South Platte Rainbow Trout Trucker
by @sunny
Two fish holding steady in the current.
A pair of rainbow trout over pebbles and weeds in teal water, a realistic underwater scene for days on the river.
Two rainbow trout swim one above the other through clear green water over a pebble bed. Deep teal water, rose pink stripes, olive backs and a scatter of black spots carry the whole picture.
- Two rainbow trout in teal water
- Rose pink stripes on olive backs
- Umber pebbles and olive weed blades
- Rising bubbles under a rippled surface
- Realistic underwater painting style
The cap
One design, four caps. The front panel is what the paint or the dye sits on, so it changes the hat.
Trucker
The house cap — structured mid profile, foam-and-mesh back, snapback.
Specs
- Profile
- Mid profile
- Build
- 6-panel · Structured — buckram behind the front
- Crown
- 3½ in (8.9 cm)
- Visor
- Pre-curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)
- Closure
- Snapback
- Adjusts to
- 21½–24 in (54.5–61 cm)
- Airbrushed on
- Natural cotton twill
- Sublimated on
- White polyester foam
Rope cap
Structured five-panel with a near-flat brim and a cord across it.
Specs
- Profile
- Mid-high profile
- Build
- 5-panel · Structured
- Crown
- 4 in (10.2 cm)
- Visor
- Near-flat, 2⅞ in (7.3 cm), contrast rope
- Closure
- Snapback
- Adjusts to
- 21½–23¾ in (54.5–60.5 cm)
- Airbrushed on
- Stone cotton twill
- Sublimated on
- White polyester twill
Dad hat
Soft, low and unstructured — washed cotton with a strap back.
Specs
- Profile
- Low profile
- Build
- 6-panel · Unstructured — soft front
- Crown
- 3¼ in (8.3 cm)
- Visor
- Curved, 2¾ in (7 cm)
- Closure
- Strap back, brass buckle
- Adjusts to
- 21–23½ in (53.5–59.5 cm)
- Airbrushed on
- Washed khaki cotton
- Sublimated on
- White polyester twill
Five-panel camp
Flat brim, low crown, packs flat in a vest pocket.
Specs
- Profile
- Low profile
- Build
- 5-panel · Unstructured
- Crown
- 3¼ in (8.3 cm)
- Visor
- Flat, 2½ in (6.4 cm)
- Closure
- Strap back, side-release clip
- Adjusts to
- 21½–23½ in (54.5–59.5 cm)
- Airbrushed on
- Field olive nylon-cotton
- Sublimated on
- White polyester
Fit
| Cap | Profile | Crown height | Visor | Adjusts to |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Trucker | Mid profile | 3½ in (8.9 cm) | Pre-curved, 2¾ in (7 cm) | 21½–24 in (54.5–61 cm) |
| Rope cap | Mid-high profile | 4 in (10.2 cm) | Near-flat, 2⅞ in (7.3 cm), contrast rope | 21½–23¾ in (54.5–60.5 cm) |
| Dad hat | Low profile | 3¼ in (8.3 cm) | Curved, 2¾ in (7 cm) | 21–23½ in (53.5–59.5 cm) |
| Five-panel camp | Low profile | 3¼ in (8.3 cm) | Flat, 2½ in (6.4 cm) | 21½–23½ in (54.5–59.5 cm) |
One size per cap. Run a tape around your head just above the ears, keeping it level — anything inside the range above will close on it.
Two finishes
The same design, made two ways. Pick one in the panel; the cap and the quantity are yours to choose too.
Hand airbrushed
$85 for one hat, on a trucker
Painted to order — would ship in about 2 weeks
How it is made
- How it is made
- Sprayed by hand through this design's own stencils, one layer at a time, each left to dry before the next mask goes down.
- How it looks
- Soft gradients and hand-cut stencil edges. Every cap is a little different.
- What it sits on
- On a natural cotton twill front.
- Durability and care
- Water-based paint, heat set and sealed. It takes rain and a season on a boat; spot clean with cool water, never a washing machine.
Sublimation printed
$32 for one hat, on a trucker
Printed to order — would ship in 5–7 business days
How it is made
- How it is made
- The design is printed in dye onto transfer paper, then pressed with heat so the dye soaks into the polyester fibres.
- How it looks
- Full colour edge to edge, and identical every time.
- What it sits on
- On a white polyester foam front — sublimation only takes on white polyester.
- Durability and care
- The dye is in the fibre, not on it, so it will not crack or peel. Gentle wash, air dry.
The artwork
Two rainbow trout hang in the current, one high, one low, noses pointed the same way. Rose pink runs down each flank. Bubbles drift up toward a rippled surface, and olive weeds sway out of a bed of umber stones.
It reads well from across a parking lot at the put-in and holds up close at the tailgate. People see the fish first, then the spots, then the little bubbles. Wear it to the river, the fly shop or the diner after.
Black spotting is where the trout come alive. Keep the spots small and uneven, heavier on the back and tail, lighter toward the belly, so the fish look like fish and not polka dots.
The water it was painted from
South Platte RiverColorado Front Range · CO
- River
- South Platte River, Colorado Front Range
- States
- CO
- Fish
- Rainbow trout, Brown trout, Cutbow
- Water type
- Tailwater
What arrives
- The hat
- A care card
- On a hand airbrushed hat, a numbered tag naming the water it was painted from, when the design names one
Looking after it
Hand airbrushed
- Spot clean with cool water and a soft brush. Never a washing machine.
- Keep it out of a hot car for long stretches — heat-set paint is tough, but a dashboard in July is not a test worth running.
- Reshape the brim by hand while damp.
Sublimation printed
- Spot clean, or gently hand wash in cool water. No bleach.
- Air dry. Do not iron the print.
- Reshape the brim by hand while damp.
- The dye is in the fibre, so the print will not crack or peel.
Details
Airbrush palette
- Colours
- deep teal, sea green, umber, olive, pearl white, rose pink, black
Details
- Subject
- rainbow trout
- Style
- realistic underwater painting
Make it yourself
The palette
- Deep teal
- Sea green
- Umber
- Olive
- Pearl white
- Rose pink
- Black
The layers
9 layers, in this order. Each mask comes off and the paint has to dry before the next one goes down.
- Water
- Light band
- Riverbed
- Weeds
- Flanks
- Backs
- Stripes
- Spots
- Highlights
The kit's stencil set is cut from these layers; with the cutter (12 hats and up) you cut your own from this design's layer files.
How to mix each colour
Deep teal
2 parts blue, 1 part green, a touch of white to lift it
Sea green
1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
Umber
Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
Olive
2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
Pearl white
Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick one
Rose pink
1 part red to 4 parts white, a drop of blue if it looks salmon
Black
Black from the bottle, sprayed in light passes; a heavy coat bleeds
Setup
- Ventilation or a spray booth. Water-based paint still throws a fine mist, and you will be breathing it for hours.
- A half-mask respirator rated for paint mists. A dust mask is not one.
- A compressor with a moisture trap, set and tested on a card before you start: wet air spits water into the paint.
- Reducer and a cleaning pot within reach, so a clog is a ten-second fix instead of a ruined panel.
- Spray a test card for every colour before it touches the cap. Colour reads differently wet, dry and on twill.
Prep
- Lint-roll the front panel. Every fibre left on it prints as a speck in the paint.
- Mask the mesh, any seams you want clean and the whole visor, underside included, with low-tack tape and paper.
- Stretch the crown over the cap jig so the front panel is taut and curved the way it will be worn. Spraying a slack panel flat distorts the design when it is worn.
- Spray one light coat of transparent base so the colour sits on the fabric instead of soaking into it.
Layer by layer
1 · Water — 0.5 mm · 25–30 PSI
deep teal — a full fade from the wavy surface line down to the riverbed
Mask None on the panel itself: the mesh and the visor are already masked from the prep.
Colour Deep teal — 2 parts blue, 1 part green, a touch of white to lift it
- Needle
- 0.5 mm (a 0.35 mm works, it just takes longer)
- Pressure
- 25–30 PSI
- Distance
- 6–8 in from the panel
- Passes
- 3–4 light passes, building the colour
- Dry
- 10 minutes, or 60–90 seconds with a heat gun on low, before the next mask goes down
Tip Fade wet to dry and never lay one heavy coat: twill wicks paint sideways and the edge blooms.
2 · Light band — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
sea green — a paler glow just under the surface and in the open water between the fish
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Sea green — 1 part yellow to 1 part blue; more yellow for a warm green, more blue for a cool one
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
3 · Riverbed — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
umber — rounded pebbles and stones along the bottom edge
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Umber — Equal parts red, yellow and blue, then a drop of black to deepen it; or burnt umber straight from the bottle
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
4 · Weeds — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
olive — slender grass blades rising from between the stones
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Olive — 2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
5 · Flanks — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
pearl white — bellies and lower sides of both trout
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Pearl white — Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick one
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
6 · Backs — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
olive — upper bodies, dorsal fins and tails of both trout
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Olive — 2 parts yellow, 1 part black, a drop of red to warm it
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
7 · Stripes — 0.35 mm · 20–25 PSI
rose pink — the lateral band and gill plate on each fish
Mask Lay this layer's mylar stencil and burnish the edges flat with your thumbnail.
Colour Rose pink — 1 part red to 4 parts white, a drop of blue if it looks salmon
- Needle
- 0.35 mm
- Pressure
- 20–25 PSI
- Distance
- 4–6 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes
- Dry
- 10 minutes before lifting the stencil
Tip Spray away from the stencil edge, not into it, so the air does not push paint underneath.
8 · Spots — 0.3 mm · 18–22 PSI
black — scattered spots, eyes and fin edges
Mask The hand-cut subject stencil, inner pieces first, then the outline piece.
Colour Black — Black from the bottle, sprayed in light passes; a heavy coat bleeds
- Needle
- 0.3 mm
- Pressure
- 18–22 PSI
- Distance
- 3–4 in from the panel
- Passes
- 2–3 passes per tone, light to dark
- Dry
- 10 minutes between tones
Tip Light tones first: a light colour over a dark one needs many coats, a dark one over a light one needs two.
9 · Highlights — 0.2–0.3 mm · 12–15 PSI
pearl white — rising bubbles, the ripple line and glints on the scales
Mask None: freehand, with a shield card held against any hard edge.
Colour Pearl white — Opaque white from the bottle; two thin coats cover better than one thick one
- Needle
- 0.2–0.3 mm
- Pressure
- 12–15 PSI
- Distance
- 1–2 in from the panel
- Passes
- Freehand, in short controlled strokes
- Dry
- 10 minutes, then check it before you cure
Tip Low pressure, close in and moving: stop the stroke before you release the trigger.
Step by step
Mask the full panel outline. Spray deep teal at about 20 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 15 cm away, darkest at the bottom and lighter toward the top. Treat all settings here as a starting point.
Keep the outline mask. Mist sea green at 18 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 15–20 cm away, across the upper water and the open space between the fish.
Cut a pebble mask along the bottom edge. Spray umber at 18 PSI, 0.3 mm needle, 10 cm away, leaving soft centres so each stone looks rounded.
Use a blade-shaped stencil for the weeds. Spray olive at 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 5–8 cm away, flicking each stroke upward to a fine tip.
Mask both trout silhouettes open. Spray pearl white at 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 10 cm away across bellies and lower flanks.
Shield the bellies with a curved mask. Spray olive at 15 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 8 cm away over backs, dorsal fins and tails, fading into the white.
Mask a narrow band along each flank and the gill plates. Spray rose pink at 12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 6–8 cm away, soft at the edges.
Freehand or use a dot stencil for spots, eyes and fin edges. Spray black at 10–12 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 3–5 cm away in short bursts.
Finish with pearl white at 10 PSI, 0.2 mm needle, 3–5 cm away for bubbles, the ripple line and a few scale glints.
Let the panel dry fully, heat-set or cure as your paint maker directs, then seal following the same instructions.
Cure
- Heat set at 300°F / 150°C. Water-based textile paint is not wash-fast until it is heat set.
- Cap press: 3–5 minutes with a teflon sheet over the design.
- Or heat gun: 2–3 minutes per panel, keeping it moving 2–3 in off the fabric so it does not scorch.
- If you have neither, air cure for 72 hours before the cap touches water.
Seal
- Two light coats of matte fabric sealer, UV-resistant, from 8–10 in, 15 minutes apart.
- Leave it 24 hours before the cap is worn.
- Never a gloss sealer on cotton twill: it shines, cracks along the creases and looks like a sticker.
Clean-up
- Flush the brush with water, then airbrush cleaner, until it sprays clear.
- Strip the needle and wipe it toward the tip, never away from it.
- Never soak the brush body overnight.
Common mistakes
- Spotting the fish evenly all over. Cluster spots on the back and tail and thin them toward the belly.
- Hard edges on the pink stripe. Lower the pressure and pull back a little so it blends into the flank.
- Rushing layers while wet. Let each coat flash dry or the colours bleed into mud.
- Overspraying white highlights. A few sharp glints read brighter than a haze.
Tips
- Test each colour on a scrap first; teal and olive can look alike until they dry.
- Spray the pink stripe slightly wider than you want and let the olive edge it back.
- Vary bubble sizes and keep most of them rising in loose lines from the weeds and the fish mouths.
- Turn the work as you go so the fish backs stay curved and natural.
Every kit size
Trucker · kit for 1 hat
$224
Bought separately $249 · you save $25
Includes Starter airbrush set · Cap jig · and 7 more
Every item in this kit · 9 items
Blanks
- Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$9
Stencils
- Pre-cut mylar stencil set for this design — 9 layers$18
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 2 oz — one per colour in this design$42
- Transparent base and reducer, 4 oz$7
- Low-tack masking film and ¼ in tape$8
- Matte fabric sealer, 4 oz$12
Equipment
- Starter airbrush set — 0.3 mm dual-action gravity brush, mini compressor, braided hose$129
- Cap jig — holds the crown taut while you spray$24
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
Trucker · kit for 12 hats
$1,073
$89.42 a hat
Bought separately $1,220 · you save $147
Includes Dual-action gravity-feed airbrush · Quiet compressor with tank and moisture trap · Cap jig and two spare crown forms · Tabletop spray booth with exhaust fan · and 11 more
Every item in this kit · 15 items
Blanks
- Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$78
Stencils
- Desktop stencil cutter, 12 in — the "stencil printer": cuts mylar from this design's layer files$299
- Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$22
- This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 4 oz — one per colour in this design$98
- Transparent base and reducer, 16 oz$16
- Low-tack masking film$18
- Matte fabric sealer, 16 oz$28
Equipment
- Dual-action gravity-feed airbrush, 0.3 mm$135
- Quiet compressor with tank and moisture trap$179
- Cap jig and two spare crown forms$64
- Tabletop spray booth with exhaust fan$149
- Cleaning pot, brushes and a half-mask respirator$99
- Heat gun for curing$35
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
Trucker · kit for 12 × 12 hats
$3,124
$21.69 a hat
Bought separately $3,676 · you save $552
Includes Two dual-action gravity-feed airbrushes · Production airbrush · Twin-piston compressor with tank and two regulators · Production spray booth · and 13 more
Every item in this kit · 17 items
Blanks
- Trucker blank, natural cotton twill front$756
Stencils
- Stencil cutter-plotter, 24 in — the production "stencil printer"$649
- Stencil mylar, 7 mil, 12 × 12 in$85
- This design's layer files, every layer (SVG)Included
Paint & masks
- Water-based textile airbrush colour, 32 oz — one per colour in this design$336
- Transparent base and reducer$49
- Low-tack masking film$54
- Matte fabric sealer$89
Equipment
- Two dual-action gravity-feed airbrushes, 0.3 mm$270
- Production airbrush, 0.5 mm, for base fades$95
- Twin-piston compressor with tank and two regulators$329
- Production spray booth, two fans$289
- Three cap jigs$192
- Cleaning station, respirator and spare cartridges$139
- Cap heat press for curing$279
- Drying rack, 24 caps$65
Guide
- Printed step-by-step guide for this designIncluded
The creator
Remixes
No remixes yet — make your own version.
Where this came from
trucker hat · made
0 — nothing entered the score yet, at the Derby's published weights, since . Views are not counted.
- rainbow trout
- trout
- fly fishing
- trucker hat
- south platte
- underwater
- river
- teal
- pebbles
- fishing hat