Akubra Overload

[monbla256]

Hard to say. It has a little more crown and a little less brim than the Coober Pedy. It is quite stiff - even stiffer than my Open Road but it feels great on the noggin. It is a very cool hat. This was easily the best Ebay buy I've ever made.

Wear that puppy in some drenching rain storms and it will soften up wonderfully !! You'll love how Akubra's get after they have gone through a few good soakings !

Onward thru the Fog

 

[warbird]

Beat the heck out of the hat. On my Akubras, I open the crown and will sit in front of the idiot box, also known as a TV, and punch the heck out of the hat. this hasn't been mentioned much on TFL lately, but many of us old goats on here used to talk about what we did to our Akubras and softened them up like butter. Punch and turn the hat, punch, open it up and turn that, over and over. They'll take it..... AND IT"S FUN!

And almost cathartic.

It ain't no dang baby now. I have friends who buy their hats and put em in boxes and buy their guns and put em in safes and only bring em out on nice days. Heck with that a gun and a hat might have ornamentation purposes for some. For me they are tools. I use the heck out of them. I don't purposefully abuse them, but I am going to use them. I posted a pic today on another thread with some boots of mine and an old 1927 made side by side shotgun. Someone pm'd me and asked if that gun was just taken out for a pic. I replied heck no, that is is still used by me multiple times a year. Tools gents, tools. If they won't last I'm not having them.

 

[Neophyte]

I know what your talking about, WB. Last night while I was watching the tube, I changed my tawny Campdraft's crease from telescope to pinched telescope to teardrop to montana peak to cattleman to open crown (quite literally "punched" open) to gus...it was fun, despite my lack of skill in creasing . That damn hat would be so versatile if it had a wider brim.

 

[monbla256]

That damn hat would be so versatile if it had a wider brim.

I keep telling you, get a Bushman and you will have YOUR hat ( I know it only comes in ONE color, but it's a GOOD color, works with just about EVERYTHING )

Onward thru the Fog

 

[Neophyte]

I keep telling you, get a Bushman and you will have YOUR hat ( I know it only comes in ONE color, but it's a GOOD color, works with just about EVERYTHING )

Onward thru the Fog

Maybe. I've found recently, though, that I am completely in love with the flat brim.
Don't worry, though, the Bushman is on my wishlist alongside the Cattleman and Territory.

 

[Panda Moanium]

Jackaroo?

Is anyone here familiar with the Jackaroo? It doesn't appear on Akubra's own website but both Everything Australian and Hats Direct offer it. Seems to be very similar in style to the Cattleman but with a slightly smaller brim and lined. And it doesn't have the air-vents of the Cattleman.

Thinking about getting a general outdoors / beater type hat for my next purchase. The Cattleman appeals but not sure whether I can carry off the larger brim which is what is pushing me towards the Jackaroo. No great colour selection though - only seems to be offered in Santone.

This is the image from HD's site.

 

[Duper]

Panda Moanium, If you are concerned about the brim size before ordering a Jackaroo I would double check with the Hats Direct staff via e-mail the brim size that is listed on their site. I recall them verifying for me and finding it slightly larger than the posted witdh. The Everythingaustralian site puts it at 79mm which is more than the hats Direct posted width of 76. About an 1/8 of an inch difference but in hats it is surprising how that can change the look.

 

[Panda Moanium]

Yes, I did notice that discrepancy on the brim size and I agree that it could totally change the look of the hat. So from the feedback you got from Hats Direct it would appear 79mm is closer to the correct width. Not a million miles away from the Cattleman's 83mm brim, but still enough to make a difference.

I tried on a Cattleman once, it wasn't my size, but I did think it rather large, but that said maybe its a case of getting used to it and wearing it in the correct environment (i.e. outdoors). Which is why the Jackaroo might be a good compromise / initiation into larger brimmed hats.

 

[Rodkins]

Cattleman...

 

[Neophyte]

That same brim width would look just right on my noggin.

 

[Rodkins]

That same brim width would look just right on my noggin.

Those pics are older...I just put them up to give an example of the brim width. It's a great hat for being outside in the Florida sun.

 

[Neophyte]

I was saying with subtlety that I wanted your hat. Alas, my head is too large.

 

[Rodkins]

I was saying with subtlety that I wanted your hat. Alas, my head is too large.

I thought we were the same size...7 3/8 LO

 

[Neophyte]

Actually, my recent trip to Buckaroo Hatters revealed to me that I'm actually a 7 1/4 LO. I guess my head is actually too small, then

...it WOULD explain why all my Akubras fit really loose until after about 1.5 months of wear.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Yes, I did notice that discrepancy on the brim size and I agree that it could totally change the look of the hat. So from the feedback you got from Hats Direct it would appear 79mm is closer to the correct width. Not a million miles away from the Cattleman's 83mm brim, but still enough to make a difference.

I tried on a Cattleman once, it wasn't my size, but I did think it rather large, but that said maybe its a case of getting used to it and wearing it in the correct environment (i.e. outdoors). Which is why the Jackaroo might be a good compromise / initiation into larger brimmed hats.

You might want to consider the Stockman. It's got the same crown/bash as the Cattleman (and Jackaroo), but with a more civilized 2.75" (70mm) brim. That may not sound like much, but it's actually plenty. And being a popular Akubra, it's a stock item at most dealers. (Though I had to wait three months to get mine in Glen Grey.)

I have a Cattleman too, which I wear in the brutal summer sun - its light color, ventilation grommets, and lack of a liner make it acceptably cool... but that 3.25" brim always feels huge. In this part of the world - as opposed to the south and west, where big western hats are familiar - a hat like the Cattleman reads to most people as a cowboy hat, and sticks out as an even more of a bizarre affectation than a fedora or Panama.

 

[Panda Moanium]

Thanks for that, I must look at the Stockman again. The dimensions are perfect - I have a Banjo Paterson which has the same brim width and is a great all-round hat - large enough a brim to give good sun protection without appearing too huge.

What put me off the Stockman when I looked at it in the past was that I got the impression there is a fair bit of brim roll on the sides - so it is more American cowboy than Australian outback looking. Whereas the Cattleman is more flat brimmed all round. Would that be your opinion?

 

[Neophyte]

There is a lot of brim roll on the Snowy River family of Akubras (includes Snowy River, Stockman and Overlander).

Buy the Cattleman. Trim the brim if you don't like it. This solves your conundrum.

 

[fmw]

Or, a little water and some flat weights will remove any brim curl.

 

[Panda Moanium]

Or, a little water and some flat weights will remove any brim curl.

That might just be the answer.

 

[Neophyte]

Or, a little water and some flat weights will remove any brim curl.

THAT is much better than my idea!