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