Yes, born with a massive noggin. (brains probably average size) Anyhow, I grew up always wanting a Stetson-style felt hat…but by the time I stopped growing, only knit hats fit! lol Flash ahead 20+ years, I have a Tilley hat (they make 'em big) and a few ball caps called “HunkHead” brand, but that’s it. My size-8-1/8. Stetsons only go up to 7-3/4 or so, and I can’t find any information on whether or not they can be stretched/persuaded to a slightly bigger size or not. Any thoughts?
http://www.bighatstore.com
This is where I buy mine. Like you, I have been blessed with an oversized cranium. I don’t have a Stetson…I have a couple of felt and straw, but give these guys a look. Hope this helps.
I’ve had the same problem for about 30 years and did discover the Tilley hat about 12 years ago. Just a couple of weeks ago I went hunting and I couldn’t find a single orange ball cap that fit. I had a few pieces of left over Velcro from a job we did for the Velcro company a few years back and started thinking of a solution. I took my stitch remover that my wife bought me for fly tying and removed the stitches holding the plastic adjusters in a few of my favorite hats that never fit. Why I save hats that don’t fit I don’t know but I did. I then cut a couple pieces of velcro and put them where the adjusters were and used common staples to fasten them in. A couple staples on each side did the job and I stapled them so that they wouldn’t catch some hair or a chunk of skin.
Now I have about 6 like new hats both orange and camo… that fit and the cost was ZERO! When the staples rust out due to my sweaty head, I will either replace them or maybe it will be time to fix up another hat. I can’t help with the Stetson problem. I don’t think Velcro and Stetson go together,
That guy at Rand was a buddy of mine, makes a lot of custom stuff for Hollywood. Might be the top hat maker in the country by now. When in Montana I used a cowboy hat made out of mink felt. Very light. His stuff is in no way under priced.
Many years ago there was a hat shop in Denver that was about the biggest retailer in cowboy hats in the country. Being a 7 7/8 - 8 hat size & wanting to have something that would cover all the seasons of fishing plus skiing, found a reasonably priced pelt that was well worth the drive. Not only did they make there own hats, but also repaired & tailored many other brands. Can’t tell you the name of the shop, nor if it’s still in business; but in it’s time it was top of the line valet service:cool:
One hat size (cowboy), in 8th’s , for instance 7 1/4 to 7 3/8, changes the diameter of the sweatband by 3/8 inch. Just a bit of trivia to say that going from 7 3/4 to 8 1/8 means stretching the sweatband 1 1/8 inches. It might could be done, but it won’t be pretty. You will be able to see the outline of the sweatband on the outside of the hat. If you get in touch with your local retailer, they might can order what you need. As far as I remember, the major manufacturers don’t deal direct. Try to talk to the larger retailers, they might have a better relationship with the manufacturers. They are probably going to be ordering their felts in the next little while, so you might have to wait a bit to get the hat in.
Oh, I worked for a western store here in Beaumont, Texas for almost 7 years while I was in high school and college. I’ve steamed many a hat.
Kirk
One other bit of Trivia, Ban Blocker, “Hoss Cartwright” of “Ponderosa” fame wore a size 8 hat.