Which Peaked Hat?

richardandtracy

richardandtracy

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I know it isn't a very technical query, but...

I've lost my last baseball cap overboard. Never again. I always say that, but this time I'll try doing something about it.
Can anyone suggest a (fairly cheap) peaked hat that won't blow off at 4 knots, and preferably not at 70 knots. I don't care what it looks like or how many straps it's got, so long as it can be stamped on, scrunched up, is very tough and can be (occasionally) taken off.

Regards

Richard
 
I like the musto ones : no prob's blowing away( tho' I have a large sized head), but has a strap to retain anyway (the hat!)

The also do a warmer/waterproofy/ear covers storm hat , with chin strap ...also vg imo.
 
I hate to suggest it because when you wear one you always look like your trying to look like the text book "Old Salt" but the dreaded Breton works extremely well. Thats why "Old Salts" wear em.

Hint they look better when they are old & knackered so bung a new one through the washing machine a few dozen times.

Otherwise I have had very good reports on the Tilley hats or try the Musto baseball cap with the collar clip on the back.

I'll be interested to see any other comments!

Martin
 
I hate to suggest it because when you wear one you always look like your trying to look like the text book "Old Salt" but the dreaded Breton works extremely well. Thats why "Old Salts" wear em.

Hint they look better when they are old & knackered so bung a new one through the washing machine a few dozen times.

Otherwise I have had very good reports on the Tilley hats or try the Musto baseball cap with the collar clip on the back.

I'll be interested to see any other comments!

Martin
 
I've heard traffic wardens hats are very good but my personal favourite is the WWI german helmet. The spike at the top is excellent for spare sail ties ..
 
Certainly with the traffic warden cap. Complete strangers board the vessel and throw one in a graceful parabola towards the nearest solid object. Have'nt had that problem with the Pickelhoff although there are a few scratch marks on the boom .. one tends to be made very welcome in France although a trifle less so in some Greek Islands ..
 
I like a baseball hat in bad weather because its peak moves the hood of my jacket around with it, eliminating the blind periods that otherwise occur when checking to port and starboard. Also it does help a lot in keeping rain off the face and specs, now that I am wearing them again. If it was good enough for Chichester, it's good enough for me.

My answer is a Helly Hansen jacket. It has a strap and patent clip specifically for the attachment of a peaked hat, not preventing the thing from blowing off but saving it from flying overboard.
 
All sorts of things ..

Yes, although it did confuse the parrot initially, another thing to bear in mind is:

Make sure the spike is non-ferrous or you may need to ensure the compass is reswung and that whoever is helming at the time stands in the same position wearing the hat.

The length of the spike can of course be adjusted so that it can be used as a spike for the spinnaker , gives new crew members quite a turn when you don the hat and take a flying leap at the spinnaker pole, in tropical climes it can of course also be used for spearing sizeable fish ..
 
So that is what that clip is for!!!!!!

the place i bought mine they had no idea what it was for. i could not figure it out.
thanks for clearing that up vyv

all i need know is a peaked hat

I never eat on an empty stomach. i like to hear the food splash as it hits
 
Re: Tilley hat

These cost about 40 quid, but they have clever rear strap which means it doesn't blow off at 40 knots on a ferry, and also not even if you are trapezing off a dinghy and get dunked at however fast it was, I bet she did it on purpose. We've lost all the hats except these. Very very scrunchable and so on.
 
Re: All sorts of things ..

On a steel boat, and given the erratic quality of my navigation (keep going west until Tuesday, then turn left for somewhere foreign!) a ferrous spike won't make things much worse. Good Lightning conductor.

Trouble is, the cat'll have a painful place to sit a night (don't anyone think I'll take it off when in bed, when I didn't take the baseball cap off!), as I can't see him changing his sleeping arrangements just because I'm wearing a new hat.

Regards

Richard
 
Re: All sorts of things ..

Seriously though, I wear a Tilley hat when its warm and a Gill cap with ear flap thingies and chin strap when its cold. The Gill cap looks daft but is extremely practical and is now c4 years old which bears tribute to its staying power since its usually pretty rough weather when its worn. Its also easy to scrunch up and put in ones pocket so your not laughed at in the pub.
 
<font color=blue>I too had this problem and Syd helped me out. He nailed my hat to my head with a 6" nail now it never moves no matter how windy it is... yes! even if Pheran lets one go.

http://www.alexander-advertising.co.uk
 
The German helmet offers a further advantage for those who have chosen the liveaboard life but hanker for the good old days back in South Ken: you can produce your own wind-cured meat - sorry - bresaola! Also handy as a fender (spike outwards please) in tight moorings to ensure privacy.
 
I have had a Tilley for 4 years and it is really good. I came to it after loosing several baseball hats. It is expensive but the chin/back strings mean it is much harder to loose. The kids will not walk with me when wearing it in public because it looks eccentric!! A sort of Aussi without corks!
From my viewpoint it is really good at keeping rain off the specs and keeps more sun off the side of my face (look how many old salts have orrible brown spots where the sun catches their cheekbone area and same on backs of hands).
You will probably think I am a saddo but I have found an old small umbrella, in addition to the hat, is really good when the rain is setting in for the day and the wind is not too strong.
 
Re: Tilley hat

Yes to the Tilley hat, they honour their pledge to replace it free if it wears out. For more formal sailing Gieves and Hawkes (sp?) sell their propper British Yottin' Cap, with white summer cover, about £80 last time I looked, impresses the natives no end, they say.

IanW

Vertue 203, Patience
 
The FIX is easy . . .

Make a loop of cord large enough to easily fit over your head. Attach the cord to the rear adjuster of the baseball hat or the centre rear of any other hat.
When your hat blows off it remains attached to your neck!!

You will never lose your hat again /forums/images/icons/smile.gif
 
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