Russian ushanka for the cold?

Masteroffajitas

Masteroffajitas

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I'm sure you are familiar with the furry hat with the ear flaps that people wear in Russia? I really like the look of them, and them seem pretty comfortable. Are they effective though? Do any of you wear one? I'm talking tempurtures of up to -20. I'm moving back to Minnesota where the winters are very bitter cold.

If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a picture.

picture.php
 
A good quality one does work to those temps, I'm not so sure about the cheap ones. I have had one for years and I don't wear it often because it's too warm most of the time.
 
Are you kidding? They are awesome in the cold.

I have one from the Hudson's Bay Company made out of rabbit fur...it's like heated bunnies hugging your head.

I don't bother with it unless I am in serious cold, but for real cold weather there is nothing better. With the ear flaps down, it is very warm and very quiet. When I was driving across the country in December and sleeping in the car I let my gf wear it at night. It was -30 or so in the mountains in Montana and that hat was just perfect for the weather.
 
A similar kind is used in the Finnish army, but luckily its green camo, so it looks a bit nicer :)

Anyway, those are really warm. -30C - no problem!
 
attej said:
A similar kind is used in the Finnish army, but luckily its green camo, so it looks a bit nicer :)
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I've used the swedish version.

http://i9.ebayimg.com/08/i/001/1a/3d/866d_1.JPG

Comes in two types, one by Eagle industries, other by some other company. Prefer the Eagle version.
Pretty adjustable. You can tie earflaps above the head, on the neck or under chin depending on wind and temperature.

Pretty cheap, something like $15 but hard to find large sizes.

It's synthetic fur but pretty warm. Guess real fur ones are even better.
 
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misanthropist said:
Are you kidding? They are awesome in the cold.

I have one from the Hudson's Bay Company made out of rabbit fur...it's like heated bunnies hugging your head.

I don't bother with it unless I am in serious cold, but for real cold weather there is nothing better. With the ear flaps down, it is very warm and very quiet. When I was driving across the country in December and sleeping in the car I let my gf wear it at night. It was -30 or so in the mountains in Montana and that hat was just perfect for the weather.
Click to expand...


+1. I have a rabbit fur version too. Frankly, it's overkill in anything less that blizzard conditions. I keep it in the car in case I get stuck in the snow and have to hoof it.
 
misanthropist said:
Are you kidding? They are awesome in the cold.

I have one from the Hudson's Bay Company made out of rabbit fur...it's like heated bunnies hugging your head.

I don't bother with it unless I am in serious cold, but for real cold weather there is nothing better. With the ear flaps down, it is very warm and very quiet. When I was driving across the country in December and sleeping in the car I let my gf wear it at night. It was -30 or so in the mountains in Montana and that hat was just perfect for the weather.
Click to expand...

millions of russians can't be wrong. i used to have one when i lived in anchorage. it worked pretty good
 
I think they rock the house.

I also don't think they're so warm as to be unusable unless it's super cold -- so long as you don't put the ear flaps down -- THEN they get HOT unless it's well below freezing.

misanthropist said:
...it's like heated bunnies hugging your head.
Click to expand...

Alright dude, I'm sigging that.

misanthropist said:
When I was driving across the country in December and sleeping in the car I let my gf wear it at night.
Click to expand...
I have to ask, based on your pics of her, and her apparent aversion to apparel. . .was she wearing anything else?
 
Oh man my dad has one. Its about 40 year old or so. My mom said it cost almost a months salary to buy. Im not exactly sure what animal fur it is. But it lives in the rivers, Its not a beaver. The bad thing about it the hat has some tears at some of the seams. No one is allowed to touch it now. You can stll see the face of the animal its made from. Maybe a muskrat or something. If you want i can take some pics of it. That is if my mom would let me touch it. Wish i knew someone that i could trust to sew it back togher properly. I never used it but my dad said its very very warm in the cold. But in warmer weather it still breaths so its not as hot. You can wear it in very wide temp range. But some are warmer then others depands on the animal fur you would use. You buy one depands at what temp you were planning to travel. My mom answered my Q about the hat when i seen it but she wont let me keep it. She said there was alot of sweat put into buying this hat.

Sasha
 
Cpl Punishment said:
I think they rock the house.

I also don't think they're so warm as to be unusable unless it's super cold -- so long as you don't put the ear flaps down -- THEN they get HOT unless it's well below freezing.



Alright dude, I'm sigging that.


I have to ask, based on your pics of her, and her apparent aversion to apparel. . .was she wearing anything else?
Click to expand...

She will be so happy to have something associating me and bunnies...she has a little altar in the bedroom of bunny things and sleeps every night snuggling a little stuffed bunny for some reason.

But you know, considering it was between -15 and -30f that whole trip, she spent 90% of her time in the same tiny skirts and heels she always wears! But at night she bundled up, which I could hardly blame her for!
 
I had a muskrat one like in Sasha's link. Very warm. I used it often as something to wear in the car at winter time in Edmonton.
 
O.k i know for a fact now that is a muskrat hat. Just showed a pic to my mom. She said many times people would take a rabbit fur and dye it to look like muskrat. So she bought the fur her self and took it to a guy that made the hats. He custome made it to fit my dads hat. She also has one more skin left as she got extra just in case.
Guys she said i can have it if im realy that intrested in it. But i better not ruin it or wear it everywhere. She also said that REAL muskrat hats cost 2-4 times more then a reguler one, As they are also waterproff and you dont sweat in them.

Sasha
 
you should be able to get the "bomber" style ones made by Crown Cap. They are made in winnipeg and I think pretty widely available. very nice.
 
Fine looking hat there - you will for sure be the best-dressed man in Minnesota with that thing on your head!

FWIW in Arctic Canada we use a toque, with a hooded sweatshirt over it, with a parka hood over that.
Has the advantages of keeping the neck warm, directing the body's lost heat up past the neck and head where it can vent out from the face opening, and having drawcords that can be cinched in very tightly during high winds.
Other advantage being that moisture from the body has an escape route from the parka, and it takes longer to lose insulation value from your clothing if you are outdoors for long.

Always interesting to see different solutions for the same problem. RCMP officers in Arctic detachments use a very similar hat, made from wool and muskrat fur.
Not quite great at -42C and 60kph winds, but warm enough as long as the wind stays down.
 
I had one, live in Minnesota, and it was awesome. You have to be careful because you don't want to sweat heavily in extreme cold. Where will you be living? I'm just west of the Twin Cities.
 
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