Adverse Weather and our Fedoras

[Bud-n-Texas]

Well I have to weigh in on this one. While I am new to the vintage hats, I have been using my hats for decades. I learned early on to purchase a quality hat and not only will it protect you, it will last a long time. I purchased a Black Gold when I lived in Denver close to 15 years ago. It went through rain, snow storms, blizzards etc.... It has endured over 10 years in the Texas sun, and it still looks not to mention feels great. It is a matter of choice, and we are all different, but I say wear it, take care of it, and it will take care of you. JMHO

 

[Matt Deckard]

I myself reach for the vintage when it rains... or even if I am going to be out on a trip. They hold up better and most importantly, they don't shrink.

Secon to Vintage would be my Optimos.

 

[jamespowers]

Didn't Emil Jennings in Last Laugh play an aging hotel doorman, who holds umbrellas for hotel guests as they exit to catch their cabs, hats and all? Or have I gotten so old that I am making scenes up? (Please don't answer the last question.)

Just remember the memory is always the second thing to go. I think doormen held open the doors and held umbrellas for women not men. Women's hats of the era were usually ill-equiped for the weather. It was more style than protection. You really couldn't fit both of you under the umbrella anyway. Wear your hat in the rain. Save your significant other's hat. Be chivalrous. :cool2:

Regards to all,

J

 

[John in Covina]

Spoken like a fellow from Southern California!
Stand in the Boston rain in February for fifteen minutes and your hat becomes a wad of soaked newspaper!
******

WHOAH THERE PILGRIM! You don't know what Southern California rain is like! I am from Long Island lived ther until i was 21 where ther rain can come down awful hard, but out here when it rains, it rains with a vengence. I have seen three or more La Ninias (unusually extra wet season) and man it can come down.

I watched it open up and rain so hard in Cerritos that the rain was 5 inches up the curb in 4 minutes and the pressure of the water hitting the storm drains blew the man hole covers off for blocks around. In the 1930's it rained so hard it wiped out the highway up the east fork of San Gabriel Canyon and took out almost all the bridges. Do you recall hearing about whole neighbor hoods being swallowed up by landslides and mudslides out here? It is because of the rain. Earlier this year while driving home from work, the street I was on became a river with water to my doors and there were times when it rained so hard my wipers could not keep up with it, and you could not see across the street, a 2 laner.

The desert which every one thinks of as a killer tends to kill more people by flooding than heat and exposure. People think there is no weather out here but they are wrong, dead wrong. In Los Angeles last year there was a freak storm near Compton that dumped something like 4 inches of hail in about an hour one winter evening.

We get fires, floods, earthquakes, wind storms, dust storms, landslides, mudslides, and droughts. We have killer bees, bug infestations where they spray insectacide so the paint comes off your car, the West Nile Virus, Hunta Virus, Violin Spiders, rattlers, super rattlers (Mojave Green) and the ten plagues of Egypt. But we live here because while you are shoveling snow it's gonna be 80 degrees. 80 on Christmas, I'll be wearing hiking shorts and contemplating getting in the hot tub, while sipping a micro brewed ale!

It will cool down later in the winter, and a few days there will be frost on the ground. We'll see if it is a wet or dry winter and if dry, it will be a very comfy winter. If wet, it seems to always rain on the weekends. Storms off the Pacific can be down right nasty. So, if you think it only drizzles here, you are way off base.

john in Covina

 

[John in Covina]

Save your good hats and use the so so stuff in the rain!

John in Covina

 

[Rigby Reardon]

I am getting a kick out of these replies - thanks for starting this whole food-fight, Hem.

Sounds like we still all fit the generic (albeit VERY BROAD AND ALL ENCOMPASSING) pattern of all having SOME cutoff point (even Bob, but he manages his cutoff point differently - by not buying hats ABOVE his cutoff point - clever fellow ), but it varies person to person.

Oh, and I think we all agree that we can't agree on the weather.

 

[Hemingway Jones]

I am getting a kick out of these replies - thanks for starting this whole food-fight, Hem.

Sounds like we still all fit the generic (albeit VERY BROAD AND ALL ENCOMPASSING) pattern of all having SOME cutoff point (even Bob, but he manages his cutoff point differently - by not buying hats ABOVE his cutoff point - clever fellow ), but it varies person to person.

Oh, and I think we all agree that we can't agree on the weather.

Leave it to me to be the instigator!
I think our good friend John in Covina missed the subtleties of two friends exchanging friendly jibes, and has taken the weather... a little personally.

I think the bottom-line to this discussion is, it's your hat; do with it as you see fit. But, I don't want to hear about it if you ruined a beautiful hat by standing out in the rain like Tom Hanks in "The Road to Perdition!"

 

[John in Covina]

It doesn't rain in California!

Leave it to me to be the instigator!
I think our good friend John in Covina missed the subtleties of two friends exchanging friendly jibes, and has taken the weather... a little personally.
QUOTE]

Well, it's not like i am ripping any body a new one, but it was kinda like telling people in Oklamhoma after a tornado, they only get balmy breezes! Although I have to admit the TV news get out of hand here, when a little rain hits every station has the weather guy on "Storm Watch" for the duration.
"Let's go out an intwerview the survivors!" "We hear at Huntington Beach interviewing Sammy "the hoot dog" Smith, local surfer." "Hoot, what happened?!"
Hoot: "There was all this water in the air, and then it LANDED!"

Best if done in a Bill & Ted type accent. "No Way!" "Way!"

John in Covina

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Well, it's not like i am ripping any body a new one, but it was kinda like telling people in Oklamhoma after a tornado, they only get balmy breezes! Although I have to admit the TV news get out of hand here, when a little rain hits every station has the weather guy on "Storm Watch" for the duration.
"Let's go out an intwerview the survivors!" "We hear at Huntington Beach interviewing Sammy "the hoot dog" Smith, local surfer." "Hoot, what happened?!"
Hoot: "There was all this water in the air, and then it LANDED!"

Best if done in a Bill & Ted type accent. "No Way!" "Way!"

John in Covina

I still don't think you're quite getting it. If Rigby had lived in Seattle, I still would've said the same thing. I wasn't playing the "my weather is worse than your weather" game, I was just teasing some one who is a very near and dear friend of mine. I certainly would never condecend tornado victims!

But, anyway, the next time I am in Southern California, we'll have to meet up. I'll buy the beers and we'll be pals.

 

[jamespowers]

"Let's go out an intwerview the survivors!" "We hear at Huntington Beach interviewing Sammy "the hoot dog" Smith, local surfer." "Hoot, what happened?!"
Hoot: "There was all this water in the air, and then it LANDED!"

Best if done in a Bill & Ted type accent. "No Way!" "Way!"

"Dude Its raining!? No way!"
"Way man. I looked up and nearly drowned. It was so bogus."
"Oh man, that could really ruin your buzz dude."

Regards to all,

J

 

[Rigby Reardon]

"Dude Its raining!? No way!"
"Way man. I looked up and nearly drowned. It was so bogus."
"Oh man, that could really ruin your buzz dude."

But the inside of my nose is really clean now.

Hem & Don Juan De Covina - invite me along, we'll compare inches of rainfall per year...

 

[Hemingway Jones]

But the inside of my nose is really clean now.

Hem & Don Juan De Covina - invite me along, we'll compare inches of rainfall per year...

Are you kidding me, I'll be sleeping on your couch!

 

[Rigby Reardon]

Are you kidding me, I'll be sleeping on your couch!

Hmm...you're tall. (Note to self, buy longer couch.)

P.S. Here's that crazy-beard pics I owed you. Slap a yellow slicker and fishermans hat on that. Man, I loved that beard...good luck getting her to let me grow it back!

 

[Hemingway Jones]

Hmm...you're tall. (Note to self, buy longer couch.)

P.S. Here's that crazy-beard pics I owed you. Slap a yellow slicker and fishermans hat on that. Man, I loved that beard...good luck getting her to let me grow it back!

The first picture looks like a mug shot from "Law and Order." The second picture has that "Parrot Head" Sonny Crockett look to it.

Hey, I can't even grow facial hair!

 

[riccardo]

Hi to all,
in rain I wear ,both, my waterproof felt hat by Panizza (labeled Original Kanguroo) or my Borsalino Country. They work very well,never it gave me any problem, never shrink!!
Sometimes it needs to be iron with a lot of steam, and then they look like new.
bleah...never I could wear hat and umbrella!!!:cheers1:

Best regards.
Riccardo.

 

[Kaleponi Craig]

Raindrops falling on my fedora...

Just my two cents worth...I wear my two 100% beaver lids, one is an Adventurebilt and the other is one of Art's beauties, in all kinds of weather. Been getting a lot of rain here in the SF Bay Area and I wear them both (but not at the same time). I don't even own an umbrella, that's what my hats are for. And they are both doing well, thank you. I plan on probably sending them in for a re-block in the late spring, but only if they need it. So far they are doing great, no taper at all.

But I will say that last year, I wore my Lee Keppler Indy fedora in a pouring rain and it tapered terribly. So I think it you're wearing a great fedora, hopefully made of 100% beaver, you should be okay.

So count me as one of those guys that think that a good lid is MADE to be worn in the rain!

KC

 

[Rigby Reardon]

The first picture looks like a mug shot from "Law and Order." The second picture has that "Parrot Head" Sonny Crockett look to it.

Hey, I can't even grow facial hair!

Parrot...Head...Sonny Crocket. Okay, you made me actually look that all up. I'm stunned to say there's a whole chapter of 80's TV I'm void on, but I never watched that! (Not a single fedora nor rainy day in that show, either, so I think I'm okay.) But 'parrothead'...I had to look that one up. Yup, I guess I am a parrothead.

 

[Victor]

Isn't a "parrothead" a Jimmy Buffet fan?

 

[LeeB]

new here

Hey, guys. I'm new to the site. I've been reading some of the posts here concerning wearing hats in the rain. I can say with assurance that my Akubra Federation has been worn darn near 365 days for the past five years; rain, snow and all. All it needed was a bit of cleaning and it's still going strong.

 

[Rigby Reardon]

Isn't a "parrothead" a Jimmy Buffet fan?

Yup. Never knew that term.