Safari Hats

Red Leg said:

A stiff brimmed hat is a perfect POS for traveling by air - even in business. I love my Rands, but if I can't drive, they tend to stay home. This is the Baron model of the type made for Robert Redford in "Out of Africa" minus the puggaree wrap (would have been almost as bad as a zebra hat band). What better place to wear it than - well - Africa. However, it was a pain in the land cruiser and the airplane however well it performed its dedicated function in the field.

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Several years ago I discovered that Tilley made a cotton canvas hat. However effective they may be, I hate the look of most of their brimmed hats - one looks like a NGO bureaucrat loose in the bush. But the canvas hat quickly takes a pinched crown, drooping brim look which is effective at its primary purpose, rolls up in a carry on, and looks much more like the property of Stewart Granger than a UN consultant wary of soiling his boots.

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lol, so agree about being a pain on a plane and cruiser. I will check into the Tilly

Sika98k said:

Rogue River hat worn while checking out the recent evidence of buffaloView attachment 799182View attachment 799183

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On my last three safaries I just pay $35 US for a Rogue hat then leave it. Pain on an airplane

I typically buy them at this price at the airport in JNB and they work great for my two weeks

Rare Breed said:

On my last three safaries I just pay $35 US for a Rogue hat then leave it. Pain on an airplane

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My buddy’s in RSA call them tail gunners hats. I didn’t dig too far on their meaning…

Red Leg said:

A stiff brimmed hat is a perfect POS for traveling by air - even in business. I love my Rands, but if I can't drive, they tend to stay home. This is the Baron model of the type made for Robert Redford in "Out of Africa" minus the puggaree wrap (would have been almost as bad as a zebra hat band). What better place to wear it than - well - Africa. However, it was a pain in the land cruiser and the airplane however well it performed its dedicated function in the field.

View attachment 797119

Several years ago I discovered that Tilley made a cotton canvas hat. However effective they may be, I hate the look of most of their brimmed hats - one looks like a NGO bureaucrat loose in the bush. But the canvas hat quickly takes a pinched crown, drooping brim look which is effective at its primary purpose, rolls up in a carry on, and looks much more like the property of Stewart Granger than a UN consultant wary of soiling his boots.

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What's wrong with a zebra hat band?

Custom beaver fur hats are available from Rich Rand, Rands Hatter in Billings, Montana. My 100% beaver fur custom hat is from The Mad Hatter, also in Montana. They can make it in any crease you want. Just about any color.

How does beaver fur and rabbit fur brimmed hats act with a warm environment? It get pretty damn warm in Alabama. I like a full brim hat too, but it has to be light weight. Maybe Im a little sensitive to heat because of my job also.

Lefty, the higher the % of beaver hair the better.

• • 100% beaver has finer, smoother fibers let air pass more easily and pull moisture away from your head, keeping you cooler and more comfortable in varied temperatures.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Coarser, thicker fibers trap heat and act more like an insulator, making your head feel hot, heavy, and sweaty.

Water & Shape Resistance

• • 100% Beaver Felt: Naturally semi-aquatic animal fur naturally sheds water, resists shrinking, and holds its stiff, custom shape for years.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Acts like a sponge in rain or high humidity, warps easily, shrinks, and loses its crown structure

Altitude sickness said:

Lefty, the higher the % of beaver hair the better.

• • 100% beaver has finer, smoother fibers let air pass more easily and pull moisture away from your head, keeping you cooler and more comfortable in varied temperatures.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Coarser, thicker fibers trap heat and act more like an insulator, making your head feel hot, heavy, and sweaty.

Water & Shape Resistance

• • 100% Beaver Felt: Naturally semi-aquatic animal fur naturally sheds water, resists shrinking, and holds its stiff, custom shape for years.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Acts like a sponge in rain or high humidity, warps easily, shrinks, and loses its crown structure

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DAMN, I may have spent a little of my money, lol

rookhawk said:

This guy was in my feed this morning. I think he’s right about the shape:

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1EtCFFV5yk/?mibextid=wwXIfr

I personally like the Stetson Gun Club line, specifically to Catera that is no longer made. (You can find new old stock for way less than msrp if you dig)

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I love his hat making videos. I have watched a lot of them.

I wore my normal ball cap but took to leaving it in the truck when I'd remember otherwise I'd be picking it out of the wait a bit trees 3 or 4 times before we made it back.

Altitude sickness said:

Lefty, the higher the % of beaver hair the better.

• • 100% beaver has finer, smoother fibers let air pass more easily and pull moisture away from your head, keeping you cooler and more comfortable in varied temperatures.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Coarser, thicker fibers trap heat and act more like an insulator, making your head feel hot, heavy, and sweaty.

Water & Shape Resistance

• • 100% Beaver Felt: Naturally semi-aquatic animal fur naturally sheds water, resists shrinking, and holds its stiff, custom shape for years.
  • Cheap Wool Felt: Acts like a sponge in rain or high humidity, warps easily, shrinks, and loses its crown structure

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Low quality rabbit fur hunting fedoras are warm, but as you point out they are spongy and get floppy in time. You can shellac them to restore structure if someone wants a <$100 grouse hunting hat. They just need more attention than a finer quality hat.

For cool (not cold) hunting days I really like a felt adventure style hat. I couldn’t find any near me to try on since I have a bit of an elongated head so I bought a Stetson cowboy hat and cut the brim myself and reshaped it to my liking.

I could steam it and reshape the crown to the adventure/safari/explorer style, but that’s a bit beyond my ability.

It’s extremely comfortable and the perfect amount of warmth and breath ability for 40-75 degrees, but above that the sweat builds up pretty fast in a felt hat.



Here’s that hat in a pic of me my wife took in Colorado a month or so back.

Below is the side view of how I bent it. Front is on the right, rear is the left.


3.25” brim so it doesn’t interfere with scopes. I’ve shot a little with this hat (still relatively new to me) and on shotguns it works great, haven’t had enough experience with scopes to know if I want to lessen the front downward bend yet or not, but a bit of steam and it’ll be whatever shape I want it to be.

The original hat was a Stetson, I forget the exact model as I’m not super into it, just wanted some ear and scalp protection for my clean shaven head.

Been thinking about one of these for the hotter days

Mine is waxed cotton with a wide brim with a mesh band for circulation. I wear it on all of my warm season hunts.
I just lay it on top of my packed clothes and squish it down. It pops back into shape just fine.
My wife prefers the boonie style.

For a 20 Year old felt hat, this one served me well on its first Safari. Was comfortable, lucky, and kept its shape. I’ll probably have it replicated in a lighter color (green) beaver.

BeeMaa said:

I’d like to have an African Safari hat like Val Kilmer’s character in Ghost and The Darkness, but traveling with them is impractical.

We’ve been using surplus Army boonies with good results. View attachment 797198

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I second Val's hat. Too cool. Please tell me what belt you are wearing in this photo. TIA
RSL aka Stan

Ok, you young guys, anyone under 70, I worked outdoors at race tracks across this country and a few across the pond. Many times i wore a baseball type cap at these events. Sometimes in the rush i would forget it. But here's the deal, as i have gotten older, 83, i have had many spots cut off my nose, cheeks, and ears. No fun when they start carving on your nose and you can see the scapel. Makes me shiver to type this. All this to say a ball cap does not keep the sun off your ears and neck. I wear the strongest sun block i can find when outside now. And i apply it before hand especially to my face. It sometimes takes years for these precancerous and cancerous growths to appear. I highly recommend a brimmed hat and very strong sun block to prevent damage from the sun showing up later in life. Sorry to get on my soap box. Protect yourself from the sun.!!!

RSL said:

I second Val's hat. Too cool. Please tell me what belt you are wearing in this photo. TIA
RSL aka Stan

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Kore Essentials G3 Mulitcam 1.75" Garrison Belt. By far the most comfortable gun belt I've ever used with micro adjustments that are 1/4" apart at the snap of a finger. I've had two of them in constant rotation for a few years now with almost zero sign of wear. Decided to take it to Africa instead of using a cartridge belt over my trousers. Cartridge slide is a Galco Safari 5 that I had modified to remove the cover by my leathersmith. He also dyed and burnished the edges.
Kore Garrison Belt

Wore my Tilley around for a couple days in SA. The baseball cap is the choice for me forever lol Brimmed hats look great in photos but what a PITA running around in the woods. I figure if you KNOW you're gonna be out in the open 99% of the time it'd be fine but any thick veg at all you want that ball cap

BeeMaa said:

Kore Essentials G3 Mulitcam 1.75" Garrison Belt. By far the most comfortable gun belt I've ever used with micro adjustments that are 1/4" apart at the snap of a finger. I've had two of them in constant rotation for a few years now with almost zero sign of wear. Decided to take it to Africa instead of using a cartridge belt over my trousers. Cartridge slide is a Galco Safari 5 that I had modified to remove the cover by my leathersmith. He also dyed and burnished the edges.
Kore Garrison Belt

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Thank you very much. I need to check my slides to see if they will accommodate a 1.75 belt.