Who makes good sweatbands?

[Gobi]

I'm getting frustrated trying to find decent sweatbands. Why are they all so thick and heavy and why are the reeds getting bigger and bigger?
Some of these sweatbands weigh as much as the hat body itself!
The reed should be barely noticeable. Instead they're getting to almost comic proportions. The recent batch I bought, the reed itself is thicker than I've ever seen and the reed tape is huge. I would never put this in a hat. It looks silly.
And why, WHY black reed tape on brown sweatbands??

I just want a thin lightweight leather sweatband with a discreet reed. Is that too much to ask?

Compared to a reasonable sized reed:

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I'm getting frustrated trying to find decent sweatbands. Why are they all so thick and heavy and why are the reeds getting bigger and bigger?
Some of these sweatbands weigh as much as the hat body itself!
The reed should be barely noticeable. Instead they're getting to almost comic proportions. The recent batch I bought, the reed itself is thicker than I've ever seen and the reed tape is huge. I would never put this in a hat. It looks silly.
And why, WHY black reed tape on brown sweatbands??

I just want a thin lightweight leather sweatband with a discreet reed. Is that too much to ask?

View attachment 357698

Compared to a reasonable sized reed:
View attachment 357699

Whose sweatbands have you tried?

 

[Gobi]

Whose sweatbands have you tried?

I've tried most of the main sellers on etsy except some of the over seas due to high shipping costs. Someone sold me one or two on here, they were basically the same as any other I've bought. Nice quality and workmanship but thick leather and large reed tape. There was one on etsy that was just barely passable but now I'm not seeing it on there. My purchase history only shows the last few purchases so I can't find it now. I just ordered one from Righthandlab. The photos look promising but we'll see. The reed tape appears to match the color of the leather at least.
The last time I've seen GOOD sweatbands was about 15 years ago. I ordered them from Montana Peaks Hat Co. They were thin goat skin I believe. Thin and comfortable. Their black bands were a glossy black which was unique.

 

[Just Daniel]

Yes, Iwas just wondering the same thing - anyone have a great source?

 

[belfastboy]

I've tried most of the main sellers on etsy except some of the over seas due to high shipping costs. Someone sold me one or two on here, they were basically the same as any other I've bought. Nice quality and workmanship but thick leather and large reed tape. There was one on etsy that was just barely passable but now I'm not seeing it on there. My purchase history only shows the last few purchases so I can't find it now. I just ordered one from Righthandlab. The photos look promising but we'll see. The reed tape appears to match the color of the leather at least.
The last time I've seen GOOD sweatbands was about 15 years ago. I ordered them from Montana Peaks Hat Co. They were thin goat skin I believe. Thin and comfortable. Their black bands were a glossy black which was unique.

I buy Samson/Singer and their reeds are an acceptable size. They sell to the trade in larger quantities only. But you may be able to find a reseller that handles them. Shoot me a private message and we can arrange to get one to you to try out.

 

[Gobi]

Yes, Iwas just wondering the same thing - anyone have a great source?

I'm glad someone else is conscious of this. I mean, the hat bodies I've handled lately are heavy, even after pouncing, pouncing right into the shellac core, and then some, they're still thicker and heavier than I prefer and certainly thicker and heavier than any of my vintage hats. Or even any of rhe Akubra hats I own. Add on the double thick sweatband and you might as well be wearing two hats at once. It is not comfortable. I wear my hats all day. I cannot wear modern felt with modern sweats all day. I get a headache after a couple of hours. This is bothering me quite a bit. I have to be careful about what hatband I choose because the heavy hats leave zero headroom as far as Weight goes. I started making my own hats because I could no longer find production hats that I liked. I can't seem to make a hat that suits my needs and it is not any fault of my own. The supplies are not adequate. I'm looking forward to working with the 160 gram sunrise bodies because they seem to be a glimmer of hope. The one I have still needs at least 1/3rd of the thickness removed but I reckon I can do that. I'm just hoping the structural integrity holds up after removing 1/3 of the felt.

 

[jlee562]

I'm quite happy with the sweats from Tim/Purebeaver.



YMMV on Reed thickness/color matching.

 

[hatsRme]

I'm getting frustrated trying to find decent sweatbands. Why are they all so thick and heavy and why are the reeds getting bigger and bigger?
Some of these sweatbands weigh as much as the hat body itself!
The reed should be barely noticeable. Instead they're getting to almost comic proportions. The recent batch I bought, the reed itself is thicker than I've ever seen and the reed tape is huge. I would never put this in a hat. It looks silly.
And why, WHY black reed tape on brown sweatbands??

I just want a thin lightweight leather sweatband with a discreet reed. Is that too much to ask?

Don’t forget to test for chromates in the tanning. Most people aren’t aware of the potential for allergic reaction to sweatbands. Worse yet, most hatters and suppliers of leather bands aren’t either.
Test by putting a toothpick-sized piece of the leather over flame, burn until gray ash forms (completely burned). Any green in the ash (about like a lichen green in my experience) indicates the presence of chromates.
Good luck!

 

[Gobi]

I wanted to update
I purchased a sweatband from Finevintagefedoras on Etsy and I'm pleased with it. I'll be ordering more.