Buying first Panama

[Gustav Halbach]

Hello,
I'm a new member to Fedora Lounge and a first time poster.

I am in search of my first Panama (Fedora) hat and need some advice. I have searched various sites (Panama Bob, Monticristo, Orvis etc...) and am more lost now than when I began.

What I'm looking for is a Fedora (made of palm, straw ???) with a 4 inch crown and a 2.5 to 3 inch brim which I can wear for either dress up or down. I would like to keep the price below $200 US. Can anyone offer suggestions?

P.S. I'm not a fan of E-bay...would prefer not to buy from there.

Thanks,

Jos.

 

[Lefty]

Click here to learn a lot about panamas. It's a very expensive source, but a great place for information.

 

[bolly]

I have panama,just my luxury collection

 

[Rick Blaine]

Hello,
I'm a new member to Fedora Lounge and a first time poster.

I am in search of my first Panama (Fedora) hat and need some advice. I have searched various sites (Panama Bob, Monticristo, Orvis etc...) and am more lost now than when I began.

What I'm looking for is a Fedora (made of palm, straw ???) with a 4 inch crown and a 2.5 to 3 inch brim which I can wear for either dress up or down. I would like to keep the price below $200 US. Can anyone offer suggestions?

P.S. I'm not a fan of E-bay...would prefer not to buy from there.

Thanks,

Jos.

Panama Bob will not do you wrong. A stand-up guy in every respect, write him & tell him what you are looking for & he will take it from there. For the coin you wanna spend -Montecristi ... my o2

 

[Neophyte]

Panama Bob's Caballero model is probably what you're looking for.

 

[monbla256]

Panama Bob is THE one to go to. In your price range you can get a Cuarto Fino grade Montecristi from Bob which he can send to Gus Miller @ Batsakes Hats to be blocked and finished for $179.00 & shipping. You'd pay nearly 3 times that from BB or Optimo. Here's my Medio Fino Montecristi I got from him last year and Gus blocked and finished it. It is blocked in the Rio Plata style and is around 530wpi and has a 2 7/8" brim.

Bob is THE WAY to go.

 

[fmw]

Just so you know. There is some underhandedness in some areas of the panama hat business. It stems from the labor intensiveness of the product. You can spend $20 and $2000 for a pair of hats that look about the same from 20 feet away. It is easy to get less than advertised or pay more than the product is worth.

I think the advice above about going to Panama Bob is the way to go. He has a reputation for providing honest ratings and good value.

 

[ejbhats]

You may also want to contact FL user Tom-n-Perris. He also makes a fine product with numerous options available. A great guy to work with to boot!

 

[riccardo]

Panama Bob is the right person.

 

[Gustav Halbach]

Thank you to everyone who replied to my question. I will contact Panama Bob and see what he can offer. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Thanks again,

-Jos

 

[Adcurium]

You've got to check outPanama Bob. You must!

 

[Spw4922]

I'm a bit confused by the mention of blocking Panama Bob's hats. I see the option to have it done on site or at a US site. Do all of his hats need to be blocked? Are the discount hats pre-blocked (for lack of a better term)?

Bottom line, are any of the Panama Bob Hats ready to wear out of the box?

Many thanks

 

[Lefty]

An unblocked hat is a floppy mess with no sweatband, ribbon, etc. All of the hats are blocked, and blocking is either done in Ecuador (the cheaper, lower quality option) or in the US by one of the fine hatters with whom Bob works. With US blocking, you get a better sweat, ribbon and, probably, style.

 

[laotou]

You can't go wrong with a hat from Panama Bob.
Either blocking will get you a great,wearable hat.

 

[Rick Blaine]

I'm a bit confused by the mention of blocking Panama Bob's hats. I see the option to have it done on site or at a US site. Do all of his hats need to be blocked? Are the discount hats pre-blocked (for lack of a better term)?

Bottom line, are any of the Panama Bob Hats ready to wear out of the box?

Many thanks

He also maintains a strong eBay presence that is worth investigation.

 

[Spw4922]

Many thanks for the answers.As much as I love the $100+ choices on Bob's site, the discounted ones are much more palatable price wise for me at this point. It appears the $9 choices are no longer offered but I see that free shipping for the USA is now the norm. Seems to be a wash. Love the Teardrop and Caballero even though I'm not quite sure the differences twixt the 2 (I can discern them but not "verbalize" them)

Fingers crossed I hit the Monthly free one, but I'm itching to make a purchase in the discount area!!

 

[Panamabob]

Thank you to everyone who replied to my question. I will contact Panama Bob and see what he can offer. I'll let you know how it turns out.

Thanks again,

-Jos

Where do you live? I'm in Fort Wayne. I can meet you somewhere, if you'd like.

 

[fmw]

but I'm itching to make a purchase in the discount area!!

So what is stopping you? I ordered one from Bob last week. He said it already mailed. If it mailed from Ft. Wayne, it will be here probably tomorrow. If it mailed from Cuenca, then it will arrive whenever. I ordered the Optimo crease.

 

[Jedwbpm]

Spw4922 welcome to the lounge. nice to have another native here on the board. Hope you enjoy your reading and hat buying. These people my be from away but they are A OK.

Jeff

 

[Spw4922]

I made the plunge!! Went for the Pearl Caballero. This will be a nice fit with my recent Seersucker Suit purchase from JAB.

Jeff,

This'll knock um dead on the streets of Portland come May 30th!!

Steve W