****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
I bought one of these hats (then made in Australia) several years ago. Great sun protection, light weight and extremely comfortable. Finally, after several (10?) years, that hat was falling apart - but I still wore it almost daily. I loved that hat! But, time passes. I bought this hat as a replacement. You can't imagine the number of compliments I've received. If you're considering this hat, DO IT. Pull the trigger and buy it! You won't be sorry.Bought it for golf. Works great, doesn’t make my head sweat at all!!Bought one of the same hat 10 years ago. Had to buy againI wore this hat on a 2650 mile thru hike of the Pacific Crest Trail. In over 6000 miles of long distance backpacking over the past few years, I have worn many hats. Choice of gear becomes very important when you have to carry everything on your back. This hat has been my favorite by far, but it does have a few flaws.It is a rugged hat. It survived no problem for the duration of the hike exposed to the elements 15 hours a day for 125 days straight. I very rarely removed the hat when hiking. Temperatures on the PCT ranged from 110 degrees in the Southern California desert to 15 degrees in the high Cascades of Northern Washington. I wore the hat during torrential downpours, hail, sleet and snow. I dunked the hat in streams hundreds of times. I bunched the hat up when I wasn't using it storing it under the lid of my pack.I purposefully ordered this hat one size larger than I needed so that I could wear a merino Buff (which can also be purchased on Amazon) underneath when hiking in sub freezing temperatures. This was a perfect combination and will be something that I stick with when backpacking in the future. Despite the hat being a large fit for my head, the hat NEVER flew off once over 2650 miles whether I was wearing the hat with or without my merino Buff. The reason for this can be seen as a positive and a negative. The sides of the hat curve up considerably when exposed to constant sun and sweat. This makes the hat look really cool, but it diminishes the hat's ability to block sun from your ears while increasing sun protection on the back of your neck and face. It also makes the hat aerodynamic in such a way that the hat is much less likely to fly off your head in 30, 40, or even 50 mph winds while hiking on mountain ridges.The leather braid on the hat is not sewn as well as I would like to the hat. After a few months of being exposed to the elements and bunching the hat up in my pack when I wasn't using it, the braid started to come a little loose from the hat. I solved this quite easily with a few stitches on my own. This is something that I believe would only be an issue to people who place quite a bit of wear and tear on their gear.Sun protection in the desert is not optimal due to the brim of the hat curving. I'm not sure if a larger brim would fix this or not. The ventilation is great straight out of the box, but is incredible with a simple modification. I cut the fabric out of the inside of the hat which covers the forehead area (I think to prevent sunburn?). This was easy to do, took less than 10 seconds and required only a simple pair of scissors. I had no problem whatsoever with sunburn on my forehead, however, you should consider your own forehead before making this modification. I found the mesh to be sufficient in blocking the sun and my head was kept much cooler than it would have been had I not been wearing the hat.I ended up losing the hat on a plane flying home to Virginia from Seattle. I decided to post this review as I am currently purchasing another hat from this company. The hat is lightweight, looks great, offers great sun protection and fantastic ventilation. Had I not lost the hat, I believe it would have lasted for years despite the extreme conditions I had already put it through. Overall, I give the hat a solid A.For many years, I've bullied my man into wearing a hat to protect his chrome dome. It was easier said than done. My guy has a huge head and it's damn near impossible to find hats to fit his huge noggin. Additionally, through the years, I gathered a list of requirements for his hats beyond just fit. We live in the desert and he works outside. His hat must be cool and this hat is vented for cooling air flow. His hat must provide shade from the brutal California sun. This hat casts shade for his cute face, ears and neck. His hat must be durable to stand up to being tossed around the truck and being sat on. We both, have several hats and let me tell you, they take up huge amount of storage. Barmah has solved that problem.This hat even came with a canvas bag to fold the hat for storage. There is nothing more gross than a sweaty, stinky hat. Once again, no problem. It is easy to clean (as long as I stay on top of it). My guy reports that the hat is very comfortable. The absolutely best feature of this hat is how good it looks on that huge head. This well made hat is classy, classic and very sexy.This is an absolutely beautiful hat. The quality is impeccable. I had to return because it just didn't look right on me :(.Not a general hat wearer, but this is great for sun protection and mesh keeps it coolBought as a gift for my husband. Emphasis on packable for travel and breathable - fits both descriptions!
