Certainly the panama hat has an unmatched history for its durability and roll-ability to fit into a small wooden box or a bamboo tube for storage or shipping. That is one of the reasons the Panama hat is so famous!
The only real difference in the Roll up (foldable) is that the Leather sweat band will Be much thinner! The reason for this is simply because if you try to roll up a hat with the standard leather band, although the band is of highest Quality, it would restrict the effectiveness of its ability to roll up due to the thinness of the leather! so part of the reason we do not recommend it is, a thin a leather sweat band it will be susceptible to sweat stains easier than the standard thicker band, and sweat stains that can be very difficult to clean out! So although some thew the history of panama hats, have a need for just such a hat, like heavy travelers, the average person will do much better with the standard hat that has the standard leather sweat band. In addition to that whenever you roll up a such a fine product as this it is not without any sign of having been rolled once you unroll it, it will take a little steam to put things back in order mostly the brim in the case of an optimo model and the crow as well in other models. So if you order a roll able hat from use we will use less stiffener or no stiffener at all in some cases to keep the hat as flexible as possible but that on the other hand makes reshaping it a little more difficulty since it will have a harder time holding its shape if it has no stiffener in it at all.
The historic classic Optimo will hold its original shape the best when it is unrolled. (basicly the first panama hat model it is basicly an unshaped hat ) For this reason it is the standard recommendation, but any of the hats can be rolled up because they are all made in the same way and are all Equally durable! but since the other styles do not have a crease down the middle they do not unroll as well without leaving a slight crease threw the middle of the hat. In no way would this damage the hat since the crease can be worked out without too much trouble it is just that they do not have the same look right away after unrolling. on the other hand the Optimo has this natural crease and so immediately after unrolling it, it does not have as much tall tale signs of having been rolled!
The choice is entirely yours but just so you are aware of the difficulties of the roll up style.
I find that most people ask about this style only because they have heard about the Famous Roll up panama hats and it is a conversation piece for them and that is fine, but it may not be as practical as you might need from a daily wear hat.
First step in rolling a panama hat
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