Stetson's Bear Creek?

[alphy27]

I've got one of those. It's not bad in moderately warm weather but my melon sweats under felt on hot days. The felt on this hat in top notch. Soft but still holds its shape great. The only thing I did not like about it was the synthetic sweat band. It tends to grip your hair like rubber. After about a year of use the outer layer of the sweat came unglued from its under-layer so I cut it out of the hat, wiped the sticky glue residue off the layer that was left and the hat is fine. I wear mine a lot. It's still one of my favorite hats.

 

[mtechthang]

Well. Definitions?

Any thoughts or comments regarding this particular Stetson ... particularly, would the Bear Creek be too much hat for warm weather use?

Well, shoelessjoe, what's warm? Warm and dry (say, southern Idaho or parts of Utah) it'd be a little warm but probably ok except on hottest days. In the south or Minnesota (hot and muggy) it would be very hot! Also, even with the price increases, I'd go with an Akubra for those dollars. The Banjo Patterson is a similar look (and better felt, in my limited experience). Email or call Noggintops. They are first rate in service, imho.

 

[carldelo]

Probably warm

Well it's sovereign quality and looks to be the same shape as the Stetson Chatham, but with a leather band instead of ribbon. I have a Chatham and I would say it will be too warm for summer here in New York. But if you were in the mountains, I think it would be OK. Having said that, I like my Chatham very much, and have had none of the bad experiences that some mention with regard to Stetsons. If you decide to buy from noggintops, there's a coupon code in effect until April 14 that takes $15 off anything over $90 (code is 'MARCH08').

 

[shoelessjoe]

I appreciate the sage advice ... it certainly is appreciated.

Surprisingly, in the dead of summer, even at 9000-plus feet the sun'll beat you down like a rented mule ... perhaps it's straw I should be looking at.

 

[carldelo]

Similar shape in straw

If you like the shape of the Bear Creek (I know I do), then you might also like the Stetson Retro Panama:

http://www.hats-plus.com/detail.aspx?ID=457

It has a medium 2-1/2" brim and looks like a fairly low crown which I prefer. If this hat came in size 2x I'd have one by now. I think this same hat was mentioned on another thread, at a different vendor for $5 less, but I can't find it right now - maybe someone will chime in.