According to the execs in Monty Python's The Meaning of Life, "People aren't wearing enough hats." If they are, I have seen no evidence of an image repository in this forum. (May be a reason for that.) I for one have some type of hat on my head or within reach every minute of every day. Sometimes for work, sometimes for play. Ofttimes for no reason whatsoever than because I'm follicly challenged and I shave my hair down so as not to create the likeness of a half worn dirty tennis ball. It's not unheard of for me go to bed wearing one. A hat can say as much about a person as their shoes. Since there are lots of characters in here, I'd be curious to know what range of head gear you all sport to go along with all that pocket stuff. This is what I've been wearing in my off time most recently:
I figured, but I couldn't readily find it. Maybe there's a reason it died. There's one like this for everything else, though, and I think it has merit. We'll see.
Oh nice...I have a ton of hats to choose from. But usually it's between 2 or 3 of the same one all the time. Lemme get some pix uploaded...brb
As Ben noted there was a hat thread on here called "On Hats (headgear, cover, lids)" that was started in October, 2008 and died out in January 2009. The guy that started the thread, Corporal Punishment, is apparently no longer a Forum member. But, his opening post, although long, is worth quoting: "I never did like wearing hats. To this day, they almost immediately cause my head to sweat even in freezing weather. I guess hat wearing is something that you either get accustomed to doing at a young age or you don't. I happened to grow up in a classic temperate zone where the weather was neither cold nor hot practically year round. With the exception of Scouts and Little League, hats were not a serious part of my life until the Army. But that's when I first learned the value of a good hat, the proper wearing and etiquette of the hat, and discovered it's many survival uses (as a tool). Nowadays, wearing a hat is the exception, so I am acutely aware that it does draw attention and it is as much a "symbol" as it is apparel (like hats can identify your profession, the region of the country you're from, your social status, sometimes your politics/religion/national origin, and even, believe it or not, your "propensity for/skill at" violent action, if you know how to "read" someone. I am not an everyday wearer of hats. I mostly break out my hat when I know I will be in the sun all day, but I do consider it an essential item to wear/pack when traveling (by car, bus, train, boat or plane), when going out into the wilderness (no matter how close civilization is), and part of your survival "kit" when the . -Probably most importantly and fundamentally, hats provide instant sunshade/sunscreen against solar UV radiation. A good, practical hat should protect the ears, back of the head, and neck also, not just the face and eyes. This becomes even more critical in extreme environments, like desert, or if you happen to be stranded on the open ocean (sunburn leads to cracked skin, bleeding wounds, infection, sepsis, illness, death in that order) where dehydration/malnutrition will tax your normal immune system and ability to heal. I'm sorry, but I think ballcaps, BDU hats, short-brimmed "pork pie" hats, and most especially berets are impractical next door to useless for this function. If one of those hats was the only one available, I'd make a "haverlock" (like a sun curtain out of a hanky, that hangs off the hat, sort of like the French Foreign Legion did). -I suppose everyone must have heard already the famous "factoid" that because the human brain has enormous circulatory needs, as much as 1/3 of total body heat loss can occur via the top of the head, depending on the amount of hair you have. Simply wearing any head covering insulates the head from much of that radiant heat loss. -Along the same lines, a hat is basic rain shelter. Even wet, it still insulates, but also keeps rain out of your eyes, off your glasses, and from going down your collar. -Hats provide a minimal level of (armor) protection from bumps, hits, abrasions, scratches, slashes, and punctures. It can mean the difference between a bruise on the head and a bleeding scalp laceration. Tall people will know what I'm talking about. -A hat can be used to protect the hand when expediently punching through glass (when nothing else is available). -A hat can be used as a flag/guidon (held high), signaling device (waved), decoy (if flung), or head surrogate (to draw fire) in conjunction with a stick or arm extension. -Hats can be used to bail water, or even carry water, useful for lifeboat survival, firefighting, personal hygiene or camping. Makes a good calm water basin for making/improvising that floating compass I mentioned elsewhere. -Hats can be used to scoop and carry dirt, if nothing else is available. It may be the largest volume container you happen to have handy. -In very hot, dry climates, I soak my boonie hat in water, and wear it wet, letting the evaporating water cool my head. -It can be used as a fan to cool oneself, swat flies, or to fan flames. -It can be a handy feedbag for your horse. -Hats can be used to carry/hold many small, loose objects, like for foraging, carrying ammo, or keeping all of your EDC items in one place in a dark, unfamiliar hotel room. I use my hat as a nightstand "valet" when I travel (holding my room key, wallet, mini-LED light, loose change, tickets, all in one place). Also, with a cord attached, it can be used as a haul basket to transport items to a higher level for whatever reason (up a cliff, up a tree, down a hole, from floor to floor in a collapsed building, etc.). -I use my hat as a convenient eye-shade when I catnap during the day, or in a bright airport, or inflight. -Depending on the design of the hat, it has numerous recreational uses, like as a Frisbee, a target basin for a flicking cards, a catching "mitt" for thrown objects, holding money during a bet, and as a good "improv" prop for characterizations. -Hats can be used to cook in (to boil water!). Cloth (canvas) hats and felt hats can hold water. What you do is take super-heated stones from next to a campfire, with a couple of branches as tongs, and drop them into the water in your hat. The heated stone rapidly heats the water, then you take it out, and drop another heated stone in. The stones are so hot that I can literally boil water in about 3 stones, and use the water to cook (make soup, boil meats, or sterilize uncertain water). Never underestimate the comfort and morale boost of first a simple fire, and then a nice hot cup of tea, when you're in a survival situation. Just the "ritual", puts my mind in the right place. I have two dozen high quality hats of various designs, historical periods, exotic national origins, and compositions. I won't bore you with a rundown of my collection, but I keep coming back to 2 hats that I consider my "primaries", which I wear most often and which I would choose for my most practical for survival. My heavily modified cotton duck canvas "boonie" hat, and, my beaver-felt cowboy hat. The boonie is the one I wear/carry more because I can just stuff it into my pocket or wear it from it's hat cord around my neck. Plus it's easy to wash and maintain, durable, and cheap enough so I am not overly worried about losing it. My cowboy hat was a gift (but I know it was expensive) and I tend to wear it when I'm traveling, riding (of course), and longer duration camping. Although it is a "crushable" memory felt design, I do worry a lot more about maintaining it's condition, or losing/misplacing it. My favourite boonie hat has a 4" brim (as opposed to the standard 2" on military boonies), is light sand coloured (to reflect sunlight), and has a hidden pocket in the crown, which I usually keep some flat packets of sunscreen in. I wish I could tell you it was a Tilley, but for the expense of a Tilley, I'd rather not worry about my hat, as long as it works. My boonie has ample loops around the headband for camofluaging or holding small items, but usually the only item I occasionally clip on there is my LED light, and/or, my red LED flasher/strobe (when rode marching at night, so I don't get run down by cars). The headband/sweatband portion of the hat has a hollow space, which I use to hold two pair of cable ties (flexi-cuffs), and I have a small sewn-on Military Police crossed pistols branch insignia on the front. Underneath the insignia is a #10 scalpel blade and a handcuff key... part of my escape kit. I always insist on a cord for my hats. Not only does it let me retain my hat in high winds, waves, or maneuvers, but it conveniently let's me just flip my hat off my head to hang from it's cord whenever I don't need it. Like I hike from sun to shade, whoop, my hat is instantly off. It may just be my imagination, but I think that I get searched a lot less when I wear my cowboy hat when traveling, especially when I'm coming back into the United States. When I wear my cowboy hat, I am obviously NOT a "grey man" but a tall, conspicuous American wearing a classic hat. It's like I'm demonstrating my national affiliation and my obviously not trying to hide anything by standing out in the crowd. I just tend to get asked a simple question, like "where's your home town?", I give them my unaccented reply, and then I get waved through without even a cursory glance at my luggage. It's almost like, what terrorist idiot is going to draw that much attention to himself by wearing a cowboy hat... LOL. Just a theory." Wow, this guy covered some territory!
Good post. I wear a 'bunnet' (flat tweed cap) or a short(ish) brimmed foldable fedora. Currently looking for a outback type hat but am somewhat hampered by being unable to buy locally from the better brands (at least without going bankrupt) and something I've learnt from reading amazon reviews on almost every single hat they sell, you have to be able to try on, buying online is a sizing nightmare.
Forgot to mention that I do wear hats ... and have lots of different ones: Boonie hats: I started wearing these in 1968, back in Vietnam. I now have them in olive drab, tiger stripe, MARPAT, black, tan, and dark blue. All of my boonies have the hidden interior pocket, have been treated with a water repellant, and have some type of brim stiffener, since the boonies are a bit too floppy for me otherwise. As you may know, the binding on the edge of the boonie brim is hollow and will easily take a piece of clothes hanger wire, a flexcuff (plastic handcuff), or an electrical tie. Boonie hats are my 'go to' for sunny days. Ditto for rainy days, since I wear eyeglasses the boonie keeps the rain off of them. I also have a "Bad Hair Day Hat" which is a tiger stripe Marine Corps cover like this: For dress up I have a black 'snap brim' fedora that my wife has now banned me from wearing because it makes me look, according to her, "too Mafia."
Yankee hat in mango. To go with my bright orange golf shirt and orange Masa Mari edition Baby-G Shock. Sent by owl post.
Yesterday it was red. When I had my color analyzed at Armani, I turned out to be best in bright crayon colors. The lady said she'd never had one before. Apt since I'm an overgrown adolescent. Sent by owl post.
So, that's a G-Shock for every crayon flavor? Heaven help me if my wife ever dials in to EDC the way I have.
I never wear a hat unless it's sufficiently cold then some kind of "beanie" or "watch cap." I have an old rag wool cap that is awfully warm and I just picked up a Wigwam "Thermolite" cap hoping it wouldn't be quite as warm as the wool one. I've only worn it once so I really can't make a full assessment but it seemed to do the trick in temperate weather.
I have over two hundred baby-g's. The difference is I buy them in boxes of broken throw aways and fix them up myself. I make my own matching nylon and Velcro bands. I'd rather have twenty I can wear and love than one fancy one that has to stay in the drawer. Sent by owl post.
