• GUARANTEED FOR LIFE
  • Tilleys are replaced free if they ever wear out, shrink or fall apart. They`re so carefully handcrafted by us in Canada, and made of such strong materials, that many outlive their owners. Final words in the Owner`s Manual? `Pass it on!`
• INSURED AGAINST LOSS
  • We understand the anguish of losing this reliable companion, or of having your dog terminally gnaw it. Should that happen, we`ll replace your late, lamented Tilley at half the catalogue price.
  • With your Hat, you`ll be provided with `The Straight-Shooter`s Statement of Loss of a Tilley Hat` insurance policy. The insurance is for two years, all perils, 50% deductible, and is not issued by Lloyds.
• EXCELLENT SUN PROTECTION
  • The fabric and style of all Tilley Hats have been certified to block 98 percent of harmful UVA/UVB radiation and deliver an ultraviolet factor (UPF) of 50+, the maximum rating given.
• REPELS RAIN
  • Not perfectly but usually quite adequately. Happily, the brims of the cotton-duck Tilleys actually become stiffer when they get wet, not floppier, helping to protect your neck, face and glasses.
• TIES ON IN THE WIND
  • The Tilley comes with a tuckaway, adjustable, fore `n` aft Wind Cord. When it`s calm, the Wind Cord stays hidden in the crown. When there`s a breeze, place the part with the sliding knots behind your head. When it`s windy or you`re sailing, use the chin part too.
• MACHINE WASHABLE (WON`T SHRINK)
  • They, in 1980: `Alex, you can`t make a cotton hat that won`t shrink!`
    Me: `But what if we boiled the material first? Mercilessly preshrunk it?`
    They: `Well, I guess that would work.`
    It did and does.
• FLOATS
  • A layer of closed-cell foam in the crown, and sometimes in the brim, provides the Tilley`s positive buoyancy. This is a boon to boaters and fishermen/women/people. Good grief!
  • People have told us that this foam layer has helped save their lives. Double your money back if it doesn`t save yours. Apply personally....
• HYDROFIL® ANTI-SWEAT BAND
  • Soft and comfortable, it picks up sweat from your forehead and wicks it away to your temple area where it evaporates.
• UMPTEEN SIZES
  • Most hat makers make 4 or 5 sizes we make 13, and even individual Hats beyond that size range when necessary.
  • As a matter of principle, no one shall be deprived of the pleasure and privileges of Tilley Hat ownership simply because of an uncommon head size.
• 4-PAGE OWNER`S MANUAL
  • You`ll find it a good read. It`s also available in Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Spanish. Please specify if it should be other than in English.
• BRAG TAGS
  • There are 8 of these in the Secret Pocket. You`ll have fun with them they can even get you into trouble, if you wish.
• SUNGLASSES` SECURITY
  • You can attach your sunglasses to the side of your Tilley: a Velcro tab inside the Hat holds the folded temples of your glasses in place after you`ve tucked the temples through the solid brass ventilation grommets.
• SECRET POCKET
  • Inside the crown is a good-sized pocket sealed with Velcro. In it, carry your Brag Tags, I.D., toilet paper(!), license, hotel key, $10 bill (in your case a 20), plus a quarter for an emergency phone call.

Arrival [return to top] The TH4 arrived on February 24, 2005, in a corrugated box approximately 15½ x 12 x 7 in (38 x 30 x 18 cm). The box was received undamaged. Inside the box I found a clear plastic bag containing the hat. Attached to the hat were four hang tags: 1) standard retail tag with size and bar code; 2) 2-sided tag with sun protection information (Alex Tilley is very serious about the sun); 3) 2-sided tag (English and French) about Street Kids International, a favorite charity of Tilley; and 4) a 4-page folded tag extolling the virtues of hemp. There was a small round sticker on the rear brim of the hat noting the size. Additional paperwork was found inside the TH4, which will be enumerated in the description below. There were no other contents, and all contents appeared undamaged.

Description [return to top] The Tilley TH4 (the ‘H’ is for the Hemp fabric) is one of the large Tilley Endurables series of hats. It is a wide brimmed (about 3 3/8 in [9 cm] front & rear, and 2 3/8 in [6 cm] on the sides), high-crowned (4 in [10 cm]), ventilated design with more features than any hat I have ever experienced – and I’ve worn a lot of hats.

The hemp fabric used in the Tilley hemp hats has a slightly nubby woven texture, and is a light beige or oatmeal color. The brim has a rolled edge, and concentric stitching all around. The crown is sewn all the way around at the top, and has vertical seams on both sides, as well as an outer headband about 1¼ in (3 cm) high. There are two large brass grommets on each side near the crown, large enough to pass a ball-point pen through (or eyeglasses – more on this later), as well as two smaller grommets on each side with a lace running through them (more on this later, also). On the left side of the hat, this lace is fed through a clear/frosted plastic tag with the Tilley name/logo printed on it. This tag, and a seam at the back center of the brim, are the only outer things that distinguish the front from the back of the hat, allowing it to be worn backwards with no real problems.

Inside the TH4… wow, what a hat! First, there is the hat retention cord/lace, a wide, flat, adjustable cord that may be used to hold the hat on from the front and/or back, or tucked out of the way when not needed. It adjusts with a very simple sliding knot arrangement, and it would be the lace I saw from the outside. The inner headband is sewn all the way around top and bottom, keeping from gathering debris – among other things.

Sewn to the inside of the top seam – on the left – is a loop of hook-and-loop fastener, allowing the wearer to insert the earpieces of their sunglasses through the large grommets and wrap the loop around them, providing a secure, safe storage place. Since I am as blind as a proverbial bat without my eyeglasses, I don’t expect to use this feature too often – at least not for its intended purpose. Also sewn to the inside of the top seam – on the right – is a size tag.

Finally, at the crown of the hat, features common to most – if not all – Tilley’s. First is a large tag, covering most of the inside of the crown, explaining the Tilley guarantee, some of the features, and the fabric, as well as washing instructions and corporate information. Additionally, there are spaces for the wearer to enter their name and phone number – and, if you follow Alex Tilley’s suggestion, the date. Sticking out from the bottom of the tag when I received the TH4 was the 4-page owner’s manual (a manual for a hat, what will they think of next?), with instructions to “Please remove this Owner’s Manual before fitting hat”.

After removing the manual, I saw that it had been inserted into a pocket in the top of the hat, which would have been held closed by a hook-and-loop fastener had the manual not been slipped in where it was. This pocket, which has a piece of closed-cell foam sewn in that is about 1/8 in (3 mm) thick, is large enough to hold identification, cash and credit cards, and small-to-medium maps.

The inner pocket as delivered holds a plastic zipper bag containing 8 ‘Brag Tags’. The tags, which are initially in one perforated sheet, all have the same information on one side (see photo) with various quotes and Tilley facts on the other. Just from reading through the tags I can tell this is going to be a fun test.

First Impressions [return to top] Tilley has got an amazing amount of information on their website, as well as multiple photos of just about all of their hats. Based on what I read, I got what I was expecting – and then some. My only – very minor – issue, is that I wear most of my hats level on my head, Army-style. I used the measurement where I normally wear my hats to determine my size, understanding that Tilley’s are meant to be worn a bit looser, but did not take into account how different the measurement would be around the place the TH4 would sit. As such, I contacted Tilley to exchange the hat for the next size up. I received the hat on Wednesday and spent the day checking it out thoroughly. I wanted to make sure the hat wasn’t too tight because I had one of my (frequent) headaches. Just before leaving my office Thursday I called Tilley, and was directed to the person I needed to speak with about exchanging the hat. He was not at his desk, so I left a message. Early the next morning I received a return call, whereupon I gave him my correct size and address information, and the replacement was on its way. Just before leaving work on Tuesday afternoon (into near-gale-force winds), the TH4 arrived – with a return shipping tag for the first hat. I am very pleased with the service and communication I have received from Tilley, especially since the sizing error was all mine.

Field Information [return to top] Our Boy Scout troop camps monthly. Almost all of these outings include a minimum of 2 nights of camping, with temperatures expected to be from lows around 25 to 30 ºF (-4 to -1 ºC) to highs around 95 to 100 ºF (35 to 38 ºC). Elevations will range from sea level to approximately 2,000’ (610 m). My girlfriend and I, who between us have 3 First Class Boy Scouts (ages 13, 14 and 15), are also looking into additional camping without the Scouts, and the possibilities of beginning to do some AT section hikes in Pennsylvania as the weather warms up. I wear a hat year-round when outdoors, both for sun and rain protection. I am relatively light sensitive, and can’t stand the light glaring thru my (rather thick) glasses. I have looked for hats that are lightweight and/or well-ventilated and found few to my liking. I also dislike rain on my glasses and expect that the Tilley should probably serve quite well in that capacity, with the brim also keeping water from dripping down my collar. My weekends, when not working during the day, are spent outdoors as much as possible. The Tilley will be with me nearly every day of the testing period – to include to and from work, camping and hiking, and Boy Scout trips – so it should get quite a durability workout. Besides, it will get my lady off my back about the condition of the hat – that doesn’t wash well – that I’ve been wearing lately. Any hat I wear gets worn for a minimum of a couple hours each day, during my commute to work, plus additional time to and from evening responsibilities. It will get thrown on my desk at work and get tossed in a closet (actually dumped unceremoniously, if I don’t store it appropriately) at home. It will be subjected to whatever weather I am, and will more than likely spend time on the ground every now and then when safety demands something else be worn (i.e. climbing, repelling, etc.). The Tilley will definitely get a thorough test in my hands… err… on my head.

Things I am/will be looking for: Fit. Does it fit me? Do the sizing instructions on the web site result in a comfortable hat? Does it stay on well in windy conditions? Fabric. Is the fabric durable (I have no prior experience with hemp)? Does it stretch? Does it fade? Is it windproof? Waterproof? Does it pill, pull, or snag readily? Warmth/cooling. How warm can it get out and still keep me cool? Does it ventilate well? How cool can it get out and still keep me warm? Comfort. Am I constantly aware of the hat, or does it just seem to disappear on my head? Does the anti-sweat headband effectively keep sweat out of my eyes? Can I wear it comfortably while sleeping? Washability. Are there special instructions? Are they easy to follow? Does it dry well? Does it hold much dirt in the first place? Backpacking. Does the rear of the brim interfere with any of my packs? Acceptability. I work in the business world. Do I get odd stares from co-workers or fellow commuters (not that I care, but some might)? Is my lady willing to be seen with me in public while wearing the Tilley, something which has not been the case for other hats I have worn/tested?

My findings so far: Fit. If I wore hats more ‘normally’, the web site sizing instructions would have been right on. I should have used a measuring tape. As for wind, I wore the TH4 out in winds that were blowing over streetcorner newspaper vending boxes – that were chained to street signs (!!) – and blowing the brim down flat against my head. Even in these conditions, the hat stayed securely and comfortably on my head. Needless to say, I am impressed.

Things I like [return to top] Light. Comfortable. Fashionable, in my opinion. Things I don't like [return to top] None yet.

Backpacking Background [return to top] My family started car/trailer camping when I was about 5. I spent 17 years in the Army Reserve fine-tuning my packing methodology – when I got out, I was down to a fairly respectable 75-80 lb (34-36 kg) load in my ALICE pack. Advancing age, arthritic knees and a car accident have led me to seriously rethink my gear choices, experiment with tarps and hammocks, make some of my own gear, and take a closer look at my ‘toys’ with an eye for multi-use and light weight. I now have a sub-30 lb (14 kg) 3-season load, and should be able to reduce it to 20 lb (9 kg) – before food, fuel and water – without much more effort.

Thank you for your time. Chuck Kime a.k.a. Fuzzy

Reviews > Clothing > Hats > Tilley TH4 Hat > Chuck Kime > Initial Report