I get it. We all want a sharp-looking hat without spending a lot of cash. When I decided to buy a durable, military-style cap—like the Etrangere Foreign Legion adjustable cap—I thought it would be easy.
I was wrong. I ended up with flimsy garbage. I made these mistakes so you don't have to. Learn from me and save your money and your headache.
If you are looking for a reliable, structured cap, you need to check three main things:
I saw the price tag. It was less than the cost of a fancy coffee. I thought, "How bad can a hat be?" Big mistake. When a hat is super cheap, they cut costs on the fabric and the hardware.
My cheap cap felt like a piece of paper. It was floppy. The fabric was so thin, the sun bleached it within two weeks. I thought I saved money, but I had to buy a replacement almost immediately.
Here is what one buyer said about their cheap purchase:
I focused only on the design—I loved the look of the military patch. I didn't bother checking what the cap was actually made of. Many cheap hats use polyester blends that trap heat and hold sweat. This makes them stink fast.
If you buy a light-colored cap (like white or beige) in a bad material, it will yellow quickly when exposed to sweat and sun. I wore my white cap one weekend, and the band turned slightly yellow.
Learn from my error:
The product photo looked perfect. The logo was sharp, the stitching was tight. I bought it based on the main picture. I skipped the actual buyer reviews and, most importantly, the buyer photos.
When my cap arrived, the embroidery was sloppy. The patch was glued crooked. If I had scrolled down and seen real photos from real people, I would have known the quality was terrible.
A real user complaint proves this point: