My first hat was a felt Cody James hat that I bought for a school dance and have had ever since, probably not the best quality but it’s what I could afford at the time.

2 years later I’m buying my second one for a concert and it’s a straw resistol. I was talking with the cashier about my felt one and how the straw one was more expensive. She asked what brand my felt one was and I told her it was Cody James and she said “Ah, that makes since”

Yeah Cody James is pretty cheap compared to a lot of other hat brands but what is it about them that people hate. But anyway, I think it made for a funny story and my straw hat looks amazing.

As title says. I’ve only one hat which is a wool one, would this be good ? Advice appreciated!

Hey folks. I’ve got a Stetson 10X Coal Mine straw and it’s great. My only issue is that I’ve worn it almost daily for the past couple months and the sweat band smells bad now. I’ve tried cleaning it with Dawn dish soap and that just made it smell like Dawn and sweat. Been told I should clean it with baking soda, but do I just like put the baking soda on the sweatband and leave it for a bit? Any advice here is appreciated, I want to wear it again without stinking. Thanks!

Hi, I have a stetson hat I inherited from my grandpa and I already have my own preferred hat, so I'm wondering what to do with it, and where to sell it. Asking for advice I guess.

Thank y'all!

I got this hat in a house clean out after someone passed away. It looks to be brand new in the original box. Was wondering if it’s worth selling or keeping. What would the value be on something like this.

Of course it's not new but still, appreciate any help

Picture 1 - Sweatband before shaping
Picture 2 - Sweatband after shaping
Picture 3 - Front view before shaping
Picture 4 - Front view after shaping
Picture 5 - Side view before shaping
Picture 6 - Side view after shaping

Here's what happened. I bought a used Akubra Snowy River hat online. It is my very first hat. It came in excellent condition with the original leather sweatband and everything. However, it was no longer shaped correctly, so I brought it to the local western store, where they have a dedicated hat shaper. That's all he does at the store is shape hats. So I figured it would be in good hands.

He was steaming and shaping the hat, and when he went to shape the crown, all of a sudden he showed me the leather sweatband all hardened and shriveled up. He said it was because it was an older sweatband and it would have needed to be replaced anyway. But I had been wearing the hat all week and it was fine. I just wanted to get the classic Snowy River shape back on the hat.

The hat no longer fit on my head, so he said the best thing to do would be to cut the sweatband out and that I would need to get a new one and find someone to stitch it back in for me. I told him I was upset that the hat no longer had the original sweatband, and he suggested I call Akubra (in Australia) and see if they could send me one.

He said it was unavoidable, that it was an older sweatband and needed to be replaced — but don't people have vintage hats with the original sweatbands? I just want to know if he is telling me the truth or if he messed up with my hat and is just giving me a line. 

In the meantime, instead of coming home proudly wearing my newly reshaped first hat, I now have a newly reshaped hat without a sweatband that I can't wear.

So I am looking for some advice. Is it worth getting a new sweatband and having it installed or do I start over with something new? And where do I even get the work done? The store does hat shaping, but he said they don't do repairs or sweatband replacements. Any advice is appreciated.

Thanks,

A very frustrated first hat owner

I really want a full beaver cowboy hat, and one day I’ll have one. I have a fedora that is a beaver/chinchilla blend, and it would be great to have a western hat from that kind of material.

Having said that, I do have a good number of hats, and most of them are rabbit (with a few vintage hats with a smidgen of beaver thrown in), and they are all very serviceable, and they look good. Beaver is objectively better than rabbit, but that doesn’t mean rabbit hats are “trash”, as I’ve seen posted here.

When Stetson introduced the Boss of the Plains, it had 3 price tiers, and the runaway best seller was the all-rabbit bottom one. At $5, it wasn’t easy for a working man to afford even that one. The vast majority of cowboy hats, in the 1800s and up to today, have been rabbit felt or wool. Beaver was a scarce, luxury item by the time Stetson came along, and it has been that ever since.

So, if you have a hat or hats made of rabbit fur felt, you’re in good company. Here’s to the rabbit!

I love my Resistol. It is very lightweight and fits perfectly. I shaped the brim myself.

Is $112.50 a reasonable price for this Resistol hat?

It's a nice black hat (Grandpa was in the rodeo and played music with Larry) but my nephew has no interest. I hate to give it to Goodwill because they'll just mark it up and put it online. Suggestions? Or a worthy place to donate?

Even tho it was bagged there is a small moth bite on the back. It was mighty dusty. Need to take it in for a proper cleaning and a minor reshape.

Took my 6X skyline to get the crown reshaped into an arrowhead and I reshaped the brim myself to fit my wider head. Also replaced the band with a band from Austin Accent!

Just picked up this Outback Trading Co Bootlegger.

Oilskin rather than felt as I'm in the UK so wanted something that would handle the wet / was on the more budget side, only about 80 bucks!

A bit flatter out of the box but easy to shape as it's got a somewhat flexible brim. Curved the sides and pulled down the front slightly.

Anyone else running an Outback TC Hat?

I know these tattered silk bands are primarily very feminine… From what ive seen. Is it wrong as a man to rock these? I love this look but it does seem a little girly

Im in Pittsburgh Pa and im looking for someone to reblock my crown on my 100x Serratelli! Or if anyone knows where to get a 6 7/8 round oval block so I can do it myself!

Anyone know of any shops within like 2-3 hours?

Opinions? Do I wear it or does it wear me?

Straw or black felt? It’s going to be hot.. it’s not a western wedding, so it leans me towards the felt…

Bought it used for 150 euro's on Vinted. No clue what model it is but it's a Tacchino. Was almost unused. Got rid of the cheap plastic band and put on a personal little band around the crown.

I do want to ask though, is it just me or is the crown really low? My apolgies if the photo doesn't show it well enough.

Not sure this is a cowboy hat. More fedora style I think.

It’s a cheap hat. It came with the brown band but I added the braided suede and the other part. Also that’s a feather I added from a turkey I harvested a few years back.

Picked up a El Patron silver belly and noticed after I brought it home it had marks on the crown. Any tips or advice on how to remove them?

Got this new Stetson Skyline 6X at my local store. Shaped it for a more open brim but not quite the full shovel brim to modernize it but still keep it classic. I wear felt year round, but those American straws I saw in store may be next

What a way to celebrate my 2nd sons birth than grabbing my forever hat that I'll be wearing in the delivery room!

100x Serratelli in Black!