Panama Hat Thread

[WineGuy]

A thought on Panama vs Felt...

Hi gents, thought I'd chime in. I've gotten a crash course in hats over the last three months thanks to conversations with PB, AF and BB and came to the conclusion that in each material a man should have at least two hats.

With Panama's you need at a minimum a "good" day to day Cuenca or Azogues with a nice block that you won't cry over if it gets dirty, stolen or lost. Then you also want a Montecristi Fino or better for it's beauty, it's potential to be an heirloom, and lastly to continue the market demand for the better weavers so that this precious art form does not die away.

Similarly, with felt Fedora's, a good Indy or ebay vintage special is a must for just grabbing a hat in the cooler months when you are just going out on the cheap and a VS Art Fawcett custom hat is for just feeling great about yourself, telling yourself you've earned this, and for putting on the Ritz.

Buying a Montecristi fino or better is like buying a fine mechanical Swiss watch in that every so often you will find yourself staring at the hand made details of the manufacturing and marveling that in this digital day and age of plastics and mass production, there are still things of beauty that only human hands can make.

BTW: As a wine professional I couldn't agree more with daizawaguy's analogy to wine. My shop carries wines from $8 to $4000 per bottle, I bring home for myself $10-40 wines for day to day drinking but there is definitely more enjoyment in a premium $100 bottle if you are into it, some people aren't and that's okay too.

 

[WineGuy]

Re: Blocking for CRH

I am curious and I think my next Panama will arrive unblocked :eusa_clap.

I look good in any hat with a brim .

Muchos gracias, Robert, for the info.

Hi CRH,

I would definitely go "unblocked". I received a gorgeous blocked Montecristi Fino from PB, but my head shape caused the brim to go wavy as soon as i put it on. I bit the bullet and I'm having Art re-block the hat to my own shape which he gets from a clever "conformer" devise he sends you. You also get to choose your block style, sweat band and hat band(from which Art has an amazing collection of vintage material to choose from) to get a truly one-of-a-kind hat.

Just factor it into your budget, besides, an unblocked hat is usually cheaper anyway.

 

[CRH]

...I bring home for myself $10-40 wines for day to day drinking but there is definitely more enjoyment in a premium $100 bottle if you are into it...

I need a $40 bottle of wine to match my $40 hat. Maybe I need a $100 bottle to match my $100 sunglasses.

I'd reckon a $40 cigar and a $40 bottle of wine would fit in nicely with this $40 hat.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

IndyCop and family came to visit the HPG household today. Indy brought along a Panama Bob hat that was distorting due to his long oval head shape so I fixed it up for him.

Befores:

(Oh no, I posted a pic of IC doing what could only be described as smiling. He's going to have to kill me now!)

I put in a Hat Jack to simulate the distortion and then dampened the brim. With weights (books) and hand shaping I was able to get the brim to relax. Off camera, my gal Nicki is applying some dry heat with a hair dryer on low setting to re-stiffen the brim and set the shape.

Afters:

(Checking it out in the mirror)

 

[Carlisle Blues]

Nice job Gene !!!!!!!!!!!:eusa_clap :eusa_clap :eusa_clap

Sounds like everyone had a nice time as well.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

Thanks!

Great avatar.

 

[indycop]

Gene that's not a smile. That's a grin, which for me means we snuck in on the backroads off the beaten path and made it inside your lair! lol lol

Seriously the shaping worked good enough that I think I will get a cheap optimo crown from PB and see how it goes.
Thanks Gene, for fixin it and having us over!

 

[daizawaguy]

"Indy brought along a Panama Bob hat that was distorting due to his long oval head shape so I fixed it up for him. I put in a Hat Jack to simulate the distortion and then dampened the brim. With weights (books) and hand shaping I was able to get the brim to relax. "


BRILLIANT! I`ve now doing that to my Panama that I have tried everything on up to now to correct the brim distortion. Just 10 min and it seems its going to work!! Leave it overnight and see what happens...thanks!!:eusa_clap

 

[cookie]

Gene..ious!:eusa_clap

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

Note that what you're really trying to achieve is a stretch of the outside circumference of the brim. Carefully work the brim edge in order to flatten it some and relax the flanging some without flattening it too much or overly stressing the straw. Keep dampening it as you go because it dries quickly. The tricky part is that when you get it flattened a little in one or two areas, it is flipping up in other areas. It's like playing 'Whack-A-Mole"! lol

Then, once the brim is relaxed a touch, the hairdryer is for setting the overall desired shape. You'll wish you had extra hands for this too.

 

[Panamabob]

That's great, Gene!

I wanted to chime in about the child labor mentioned earlier.

The kids that we buy from work when they want to and it's to buy candy bards, gym shoes, school supplies, etc. More importantly, it's to carry on the craft in their families. As with anything else in Ecuador, whether it be whaling tours or taffy making, you'll see the whole family involved in some way or another. It isn't a sweatshop setting.

 

[CRH]

That's great, Gene!

I wanted to chime in about the child labor mentioned earlier.

The kids that we buy from work when they want to and it's to buy candy bards, gym shoes, school supplies, etc. More importantly, it's to carry on the craft in their families. As with anything else in Ecuador, whether it be whaling tours or taffy making, you'll see the whole family involved in some way or another. It isn't a sweatshop setting.

Just the picture of your family business that I've had in mind. My earlier post was meant to be tongue-in-cheek and so was the teasing that I've received. I think it's good for business to have such things up front and out in the open, though .

Now, what kind of weave is Indycops, Panama? I believe that's the hat he won in a monthly drawing.

There is a nicely done Panama in my future. I'll be hanging around.

 

[rlk]

Pedigree Panama w/Pug

A very pleasant surprise received today. For $38.00 expectations were not high. Unlike the ebay photo, the Pug was Navy not Maroon. After applying some of the above described In-"Gene"-ious techniques the brim isn't bad.

 

[WineGuy]

Damn nice for $38 bucks....



Nice, tight Brisa weave and the sweat band looks well made and perfectly sewn in. Overall a real great day-to-day hat...congrats.

Did the $38 include shipping?

 

[rlk]

Nice, tight Brisa weave and the sweat band looks well made and perfectly sewn in. Overall a real great day-to-day hat...congrats.

Did the $38 include shipping?

I did pay $10.00 for shipping but this included a decent hat box with its insert.

 

[WineGuy]

Still a great price!

I did pay $10.00 for shipping but this included a decent hat box with its insert.

Love the blue band....good call!

 

[Panamabob]

Looks like Llano liso weave to me. Can we get a shot of the vueltas in the crown. Great hat, great price!

 

[WineGuy]

Great hat...

I stand corrected, I did not see a herringbone pattern at first glance, takes a trained eye like PB's.

PB, can you tell where it was woven?

 

[rlk]

Vueltas

Looks like Llano liso weave to me. Can we get a shot of the vueltas in the crown. Great hat, great price!

 

[rlk]

Brent Black Panama Reblocked by Optimo

Fresh from the box

Has some tiny holes in weave.