Indicators of a low quality hat:

[belfastboy]

Don’t believe it!

View attachment 235237

Only in the land of adjustable heads!

 

[steur]

Don’t believe it!

View attachment 235237

One size fits all...of that size!

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I’ve yet to see any iteration of Dynafelt Dyna Felt, etc. that I’ve been impressed with. It’s all been wool and fur blend, and often 90% wool.

 

[tropicalbob]

I don't know how I missed this thread, but it's a great idea. It's astonishing how much you can learn by focusing on something as seemingly mundane as an article of clothing.

 

[scottyrocks]

I am generalizing here, but for me, wool is the number one indicator that a hat is of lower quality, followed by letter sizing, and those cardboard-looking pressed crowns.

Eventually, we learn to spot these types of hat with a glance, and the names associated with them become taboo.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Glued in liners. There are a lot of exceptions to this, but if you see a liner that has been loosely stitched in that’s a good indication that it’s a quality hat. Liners that have been glued in are often found on lower quality hats.

Glued:

Stitched:

 

[carouselvic]

Even Stetson 100’s had a glued in liner at one point.

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

“Real Leather”....if i have to be told i think i’ll pass. YMMV
B

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Even Stetson 100’s had a glued in liner at one point.

Yep. Hence the “there are a lot of exceptions to this....”

 

[deadlyhandsome]

How about synthetic sweatbands posing as leather!

 

[deadlyhandsome]

This thread is full of exceptions and generalizations, and it can be a bit controversial. With that said:

HATS BRANDS I‘VE LEARNED TO AVOID (brimmed felt hats):

Anything by The Bollman Hat Co.
US made Biltmore hats (Bollman).
US made Flechet hats
Smithbilt (Canadian)
Bailey hats made in the last 40+ years.
Selentino (I just can’t warm to them although some aren’t bad quality). I particularly avoid the “Sterling” hats.
Cabela’s branded hats regardless of who they are made by.
Anything from the recent Stetson “Royal” line (not the Royal De Luxe)
All the Stetson Buffalo line
Barbisio hats with synthetic leather sweatbands.
Scala hats
Jaxton Hats
Gorin Hats
Dorfman Pacific Hats
Orvis
Filson
Stacy Adams
Country Gentleman
Capas Designs



Some of the companies make acceptable caps, and some offer decent Panama hats, but this is exclusively referring to felt brimmed hats.

Feel free to add your own, or to disagree with some of mine.

 

[scottyrocks]

Thanks a lot, Brent. Now I'm getting cheap hat ads on facebook. haha

 

[dkstott]

I'm concluding that this opinion is strictly from a collectable standpoint.

Or are you saying that the hats that 90% of the general public wears & loves is junk??

 

[Short Balding Guy]

I stand firm that an indicator of a low quality hat is that I give it away!

Brent, IMHO, this thread has validity as The Fedora Lounge has lots of visitors stopping in inquiring as to their first/second hat purchases. "Low quality" contains a qualitative and quantitative characteristic.

In fact I purposely own a couple of hats of low quality. An example is of a garden straw hat that I have that I can whoop on. I like it. I wear it many times a week during warm months. I do not "sweat" wearing it hard.

I enjoy reading the likes or dislikes of others. It is giving me an idea of forum members preferences. Specifically to this thread, what hat(s) do not meet the individuals criteria of "quality." I challenge other respondents to be open to hear opinions.

I have not read in the thread, yet, that someone has jumped on the vitriolic band wagon and condemned a hat, price range, hat purchaser or an entire manufacturer's good as evil or causing bad. This is a testament to the ethos that I continue to see on The Fedora Lounge. Cheers!

For me a hat sweat that can not be comfortable, hats that does not have a purpose or situation to be worn, hat materials that do not work for me and hat shapes that are to my eye "crazy" are of a quality and low value that I would move on.


Trying hard every day to be considerate of others, Eric -

 

[Short Balding Guy]

I'm concluding that this opinion is strictly from a collectable standpoint.

Or are you staying that the hats that 90% of the general public wears & loves is junk??

I do not put words into Brent's mouth, but would offer that every hat wearing person has a first hat. My first hat was not vintage and certainly had many characteristics that would not allow me to keep it on my hat rack today. The hats at my local Big Box stores, at least up until my last visit a few months ago, are not junk, rather someone's "first hat."

Hopefully I am adding to the thread. Best, Eric -

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I'm concluding that this opinion is strictly from a collectable standpoint.

Or are you staying that the hats that 90% of the general public wears & loves is junk??

As I’ve already said in this thread, I own, and plan to continue to own, several hats that are “low quality.” They have a place in my roatation as beaters or special purpose hats. Actually, I find myself wearing them more often than my nicer hats.

I don’t care what brand or label is on a hat, but if the felt it poorly pounced, if it’s hard and rough, if it tapers the first time it gets wet, if it starts out poorly formed, if the ribbon is tacked on crudely, if the sweatband is narrow, or of low quality, if the brim binding runs over, if the machine pressed crown shape is poorly executed, etc., than I find them to be poor quality hats. Some of them are tough and serviceable, but they aren’t high quality.

I do think the hats that 90% of the hat wearing public buys and wears are low quality. I’d bet close to 90% of hats sold are wool. They aren’t necessarily “junk,” but they aren’t “quality hats.” Most hats (remember we’re only talking about brimmed felt hats, so fedoras, Homburgs, westerns, etc.) are bought as fashion pieces and worn very little and bought by folks who don’t really care about hats.

I’m not talking about collectors value; although, that does often correspond with quality, I’m taliking about poorly made hats using low quality materials.

Most of us have areas in our lives where we are satisfied with lower quality items. I’m perfectly happy with Casio and Citizen wrist watches, and I have no desire to own a “quality” watch. If I like the looks of the watch and it keeps time then I’m happy. If a “low quality” hat fits you, keeps the sun off you, and you like how it looks, then that might be fine for you...I own a couple dozen such hats. No judgements from me. however, as new folks start looking for nicer hats, perhaps after experiencing a nice quality vintage hat, there are hats to avoid in your hunt for “quality hats.”

 

[deadlyhandsome]

I do not put words into Brent's mouth, but would offer that every hat wearing person has a first hat. My first hat was not vintage and certainly had many characteristics that would not allow me to keep it on my hat rack today. The hats at my local Big Box stores, at least up until my last visit a few months ago, are not junk, rather someone's "first hat."

Hopefully I am adding to the thread. Best, Eric -

You always add to any thread you contribute to. I think most of us started out with hats that we would now consider “low(er) quality.” I still intentionally buy such hats for specific purposes, but I buy them knowing what they are and what they aren’t.

 

[Short Balding Guy]

Pics are needed for this post:

Low quality, by my definition, can come from respected manufacturers. Not all the offerings, in my pics a hat from venerable the Borsoalino company, are of quality.

I hope my words will be clear. The above pics are of a hat I purchased last fall. I saw pics of the hat and was intrigued by the felt pics. Perhaps a heathered felt in a unique hue. I sprung for the hat as it was small dollars and I was intrigued. The above hat is what came out of the box. I recieved a bucket hat, ala 70's fame with attributes that I will not wear it ever again. IMO, it is a low quality hat. Low quality on the Short Balding Guy's Quality Scale.

Ahhhh, now to find a home for the bucket hat that would appreciate it. Eric -

 

[scottyrocks]

I do not put words into Brent's mouth, but would offer that every hat wearing person has a first hat. My first hat was not vintage and certainly had many characteristics that would not allow me to keep it on my hat rack today. The hats at my local Big Box stores, at least up until my last visit a few months ago, are not junk, rather someone's "first hat."

Hopefully I am adding to the thread. Best, Eric -

I think that 'first hats' often share a number of contributing similarities:

1. Buyer/owners' lack of knowledge re hats, in general. How can you know what you don't even know to look into?

2. Low price point - not many people will spend big bucks on their first of much of anything in a particular category.

3. Uncertainty, which is also part of the low price point thing. Would you spend top dollar on your first go-round when you're not sure how you think you will look in a hat, what you feel other people will think of you in a hat, whether you're buying the 'right' hat, etc.

It is also possible that cheap hats can continue to purchased by a given person, potentially because hats, overall, are not that important to the individual, resulting in the continuation of Scalas, Stacey Adamses, for example, and those oddly patterned cloth hats that hipsters made famous years ago. When you desire something to show how 'ironic' you are, spending a lot of money and/or wanting a classic garment might not be on your radar. This could be another reason for the desire for a cheap hat.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Here’s a hat that checks many of my “low quality” boxes. It’s a Bailey. It’s fairly coarse. The sweatband is cheap. The build quality is low.

It’s all those things, and I love it. It’s been my companion on several fishing, hunting, and camping trips. It’s been worn on occasions and in circumstances that I wouldn’t have wanted to wear a high quality hat. It’s taken some abuse and it still looks good; its thick stiff felt is a strength rather than a liability. It fits well and is comfortable. It’s truly a lower quality hat (it is at least fur felt), but it fits a niche For me and I have no plans on ever getting rid of it.

I didn’t intend this thread to be a tribute to hat snobbery. I just wanted to help those following after me who are searching for quality hats to avoid the mistakes I made. If you buy a lower quality hat knowing what it is, and what it isn’t, that’s great. Even with all such hats that I own I’d still buy another if the right one comes along.