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Western, anyone?

frussell

One Too Many
Messages
1,409
Location
California Desert
I've made several pairs of cowboy cuffs for friends, but nowadays they're more for show than function. I always thought they were for rope burns and such, but a few old timers I've spoken with said they mostly wore them to keep from ruining the cuffs/sleeves of the few shirts they owned. The horsehair reins/mecates I used were extra prickly, the thinking being that the extra irritation helped signal a green horse to turn his head away from the pressure or prickliness. That may or may not be true, horses have pretty thick skins, but they do overreact to flies, so maybe there's some merit to the theory. I also tried softening some, with the same bad results.
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
That Latigo Lariat looks so Good . The old Vaquero style . No telling how long that would take to plat , and all the leather . But as the Vaqueros say , the time is well spent . @M Hatman hairy bristles of horse hair lariats they say rattlers will never cross . Always heard that .

@T Jones , Terry that Stagecoach looks good . @Stringmaster your Rocky Mountain Hat Co Buckaroo Style will be a treasure , it already is . It was so sad to hear John Sr had past , what a tribute by John Jr . he left for us . And @lbgradwell that Canadian Biltmore does the trick , and looks good on you , too .
 

T Jones

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,795
Location
Central Ohio
You don't like black and silverbelly and not fond of dark colors. This cuts like 90% of all hats :)
What's next? Yellow, green, red or baby blue? ;)
I don't mind Silverbelly so much in certain styles like westerns or Open Roads. But that's about all I'll tolerate with that color. Definitely not black. With dark colors, no matter what crease you
put in them they never seem to show up well unless you're standing, just right, under certain lighting. Otherwise it just looks like you have a dark silhouette of something resembling a box or a pyramid sitting on top of your head. But that's just me. I prefer light colors, something more along the lines of tans and beige and medium to lighter grays. Silverbelly in westerns and ORs, only. No greens, or anything that has green undertones. Not to say that others don't look good in them. I just don't pull off the greens and dark colors as well as others can.
 
Last edited:

T Jones

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,795
Location
Central Ohio
That Latigo Lariat looks so Good . The old Vaquero style . No telling how long that would take to plat , and all the leather . But as the Vaqueros say , the time is well spent . @M Hatman hairy bristles of horse hair lariats they say rattlers will never cross . Always heard that .

@T Jones , Terry that Stagecoach looks good.
Thanks, buddy. I'm getting ready to change it up again, though. I'm not quite happy with it. I may even convert it to a fedora. I'm not sure yet.
 

lbgradwell

Familiar Face
Messages
82
Location
Mount Pearl, NL
And @lbgradwell that Canadian Biltmore does the trick , and looks good on you , too .

Looks good to me!

Thanks, fellows!

The hat itself seems to be of passable quality (though it's stiff as a frozen haddock), but that hatband is not the tooled leather it appears to be. It's actually plastic!! That's pretty lame and I will have to remedy this in the fullness of time...

The only other hat I own that I'd consider truly "western" is an ubiquitous, but nicer quality Akubra Snowy River.


Akubra%20Snowy%20River%201a.jpg


Akubra%20Snowy%20River%201b.png.jpeg
 
Messages
18,210
hairy bristles of horse hair lariats they say rattlers will never cross . Always heard that .
I've always heard that too, but just the same if there's rattlers around I'm going to be sleeping in the back of my truck under the camper shell! In fact I can pretty well say that my nights of sleeping on the ground are pretty much behind me anyway!

Definitely not black. With dark colors, no matter what crease you put in them they never seem to show up well unless you're standing, just right, under certain lighting. Otherwise it just looks like you have a dark silhouette of something resembling a box or a pyramid sitting on top of your head.
Black hats are definitely warmer when working outside in the wintertime! Wider brims are warmer too. But they sure can show dust, especially in a picture more so then by your naked eye.

My black Woomera from earlier this morning.

2h6rsle.jpg

2a9npev.jpg
 

T Jones

I'll Lock Up
Messages
6,795
Location
Central Ohio
I've always heard that too, but just the same if there's rattlers around I'm going to be sleeping in the back of my truck under the camper shell! In fact I can pretty well say that my nights of sleeping on the ground are pretty much behind me anyway!


Black hats are definitely warmer when working outside in the wintertime! Wider brims are warmer too. But they sure can show dust, especially in a picture more so then by your naked eye.

My black Woomera from earlier this morning.

2h6rsle.jpg

2a9npev.jpg
Nice looking hat, HJ. I like the center dent crease without the side dents. I particularly like the simplicity of the ribbon work. Looks like Virgil Cole's hat from "Appaloosa". I just don't pull off the darker colors as well as others can.
 
Messages
18,210
Nice looking hat, HJ. I like the center dent crease without the side dents. I particularly like the simplicity of the ribbon work. Looks like Virgil Cole's hat from "Appaloosa". I just don't pull off the darker colors as well as others can.
Thanks TJ. The brim flattened real nice but I tried another horseshoe crease & it didn't turn out as crisp as I like. This felt isn't all that bad but it is the stiffest Akubra I have had. So I next tried a Cavalry Officers crease but the crown wasn't blocked with enough taper to squeeze the crease together & look right. So for now I've settled for a deep center crease with no dents (which is sort of an Officers look) & will just wear it & let the hat break in for a while. May change it later & whether I change the thin ribbon or not will depend on the crease I end up with.
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
I've always heard that too, but just the same if there's rattlers around I'm going to be sleeping in the back of my truck under the camper shell! In fact I can pretty well say that my nights of sleeping on the ground are pretty much behind me anyway!


Black hats are definitely warmer when working outside in the wintertime! Wider brims are warmer too. But they sure can show dust, especially in a picture more so then by your naked eye.

My black Woomera from earlier this morning.

2h6rsle.jpg

2a9npev.jpg

Thanks TJ. The brim flattened real nice but I tried another horseshoe crease & it didn't turn out as crisp as I like. This felt isn't all that bad but it is the stiffest Akubra I have had. So I next tried a Cavalry Officers crease but the crown wasn't blocked with enough taper to squeeze the crease together & look right. So for now I've settled for a deep center crease with no dents (which is sort of an Officers look) & will just wear it & let the hat break in for a while. May change it later & whether I change the thin ribbon or not will depend on the crease I end up with.

Boy Jack , That Woomera looks Perfect ! You're going to make me get a Black Woomera . That's the crease I've got in my sand right now . I need to get the fenders down more like I want . Guess I've worked on 5-7 Hats (maybe more) this week I've put off . The Black can really Dress Up or Dress down . Great Job !

I spotted a Stetson made for Tom Mix , but I can't find his size . He was 6' tall , but noggins can be any size . Looks pretty good , starts at $250 , but its an Auction .
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
I don't mind Silverbelly so much in certain styles like westerns or Open Roads. But that's about all I'll tolerate with that color. Definitely not black. With dark colors, no matter what crease you
put in them they never seem to show up well unless you're standing, just right, under certain lighting. Otherwise it just looks like you have a dark silhouette of something resembling a box or a pyramid sitting on top of your head. But that's just me. I prefer light colors, something more along the lines of tans and beige and medium to lighter grays. Silverbelly in westerns and ORs, only. No greens, or anything that has green undertones. Not to say that others don't look good in them. I just don't pull off the greens and dark colors as well as others can.

I understand TJ . But you should see the Buckaroo Hatters Moss Green @56FordGuy has . Sharp Hat . I feel weird in Mist color Hats . Probably just me .
 
Messages
18,210
I spotted a Stetson made for Tom Mix , but I can't find his size . He was 6' tall , but noggins can be any size . Looks pretty good , starts at $250 , but its an Auction .
Michael, you've probably already seen this website then. It says he was 5'8 but doesn't list a hat size. You might contact them to see if they have one of his hats in the museum & get the size that way.

It also said at his peak earnings he made $17,000 per wk. Married 4 times, he probably needed every penny!

http://www.tommixmuseum.com/about-tom
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
Michael, you've probably already seen this website then. It says he was 5'8 but doesn't list a hat size. You might contact them to see if they have one of his hats in the museum & get the size that way.

It also said at his peak earnings he made $17,000 per wk. Married 4 times, he probably needed every penny!

http://www.tommixmuseum.com/about-tom

Oh yeah , women ... the weakness , Kryptonite . Thanks Jack , also I might contact the seller , or Auction Company to see if I can get info on measurements . Looks like he wore this one plenty . John B. Stetson made all his Hats I understand , called the JB , personally made for Tom Mix . I tried to get the pictures to copy , but could only get the file . I guess I might could link it . But ...
 
Messages
18,210
Michael, you'll remember this one I'm sure. It was a little small for me but I was hoping either you or Bob would end up with it. Actually when the auction ended early & it disappeared I thought it was going to end up under Bob's Christmas tree as a gift from his wife. But apparently he wasn't that good last yr! Beautiful hat!

110d66p.jpg
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
Michael, you'll remember this one I'm sure. It was a little small for me but I was hoping either you or Bob would end up with it. Actually when the auction ended early & it disappeared I thought it was going to end up under Bob's Christmas tree as a gift from his wife. But apparently he wasn't that good last yr! Beautiful hat!

110d66p.jpg

Oh yeah , I've still got that one on my eBay SOLD watch list . That is one Gorgeous Hat ! Love Everything about it . Can't recall the size ? 7 1/2 or 7 1/4 ?
 

Michael R.

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,889
Location
West Tennessee USA
I looked , it had dropped off my list . Thanks Jack . Ms Hufford would have made Bob faint with that one , but she blew his mind anyway . He was a very good boy last year !
 

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