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Do you wear a (boating) hat!

Dean P

Jetboaters Admiral
Messages
3,474
Reaction score
4,920
Points
367
Location
Florida
Boat Make
Chaparral
Year
2017
Boat Model
VRX
Boat Length
22
Wife has been bugging me to get a better hat other than my typical baseball cap. I've been looking at the Tilley LTM6. This has a broad brim, it floats and will keep me (somewhat) dry in rain. Are they worth the $90 price tag (lifetime warranty)?

What do you wear? How do you like it? Would you buy it again?
 
I'll get a pic when I get to the boat but I wear a $9.99 wide brim straw hat, nothing fancy. It's cheap, floats, air goes through it, keeps the sun off my face & neck & when people see it they know it's me.
 
Sorry to admit, our age shows when we choose function over fashion. Tilley hats are worth the money as they are very functional. Just remind yourself that you did it to yourself. (btw, my 80 year old father loves his Tilley hat)

If you care to be a bit trendy and still get good function, might I suggest our friends in the Scottsdale area at Dixxon Flannel. They make some of the coolest straw hats out right now. And all of their products are limited run, so the chance of you running into another fashionable dude is minimal. Sorry to say, their straw hat collection is down to two models at this time. We got a couple cool ones last season!

Good luck!

Here are some examples of ones I found with a google search.

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Wife has been bugging me to get a better hat other than my typical baseball cap. I've been looking at the Tilley LTM6. This has a broad brim, it floats and will keep me (somewhat) dry in rain. Are they worth the $90 price tag (lifetime warranty)?

What do you wear? How do you like it? Would you buy it again?


I was in the same boat ? as you with my wife asking me to wear something other than a baseball hat. Here’s the hat I wear while on the boat. It provides great protection for ears, face and neck. The straw allows a breeze to come through and it’s comfortable. I’d buy this one again!

[/https://www.avidgear.com/products/southern-straw-hat
 
Gotta protect the thinning spots
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I have a hat just like this. Picked it up in Cuba a few years back. Just not enough (sun) protection. My neck tends to burn and my wife is paranoid about me getting skin cancer.

Love those straw hats but don't do much for rain. We tend to get stuck in the afternoon thunderstorms (which last for about 45 minutes) a lot. It's that time of the year.
 
I switched from a collection of ballcaps to this UV hat this year. I also wear shirts and a neck gator from this company, doubles as a face mask when needed. And so cooling when wetted down.


I do like those large brim straw hats too.
 
I switched from a collection of ballcaps to this UV hat this year. I also wear shirts and a neck gator from this company, doubles as a face mask when needed. And so cooling when wetted down.


I do like those large brim straw hats too.
I like that. Do you know if it floats?
 
I switched from a collection of ballcaps to this UV hat this year. I also wear shirts and a neck gator from this company, doubles as a face mask when needed. And so cooling when wetted down.


I do like those large brim straw hats too.
I have one of these. I don't wear it often though. Has great shade, but the heat "under" the hat is just more than I can bear.

I've gone back to wearing a visor for good ventilation, and supplementing with copious amounts of sunscreen to cover my neck, ears, and lips/chin area.
 
It is at the boat right now or I would test in the pool. I dont think it is a sinker. It says it is "swim friendly" what ever that means, I hope part of it means it will not sink. @2kwik4u It is definetly warmer under most hats, this one is no different. It is vented well and UPF 50+ on the head is a bonus. It is great when the wind is in your face, sailing, boating. On those dead calm days I find a shady spot and go hatless, or wet the hat down and let it evaporate. I highly recommend a wetted UVSkinz neck gator on a hot day. It really knocks down on the reflective rays off the water.
 
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I'm a fan of the normal ball cap style of hat while boating. I've tried the brimmed UV still hats off and on over the years and I don't like the brim flopping into my line of sight when I'm running across the water and 40mph. My main reason to wear a hat is to keep the sun off my face and bald head so taking it off when we're running defeats the purpose. I usually have a 'boat' hat that I wear till it either gets lost or gets too gross and I don't want to put it on my head anymore. It gets dunked in the lake water a few times a weekend usually so in a way it gets a rinse every now and then. I'm sporting a vintage style hat this year that I picked up at Flora-Bama, the bar and restaurant on the Florida Alabama line, back in May. It's got the well worn and broken in look that I really like.
 
It is at the boat right now or I would test in the pool. I dont think it is a sinker. It says it is "swim friendly" what ever that means, I hope part of it means it will not sink. @2kwik4u It is definetly warmer under most hats, this one is no different. It is vented well and UPF 50+ on the head is a bonus. It is great when the wind is in your face, sailing, boating. On those dead calm days I find a shady spot and go hatless, or wet the hat down and let it evaporate. I highly recommend a wetted UVSkinz neck gator on a hot day.

I'm super similar. If I can find shade, I would rather have that than a hat....always.

If I ever get this "EZ-UP on the water" project moving I might have some shade while floating in open water. That would be the ideal solution I think.
 
I don’t leave the dock without my hat!..

but seriously, I’m following this thread. My normal Baseball cap has fallen Off one too many times. I’ve been suggested bucket hats with the chin string. Have yet to try it
 

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I’ve always had really good luck with Columbia products, so I went with this. Vented, lightweight, not too out of date lol. The little one there has a better setup but I get everything dirty so white is a non-starter lol.
 
Wife has been bugging me to get a better hat other than my typical baseball cap. I've been looking at the Tilley LTM6. This has a broad brim, it floats and will keep me (somewhat) dry in rain. Are they worth the $90 price tag (lifetime warranty)?

What do you wear? How do you like it? Would you buy it again?
Tilley Airflo all the way. The LTM6 is exactly what I wear. They are sized so they fit properly and don't blow off. Enough brim to keep the sun off but doesn't flop around too much when going fast. It does float. Made in Canada too! Definitely worth the price.

Picked mine up at REI 10 years ago and it's still going strong. I pitch it in the washing machine every few weeks to get the sweat smell out and it's good to go.

Try to find them locally so you can try different sizes. They will stretch a little so you want it snug in the store.
 
I'll get a pic when I get to the boat but I wear a $9.99 wide brim straw hat, nothing fancy. It's cheap, floats, air goes through it, keeps the sun off my face & neck & when people see it they know it's me.
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