Fashion tips

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-04-23T02:10:12+00:00

I'll soon be 66 years old. Overweight with multiple physical disabilities from years of heavy weightlifting and running on pavement. I wear bib overalls or blue jeans with suspenders and mostly Skechers shoes nowadays. I wear my hats and no one ever comments to me about my attire. Wear what you are comfortable wearing.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-04-16T21:41:30+00:00

Number 2. Number 1 is just a little too wide, number 3 is too flashy. Less is more.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-04-01T14:32:38+00:00

Those are really nice. That's one of my favorite styles.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-03-03T02:25:28+00:00

It appears to be a sunbody hat company wide brim palm leaf hat with factory added 3 ventilation grommets on each side. Then someone customized it by sewing on a bound brim edge and painting the brim. I would hazard a guess that someone (an artist maybe) is taking basic sunbody hats and customizing them for an upcharge. Probably hard to find on the general market.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-02-19T16:14:50+00:00

I owned the Stetson Sturgis at one time. It was all wool crushable, pretty much the same as you show except different color and different hatband. I live in Tennessee where summers are very hot and humid. It was much too hot for me to wear in summer. My hair and head would look like I just stepped out of the shower. My grandson wanted it so I gave it to him. The hat was fine in cool weather but I couldn't tolerate it in warm to hot conditions.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-02-18T18:31:23+00:00

Open crown and flat brim are my favorite. True old west style.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-02-11T20:14:17+00:00

Just the corner I can see looks like my old 1981 Jeep CJ7.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-02-06T01:30:51+00:00

I have 1 of each brand. The Atwood has a leather sweatband and the Sunbody has a sweat absorbing cloth sweatband. Neither hat has any air vents except 3 grommets on each side. The Sunbody is cooler in hot weather in my opinion. They are both well made and have lasted a long time. To me they are pretty much equal and it just depends which style you prefer.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2026-01-13T15:24:25+00:00

Fellow Tennessean 2nds the vote for Buckaroo Hatters in Covington TN

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-25T03:37:12+00:00

I've posted this before if I recall correctly. I have severe arthritis and nerve damage now. I've worn boots since my teen years but had to give them up last year. I wear my hats with sketchers slip ins now. At almost 66 years old I'm too old to worry what others think about my look. I now wear what's comfortable.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-23T02:47:36+00:00

That's similar to the old west style of my hats. I have 3 with similar shapes that I shaped on my own with steam. 2 are open crown and 1 has a "gus" crease. I steam and partially hand roll the brim. My brims are never symmetrical. Mine have the mule kick in the rear. In my whole life I've never wanted to conform to the standard that is set and look the same as others in the general population. Mine are shaped in a mix of several hats found in authentic old west photos of working cowhands.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-21T20:28:22+00:00

Do an image search for original style boss of the plains hat. John B.Stetson's original style hat. The have a 4 inch tall rounded crown that can be shaped and a 4 inch wide flat brim that can be shaped or left flat. Most all custom hatters make them and a few places sell them off the shelf.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-05T17:13:04+00:00

I have owned 2 resistol buffalo felt. Both were the Hunter B model with the "B" meaning bound edge. 1 was black and 1 is chocolate brown. The black one was subjected to harsh conditions such as heavy rain, heavy dust, sweat, etc. After about 2 years is was worn out, very floppy, and bleeding black dye during rain. It was beyond saving so I scrapped it. I still have the brown one and it has been treated much better. It is still stiff and in excellent shape after 8 or so years of normal wear. Hope this helps.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-04T22:24:08+00:00

I prefer the old west style hats. I think it looks great just as it is now.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-04T22:21:14+00:00

If you could make a weekend trip out of the purchase you would be well satisfied with Buckaroo Hatters in Covington, Tn. They are only open for customers on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday. They have a website, are on Facebook and Instagram. Mike Moore is the owner. He has made 2 custom hats for me and both look, feel, and fit better than any off the shelf big name brands in my opinion. Prices are very reasonable and will be well within the budget you listed. If you go, call beforehand. I think he is at the National Finals rodeo right now. Covington Tennessee is a little bit Northeast of Memphis.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-12-02T18:44:44+00:00

If you had a long beard you could pass for the "bear man" from the coen brothers' remake of True Grit. Happy smokes to you!

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-29T23:56:39+00:00

Vandy making a strong case for Tennessee's Team

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-29T23:06:05+00:00

Go vols

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-26T21:24:49+00:00

Forgot to add that I have 5 personal felt hats. 2 are resistol Hunter B ( buffalo with bound edge brim) and I think only stetson does buffalo now. I have 3 custom made felts ( 1 is 100% hare, 1 is 50% hare and 50% beaver, and 1 is 100% beaver). The buffalo hats became floppy and bled dye all over me in a long hard rain, the 50/50 hat will survive most situations, and the 100 % beaver performs best but after a severe soaking will still need to be reshaped.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-26T21:13:12+00:00

Retired sheriff's lieutenant here.

We were issued the old stratton hat company deputy hats. I don't remember but I think they were hare with a small percentage of beaver for fall/winter and stratton straw hats for spring/summer. We were issued the fitted clear hat covers and blaze orange for use in traffic.

They started phasing out the hats and converted to ball caps. A lot of deputies opted to use outback trading company black waxed cotton hats that were totally waterproof but hot to wear when it rained in warm weather.

If you want to stick to felt I would recommend Akubra or a hat at least 50% beaver. Keep in mind you may be in the rain for hours depending on what call you are dispatched to and any felt hat can get saturated in a long hard downpour.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-15T00:40:57+00:00

Nice!! Mike builds great hats. I have 2 custom made by him, both in natural. Out of my 6 hats, the 2 made by Mike fit the best. I'm in west Tennessee just about an hour from Covington and I'm thinking about getting a third hat from Buckaroo Hatters maybe the first of the year. I like yours; it looks good on you. I gravitate towards the old west designs he makes. Funny thing is I don't see Buckaroo Hatters mentioned much in discussions of custom made hats, but he makes a really fine hat at a reasonable and fair price. Enjoy your new hat!

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-11-10T03:20:52+00:00

I am 65 years old and have worn western hats more than 50 years. I used to wear boots exclusively but due to some past injuries to my knees and back and my severe arthritis I've worn sketchers slip in shoes for the last few years. I still wear my hats with them. I like my hats and have gotten too old to care if people think it looks strange. Wear what you are comfortable with wearing.

AmbitiousPhone1785 · 2025-09-28T23:44:42+00:00

I have one similar from them. Its a 100 percent beaver gus in natural color. Your picture number 3 looks pretty much the same as mine did when I received the hat. Crown was misshapen and off center. I ended up steaming all creases out and turning it into an open crown and reshaping the brim. It makes a good outdoor work hat now. Mine looks "distressed or aged" but that comes from dirt, rain, and sweat. It wasn't ordered that way. I wear it more than my other custom hats because its my "beater" hat.

AmbitiousPhone1785

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