Panama Hat Thread

Tukwila · Oct 15, 2019

Sulphur is what they use on new straw in Montecristi, Ecuador. I don't recommend it for cleaning hats. Some sort of chlorine bleach is used in Cuenca. You can smell it as they process the hat bodies.

1on1 · Oct 16, 2019

interesting indeed.."hats off" to both of you, so the age of the hat is what still eludes me..but i'm working on it. So if the hat is painted, does it mean its cheaper or more newer than older? Yea perhaps gluing the sweats might be a problem if i decide to replace it down the line..i'll toss it around for a bit longer before plunging into any decision.

milandro · Oct 16, 2019

Based on the style of the Type “ Okanawa Air-Way...” . I’d say that this is late ’60. since they mention an U.S. Patent you may be so lucky to find it ( I have tried but given the general use of Air-way it has proven impossible to me) but you would need a patent number.

I don’t think this hat is of a particular fine quality. Maybe the coat of lacquer was applied some time down the line to “ restore” a dirty hat. If this is a Toquilla hat ( palm fiber ) there may be the Ecuador stamp somewhere.

Tukwila · Oct 16, 2019

Sometimes the coating is applied simply to make the hat more durable in variable weather. Paja toquilla from Ecuador is not a good fabric for rainy weather.

All shantung and toyo paper hats are coated. I have a Resistol western hat that was woven in Ecuador and it also has a protective coating.

While the hat may not be considered a top of line, super premium model, I don't think it is, or was, an especially low end hat, either. The weave is certainly not as wide or rough as some examples out there and the sweat, liner, etc, were of high quality.

I think the best thing may be to give this to a hatter with experience cleaning and blocking straw hats, and have a new sweat installed while keeping the old one as part of the historical piece.

milandro · Oct 16, 2019

To clarify.
I didn’t say it was cheap, it would’t have been with a leather sweatband and that webbing, just that the weave doesn’t look like one of the fine Panamas.

1on1 · Oct 16, 2019

This continues to be an educating experience for me...would anyone put a figure on value ?
I certainly dont plan to sell it, but would like to have a ball park on its value as well.

thanks
PS please let your thoughts run amuck hehe..

milandro · Oct 17, 2019

I don’t think it is possible to assess an objective market value, be happy you have it but it will probably cost you a lot more to have it restored than it would be worth to someone else.

1on1 · Oct 17, 2019

i dont think i'll pour much money into it..but i'll pour some time into figuring out what i CAN do on my own...i'm sure i'll find some DIY tips and tricks at some point.
Re: value, the flip side of my inquiry would be, if i slapped it on ebay as is, how much do any of you think it'll fetch ? At the end of the day there must be a ball-park value to everything..thats why some folks have a BIN price because they know what its worth..NO i'm not saying they will sell it for " their asking price" ..just saying they know what its supposed to be worth...in any case, we can set aside the monetary value part as it seems too complicated to assess..all i know is in all my (extended) years of hunting for vintage, its the first time i've ran into a panama..so in general the older ones couldn't be that easy to find IMO...nor do i see this forum populated with daily "guess what i found today" stories about panama's.

milandro · Oct 17, 2019

If this were a famous brand or it was way finer that it looks to be, or had features that are even more distinctive and an unusual shape . But Frankly speaking I think this is worth whatever you paid or anyone would pay at a Garage sale. I would be just happy with what I’ve got and its value to others may be very marginal a consideration to me.

M Hatman · Oct 17, 2019

1on1 said:
Heyhey to all the hat hounds! I picked up this hat last weekend..i am guessing its a panama but this is my first deliving into "the world of Panama's" so any advice is cheerfully accepted. As you can see it has the words "Okonawa Air Way Air Cooled" on the sweats. Does anyone know how old this is ? Also, its got a bit of "yellowing" and wondering how best to clean it? I'm not sure if this soiling is actual loss of the white color or if its soiling from years gone by, and last but not least, as you see the hat has a few crumpled areas and what is the best way to restore the original shape of the hat, especially around the crown, it has a couple "sunken in" areas, if you are going to suggest steaming it, is there a particular way to do this? I do have a decent steamer btw, the sweats i dont know what i'm going to do but i'd rather fix this old one (if at all possible) rather than replace with a new one.
till soon
1on1
PS i am assuming its made in Japan..
View attachment 188821 View attachment 188822 View attachment 188823 View attachment 188824 View attachment 188825 View attachment 188826

Just now finding this post. Your hat is much older than everyone is suggesting...."Airway" is a label of the Caradine Hat company.....they sold a LOT of different straw hats. I have other ads of theirs too.....
That is one of their Optimo hats..........They were quite know for their ventilated sweats.....
Check one add here: https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...-other-than-stetson.92423/page-2#post-2354532
M

1on1 · Oct 17, 2019

M Hatman- thanks for weighing in..i just checked out your link..very interesting, so are you able to pin my hat to any particular decade?

1on1 · Oct 17, 2019

Milandro- those are true beauties wow indeed...i dont think there's any chance of finding hats in that caliber these days..by now it should be in the hands of collectors. Same goes for "decent" 30's-50's vintage clothing for men.

milandro · Oct 17, 2019

I am sure than since there were tons of hats made in those years, although most went destroyed, lots are still in a closet waiting to be discovered.

1on1 · Oct 17, 2019

lets hope so hehe..

1on1 · Oct 18, 2019

Just got word from my good man Spencer (vintage haberdasheries) whom i consider a who's who on MOST things vintage..that he himself had owned this particular hat in the past and that indeed, whilst not the best weave of the period, was an OLD one...circa 1930's.

Music to my ears

Spencer if you're reading this, thanks heaps man!

milandro · Oct 20, 2019

Does this hat belong here?

I wonder!

It isn’t a Panama nor is it made of straw or fibers, it is made of used saxophone reeds glued together.

This is Scott Robinson talking of his “ Reed Hat”/ He kept all the reeds that he ever played and all us saxophone players have used many of these over the years (But I haven’t kept them).

Tukwila · Oct 20, 2019

OK, that's a little weird, lol. A lot of spit has gone by and soaked into those reeds. Not as bad as that drink made, chicha de jora, by Andean women chewing on purple Peruvian corn and then spitting it into a bucket for brewing and fermentation..... {{{shiver}}}

milandro · Oct 23, 2019

As I wrote before I bought two “ Panama” cones, one is most probably a toquilla palm weave and the other one, I am not so sure, it was identified as a Formosa Ishime weave (which according to the poster published before , a couple of pages back, is made by weaving the leaves of a palm belonging to the Pandanaceae palm (on Formosa which is the old name of Taiwan).

I bought these together with other things, from the estate of a Milliener which must have been active in the ’30.

The cones have roughly the size of 34-35cm width to 30cm height. which makes it impossible to give this any real brim if you were to block a gentleman’s hat with it.

Would would you do with this? Something like this?

I have been thinking that it is possible to make a crown and then attach it to a brim made of some other material ( which I don’t have and would have to buy) it would probably have to be a very large crown ( even for my head ).

But is there a way to use them as they are? I can see how it would be possible to roll the bottom and fashion the top as a docker hat. But that seems to be a rather “ essential” way to deal with these cones although it is probably the most efficient way to do anything with them. I think these cones may have been meant to be used as a “ cloche” hat for ladies

Tukwila · Oct 23, 2019

Cloche, bucket hat, etc, or as you suggest a hybrid or duplex style with a felt brim???

deadlyhandsome · Nov 1, 2019

I know it’s November, but I finally decided to see what could be done with this Panama hat I acquired. The crown was low with a deep crease and the brim was a big floppy mess. After seeing how Bill @Bill Hughes curled the brim edge on his Panama I gave it a go. I reblocked it and then hand creased it and curled the brim edge. It came out better than I expected.

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