Gatehouse
The Gatehouse range at a glance.
Jump straight to the kit you're after - helmets, body protectors, silks and liners.
Gatehouse hat silks and liners are the two accessories that keep a riding hat wearable season after season: a silk covers the outside of a skull cap, and a liner is the removable, washable padding that sits inside it. This collection holds 8 Gatehouse accessories in total. Right now the item you can buy immediately is the Gatehouse Hat Silk at £19.80, available in 60-62cm in Black or Navy Blue. The replacement liners and hat covers in this collection are between deliveries, so if you need a specific liner size or a smaller silk, get in touch and our team will help you check what is due back in.
In a hurry?
- Want to cover your skull cap? You need a hat silk. In stock: Gatehouse Hat Silk, £19.80, 60-62cm, Black or Navy Blue.
- Want to freshen up the inside of your hat? You need a liner - and you must match it to your exact Gatehouse hat model and size, not just your head size.
- Not sure which liner your hat takes? Check the label inside the hat for the model name and the size and depth marking, then get in touch and our team will help.
- Ordering a silk? Buy the size that matches your hat, not your head - the silk stretches over the shell.
Silk or liner - which one do you actually need?
These two products get muddled constantly, because both are sold as "hat accessories". They do completely different jobs. Use the table below to work out which one solves your problem.
| Accessory | Where it sits | What it does | Choose it if |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hat silk | Stretched over the outside of the shell | Covers a bare skull cap, keeps the shell clean, lets you change colour | Your skull cap is uncovered, or you want a spare in a second colour |
| Helmet liner | Clipped or fastened inside the shell | Provides the padding against your head; lifts out to be washed | Your existing liner is flattened, worn or permanently damp |
| Stretch hat cover | Over the outside, like a silk | A heavier, more decorative alternative to a plain silk | You want something with more texture than a standard silk (currently between deliveries) |
What is a hat silk for?
It covers the shell, it does not add protection
A silk is a fabric cover that pulls over a skull cap. Skull caps are often sold as a bare shell, and a silk is what turns that bare shell into something you would happily wear to a lesson, a hack or a cross-country schooling session. It also takes the daily grime - mud spray, hair product, sun - instead of the shell itself, and it comes off to be washed.
What a silk does not do is change how protective your hat is. All the protection comes from the hat itself and from it being correctly fitted and undamaged. Treat a silk as a cosmetic and cleanliness layer, nothing more.
The Gatehouse Hat Silk in detail
The Gatehouse Hat Silk is £19.80 and currently in stock in the 60-62cm size, in Black and in Navy Blue. It has a grip band inside the rim to stop it creeping up the shell while you ride, which matters more than people expect - a silk that rides up mid-canter is an irritation you will notice every single time. Because it is a plain, subtly branded silk rather than a novelty design, it suits everyday riding and turns up well for lessons and low-key competition.
If you want the smaller 56-59cm size, or a colour we do not currently show as available, get in touch and our team will help you find out when it is expected.
How do you choose the right helmet liner?
Match the hat model first, the size second
This is where most orders go wrong. Liners are not generic. Each Gatehouse hat model uses its own liner shape, and within that model the liners are sold by both a circumference and a thickness or depth - you will see markings such as a centimetre size paired with a millimetre depth. A liner made for one Gatehouse model will not sit correctly in a different one, even if the head size is identical.
So the order of checking is: find the model name printed inside your hat, then find the size and depth marking, then match both. If the label has worn away, get in touch and our team will help you identify it.
Why the depth number matters
The thickness of the liner is what fine-tunes the fit inside a fixed shell. A thicker liner takes up more room and gives a snugger fit; a thinner one gives a looser one. Riders sometimes use this deliberately - a slightly thicker liner can take up the slack in a hat that has bedded in over a season. What you should not do is force a badly matched liner into a shell to make it "work", because a hat that is not sitting correctly on your head is not doing its job. If your hat no longer fits properly even with the right liner, have it checked by a qualified hat fitter.
How do you keep a riding hat fresh?
Wash the liner, air the shell
Riding hats get warm and damp, and that is what causes the smell people complain about. The fix is straightforward. Take the liner out after hard or hot rides and let it dry properly rather than leaving it inside the shell. Wash it on a cool, gentle wash and let it air dry away from direct heat - no radiators, no tumble dryer, as heat can distort the padding. Wipe the inside of the shell with a damp cloth and let it dry with the liner out.
Keep a spare
If you ride most days, one liner never gets a full drying cycle. Two liners on rotation means you always start a ride with dry padding, and each one lasts longer because it is not permanently soaked. The same logic applies to silks: a second silk means one can be in the wash while the other is on the hat.
Which riders is this collection for?
Anyone riding in a Gatehouse hat, essentially. Silks are most in demand from riders with a bare skull cap for cross-country and eventing, and from anyone who wants a clean-looking cover for lessons. Liners are bought by riders replacing tired padding in a hat that is otherwise sound, and by riders who simply want a second one to rotate. If you are looking at replacing the hat itself rather than the accessories, our wider riding helmets and hats range is the place to start, and the full Gatehouse collection shows everything we stock from the brand.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a hat silk and a helmet liner?
A hat silk goes on the outside of the hat: it is a stretch fabric cover that goes over a skull cap to cover the shell, keep it clean and let you choose a colour. A helmet liner goes on the inside: it is the removable padding that sits between the shell and your head, and it lifts out so it can be washed. They are not interchangeable, and many riders use both on the same hat.
Which Gatehouse silk or liner is in stock right now?
The Gatehouse Hat Silk is available now at £19.80, in the 60-62cm size, in Black or Navy Blue. The replacement liners and hat covers in this collection of 8 Gatehouse accessories are currently between deliveries. If you need a particular liner size and depth, or the smaller silk size, get in touch and our team will help you check what is expected back in.
How do I know which liner size my Gatehouse hat takes?
Look inside the hat. Gatehouse liners are matched to a specific hat model and are then sized by a circumference in centimetres together with a thickness in millimetres, and the marking inside the hat or on the old liner tells you both. Match the model name first, then the size and depth. A liner from a different Gatehouse model will not seat correctly even at the same head size. If the label has worn away, get in touch and our team will help you work it out.
Can you wash a Gatehouse hat silk and liner?
Yes - that is the main reason they are removable. Take the liner out of the shell and wash it on a cool, gentle cycle, then let it air dry naturally away from radiators and out of the tumble dryer, as heat can distort the padding. Silks wash the same way. Always follow the care label on the item itself, and never put the hat shell in a washing machine.
Does a hat silk make my riding hat safer?
No. A silk is a cover: it keeps the shell clean, tidies up the look of a bare skull cap and lets you change colour. All of the protection comes from the hat itself, from it being correctly fitted, and from it being undamaged and in date. If your hat has taken a fall or no longer fits properly, replace it - no accessory changes that.
Do I need a spare liner or silk?
If you ride several times a week, a spare is genuinely useful. A liner that never gets a proper chance to dry stays damp, which is what makes a hat smell and what shortens the life of the padding. Rotating two liners means each one dries fully between rides. The same applies to silks: one on the hat, one in the wash.
Free UK delivery over £50 · 90-day returns · Expert help
Last reviewed 2026-07-24 by the Just Horse Riders team.