I've done some Google searches on this topic and I get hideous synthetic baseball caps, weird gamer caps and other stuff, but nothing like the short-billed or no-bill cotton or wool caps worn by blacksmiths in the last 150 years. Anyoen have a source?

Most old pictures and paintings of smiths show them without hats or wearing what ever the fashion of the time was. I think a hat would get too hot in the forge also anything with a large brim might get in the way of hammering. Some smiths may have worn a handkerchief or rag as sort of a sweat band. As far as I know there were no trade specific hat for smiths in America. Although Bowler hats were the general workingman's hat during the time they were in style.

Try looking at welding supply houses for welder`s hats or at motorcycle apparel shops for riding bandannas.
Yes they do make them without wings and/or skulls on them.

Traditional from what period? What country? What region? What ethnic group? I started out in a shop in a Norwegian/fishing community (Ballard, in Seattle) and wore a "fisherman's hat".

Bill,

Try looking for an engineers cap, such as used by locomotive engineers.

http://hat.villagehatshop.com/search?w=engineers+cap&asug=

Caleb Ramsby

Here's a picture from the 1940's their all wearing fedoras. I think only old guys who want to look like they are blacksmiths wear engineer hats.

You got me curious so I looked at some pictures of my grandfather in his shop back in the twenties. In a couple of the pictures it looks like a Danish fisherman's hat (he was Danish) and in others he did not wear a hat. In the picture from southshoresmith, the hats look like my dads old felt hat. It was very comfortable and would form anyway you wanted it to. I wish I still had it. So I figure Grant is right and that there is no "blacksmiths" hat just a comfortable local hat the will work to keep the sparks out of the hair!

The guy in the middle of this Victorian smithy is wearing what used to be called a college beanie, kind of what I had in mind:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.victorianweb.org/photos/blacksmith.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.victorianweb.org/history/work/blacksmith.html&usg=__M9r9Qi2xxarfisRnCdMVzDZmqy4=&h=493&w=720&sz=99&hl=en&start=0&sig2=1vwlC0erFpV3lg-FjqXyzA&zoom=1&tbnid=-VydWwBaz1mqBM:&tbnh=143&tbnw=209&ei=Y7CoTOXJG4m4sQOK0piYDA&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dblacksmiths%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1264%26bih%3D827%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=396&vpy=129&dur=2941&hovh=186&hovw=271&tx=159&ty=101&oei=Y7CoTOXJG4m4sQOK0piYDA&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=23&ved=1t:429,r:2,s:0

Here's another from the UK:

http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://www.haleco.co.uk/images/blacksmiths.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.haleco.co.uk/history.htm&usg=__dzNwDTaGz28P1LOaKxWyRixTckI=&h=281&w=375&sz=72&hl=en&start=226&sig2=4aEjPY4-BVlpWavsiEHz3w&zoom=1&tbnid=OhMkMgQQM38oTM:&tbnh=166&tbnw=224&ei=S7OoTMzjKYS6sQO2uryDDQ&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dblacksmiths%26hl%3Den%26client%3Dfirefox-a%26rls%3Dorg.mozilla:en-US:official%26biw%3D1264%26bih%3D827%26gbv%3D2%26tbs%3Disch:10%2C7351&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=151&vpy=229&dur=1384&hovh=194&hovw=259&tx=92&ty=213&oei=Y7CoTOXJG4m4sQOK0piYDA&esq=11&page=11&ndsp=24&ved=1t:429,r:12,s:226&biw=1264&bih=827

I just googled blacksmith images. Lots of "newsboy" caps and bowlers, too.

in uk picture they are mostly what we call flat caps i think, they are usually wool tweed, lined with something smoother and a short brim. theres billions of em here - i could send you one bill? :)

Francis Witaker

I'm talking about the cap I'm wearing in this video. To me that's a traditional blacksmith hat:

Beth, you are so kind to offer to send one, but I wouldn't want to put you to any trouble. Do you have any UK dealers you like who make and sell these?
Very best,
Bill in Oregon, USA

Grant: Yeah, kinda like that one. Dang, you have some lovely stuff in your shop!

Toys, that's all they are!

Here is my traditional smith's cap

Traditional forging cap???? not sure if there is one, but here's my seasonal x-mas time forging cap :

Look 2 inches left of this phrase to see mine.

Here's some more engineer hats, choice of solid blue denium or stripes. These have the solid back, not the adjustable plastic 'one size fits all' type. I bought one of each. Nice caps.

http://www.millerhats.com/engineer_index/index.html

Names' Quench.

Here is my traditional smith's cap

Worn with the traditional smithin` T-shirt I see.

I always just wore a welder`s cap.
I figure anything that will keep my hair from catching fire when red hot stuff is raining down from the overhead will work just fine when working at belt buckle level.
Besides,with a welder`s cap I don`t have to change headgear to ride home on the bike.(Maine is a no helmet law state)

One suggestion,make it cotton or wool.You do NOT want a synthetic cap on your head when working around fire.

I like a pure wool felt hat as it keeps flyash and hot bits from getting in my hair *OR* between my safety glasses and my eyes! My "disreputable red hat" is *safety* equipment!

Worn with the traditional smithin` T-shirt I see.

I always just wore a welder`s cap....

Besides,with a welder`s cap I don`t have to change headgear to ride home on the bike.(Maine is a no helmet law state)

One suggestion,make it cotton or wool.You do NOT want a synthetic cap on your head when working around fire.

Stikes me funny that you warn about using cotton or wool and yet you don't wear a helmet when riding your bike. Texas is a 'no helmet' state also and most of the guys I work with that ride will take the shortest way through a state where they have to wear them. Desn't matter to me, I just thought it was humorous.. :P

Stikes me funny that you warn about using cotton or wool and yet you don't wear a helmet when riding your bike. Texas is a 'no helmet' state also and most of the guys I work with that ride will take the shortest way through a state where they have to wear them. Desn't matter to me, I just thought it was humorous..

Haven`t had a helmet melt to my head yet and hope I never do.

Seriously though,Helmets are only really protective against impact till you get out of the parking lot,despite what the insurance companies tell you.Helmets make more sense for bicycles than they do for motorcycles as far as I`m concerned.
There`s a reason bikers call `em "skid lids" as at normal traffic speed all they do is keep skin from being scraped off your dome,something a leather cap will do without obstructing your hearing or vision.

I have the attitude that I would rather die and be done with it than risk having that helmet save me from a concussion yet, break my neck and leave me a paralyzed from the neck down which they have been known to do.
I suppose this goes along the same train of thought as the "gloves,no gloves" thread.

chefwear use to make a ball cap with a short bill here is one with no bill. Airgas carries the short bill ball cap


http://www.chefwear.com/store/item.asp?ITEM_ID=149&DEPARTMENT_ID=72&

They're not traditional, but you can get made-to-order welding caps with and without bill here:

http://www.dadscaps.com/

I've got a few, because the price is right. No affiliation, other than as a satisfied customer.

Haven`t had a helmet melt to my head yet and hope I never do.

Seriously though,Helmets are only really protective against impact till you get out of the parking lot,despite what the insurance companies tell you.Helmets make more sense for bicycles than they do for motorcycles as far as I`m concerned.
There`s a reason bikers call `em "skid lids" as at normal traffic speed all they do is keep skin from being scraped off your dome,something a leather cap will do without obstructing your hearing or vision.

I have the attitude that I would rather die and be done with it than risk having that helmet save me from a concussion yet, break my neck and leave me a paralyzed from the neck down which they have been known to do.
I suppose this goes along the same train of thought as the "gloves,no gloves" thread.

Um, no, it's not at all like the "gloves, no gloves" thread. People don't wear gloves because of concern that they may cause extra injury, or interfere with the ability to perform a task. This is absolutely not the case with motorcycle helmets.

Helmets do, in fact, protect against impact above parking-lot speeds. To think otherwise is to misunderstand the mechanics of the vast majority of motorcycle accidents, and the injuries that the helmets are designed to prevent or mitigate.

Sorry to rant, but the decision to wear a helmet, or to legislate (or not) should be made on accurate information, not on urban legend.

For the record: I'm pro helmet, and anti helmet law.

Traditional? As already asked once, what's the period and region you're trying to emulate?

The true tradition of the smith is to use the most efficient and ecconomical thing that will do the job. So, what's the purpose of wearing anything on your head while blacksmithing?

Unless it's to make the boss happy it's probably to keep the sweat out of your eyes or keep hot stuff off your head or out of your hair.

If you were a Victorian Era smith either in England or America or where ever, you probably were wearing a suit, tie and appropriate hat be it a bowler, fedora or whatever the boss said was the shop uniform. Today, it'd probably be whatever the Boss said OSHA said you are going to wear.

If you're a Minoan smith probably a sweat band and maybe a breechclothe. An Indian making Damascus? Probably something to keep molten slag or flux out of your hair, pubes too of course.

In my shop, a welders cap to keep spatter, chipped slag or flux out of your hair, something to keep sweat out of your eyes, or nothing, for cooling.

My header pic is my flame Salamander welding cap and I have a snowflake Frosty the snowman welding cap too. I've been known to light my welding cap on fire and need a spare on site.

Frosty the Lucky.