Letter from Stetson

Hurricane Jack said:

Cattle will sling a lot of snot & drool from their front end, & liquid & fecal matter from the other. Some drool & other splatter from horses. Around here we don't have many working cowboys on horseback. We have dogs & pickup trucks. Anyone feeding & doctoring cattle wear either a plasticized shantung straw they can wipe clean, or a free ball cap with advertising. A DVM might show up wearing a felt OR or a farrier might show up wearing a full Western, but those are worn to denote their status & will stay in the truck when they approach the stock.

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So, based on what I seeing (somewhat limited, admittedly) so far... most working cowboys don't wear felt hats on the job. So the felt hats are used for??? Sitting in the stands at the rodeo? Heading out to the bar? Any other non-working activity I guess.

Which would suggest (to try to circle back to the thread topic) that, while not justifiable to let quality deteriorate, the average Stetson customer might not notice the lesser quality because they aren't really "stressing" the hat that much?

Most working cowboys I know DO wear felts in the cooler months and winter. Most don't notice the lesser quality because a) they don't know the quality of hats beyond how many "X's" it has b) they have never spent time with a vintage hat, and c) in today's disposable society they find it easier and less expensive to replace rather than repair.

Modern Resistol. Not great quality, relatively speaking, but it looks good, wears easy, and can take some abuse without me worrying too much about it.

ILB Frank said:

So, based on what I seeing (somewhat limited, admittedly) so far... most working cowboys don't wear felt hats on the job. So the felt hats are used for??? Sitting in the stands at the rodeo? Heading out to the bar? Any other non-working activity I guess.

Which would suggest (to try to circle back to the thread topic) that, while not justifiable to let quality deteriorate, the average Stetson customer might not notice the lesser quality because they aren't really "stressing" the hat that much?

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In my neck of the woods you see lots of full size felt Westerns being worn by all kinds of people proud of their heritage, country & their freedom, & living the lifestyle. That lifestyle can be anything from owning livestock to line dancing. There are lots of stock show competitors, rodeo competitors, Saddle clubs that live for a good parade, & their fans. Their hats can range from the Stetson Outlet to the $1000 custom; there's room for all. The OR seems to carry special status for the DVM, stock owner, cattle buyer, &/or auctioneer. The drugstore cowboy picks his place. It's like the song lyrics, "I can see by your outfit that you are a cowboy".

ILB Frank said:

So, based on what I seeing (somewhat limited, admittedly) so far... most working cowboys don't wear felt hats on the job. So the felt hats are used for??? Sitting in the stands at the rodeo? Heading out to the bar? Any other non-working activity I guess.

Which would suggest (to try to circle back to the thread topic) that, while not justifiable to let quality deteriorate, the average Stetson customer might not notice the lesser quality because they aren't really "stressing" the hat that much?

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I follow a number of custom western hat makers on FB and some of them post before and after pics of working cowboy hats that have been refurbished. It is a part of their business so there must be some cowboys that wear at least decent quality felts, work them long and hard enough to put them in such terrible condition, but are of high enough quality to justify the expense of the refurb and have turn out like new afterwards.

ILB Frank said:

So, based on what I seeing (somewhat limited, admittedly) so far... most working cowboys don't wear felt hats on the job. So the felt hats are used for??? Sitting in the stands at the rodeo? Heading out to the bar? Any other non-working activity I guess.

Which would suggest (to try to circle back to the thread topic) that, while not justifiable to let quality deteriorate, the average Stetson customer might not notice the lesser quality because they aren't really "stressing" the hat that much?

Click to expand...

My comments on year-around Shantung are from the foothills of Central California. There is also some felt mixed in, but the Shantung sticks out both do to it not being what I expected and it’s characteristics when used hard that make it stand out of the crowd.

We have mild winters and are our own regional traditions. I wouldn’t make any broad statements from such a small sample.

deadlyhandsome said:

My comments on year-around Shantung are from the foothills of Central California. There is also some felt mixed in, but the Shantung sticks out both do to it not being what I expected and it’s characteristics when used hard that make it stand out of the crowd.

We have mild winters and are our own regional traditions. I wouldn’t make any broad statements from such a small sample.

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Although I rarely see them worn, about half if the pickups I see have a shantung hat on the dash or hung on the back window.