I've always wanted a Tilley hat but couldn't justify the cost. Well I managed to find a great sale price, so I decided now is the time.
I agonised over sizing before ordering. My head measures 57 cm which puts me at a 7 1/8" size but that would've be a great mistake. I added 2 cm to my measurement and bought the 7 3/8" size and it's just right. The hat should fit loose enough to easily slip onto your head but not so loose it would fall off if you bend over.
I also "tested" two colours. I bought the Olive and the rockface. The olive is a dark colour and when I put both in the direct sun in 90F weather for a few minutes the olive hat measured about 10F hotter than the light coloured Stone Face both on the top of the hat and underneath it. Even after 10 minutes the rockface coloured hat remained ~10F cooler than the olive. Since this is a sun hat I decided to go with the lighter colour, though I really like the olive.
I've tested the hat out in direct sun and the brim is wide enough to mostly shield the face and neck. I'd still recommend some sunscreen or using a cape on the back of the neck, especially if you're fishing and looking downward a lot. I didn't feel like I was any warmer than using a ballcap and was even cooler than no hat at all because it blocks/reflects a lot of the sun from reaching my head.
Alas, I still sweat heavily wearing it and the built-in headband wets out fast. I can fit a thin additional sweatband under the hat, but not a thicker cotton sweatband. I'm still wondering if I should've gone up to a 7 1/2" to accommodate a thicker sweatband.
Either way, a great hat and even better if you can get it on a good sale. They might not carry quite the same quality that they used to, but they're still a high quality item worth buying.
Customers say this fits true to size.
| Too small | | 7 |
| Somewhat small | | 6 |
| True to size | | 124 |
| Somewhat large | | 4 |
| Too large | | 2 |
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