Tilley Hats

[snarbles]

I'm considering buying a Tilley hat either the TH4 Hemp hat in mocha or the LTM6 hat. I've heard great things about these hats and was wondering what the pros and cons are between the TH4 and LTM6. If any of you have any experience with these hats your comments would be appreciated.

[tlbj6142]

I own a LT6, the LTM6 looks a little to Grandpa to me. I love the hat, but have yet to use it much on the trail (couple of short trips with the kids). I wear it around town in the Summer (to keep from burning through my thinning hair) and a bit this fall for warmth (and 'cause it looks cool). Its probalby a bit "too hot" to wear on the AT, but YMMV. Its great to wear when its raining as it keeps my glasses clear and I don't have to wear the hood which means I'm a bit cooler.

[Mouse]

I considered them, liking the all-around brim. But the price seemed just too much. I looked all over for an alternative I liked but alway found hats that made me look like a cowhand or a gardening retiree. Finally found a cheap $15 brimmed hat at a boardwalk shop at Venice Beach. It was lighter than a Tilley and had a drawstring to keep it on in a strong wind. I found it great for keeping rain and snow off my glasses and in a light rain the brim gave enough shelter to forego donning a rain jacket. A Tilley would have the same advantages.

As I suspected I did end up losing it at the south end of SNP. It took until the outdoor store near Port Clinton that I found a replacement and it is with me still.

[SloHiker]

I've had several Tilleys constructed of cotton and the newer nylon versions. My current favorite is the LTM6 which has proven to be the coolest Tilley so far. I haven't owned one of the new Hemp models, but the others are bulletproof. The "downside" if there is one is the price, until you consider the hat will likely last a lifetime and is warranted against failure forever. I've worn out enough hats over the years to buy a couple of Tilleys! Oh, they're warranted against loss, too.

[firefly]

Buy a Tilley at your own risk. It might become one of your favorite pieces of gear and you might not want to take it off, You might start wearing it around town and not care if people thing you are strange. Your baseball hats will start gathering dust. I have the Tilley that looks like the Australian Bush hat (the L5 I think). I got it for sun protection out on a boat but wear it everywhere else. Having full brim protection in the rain is terrific. I would buy the lighter version but I LOVE my hat and cannot imagine hiking without it. You do have to be careful if you wear a white hat during deer season though..at least in my neck of the woods..I tie a peice of crime scene tape around it

[PROFILE]

As an alternate, I wear a army "boonie" hat. I use the dessert version. They only cost about 10-15 dollars have a wide brim, have never had a proble with UV and mine floats (at least short term). I do love the Tilly hats just to cheap to buy.

[TDale]

Love my LTM6.

When I was looking for a new hat, I found this quote that cinched it for me:

"On several trips, I stopped at noon for a meal and a three-hour nap while waiting for the temperature to drop. I used the hat to cover my face from the light so I could sleep. With the mesh in the crown, I could breathe comfortably with the hat over my face and did not feel like I was being smothered - and did not notice any odor from my sweaty hike up the mountain."

Important things, naps.

If you want one hat to last you forever this is it.

[snarbles]

I just bought a Tilley Hemp TH4 hemp hat. Weighs 5.5 oz and looks pretty cool. My girlfriend even says it looks cute.....she even wears it sometimes.

[flyfisher]

I reviewed the Th4 for BGT. I continued to wear it afterward and did all my hiking this summer (about 480 miles) with the Tilley. It is a great hat that works in heat and in rain.

I use it to keep sun and rain off my glasses. I use it at night in my hammock as insulation for my head. I have used it for naps, and I sit on it with great frequency.

I even got a free cup of upscale coffee with one of the "brag tags."

Great hat.

http://www.backpackgeartest.org/revi...ick%20Allnutt/

[sparky2000]

Just pulled it up on ebay tilley hemp, expensive but durable looking.

[tlbj6142]

The biggest problem I have with Tilley is their sizing. I would not buy one without trying it on. Using their own "tape measure" I was a bit short of a size 7.125. But there was no way I'd even fit in a 7.25. I ended up with a 7.625. And to make matters worst, different models, and different fabric of the same model, fit differently. I found the "cotton" versions a bit smaller than the nylon versions. The L3 was smaller than the L5, etc.

Thankfully, there are at least 4 stores in my area that carry Tillies. Most had the same models (must be the "standard load" given to them by Tilley), but after trying them all on, I made a guess and ordered my LT5.

[peter_pan]

Got an LT3 last year.... nothing like quality and class....nice style...well made...protection from sun and rain...a little warm...nice pocket in the top... great cord system..launders easy...not really light at 3.7 oz...but, fun to wear...and, you meet the nicest folk in Tilleys.

Pan

[jasonklass]

I have a T3 that I use for fishing and sometimes backpacking. I like the way it repels rain, floats, ties on, and I also like the security pocket. However, I hate the way I look in it. I absolutely won't wear it around girls. Oh well, function has it's price.

[HikeLite]

I like my LTM3 and the fit was accurate from the website scale. I want to try an LT5.

[Jaybird]

I'm considering buying a Tilley hat either the TH4 Hemp hat in mocha or the LTM6 hat. I've heard great things about these hats and was wondering what the pros and cons are between the TH4 and LTM6. If any of you have any experience with these hats your comments would be appreciated.

my buddy, "TeePee" hiked with one in 2002....
he loved it in the rain & mist....HATED it in the heat!

get something MORE BREATH-able!


u wont see too many of them on the A.T.!

[wyclif]

I own a T2 (the widest, flat-brimmed hat Tilley sells) with the drawcord. I'm a land surveyor and I'm a redhead, and I put that damn hat on every time the sun comes out from behind a cloud in the summer, because I've been sunburned and learned my lesson.

Great product: warranted against failure and loss. Because the cotton twill is substantial, it actually wicks sweat from your brow pretty well. Hand-wash with Woolite, stuff an old towel in the crown and lie the hat flat in the sun for a while, and you're gold.

That being said, I doubt I'd take that work hat on the AT. It's bulky, it's not a lightweight fabric (e.g. probably heavier than you might want when wet) and it doesn't serve any other purpose that I can think of, so I pack a light brimless cap...one of those ski-type caps that breathes while still keeping your head warm. In the "green tunnel", I don't need as much sun protection.

[Mouse]

Don't be too quick to leave it behind. The biggest factor that steered me away from one is the cost. I favored that very shape of broad-brimmed hat on the Trail, going for cheaper and admitedly lighter equivalents. It keeps the sun away in any conditions, it keeps the spiderwebs out of my face. And in rainy weather the broad brim all by itself often provided all the rain cover I needed. As far as I am concerned a broadbrimmed hat like that is the perfect Trail hat.

[wyclif]

I would take it if I thought it wouldn't be wet most of the time, and if I didn't already have a cap to wear in the bag on really cold nights. With the cap, I can wear it during the day AND at night, and I don't want to take more than 1 piece of headgear. I'm trying to keep my pack weight around 30# this time around.

[Zzzzdyd]

Style Tilley for approx. 8 or 9 years that I used for Canoeing and still miss
it. My ex-gf took it when she moved out !! I told her later on the phone if
she ever decided to come see me, etc. she better bring the hat or forget
it. Still not sure if getting rid of her was worth losing the Tilley or not. lol

When I told a new gf my sad tale of woe she had me drive the 100 miles to
Bloomington,IN and bought for my birthday this past July a new LT 5 which
I like even better, but haven't felt the same and haven't wore it enough to
even call it broke it yet. We parted company back in Sept. but I got custody
of the Tilley this time.

I tried some hiking in the old style cotton Tilley and found it way to warm for me.
I also had trouble with the brim hitting my old pack that had a lid on it.
Although I don't think that would be a problem now with my Golite Breeze ...

P.S. The old Tilley had a $20 bill in the secret pocket. I bet she still hasn't found
it. Now don't tell where it is guys !! lmao

[4whim]

straw hat with wide brim that can fold,,,much more breathable! Had tilley's,,,look good but horribly heavy and don't breath. when it rained,,,threw a thin shower cap they provide at hotels over the hat,,,,beats a hood on a rian jacket any day!