Do hats really need a liner?

[jec]

Is there any reason NOT to remove the liner from my Akubra Angler that I wear out in the sun when I am painting? Not having much hair on top, I am finding that my sweaty dome sticks to the plastic on the crown of the hat's liner. Then the liner nearly pops out inside-out when I take the hat off!

Today when it happened I realized that the best solution might be just to remove the liner altogether. Can anyone tell me why I shouldn't do it? Why is the liner there?

OR perhaps there is a better fix?

I expect some of you to suggest a straw hat, instead of the felt - and yes, maybe that is the way to go for hot summer days. But I am trying to limit the number of hats in the collection that are destined to get smeared with wet paint!

Thanks for the help.

 

[bolthead]

Is there any reason NOT to remove the liner from my Akubra Angler that I wear out in the sun when I am painting? Not having much hair on top, I am finding that my sweaty dome sticks to the plastic on the crown of the hat's liner. Then the liner nearly pops out inside-out when I take the hat off!

Today when it happened I realized that the best solution might be just to remove the liner altogether. Can anyone tell me why I shouldn't do it? Why is the liner there?

OR perhaps there is a better fix?

I expect some of you to suggest a straw hat, instead of the felt - and yes, maybe that is the way to go for hot summer days. But I am trying to limit the number of hats in the collection that are destined to get smeared with wet paint!

Thanks for the help.

There's no reason why you can't take it out. They make light weight felt hat without liners in them.....but one thing you might wanna consider is that you said your head sticks too the top of your hat when you sweat.
If you remove the liner completely, you may end up with a salty ring on the outside of the felt, on top of the hat. [huh]

 

[jamespowers]

If it is like the liners I am thinking about, simply remove the plastic topper over the top of the liner. They tend to become yellowed and crack eventually anyway.

 

[Viper Man]

I agree with James and have cut the plastic out of the crown of the liner on several of my hats because it makes my head sweat.

 

[Bird's One View]

What kind of hats are these, that are lined with plastic? Sounds very bad.

EDIT - just checked a Stetson; lining feels like nylon to me. Never noticed on account of still having hair on top I guess. Anybody know for sure?

 

[dhermann1]

I believe the plastic was an innovation in the 50's. I guess it was a trade off. Less likelihood of sweat passing through the lining into the felt, more likelihood of the top of your head turning to slime.

 

[Viper Man]

Yep, my vintage Stetsons (50s), Champ (60s), and my Disney (40s-50s) all had that plastic dome in the top of the liner. I always assumed it was to prevent your pomade or hair dressing from soiling the hat.

 

[swisslet]

My Akubra Fed IV Deluxe has the plastic top bit - although I don't know if other Akubras do. I don't mind it and actually think it protects the top of my hat from my head (which generally touches it). As for the lining itself, I like them and think that they add a touch of class, but there's nothing to stop you taking it out of your work hat, I shouldn't think.

I seem to recall that Harrison Ford took all the linings out of the fedoras he wore in the Indiana Jones films as he simply found them too hot to wear in all those exotic locations.

 

[donCarlos]

Yes, the lining is absolutely necessary. Imagine all that grease from your hair (or head) on you hat. That would be disgusting...

 

[jamespowers]

I believe the plastic was an innovation in the 50's. I guess it was a trade off. Less likelihood of sweat passing through the lining into the felt, more likelihood of the top of your head turning to slime.

It also protected the manufacturer's logo for others to see instead of a faded mess.
After WWII plastic became available to the masses and it was used everywhere. It was cheap and replaced Bakelite and such. The earlier liner plastic toppers were more clothlike in texture. They didn't stick as much as the shiny stuff we have used today. A few examples:

 

[johnnycanuck]

If you are sweating all over the up of your liner, and you remove the liner, you will be sweating all over the top of your hat. You can, and most likely will, sweat threw the top of your hat and get sweat stains up there. That's why Art summer weight hats have a patch at the top and Panama hats (usually) have a brand sticker up there. If it were me I would just tape a piece of paper towel up there. On the other hand if the hat is black then I would not care either, sweat would not show up anyway.
I sweat a lot myself so my work hats usually get some paper towel folded behind the sweat band to stop the sweat from soaking threw.
My two cents worth anyway.
Johnny

 

[jec]

The topper will have to go...

Thank you all for weighing in -

This is a contemporary hat; it's the Akubra Angler that Outback Outlet has been selling for cheap. It is a great field hat, with a 3" brim that keeps my face and neck in the shade.

The liner is a satin with the shiny plastic topper in the center of the crown, covering the company logo. That's the part the sticks to my head: the plastic. I don't think the crown of the felt actually touches my scalp; just the dome of the liner, which sags down a bit. But I just noticed that the lining itself - in addition to being tacked behind the sweat band, is also held in by the grommets of the 6 side air vents, so that would complicate removal.

I think I will start by cutting out just the plastic topper. That should solve the problem, without potentially compromising the felt on the crown. Thanks for the suggestion!

Jim

 

[jamespowers]

Thank you all for weighing in -

This is a contemporary hat; it's the Akubra Angler that Outback Outlet has been selling for cheap. It is a great field hat, with a 3" brim that keeps my face and neck in the shade.

The liner is a satin with the shiny plastic topper in the center of the crown, covering the company logo. That's the part the sticks to my head: the plastic. I don't think the crown of the felt actually touches my scalp; just the dome of the liner, which sags down a bit. But I just noticed that the lining itself - in addition to being tacked behind the sweat band, is also held in by the grommets of the 6 side air vents, so that would complicate removal.

I think I will start by cutting out just the plastic topper. That should solve the problem, without potentially compromising the felt on the crown. Thanks for the suggestion!

Jim

That would be my suggestion---especially with the grommets in place.

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

The earlier liner plastic toppers were more clothlike in texture. They didn't stick as much as the shiny stuff we have used today.

I've seen this material in military hats, and it is described in my 1940 Bailey's catalog as, "Fish Skin". Seems to be some sort of breathable material,... but actual fish skin??? Sounds unlikely, but then again,...[huh]
Does anyone know just exactly what this stuff was?

 

[Feraud]

Fish skin sounds like an accurate description.

 

[ADHD librarian]

I have a couple of hats without liners and have never had any problem with sweat marks on them.
A goodly % of Akubras are sans liner when purchased (cattleman and snowy river, their biggest sellers).

So liner removal is hardly problematic.

On a side note, one of my lids (probably 1960s) has the plastic insert between the liner and the felt, so your head is on the liner, but the felt is still proteced from your Dapper Dan Pomade.

 

[Maj.Nick Danger]

Fish skin sounds like an accurate description.

So it really was the actual skin from some sort of fish? This would explain maybe the reaction with greasy kid stuff hair dressings of the day that I think tended to turn the stuff yellow.

 

[jec]

I think I will start by cutting out just the plastic topper. That should solve the problem, without potentially compromising the felt on the crown. Thanks for the suggestion!

DONE! I was amazed how easy it was to cut the plastic out of the crown of the liner, with barely a trace left along the stitching; is it possible that the plastic dome is intended to be 'optional?'

Anyway, I think my days of the sticky liner syndrome are over...

Thank you, all.

 

[Edward]

My Akubra Fed IV Deluxe has the plastic top bit - although I don't know if other Akubras do. I don't mind it and actually think it protects the top of my hat from my head (which generally touches it). As for the lining itself, I like them and think that they add a touch of class, but there's nothing to stop you taking it out of your work hat, I shouldn't think.

I seem to recall that Harrison Ford took all the linings out of the fedoras he wore in the Indiana Jones films as he simply found them too hot to wear in all those exotic locations.

Both my Fed Deluxe and Regular Fed (both mark IIIs) have them. I don't think there's one in my Akubra Riverina - can't recall, though the lining of it is an interesting mottled-terracotta, due to me wearing it in high temperatures in China last month. I sweated the dye out of the sweat-band, I think..... I do wish they'd go for some other colour than white. Seems to me that a black (as on my Biltmore) or even a dark brown or scarlet would hide the inevitable sweat stains that happen in a hat's lifetime rather better than does white. [huh]

 

[Edward]

DONE! I was amazed how easy it was to cut the plastic out of the crown of the liner, with barely a trace left along the stitching; is it possible that the plastic dome is intended to be 'optional?'

Anyway, I think my days of the sticky liner syndrome are over...

Thank you, all.

I suspect they're designed such that they can be removed. I keep em in place on my fedoras, though with caps I tend to remove them as soon as. They do give a little better rain protection to a wool cap, but given that they sit right next to my shaven head, it's not so pleasant a sensation...