Summer lids

[MCrider]

My vote goes for the Akubra Capricorn! It's synthetic instead of straw so rain doesn't affect it at all and it's open enough on the sides that the breeze blows through keeping your head cool. Try one, I'll bet you'll like it.

 

[Tim in Ohio]

I'm thinking of something like this:

I like the style of something like this for the summer... this is a Brixton Castor:

Here is a pic of Hugh Jackman (Wolverine) rocking a summer fedora:

 

[JimWagner]

Not vintage, but imminently practical, especially in the NC heat and humidity - Tilley

 

[RobFedoraField]

I 2nd, 3rd, & 4th that!

My vote goes for the Akubra Capricorn! It's synthetic instead of straw so rain doesn't affect it at all and it's open enough on the sides that the breeze blows through keeping your head cool. Try one, I'll bet you'll like it.

I have a tan capricorn and a cream country club and they are great hats. they are cooler than a ball cap!

I liked them so much I just ordered a grey capricorn so i have another color for the rotation!

 

[Havana]

I may be stubborn. I wear a felt hat in the summer. I wear a ventilated, wide brimmed felt from Akubra called the Cattleman. It's unlined with six vent holes and that really makes a big difference. The Cattleman model is similar to felt hats that have been worn for generations in the hot climates of Africa and Australia. I wear mine in the humid summers here in SC and have worn it in the extremely humid heat of Central & South America and dry heat of Africa.
I think this whole issue is really a matter of personal comfort. Some people might find such a hat unbearable and others might have no problem with it. I find wearing mine much more comfortable than going without it.

 

[frussell]

Stetson

Most of the time, I continue to wear my felt hats, even in the 120+ degree desert heat. I just go for lighter colors, like silverbelly, and almost always have the liner taken out. Every once in a while I still see some kook in a black cowboy hat running around here in the summer, and I wonder how soon heat stroke will nail them. Not everyone's style, but I really like my squashy Stetson Latte Florentine Milan, a stingy, bound brim hat I got last summer. Very comfortable, not stiff at all, and has a stretchy cloth sweat that feels great when it's absolutely boiling outside. Frank

 

[Sam Craig]

I also suggest Panama Bob, he is a super nice guy and has great hats.
Also check out SunBody, Jim and the gang are most helpful, they have alot of styles and can do most anything you might want.

Is it just me or is the Panama Bob site hard to follow?

I couldn't find the prices anywhere. I'm sure I took a wrong turn. Looks like beautiful hats.

 

[Tim in Ohio]

I agree with you Sam

I also suggest Panama Bob, he is a super nice guy and has great hats.
Also check out SunBody, Jim and the gang are most helpful, they have alot of styles and can do most anything you might want.

Is it just me or is the Panama Bob site hard to follow?

I couldn't find the prices anywhere. I'm sure I took a wrong turn. Looks like beautiful hats.

+1 one on the Panama Bob site Sam. He may be a prince of a guy and have terrific hats... for my two cents, the site could use some work.

 

[AlterEgo]

Morgoroth wrote, "Any styles would be welcome as I am not that picky yet."

OK, our job here, based on the hats you already own and your statement, is to make you more picky, much more picky.

I, too, live in the South, and by the time May arrives, I cannot wear a fur felt no matter how light weight the felt, how light the color, how many ventilation holes it has, or lack of lining.

I sweat profusely, and people have called me a hothead, though upon reflection perhaps they were not referring to my perspiring cranium.

Anyway, a good choice would be the Feather-Weight Panama at www.davidmorgan.com. A true Panama woven and finished in Ecuador, this only-two-ounce hat is woven in the Brisa pattern, has a cotton sweat and classy black cotton puggaree--a multi-folded hatband--a 3- by 2 3/4-inch dimensional brim, and a moderate 4 1/2-inch crown height at the sides.

The brim edge is woven back into itself for a seemless, super-neat look. And the hat features a reinforcement in the pinch where straws typically first break down due to picking them up there. This Panama is also coated in a rain-resistant treatment. You shouldn't intentionally wear this hat into the rain, but if you get caught in a shower, not to worry if it gets a little wet before you can take cover. It can blow up a thundershower with no notice here in Dixie, so I refuse to wear an expensive Panama and risk ruining it for that reason.

It's the rain-resistant treatment on the Feather-Weight that caused the originally almost-white straw to yellow somewhat, and is the reason DM has deeply discounted this already-pretty-affordable Panama into almost anyone's price range.

I actually like the "discolored" hat better than the blanch white it was intended to be, so I got it and love it.

I may be a hothead, but not enough of one to wear it into the sub-freezing temperatures we're having here now.

 

[carldelo]

... Anyway, a good choice would be the Feather-Weight Panama at www.davidmorgan.com...

That's a great recommendation - I also notice that David Morgan has a new Panama Fedora that is quite inexpensive and actually comes in XXL. In fact it looks very much like the Stetson Retro - it appears to have the same smooth fabric band as the Brewster I reviewed recently - if so, it should be comfortable in the heat of summer. The Feather-Weight looks like a better hat overall, but the Fedora has the teardrop crown I love so well... (I don't much care for pug bands either, not sure why)

 

[Panamabob]

http://www.panamas.biz/

Thanks, guys. I had it redone this summer, but maybe it needs something else. It isn't easy when you don't have a budget. Maybe I can get the guy, who I thought did a fine job, to do it for another hat. The hat was easily worth $1000.00, though!

I think I'll try to do some readjusting myself in the meantime. Maybe get the point to the top that there are basically 4 choices: USA blocked Montecristi, Ecuadorian machine blocked Montecristi, Ecuadorian hand blocked Montecristi, and Cuenca.

BTW, is it the main landing page www.panamas.biz

or is it a page like this that is hard to follow? http://www.panamas.biz/usa.html

It's none of my business, but those featherweights are among the cheapest hats in Ecuador.

 

[Tim in Ohio]

Thanks, guys. I had it redone this summer, but maybe it needs something else...

BTW, is it the main landing page www.panamas.biz

or is it a page like this that is hard to follow? http://www.panamas.biz/usa.html

Hi Bob,
Just my opinion... but I think it would be alot more clear on the area of the site where you can select the weave/model/size of your hat and order... if a picture was available for each.
For me it is hard to visualize what the difference between a $1,179 Bogey style panama MuseoFino blocked in the USA versus a $380 Bogey style Medio Fino versus a $214 Bogey style Cuarto Fino...
Would it be easy enough to to have a reference picture appear based on the selection? It would go along way towards helping a buyer decide if they want to spend the extra $900 and go MuseoFino or whether they would be satisfied with one of the other quality levels. [huh]
Tim

 

[fluteplayer07]

Hi Bob,
Just my opinion... but I think it would be alot more clear on the area of the site where you can select the weave/model/size of your hat and order... if a picture was available for each.
For me it is hard to visualize what the difference between a $1,179 Bogey style panama MuseoFino blocked in the USA versus a $380 Bogey style Medio Fino versus a $214 Bogey style Cuarto Fino...
Would it be easy enough to to have a reference picture appear based on the selection? It would go along way towards helping a buyer decide if they want to spend the extra $900 and go MuseoFino or whether they would be satisfied with one of the other quality levels. [huh]
Tim

I agree, Tim.

Personally, I'm debating between one of Bob's Panama's, or a less expensive, vintage Montecristi. Does anyone else have some insight for me, since we're talking about his Panama's? I'm thinking of Bob's quite seriously, after the strong recommendations for him.

Thanks,
flute

 

[Ed13]

I have purchased 4 hats from Panama Bob. Two for myself and two for my father. I first purchased two hats 3-4 years ago blocked in Ecuador. They were around $250 each and were then sold in a weave range. My hat had a much finer weave than my father's hat. Both are nice hats although I did have mine reblocked by Gary White in Buffalo. I would suggest having the hats blocked in the US.

I have since purchased two hats from the specials posted on Ebay. Both my father and I have been pleased with these. Great deals for everyday hats for the price.

I have purchased two vintage Montecristos from EBay. One hat was very bad and the other was OK. Ebay is a crap shoot, especially with straw hats.

If budget is a concern and anyone needs a decent panama I would suggest Panama Bob's ebay auctions. For a good hat I would suggest paying what you can afford for a hat blocked in the US.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Tilley (duck cotton not synthetic in Khaki) - looks like a 1950's canvas safari hat and best yet, you can fold it and throw it in a bag. There are no problems keeping it nice.

 

[Edw8ri]

I like this straw from Orvis. It has a 3 inch brim, which is great in a Carolina summer

 

[Chinaski]

There are quite of few fans of these on the Lounge...

http://www.sunbody.com/

 

[Sam Craig]

There are quite of few fans of these on the Lounge...

http://www.sunbody.com/

The good thing about palm braid is, they are tough

I've got one in a fedora shape that I've used for several years. They are just about indestructable

The bad thing is, they aren't all that cool in the hottest weather.

A good old milan or leghorn or, if you can afford it or get REALLY lucky an older panama, will be much cooler.

This is one of those areas where I wish I was smart enough 20 years ago to have bought up all the great old straws you could get for nothing ... but where to store them?

 

[Chinaski]

Sam, I grew up in the midwest - there's gotta be room for a lot of lids in Kansas

 

[MCPRE]

Just an old Straw from a garage sale