As to hats...............

[Bob Wright]

Most of my hats are/havebeen in the 4X~5X range. This indicating the percentage of beaver fur in the felt. The more "Xs" the pricier the hat, I know.

But just what does the "X" mean in percentage? I'm sure 4X is not 40% beaver.

Bob Wright

 

[Watertender]

Just be glad it isn't a 4x-5x size! Carrying a boulder like that on top of your shoulders would be a herculean feat! (couldn't resist)!! Bob I always enjoy your posts

 

[Busterswoodshop]

When it comes to what blend the beaver fur is on a hat.
There are no standards to the industry. There never has been.
So a 4X hat from one company , most likely is not the same as a 4X hat from another company.
A person that knows hats , can tell a good hat just by the way it feels.

 

[Kevin]

Interesting question! I haven’t considered it, but would be very curious to find out.

 

[Bob Wright]

When it comes to what blend the beaver fur is on a hat.
There are no standards to the industry. There never has been.
So a 4X hat from one company , most likely is not the same as a 4X hat from another company.
A person that knows hats , can tell a good hat just by the way it feels.

I know that in the 4X~5X range hats run around $300~$500, and in the 8X range around one thousand dollars!

Bob Wright

 

[Busterswoodshop]

That's true.
The more Xs , the more beaver fur.
You can spend a lot of money on a good hat.

 

[Wvfarrier]

As was ststed above. There is no standard but the more x's supposedly the more beaver. I have seen high end "beaver" hats that had 5 or 6 x's which were not as nice as a 4x from a different manufacturer. I am partial to catalina hatters.

 

[Bob Wright]

As was ststed above. There is no standard but the more x's supposedly the more beaver. I have seen high end "beaver" hats that had 5 or 6 x's which were not as nice as a 4x from a different manufacturer. I am partial to catalina hatters.
View attachment 47848

Yeah, a cowboy hat just seems to attract women! And you've got that watch chain to boot!

 

[Kevin]

What can be done with hats that are too small? I inherited my grandpa's Open Road Stetson. I know hats can be stretched, but this one is far to small to attempt something like that.

I have no idea why the initials "T N" are stamped into the inside either. My grandpa's name was Irl..

 

[BearBiologist]

Stetson or Resistol!!! I do have one from O'Farrel's that I used for CAS shooting!

 

[Busterswoodshop]

What can be done with hats that are too small? I inherited my grandpa's Open Road Stetson. I know hats can be stretched, but this one is far to small to attempt something like that.

View attachment 47876

I have no idea why the initials "T N" are stamped into the inside either. My grandpa's name was Irl..

View attachment 47877

View attachment 47878

A good hat can be stretched quite a bit.
The problem is.
The sweat band won't stretch that much . So you would have to remove the sweat band and liner.
Then replace it with another. It won't say Stetson anymore.

 

[freakindawgen]

Resistor won't disclose their beaver content. A good hat maker will go over his hat content. All wool, rabbit and wool, rabbit and beaver, full beaver. Not sure they use the x designation. The softer the hat the more beaver and more tolerant if gets wet(beavers live in water remember)

My Last Man Standing hat came from Italy hand made for me. 50-50 rabbit and beaver

 

[Fox Mike]

I am holding, on my lap as I type. an Alamo straw hat that has 5 "Xs" stamped inside the band, so it can't be the amount of felt/fur

 

[Bob Wright]

I am holding, on my lap as I type. an Alamo straw hat that has 5 "Xs" stamped inside the band, so it can't be the amount of felt/fur

As I understand it, "straw" hats are not really straw, but paper. From some source I've now forgotten, there is an industry in Mexico in which srands of paper are twisted and impregnated with plastic. this is then sold to hat makers to be made into straw hats. The advantage is that, unlike straw, the paper is waterproof and longer loasting. I have a Wrangler "straw' hat that is maybe twenty years old and is just now beginning to show its age, and that in sweat staining.

Bob Wright

 

[6GUNSONLY]

I think high quality straw hats may be made from palm "straw" - but not an expert on that.
I bought a beautiful gray Resistol cowboy hat from a New Mexico deputy years ago that was marked 6X quality. It was a nice hat, hardly worn, that had been his uniform hat. I think it must have stayed in the headliner hat holder most all the time. Not real sure what happened to that hat.
I still have my first ever cowboy hat, also a Resistol, bought at Lane's Western Wear (owned by my wife's grandad) in Alamogordo, New Mexico in 1976. It's my hunting hat these days. Needs a new sweatband but I just keep wearing it.

 

[Busterswoodshop]

The X mark on straw hats is just another way of marking the quality.
It has nothing to do with the blend of the hat.
Again , there are no standards in the industry and hat makers make their own rules.
But if notice on straw hats , the more X's the tighter the weave.
For example a straw hat with 1 X might have perforations in it , and one with 20 X from the same company will hold water.

 

[KIR]

I was given a green plaid Stetson scarf from my best friend. I also bought a Q-size wool blanket at Costco for only $25, also a Stetson. I usually wear baseball caps, so prob no cowboy hat for me, as it is too late in life for me to change. However, they do look good!

 

[DGW1949]

Back in the old days, the number of X's corresponded to how many beaver pelts it took to trade for the hat....the higher-quality the hat, the more pelts it commanded. ,,,These days though, the X-markings are mostly just a status symbol. Yeah, more X's can mean more money, but the thing is, "more money" don't always mean that you're getting more hat.

Hope this helps.

DGW

 

[Johnny-Baseball]

In 1964 I toured the Resistol Hat factory, which is located in Garland (a suburb of Dallas), TX. Resistol was founded in 1927 and today sells more than 1 million hats each year. Resistol hats have been/today are worn by presidents (LBJ and Reagan), famous "Texas" personalities (George Strait, Tom Landry) and law enforcement (e.g. Texas Rangers and Texas DPS officers). The Resistol folks said that the number of Xs Resistol assigns to a hat indicates the quality/content of the hat's felt. Felt is generally a mixture of wool and beaver furs. Occasionally felt includes a beaver/ermine blend. Today, Resistol's hats range in quality rankings from 1X (lowest) up to 1,000X or more, with prices from $15 (for straw) to over $3,000 for a beaver/ermine model. The highest end hats are custom-made/custom-fitted for a specific wearer.

Every hat maker uses their own unique rating system in determining their X ratings - one hat maker's X system likely differs from another maker's system.

During my plant tour I bought a 10X Resistol hat from the "factory store." It sold at a 50% discount from retail price because there was a blemish on the underside of the hat band. Now, 60 years later I still have that hat, and it's in "almost-new" condition. I've had it refitted a couple of times (refitting requires a steam machine to permit the hat to be stretched and shaped). It is among my most prized possessions.

 

[Kevin]

In 1964 I toured the Resistol Hat factory, which is located in Garland (a suburb of Dallas), TX. Resistol was founded in 1927 and today sells more than 1 million hats each year. Resistol hats have been/today are worn by presidents (LBJ and Reagan), famous "Texas" personalities (George Strait, Tom Landry) and law enforcement (e.g. Texas Rangers and Texas DPS officers). The Resistol folks said that the number of Xs Resistol assigns to a hat indicates the quality/content of the hat's felt. Felt is generally a mixture of wool and beaver furs. Occasionally felt includes a beaver/ermine blend. Today, Resistol's hats range in quality rankings from 1X (lowest) up to 1,000X or more, with prices from $15 (for straw) to over $3,000 for a beaver/ermine model. The highest end hats are custom-made/custom-fitted for a specific wearer.

Every hat maker uses their own unique rating system in determining their X ratings - one hat maker's X system likely differs from another maker's system.

During my plant tour I bought a 10X Resistol hat from the "factory store." It sold at a 50% discount from retail price because there was a blemish on the underside of the hat band. Now, 60 years later I still have that hat, and it's in "almost-new" condition. I've had it refitted a couple of times (refitting requires a steam machine to permit the hat to be stretched and shaped). It is among my most prized possessions.

That factory is still there. Not sure about tours anymore. But the factory outlet store is still there as well. I’ve bought quite a few hats from them. They have the guys working in the back also to steam and shape the hats if needed (or wanted.)

 

[Slyk Willy]

I really like my Palm Leaf hat. It's much better quality than the ones you can pick up at a "western wear store" and of course pricier too. It's made by Sun Body in Houston. It gets confused for straw all the time.

 

[6GUNSONLY]

I just bought a palm straw hat, haven't even gotten it shaped and broken in yet but I'm pleased with the quality.

 

[Fox Mike]

Did some looking and found that most straw hats are crafted from natural materials like palm leaves or raffia.

 

[caryc]

I am holding, on my lap as I type. an Alamo straw hat that has 5 "Xs" stamped inside the band, so it can't be the amount of felt/fur

Maybe it's the number of scarecrows they had to kill to make the hat?

 

[Johnny-Baseball]

I suggest you read the history of Resistol hats and other hatmakers. Those articles reveal that the X ratings (previously applied solely to felt hats) began to be applied to straw and other types of hats in the 1950s-60s.

 

[Bob Wright]

From what information I've gotten, nutrea fur is blended with beaver fur as well.

Bob Wright

 

[Busterswoodshop]

It's been many years since I was in the hat shop ( 40+ years ) , but back then , beaver felt hats were made with a blend of rabbit or camel fur.
Cheap hats were made with wool.
What they blend it with today , I have no idea.

On another note.
A Silver Belly hat was the most expensive.
It was made from the belly fur of a beaver.
Only the first 1/4 inch of fur or so on a beaver belly is used.
That is what's used in a true Silver Belly hat.
It takes a few beavers to make one Silver Belly hat.
Now days lots of them are just dyed to make the color.