Giant Pith Helmet Thread of Doom

[Cattus Petasatus]

Because I needed a white one, I modified one of my Pressed Fiber Sun Helmets.

I think it turned out well. I'll have the best pith helmet in town.

 

[johnnycanuck]

Because I needed a white one, I modified one of my Pressed Fiber Sun Helmets.

I think it turned out well. I'll have the best pith helmet in town.

Nicely done. Did you just use spray paint?

 

[Cattus Petasatus]

Yes. Just "rattle can" spray paint on the exterior. Then I sanded it down a little to make it smooth. There are a couple of spots with overspray but you really have to look for it. The chinstrap is from a company in Canada, https://coghlinandupton.com/, the strap was only $1 each so I bought several. I had to use 2 straps to get the length I wanted. I'm super happy with the results.

 

[johnnycanuck]

Yard working this last weekend. My 17 year old French pith helmet. Original sweat band disintegrated a few years ago so had to make my own replacement. Been thinking of spray painting it and graffitiing it up. 1950’s style. Or going cheesy with a Jurassic park logo.

 

[Cattus Petasatus]

How did you do the sweatband? I have a helmet that needs one. I tried using a hard hat liner but it was too bulky and sat too high on my head.

 

[moehawk]

I spotted this old relic in a local vintage store a few months ago. I chatted with the owner about it, talking about it's very well-worn condition and wondering what it may have seen in it's life and service. I stopped back in yesterday, and she surprised me by gifting it to me. I guess I was the only one who really got a kick out of it.
It is missing at least the pug, or whatever wrap it once had. I know very little about pith helmets so it may be missing other things too. The top is crunched in on one side and the sweat is a bit stiff so I am reluctant to turn it out in search of tags. I can't read much of the liner logo other than what looks like Army & Navy on top and Bombay on the bottom.
Here it is...




It looks greener in person than in the pics. Indoor pics show it as received. For the headshots I put it over my balsawood milleners bulb shaped block and pushed the crunched part of the pith back into place, but there's nothing really keeping it there. Fit is pretty good. I had never worn one before I first tried it on in the store back when I first saw it, but right away I could see why people might like them in hot weather.
I am curious about the age of it. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than I will help.

 

[johnnycanuck]

I spotted this old relic in a local vintage store a few months ago. I chatted with the owner about it, talking about it's very well-worn condition and wondering what it may have seen in it's life and service. I stopped back in yesterday, and she surprised me by gifting it to me. I guess I was the only one who really got a kick out of it.
It is missing at least the pug, or whatever wrap it once had. I know very little about pith helmets so it may be missing other things too. The top is crunched in on one side and the sweat is a bit stiff so I am reluctant to turn it out in search of tags. I can't read much of the liner logo other than what looks like Army & Navy on top and Bombay on the bottom.
Here it is...

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It looks greener in person than in the pics. Indoor pics show it as received. For the headshots I put it over my balsawood milleners bulb shaped block and pushed the crunched part of the pith back into place, but there's nothing really keeping it there. Fit is pretty good. I had never worn one before I first tried it on in the store back when I first saw it, but right away I could see why people might like them in hot weather.
I am curious about the age of it. Hopefully someone more knowledgeable than I will help.

Looks like a great find to me. And it sure looks like you got the crown back in a good shape. I love pith helmets but don’t know the history. I know there is a very knowledgeable group on Facebook you could join that would probably help.
Johnny
Wear it in good health.

 

[johnnycanuck]

How did you do the sweatband? I have a helmet that needs one. I tried using a hard hat liner but it was too bulky and sat too high on my head.

I will try to stop and show how I made one this weekend. Sorry for the delay.

 

[moehawk]

Looks like a great find to me. And it sure looks like you got the crown back in a good shape. I love pith helmets but don’t know the history. I know there is a very knowledgeable group on Facebook you could join that would probably help.
Johnny
Wear it in good health.

Thanks Johnny!

 

[johnnycanuck]

So the original one was a thin piece of plastic wrapped in cotton with velcro adjustment at the back. I liked the cotton to pull the sweat away from my head so it would not drip down my face. So I wanted to make something similar.

The sweatband is roughly the width of a ruler so I used that for measuring. I got a round ice cream tub and cut a strip out of it.

If I was to do this again I would punch holes in the strip to let the sweat pass through.

I took some old cloth. In this case an old, worn out, pair of jeans. Using the ice cream ring as a guide I cut out a strip of cloth three times as wide as the sweat band.

I then wrapped the cloth around the plastic and stapled it snug. You can sew it but my daughter lost the sewing machine power cord.

I then rolled the cloth so the staples were facing out.

I used weather stripping to make the air flow spacers. And double sided tape to hold it in place.



If I wasn’t as cheap as I am I would just buy a leather sweat band and use cork instead of weather stripping.



Hope that helps

Johnny

 

[Hurricane Jack]

A special occasions & situations hat. Churchill Ltd Panama Pith Helmet with perforated leather sweat. Need a Meerschaum lined gourd body Calabash pipe (or a cigar), Cuban guayabera shirt & cargo shorts.

 

[johnnycanuck]

A special occasions & situations hat. Churchill Ltd Panama Pith Helmet with perforated leather sweat. Need a Meerschaum lined gourd body Calabash pipe (or a cigar), Cuban guayabera shirt & cargo shorts.

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great looking hat. So what’s the special occasion?
Johnny

 

[Hurricane Jack]

great looking hat. So what’s the special occasion?
Johnny

Americas birthday. Any day spent in the outdoors.

 

[Hurricane Jack]

While looking around I found this Ellwood catalog. Said to date between WWI & WWII.

 

[milandro]

Also, I saw this on the International Military Antiques website and thought I'd try my hand at it. Here is a link to the history of it.

View attachment 502851

It's not exact, but it looks good on my shelf. I'm not sure where I'll wear it yet.

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What you have ben trying to reproduce is a " Bersaglieri' Helmet of WWII or the period before that of the Italian wars in Africa.
There are companies specialised in providing these starting from the 50 feathers and ending to the 600 feathers.

https://negoziomilitare-pn.com/it/bersaglieri/1113-piumetto-50-piume.html

https://negoziomilitare-pn.com/it/bersaglieri/51-piumetto-bersaglieri.html

 

[Hurricane Jack]

It’s going to be SE Asian hot today so I’m under the Churchill Panama Pith helmet. I sort of feel like Tony Poe.

 

[Hurricane Jack]

About the end of the season for this Churchill straw Pith Helmet.

 

[Correus]

Have any of y'all ever made a puggaree for a Wolseley?

 

[johnnycanuck]

Just seen another vendor. Not sure if it’s the Vietnam shell with an upgraded liner and headband. But it looks nice.
https://www.warwicks.com.au/products/wolseley-pattern-pith-helmet
Johnny

 

[The Shooman]

After using a couple genuine pith helmets for a couple years, I'd like to weigh in again and revise some of my initial comments. Namely, I'm not sure where the idea (myth?) of soaking or drenching the pith helmet originated, but I'm sure it's in error. My helmets are made in Vietnam from pith covered with thin strips of cork for shape and added firmness (I assume) then covered in cotton twill. Sola pith may stand up to water better than straw or felt; however, I don't think the original intent was to soak the hat. I've found that dunking, soaking, or drenching the pith helmet causes deformation and deterioration. Pith swells, like a sponge, when wet. Then shrinks as it dries. It never dries exactly as it was before it was soaked. H

This is why l tried to avoid the modern made pith helmets made with cheap materials and found a vintage one.

Have a look at this:

Soaking your Helmet

Pith helmets (Well-made ones, anyway), are designed to be soaking wet when they’re used. A good-quality cork, or pith helmet is designed to retain water. On a hot day, dunk the helmet in a bucket of water, or flip the crown upside down and fill it with water and let it soak in for a few hours. Drain off the excess water, shake the helmet to remove the runoff, and then put it on.
https://www.throughouthistory.com/?p=3153

Cutting open a pith helmet video. Seems to be plastic, cotton (probably the cheap cotton), synthetics etc. I suspect they don't make `em like they used to. Surely a pith helmet designed for the jungle is meant to be tough and hold up to water.