A Panama hat specialty store explains the problem that the grading of Panama hats is messed up

Panama hats, which are brimmed hats made by knitting the Panama sour plant, are sometimes given grades such as 'Fino' and 'Grade ○○.' Regarding these grades, different sellers use different numbers and terminology, and there is a problem that there is no standardized grading system, Panama hat expert Brent Black explains the main points.

Grades of Quality of Panama Hats — Brent Black Panama Hats
https://www.brentblack.com/panama-hat-grades-explained.html

Mr. Black is the person who founded Brent Black Panama Hat, a Panama hat specialty store, in 1988, and has been developing high-quality hat weaving techniques in Montecristi, Ecuador. He founded the Montecristi Foundation, an organization to support Panama hat craftsmen, providing financial support and local medical care.

There are two ways to grade Panama hats: one is based on the number of weaves visible per square inch (approximately 2.5 cm), and the other is based on overall quality. However, Black points out that 'there is no standardized method,' and explains that many sellers have their own grading systems.

Many Panama hats are graded by a number called 'hat grade,' but Mr. Black says, 'It's best to ignore it.' There is no problem when comparing grades from the same seller, but it seems to have no meaning when comparing grades from different sellers.

There are also some sellers who market their products using the words 'Fino,' 'Fino Fino,' and 'Super Fino,' which mean high quality, very high quality, or super high quality. The three major hat exporters that Mr. Black has dealt with so far, Ortega, Dorfzaun, and Serrano, all use different grades, causing confusion and contradictions.

In particular, hats made in Montecristi, which is said to be the holy land of Panama hats, are high-class items, and they are all worth 20 dollars (about 3,000 yen), but there are hats called ``Super Fino Montecristi'' that cost less than 20 dollars. It is said that they are sometimes sold.

So, is there no way to actually determine the quality?According to Mr. Black, there is no way to actually determine the quality.

Mr. Black's famous method is to count the rings on the back of a Panama hat. A well-known method is to hold a Panama hat inside out and hold it up to the light, and then judge the quality by looking at the number of hats.The higher the number, the better the quality. Mr. Black said, ``In most cases this is correct, but there are enough things that can go wrong, so I do not recommend relying on this method.''

The best way to do this, says Black, is to 'count the number of weaves per square inch.' The quality of most textiles, such as cotton and carpet, is determined by the fineness of the weave, and it seems that this can be applied to Panama hats as well.

The Montecristi Foundation, run by none other than Mr. Black, ranks Panama hats with a number called the 'Montecristi Cuenta.' The method is to enlarge a 1-inch square of a Panama hat, count the number of horizontal weaves and the number of vertical weaves, and multiply those numbers together to obtain the Montecristi Cuenta.

For example, the Panama hat below has just under 23 textures horizontally and 27 textures vertically. The Montecristi Cuenta of this hat is 23 x 27 and ``621.'' Since the weaves must be counted by hand, Black is eagerly awaiting the arrival of a scanner.

However, Black says, ``While the fineness of the weave is certainly the most important factor when grading Panama hats, the quality of the weave must also be considered.However, the quality of the weave is very subjective.'' It's easy to tell at a glance what's good and what's bad, but it's harder to judge whether the quality of the weave is good or very good.''

For example, the hat below has a rating of 30 x 23 = 690, but the weave is clearly messy and curved. You can easily judge the quality of a hat like this, but if you can't tell the difference right away, you'll have to judge it subjectively.

Please note that Mr. Black himself does not use grades when selling Brent Black Panama hats. Black says, ``When I grade a hat, and decide whether to buy it or not, or how much to buy it, I look at the hat as a whole and judge its overall impression of being ``desirable''. Look at how attractive the hat is, then consider the fineness of the grain, the quality of the weave, and then the color.The fineness is just one factor, and the combination of fineness, texture, and color will determine the quality of the hat. 'I decide the price,' he says, explaining his criteria for making decisions.

Mr. Black said that Panama hats have the benefits of being handmade, saying, ``All hats have flaws, imperfections, and irregularities.''