Imperial Capitals, wind cords and hat trollies.

[Shanghailander]

I will soon be off on the first of four trips in the next six fives months - I'm going to give the globetrotting hat a run for its money.

First trip - London (briefly) and then Krakow, Budapest, Prague, Vienna, and Berlin, then Wroclaw and home.

After reaching Krakow, I will be traveling between cities exclusively by train - I have reservations for first class sleeping compartments all the way around. Leave one city near midnight, wake up the next morning in a new one. A great way to travel.

As for hats, I have to decide which one to take. Given the hot weather, I think I will be taking my traveling Panama. I purchased it seven years ago in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

None of my hats have wind cords. I have chased after a number of my hats as they rolled down the street, and more than once whipped my hand out to snag an errant hat in midflight after launching itself from my head in convertibles, on rooftops, and in boats. I haven't lot one yet, but I am pushing my luck! A kindly sales clerk gave me one when I bought my last fedora and I have decided to try someting with it for my traveling Panama.

I'll post some photos in a short time to show what I've come up with.

 

[Shanghailander]

OK, for those who don't know what we are talking about, or what a wind cord or wind trolley looks like, here is a photo of one, before it is attached to the hat.

The ruler is six inches.

"A" is a fabric covered button attached to one end of the cord, which in this case is elastic.

"B" is a loop of the cord, slightly bigger than the diameter of the button. It can actually be slid up and down on the cord; in other words you can position it nearer or further from the button.

"C" is the end of the cord. This part is usually sewn into the hat itself, on one side, where the bottom of the crown joins the brim, but under the hatband, so it is not visible. The cord is often the same color as the hatband.

When not in use, you simply take "B" and wind it around the base of the hat, over the hatband. When taut, you then take the button end and either continue on in the same direction, or double back in the opposite direction. Either way, you will meet up with the loop "B" and at this point, you put the button through the loop.

When you want to use it, unbutton it, and put the button through a lapel or other buttonhole. When the wind grabs the hat, you can haul it back in by the cord.

My only dislike about the whole setup? When you use it, the cord must travel over the brim of the hat and down to your buttonhole, and the cord hangs down a few inches away from your face. I believe others in the Lounge have mentioned this as well, some going so far as to use the description "dorky" or something like that.

Next: a small modification.

 

[Shanghailander]

No doubt about it, the wind cord stores best outside the hat, perched on the brim. But it would wear better, and look better being worn, in my opinion, if it was attached to the inside of the hat, so the cord could hang down behind your ear, as it courses it way to your buttonhole. (Someone else has already poined this out.) But when you don't need it, what do you do? Stuff it up inside the hat and then put it on?

I took a piece of 18 gauge stainless steel and cut a notch in the center, with a longitudinal groove down one half. I tied a piece of button thread to the center, and attached that to the end of the wind cord. (The groove, just visible in the photo, was so the thread could lay in it, but the knot defeated the purpose.

Now, instead of being sewn to the hat, you can attach it from the outside or inside. When not in use, you simply push the pin (under the hatband) from outside to inside; once through it acts like a toggle pin and you wind the cord around the hat. When you want to use it, push the pin back out, then push it through from inside the hat to outside (using the same hole) and now the toggle is under the hat brim, but outside.

With a straw hat, it goes quite easily between the woven fibers. With a felt hat, a small 1/32 inch diameter hole needs to be made.

Just a prototype - probably could be vastly improved.

I'll be testing it out in Europe next week.

 

[thefedorastore]

I have scoured the Hat Life Directory and the web. Does someone (maybe Art) know where I can purchase the wind trolley cords so I can add them to these vintage hats that I retail?
Thanks in advance
Duane