there's def a chance this was just a liner that was laying around punting the hat toward the late 50s/early 60s. But it wasn't too expensive to find out, and even if this is an early 60s 3X I'll feel pretty darn good. Not like I need any more, but I just can't help myself. I'd estimate the brim around 3.5" which helps bolster the idea of it being earlier. I'm really excited to get this little mystery into my hands. Goldsmiths doesn't help much, as they were around forever. The stylized cursive script screams post-war to me and I'm not aware of red liner westerns from the pre-war era, or at least I have never come across one reliably dated there.

Felt is rather stained and I have yet to meet a red liner Resistol with the band that has not deteriorated beyond repair, so this is getting stripped and going right into a bath before much else. I'll bring pictures of the felt once it is out. In any case, if yall want to wildly speculate with me about this hat's origins I'm always down for recklessly throwing out dates and letting consensus sort it out lol

EDIT: Looking closer at that liner I think I see a discolored film? The color contrast is certainly stark. Plastic usually stands out in photos more, at least in my experience.

 

[CRH]

Super interesting find (at least to me). It may be a big bunch of nothing but I don't have a stylized "O" resistol and have wanted one. Seems a bulk custom (so likely just the special band) I'd probably say maybe early 50s, maybe late 40s or mid-50s. Uncertain if there is/was plastic on the liner, and as soon as it is in my hands I'll be carefully looking into all the little nooks for more clues. I'm hoping to find a reorder tag or such. I've got a bunch of XdoubleX red liner, brown post-Melorol band hats and they're some of my favorites, holding up close to as well as my prized 80s Diamond Horseshoe. There's a chance this is pre-war, if there's no plastic in there, and tbh there's def a chance this was just a liner that was laying around punting the hat toward the late 50s/early 60s. But it wasn't too expensive to find out, and even if this is an early 60s 3X I'll feel pretty darn good. Not like I need any more, but I just can't help myself. I'd estimate the brim around 3.5" which helps bolster the idea of it being earlier. I'm really excited to get this little mystery into my hands. Goldsmiths doesn't help much, as they were around forever. The stylized cursive script screams post-war to me and I'm not aware of red liner westerns from the pre-war era, or at least I have never come across one reliably dated there.

Felt is rather stained and I have yet to meet a red liner Resistol with the band that has not deteriorated beyond repair, so this is getting stripped and going right into a bath before much else. I'll bring pictures of the felt once it is out. In any case, if yall want to wildly speculate with me about this hat's origins I'm always down for recklessly throwing out dates and letting consensus sort it out lol

View attachment 672971 View attachment 672972 View attachment 672973 View attachment 672974 View attachment 672975

Do we get to see the dunk? Lol

 

[Dani Rose]

Do we get to see the dunk? Lol

Hah, that's the boring part! Gotta check my naphtha supply, first. And while I always work slowly, we've got snow on the ground here in north Georgia and these West Texas bones don't take too kindly to the chill anymore. I'll get some before and after shots for sure. The stains might need some elbow-grease (soap) to really make a difference and if all else fails I'll probably, under protest, break out the oil& powder to see if I can get the color to stick.

 

[CRH]

Hah, that's the boring part! Gotta check my naphtha supply, first. And while I always work slowly, we've got snow on the ground here in north Georgia and these West Texas bones don't take too kindly to the chill anymore. I'll get some before and after shots for sure. The stains might need some ) to really make a difference and if all else fails I'll probably, under protest, break out the oil& powder to see if I can get the color to stick.

Looks like you've been around a little bit. We're always looking to be educated ya know.

 

[Dani Rose]

Looks like you've been around a little bit. We're always looking to be educated ya know.

A decent bit of what I know comes from on-and-off lurking around here for like twenty years! Yall got a lot of history and know-how in these now-ancient internet pages. And a lot from research and a little more from first-hand experience, too. I've known plenty of ranchers and folks who wear western hats for work purposes. They buy high quality and know how to take care of it. I just love hats and can't seem to escape the culture. You can take the girl out of Abilene... or something like that. I did go to horse college, and a few friends of mine own, or have owned, ranches, but I haven't proper been on a horse in a long time.

But I adore millinery. It is such a messy, chaotic industry it kinda never stepped into the modern age of detailed, digitized recordkeeping and those who have been closest to it, ranchers, rodeo folk, etc., are some of the most old-fashioned, hardheaded, stubborn folks you'll ever meet. Especially about technology. So much knowledge is essentially folk wisdom, and even the handbooks from the early 20th require a certain lost esoteric understanding of the often highly-insular felting/hatmaking process of the day. I just find it fascinating! And I quite enjoy working hats. One of my son's friends found a modern 6X on the side of the road and that's what has been on my table most winter. Poor thing was covered in dirt, grime, and rubber. It has come a long way since then!

I'm really most knowledgeable about Resistols, and even then it is pretty much limited to westerns. But I feel rather confident dating Resistol westerns most of the time, tho exact dates are usually a fool's errand. Our hat worlds collide for that like decade post-war before yall's fedoras and such cut production and quality (to my understanding) significantly. I do have a few Resistol fedoras (trilbys? something else? lol) but the only interesting one is probably a long-hair finish that is, I think, ultimately a pretty boring 60s specimen.

But yeah, I love talking hats so if any of yall have questions about Resistol westerns I'm happy to share what I know. But like everyone it is patchy and we only get close to something actually useful when we all put our little pieces together into a messy whole. Sorry, been a very wordy night here! Howdy yall

 

[BobHufford]

if yall want to wildly speculate with me about this hat's origins I'm always down for recklessly throwing out dates and letting consensus sort it out lol

Not sure how long Buick supplied hats, but this was from testimony in a 1955 US Senate hearing on automobile marketing practices.

 

[CRH]

A decent bit of what I know comes from on-and-off lurking around here for like twenty years! Yall got a lot of history and know-how in these now-ancient internet pages. And a lot from research and a little more from first-hand experience, too. I've known plenty of ranchers and folks who wear western hats for work purposes. They buy high quality and know how to take care of it. I just love hats and can't seem to escape the culture. You can take the girl out of Abilene... or something like that. I did go to horse college, and a few friends of mine own, or have owned, ranches, but I haven't proper been on a horse in a long time.

But I adore millinery. It is such a messy, chaotic industry it kinda never stepped into the modern age of detailed, digitized recordkeeping and those who have been closest to it, ranchers, rodeo folk, etc., are some of the most old-fashioned, hardheaded, stubborn folks you'll ever meet. Especially about technology. So much knowledge is essentially folk wisdom, and even the handbooks from the early 20th require a certain lost esoteric understanding of the often highly-insular felting/hatmaking process of the day. I just find it fascinating! And I quite enjoy working hats. One of my son's friends found a modern 6X on the side of the road and that's what has been on my table most winter. Poor thing was covered in dirt, grime, and rubber. It has come a long way since then!

I'm really most knowledgeable about Resistols, and even then it is pretty much limited to westerns. But I feel rather confident dating Resistol westerns most of the time, tho exact dates are usually a fool's errand. Our hat worlds collide for that like decade post-war before yall's fedoras and such cut production and quality (to my understanding) significantly. I do have a few Resistol fedoras (trilbys? something else? lol) but the only interesting one is probably a long-hair finish that is, I think, ultimately a pretty boring 60s specimen.

But yeah, I love talking hats so if any of yall have questions about Resistol westerns I'm happy to share what I know. But like everyone it is patchy and we only get close to something actually useful when we all put our little pieces together into a messy whole. Sorry, been a very wordy night here! Howdy yall

What's the western deal with hard hats vs soft hats? I don't get it. All the rodeo deal and such.?

 

[Dani Rose]

Not sure how long Buick supplied hats, but this was from testimony in a 1955 US Senate hearing on automobile marketing practices.

View attachment 672991

Holy cow and that is why I came here I've been searching about for a reference like that, but I'll admit not super hard yet. Establishes an existing relationship between Goldsmiths and the "Southern Area Dealers" dated squarely in '55. Thank you

What's the western deal with hard hats vs soft hats? I don't get it. All the rodeo deal and such.?

You mean why westerns are (mostly) hard? The answer to that is just an all-around practicality. That's probably the biggest difference between western and dress hats. If you're out in your hat working all day in the sun and rain, you want it to be predictable, you want your wide(r) brim to stay put and not potentially flop over your eyes and limit your vision. And a harder hat helps if you, say, clip yourself with a lariat or a small tree branch snaps above you (happened to my son last summer! crushed his straw but those are disposable anyway), or any number of things. Rodeo is a lot of pageantry, too, and has all sorts of its own kind of culture and traditions. I certainly like my hats stiff. And while they're unquestionably fashion, they take a beating because they're first and foremost a tool.

 

[Rmccamey]

I'm far from an expert, but I'll suggest today's hard westerns are a modern phenomenon driven by a) changes in felting/felt preparation over time, b) the loss of the tools, equipment and craftsmanship/knowledge), and c) corporate laziness. I'm all for production efficiency but hat companies today are too reliant on heavier felts to withstand the pressing process and the automated assembly line to even consider softer felt. There are many vintage and antique wide brimmed western hats here on the Lounge (and in the old movies) made with soft(er) felt that serve their purpose just as well (and look better IMO) than the stiff westerns on store shelves today.


Ps, for those interested, some great western hats can be made with dress weight felt. I have a couple myself.

You mean why westerns are (mostly) hard? The answer to that is just an all-around practicality. That's probably the biggest difference between western and dress hats. If you're out in your hat working all day in the sun and rain, you want it to be predictable, you want your wide(r) brim to stay put and not potentially flop over your eyes and limit your vision. And a harder hat helps if you, say, clip yourself with a lariat or a small tree branch snaps above you (happened to my son last summer! crushed his straw but those are disposable anyway), or any number of things. Rodeo is a lot of pageantry, too, and has all sorts of its own kind of culture and traditions. I certainly like my hats stiff. And while they're unquestionably fashion, they take a beating because they're first and foremost a tool.

Gannon

 

[Dani Rose]

I'm far from an expert, but I'll suggest today's hard westerns are a modern phenomenon driven by a) changes in felting/felt preparation over time, b) the loss of the tools, equipment and craftsmanship/knowledge), and c) corporate laziness.

Oh sure, there's no question that pre-70s felt was simply, in most cases, better quality even at the lower end. But that being said the big manufacturers still make expensive, quality hats designed for their niche purpose: Ranching. A high-end western these days will be thin, good quality felt. And at the end of the day it just demonstrates that we have different relationships to what we put on our respective heads, despite all the similarities. Part of why I usually just lurk about here, tbh, I'm not interested in getting into arguments where everyone is right because it is a subjective personal preference. And I certainly have no expectation for dress hat folks to really understand the ranching world and just how chaotic & rough it is day-in and day-out.

I suppose at the end of the day ranchers, cowboys, barrel racers, rodeo queens, etc., all know that that hat is gonna get knocked off your head eventually, and it'll likely take a tumble on the ground, could get stepped on by a horse or other animal, and at the least it'll get banged up and thrown about. Stiffness simply helps make the hat tougher to be able to match the punishment that'll be thrown at it when it is a "work hat" and not a "fashion hat".

It very well may look better or certainly be more interesting. But the point of the western hat isn't to look good. Nor is it to even demonstrate individuality as happens often with various accoutrements. It isn't something you even think about other people seeing, really, because it is a work hat. I don't like my hat being complimented, really, because that's not why I'm wearing it—where I came from that was just... how it was. You'd compliment a clearly new custom, but not the ratty Diamond Horseshoe that's seen more days of driving rain than most dress hats see in their lifetime. And in that culture no one is gonna judge someone for what work hat they wear on their head, because at the end of the day it is a tool. Heck, the ranchers and proper cowhands I have known over the years mostly wear ratty baseball caps these days, because they get the job done and they don't set you back a whole month's pay when that horse you turned away from for a second decides your hat looks like a tasty treat.

And maybe the real heart of the matter is that folks in western culture have a tendency to be pretty set in our ways. We value order and neatness when we can get it. Having stiff hats that keep shape and look sharp is part of that. We're fairly minimalistic and practical when it comes to clothing: Stiff jeans, good quality boots, shirts that handle the gallons you'll sweat out like a champ. Scarves to ward against dust and cold... and a hat on top. Heck, I won't lie... it isn't the kind of culture you really want to stand out in. There's a kind of conformity that only comes about from clutching to ideas and traditions while the rest of the world continues to fly by. So a part of it is kinda just us being... us.