Bidding Farewell to Old Hats

[Nathaniel Finley]

I've heard that too, but it never made sense to me. Direct sunlight, and it's heat, beating down on an unventilated fur felt hat would act more like an oven than a refrigerator, heating any air trapped within. Park your car in direct sunlight on a hot day with all of the windows closed, and even if it's only 70°F outside the temperature inside the car can reach over 100°F within an hour. Why would it be the opposite with air trapped under a fur felt hat under the same conditions?

Regardless, I hope you get it sorted out.

What you're saying, Zombie, helps explain why most Akubras are low-crowned. At least to me it does. As work hats, maybe the lower crown is truly better in that Australian heat. I always thought it was just because of "Aussie style" but which came first, the style or the practical necessity?

 

[Zombie_61]

What you're saying, Zombie, helps explain why most Akubras are low-crowned. At least to me it does. As work hats, maybe the lower crown is truly better in that Australian heat. I always thought it was just because of "Aussie style" but which came first, the style or the practical necessity?

Good question. Looking at photographs taken in both the U.S. and Australia during the mid- to late-1800s I see a lot of similarities. On both continents wider brims were clearly favored by anyone who spent a good deal of their time working outdoors, but aside from that there was no such thing as what we would refer to these days as a typical "western" or "outback" hat; if a hat--any hat--offered protection from the elements, that's what they wore. To me this indicates any hatter who wanted to stay in business would make hats that met the needs of those people, so I think practical necessity came first. There were "dress" hats, but I imagine both societies in those days weren't too different from the way they are today, i.e. that there were a whole lot more "working" men who needed practical hats than "wealthy" men who needed dress/stylish hats.

The effect of crown shapes is a little more difficult to determine based on my casual/amateur observations. These days many of us concern ourselves with attaining the "perfect" crease, but in those days it's pretty obvious that their hats were nothing more than working attire, and those men treated them as such; grab your hat, put it on your head, and go to work. Crown heights and shapes varied wildly, but it does seem Australians favored lower and more tapered crowns. Even higher-crowned hats were shaped/creased to be more form-fitting, so I think it's reasonable to assume they learned through trial and error that those shapes, with less empty space between their hats and heads, were more comfortable; again, practicality before style.

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Good question. Looking at photographs taken in both the U.S. and Australia during the mid- to late-1800s I see a lot of similarities. On both continents wider brims were clearly favored by anyone who spent a good deal of their time working outdoors, but aside from that there was no such thing as what we would refer to these days as a typical "western" or "outback" hat; if a hat--any hat--offered protection from the elements, that's what they wore. To me this indicates any hatter who wanted to stay in business would make hats that met the needs of those people, so I think practical necessity came first. There were "dress" hats, but I imagine both societies in those days weren't too different from the way they are today, i.e. that there were a whole lot more "working" men who needed practical hats than "wealthy" men who needed dress/stylish hats.

The effect of crown shapes is a little more difficult to determine based on my casual/amateur observations. These days many of us concern ourselves with attaining the "perfect" crease, but in those days it's pretty obvious that their hats were nothing more than working attire, and those men treated them as such; grab your hat, put it on your head, and go to work. Crown heights and shapes varied wildly, but it does seem Australians favored lower and more tapered crowns. Even higher-crowned hats were shaped/creased to be more form-fitting, so I think it's reasonable to assume they learned through trial and error that those shapes, with less empty space between their hats and heads, were more comfortable; again, practicality before style.

Great insights, Zombie. Practicality has won out over style for me as well. I dropped the FED's crown way down in hopes that it will not get so hot. Not the look I want but I'll raise it again once I arrive in Kathmandu. I'm off to Kuala Lumpur (the Malaysian capital) today and will give it a test run.

 

[Zombie_61]

...Practicality has won out over style for me as well. I dropped the FED's crown way down in hopes that it will not get so hot. Not the look I want but I'll raise it again once I arrive in Kathmandu. I'm off to Kuala Lumpur (the Malaysian capital) today and will give it a test run.

Wow! I think it looks great like that, but that's probably because I prefer crowns that are a bit lower than usual; the crowns on my Feds are all a little over 4" at the pinch. I hope the "practical" crease eliminates the problems you were having.

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Wow! I think it looks great like that, but that's probably because I prefer crowns that are a bit lower than usual; the crowns on my Feds are all a little over 4" at the pinch. I hope the "practical" crease eliminates the problems you were having.

It was noticeably cooler today with the crown dropped, but the felt is much thicker than the heritage felt was and I still had to remove the hat a couple of times in the sun. It really seemed more like a felt issue than a color issue. Once I recover from my heat exhaustion I will probably be fine with the dropped crown, though.

I also really like this look. Maybe I'll keep it. Thanks for the kind words, Zombie!

 

[Zombie_61]

It was noticeably cooler today with the crown dropped, but the felt is much thicker than the heritage felt was and I still had to remove the hat a couple of times in the sun. It really seemed more like a felt issue than a color issue...

Really? I find that interesting. I only have one Heritage felt Akubra, my Moonstone Fed IV, but the felt on it isn't any thicker than it is on any of my Imperial felt hats. It's somehow more substantial, denser perhaps, but not thicker. If the felt on your hat is thicker, that just might account for the problem.

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Really? I find that interesting. I only have one Heritage felt Akubra, my Moonstone Fed IV, but the felt on it isn't any thicker than it is on any of my Imperial felt hats. It's somehow more substantial, denser perhaps, but not thicker. If the felt on your hat is thicker, that just might account for the problem.

I wore my Banjo almost everyday for over 3 years. Now that the crown of the FED is dropped, I am absolutely sure that there is not only a lot more felt (obviously) but that it is thicker and denser than the Banjo ever was. Might just be my two samples, though.

Btw, I just trurned on signatures and I must tell you Zombie ... Tom Waits is the best, hands down!

 

[ecleccentric]

I wore my Banjo almost everyday for over 3 years. Now that the crown of the FED is dropped, I am absolutely sure that there is not only a lot more felt (obviously) but that it is thicker and denser than the Banjo ever was. Might just be my two samples, though.

Btw, I just trurned on signatures and I must tell you Zombie ... Tom Waits is the best, hands down!

Hi Nathaniel,

I just stumbled across this thread. (I think my previous account was deleted).

Several months before this post, I was inquiring about which Akubra to purchase. My 1st choice was always the Banjo Paterson.

I wanted a hat that would be 'multipurpose' - suitable enough for city, and country - but most important - protect against the elements, notably sun. I also was more 'city' than 'country' and have to dress business for work.

From the suggestions that I received, I couldn't narrow them down, and I ended up with a Stylemaster, Campdraft, and Fed 4. The campdraft and fed 4 were in the heritage felt.

(To be honest - I don't understand the fascination that the true hat 'purists' have with the Campdraft - it might have to do with my structure).

What are your thoughts about the Banjo? Do you have an update about the fed 4?

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Hi Nathaniel,

I just stumbled across this thread. (I think my previous account was deleted).

Several months before this post, I was inquiring about which Akubra to purchase. My 1st choice was always the Banjo Paterson.

I wanted a hat that would be 'multipurpose' - suitable enough for city, and country - but most important - protect against the elements, notably sun. I also was more 'city' than 'country' and have to dress business for work.

From the suggestions that I received, I couldn't narrow them down, and I ended up with a Stylemaster, Campdraft, and Fed 4. The campdraft and fed 4 were in the heritage felt.

(To be honest - I don't understand the fascination that the true hat 'purists' have with the Campdraft - it might have to do with my structure).

What are your thoughts about the Banjo? Do you have an update about the fed 4?

I like the FED IV a lot and it definitely has more crown to work with than the Banjo Paterson and I just like taller crowns. I also really like the dimensional brim on the FED IV. However, for actual sun protection the Banjo was better just because it’s bigger all the way around.

You wouldn’t go wrong with a Banjo if you purchased one, and it would be interesting to hear which you prefer. Maybe keeping one or the other for special occasions is an idea?

Good luck and I’m glad this old thread helped you!

 

[ecleccentric]

I like the FED IV a lot and it definitely has more crown to work with than the Banjo Paterson and I just like taller crowns. I also really like the dimensional brim on the FED IV. However, for actual sun protection the Banjo was better just because it’s bigger all the way around.

You wouldn’t go wrong with a Banjo if you purchased one, and it would be interesting to hear which you prefer. Maybe keeping one or the other for special occasions is an idea?

Good luck and I’m glad this old thread helped you!

Thanks for your reply. Did you ever sort out the over-heating problem with the fed 4? (btw - I did also stumble across your youtubve video about the banjo and I felt that you wear both fed 4 and banjo exceptionally well)

(I'm going to follow your advice and likely donate or resell the campdraft - the hat is just much to ostentatious for my liking)

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Thanks for your reply. Did you ever sort out the over-heating problem with the fed 4? (btw - I did also stumble across your youtubve video about the banjo and I felt that you wear both fed 4 and banjo exceptionally well)

(I'm going to follow your advice and likely donate or resell the campdraft - the hat is just much to ostentatious for my liking)

Gifting felt hats is a wonderful practice!

The overheating I was experiencing was caused by something else, btw - it wasn’t hat’s fault as it turned out!

Enjoy the world of Akubra, Eclec, I learned a lot from them!

 

[ecleccentric]

Great insights, Zombie. Practicality has won out over style for me as well. I dropped the FED's crown way down in hopes that it will not get so hot. Not the look I want but I'll raise it again once I arrive in Kathmandu. I'm off to Kuala Lumpur (the Malaysian capital) today and will give it a test run.

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Hi Nathaniel,

What colour is your fed 4?

 

[Nathaniel Finley]

Hi Nathaniel,

What colour is your fed 4?

I got the tawny fawn. I didn’t like the color at first because it was too brown and I wanted more yellow, but I like it quite a lot now.