Rooster good question and I'd bet others have answers as well. 50 years ago even some of the 5 and 7x hats were damn durable and high quality hats by comparison to much of what is sold today. Bought the kid that works for me a $150 American Hat Co. lid couple months back he's worn every day since. It is a POS in my mind but it is what he wanted and was willing to work off. I have reformed it twice already so he could go dancing all purty after the rodeos
Good to be young aint it! But the $130 Amish hat is three times the hat the Amercan will ever be. And out last it by years.
Bailey has made some really good hats. Wife and I both have 30 year old 7x versions we still wear.
Photo below is 100% beaver hat I built from a blank 18 months ago. We don't tolerate no shirkers here
last 2 months its been up to 90+ and down below freezing more than once. A inch of rain in 24hrs more than once, rain most weeks is common in spring. I use this hat as protection to move sprinklers wearing Xtratuffs 'cuz I know I'll get soaked. Big brimmed hat really helps keep some of the water off there. Hat got stretched and pulled on tight to my ears for a couple of weeks straight riding young horses. Lost it on one particularly memorable day twice in the round pen and then again when I went through the arena fence. It got stomped on first by the horse, then again by me that day. Hat was looking pretty worse for wear at that point. Not one I'd be wearing to a wedding. But good for a long neck or two and keeping the sun out of your eyes. It still looked better than I did after all that! Week later had a partner get tossed and busted a pelvis down a canyon and needed a airlift to get out. I wadded my hat up to use as a pillow for that one...hat or unconscious rider...thought I could sacrifice the hat. He got most all my clothes and chaps too before that all got sorted out.
A lesser hat would have done all that no question and lived through it I suspect. Just not as easy to fix or looked as good when done :bang_wall: Had a friend suggest I trade the Beaver for a hard hat. He's a smart ass.
Took a few minutes with a sand paper, hat brushes, and a steam kettle to get this one back to some thing that resembles a hat but easy enough to do. I look at good hats like a engraved gun. Buy them, use them, repair/replace as required. Life is short. A good hat, nice guns and a broke horse make life more enjoyable
None of them are gonna be worth a chit if you are going to baby them or just save them took at on Sunday.
an after thought.....I have never as in
never worn out a high quality hat. I have rotted out leather sweat bands and trashed/soiled hat liners. Both can be replaced. Good bodies like the silver belly beaver above can be cleaned and rebuilt many times. Had lesser hats not hold their shape, bleed dye, not keep out the rain and/or fit poorly . All reason enough to get rid of them for me. But a good hat fits perfectly, keeps water off your head, sun out of your eyes, is cool in summer and warm enough in winter. The better hats will do all that, feel good in the hand, light on your head (Amish hats are a little heavier than needed) and last a long, long time.
IMO, if you wear a hat....you deserve to at least try once in your life a nice custom beaver hat built specifically for your head. For all the same reasons we shoot a Colt and not a Uberti.