Ask a question, get an answer

[Tukwila]

Two (and a half) unrelated questions for the hive mind:

1) Do we have any idea how widespread mercury use for felting was? I.E. Was this something that most manufacturers did? Or was it reserved for certain quality designations?

2) having a discussion on COW of "the turn." For the uninitiated, the Raiders of the Lost Ark hat is rotated about 1/3" - 1/2" on Ford's head and then creased off center (the bow placement is the giveaway). This gives the brim a unique swoop.

There's a poster over there saying that this technique predates the movie and he swears he's seen it on vintage hats.

Has anyone here seen or heard reference to this outside of Indiana Jones?

2.5) Ditto on dimensional brims. Are there vintage examples of this? Given the construction of vintage rounding jacks I tend to think not.

I've posted a pic before of my grandfather wearing a hat that has the hat rotated clockwise up to where the ribbon is near his left eye. Serious turn, serious tilt, serious attitude.

The crease is not changed, however. You can see a slight pinch over Grandpa's right eye. But it does change the swoop of the brim and the entire character of the hat.

Click on the photo and it will enlarge so you can see better what I'm talking about.

Revised estimate on date of picture is based on birth year of my aunt Ella of 1920. She's the one in front, on the right. I'd put the picture somewhere between 1925 - 1927. Skinny aunt Zora in the middle, back, was born in 1916, and uncle George was born 1918.

.

 

[hatsRme]

Did

Two (and a half) unrelated questions for the hive mind:

1) Do we have any idea how widespread mercury use for felting was? I.E. Was this something that most manufacturers did? Or was it reserved for certain quality designations?

2) having a discussion on COW of "the turn." For the uninitiated, the Raiders of the Lost Ark hat is rotated about 1/3" - 1/2" on Ford's head and then creased off center (the bow placement is the giveaway). This gives the brim a unique swoop.

There's a poster over there saying that this technique predates the movie and he swears he's seen it on vintage hats.

Has anyone here seen or heard reference to this outside of Indiana Jones?

2.5) Ditto on dimensional brims. Are there vintage examples of this? Given the construction of vintage rounding jacks I tend to think not.

I have at least two vintage lids with dimensional brims. My first fedora, it was pointed out to me by Professor Art Fawcett, has that feature. When ordering my first hat from Art, (looking to replicate my first vintage one) he inquired, having me measure around the brim. He needed to see if that was something I wanted from him. I did.

 

[jlee562]

I've posted a pic before of my grandfather wearing a hat that has the hat rotated clockwise up to where the ribbon is near his left eye. Serious turn, serious tilt, serious attitude.

The crease is not changed, however. You can see a slight pinch over Grandpa's right eye. But it does change the swoop of the brim and the entire character of the hat.

Click on the photo and it will enlarge so you can see better what I'm talking about.

Revised estimate on date of picture is based on birth year of my aunt Ella of 1920. She's the one in front, on the right. I'd put the picture somewhere between 1925 - 1927. Skinny aunt Zora in the middle, back, was born in 1916, and uncle George was born 1918.

.

Interesting example! Thanks for sharing. Wish we could step into a time machine and get the history of that hat!

My thoughts on this, is that while it may have happened, it would have been more incidental to a very worn hat, rather than a deliberate/intentional technique to distort the brim (not speaking specifically to your grandfather, just in general). Just curious if anybody knew of some documentation of this as like a regional styling (like the "Chicago hook") or something like that.

I also kinda think that if you wanted a wonky brim back in the day, you wouldn't have had to turn the hat to get the desired effect.

 

[Tukwila]

Just looking at all the various, unique bashes in old pictures shows me how creative people were then.

We have center dent, teardrop, c-crease, diamond, 6 point diamond.... and most people don't veer much from those sets... well, except @AbbaDatDeHat / Bowen!

As I recall, my grandfather had a nice hat to wear with his suit, and a work hat... which was his previous dress hat that had gotten old and worn.

In the picture, they were probably in their Sunday best at the time as they were pretty poor hop farmers for awhile. I, too, would love to know the history of that old hat.

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Just looking at all the various, unique bashes in old pictures shows me how creative people were then.

We have center dent, teardrop, c-crease, diamond, 6 point diamond.... and most people don't veer much from those sets... well, except @AbbaDatDeHat / Bowen!

As I recall, my grandfather had a nice hat to wear with is suit, and a work hat... which was his previous dress hat that had gotten old and worn.

In the picture, they were probably in their Sunday best at the time as they were pretty poor hop farmers for awhile. I, too, would love to know the history of that old hat.

Ha ha Doug. Got a good chuckle from that.
First, i gotta say again, your Grandpa bares an uncanny resemblance to my father when he was a young Marine. So much so that i get alittle teary eyed.
As to the “turn”, i’ve seen lots of old pics where it had to be a conscious effort to personalize a bash and swoop.
After all, everybody wearing hats, everybody looking about the same, yeah, i’m gonna do something if for no reason but to be different!! Ha
Had to be some AbbaDat’s back then me thinks! Lol
B

 

[Zombie_61]

...First, i gotta say again, your Grandpa bares an uncanny resemblance to my father when he was a young Marine. So much so that i get alittle teary eyed...

I was going to post something similar. The resemblance isn't uncanny, but Grandfather (in that photo, anyway) bears enough of a resemblance to my Dad that they could have been mistaken for brothers.

 

[Robieman]

Does anyone know anything about Tonak/Huckle hats from Czechoslovakia? Found some and wondered if they might be worth getting.
Thanks.

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Does anyone know anything about Tonak/Huckle hats from Czechoslovakia? Found some and wondered if they might be worth getting.
Thanks.

They make/made a huge variety at all quality levels. Some of the best production hats still being made come from Hückel. We have some real experts on them (Steve) and they can answer specific questions.
Some of the recent hats have not been as impressive, so you need to have a specific hat in mind if you want a meaningful answer. A couple of threads for you (the first is the best):


https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/german-austrian-hutmachers.32103/page-368


https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/czech-republicans-tonak-huckel-no-name.36821/


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Robieman]

They make/made a huge variety at all quality levels. Some of the best production hats still being made come from Hückel. We have some real experts on them (Steve) and they can answer specific questions.
Some of the recent hats have not been as impressive, so you need to have a specific hat in mind if you want a meaningful answer. A couple of threads for you (the first is the best):


https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/german-austrian-hutmachers.32103/page-368


https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/czech-republicans-tonak-huckel-no-name.36821/


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Thank you

 

[Rmccamey]

I have a slight snag on the brim edge of a straw. It is hardly noticeable but it is right where I tend to grab it. Recommendations for an easy repair? I'm thinking a small dab of clear glue. It is not an expensive or collectible hat so...

 

[Hat Masterson]

Just got a couple of vintage Stetsons in box. Nice but a little "oldish" looking (dusty, etc.). Do you guys just wear your vintage buys, or is there a process you go through to clean them up a little? Probably not much to be nervous about after they've been sitting awhile,, right? Head lice?

 

[deadlyhandsome]

Just got a couple of vintage Stetsons in box. Nice but a little "oldish" looking (dusty, etc.). Do you guys just wear your vintage buys, or is there a process you go through to clean them up a little? Probably not much to be nervous about after they've been sitting awhile,, right? Head lice?

My vintage purchases spend 48+ hours in the freezer first (mostly for moth larvae). I brush them and steam them and then brush them some more. Sometimes I use a hat sponge too.

You can give it a naptha bath if there is oil/grease soiling, but that can sometimes cause more problems if it’s own. Most just get a bruising and lots of steam.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

 

[Tukwila]

I have a slight snag on the brim edge of a straw. It is hardly noticeable but it is right where I tend to grab it. Recommendations for an easy repair? I'm thinking a small dab or clear glue. It is not an expensive or collectible hat so...

I picked up a small bottle of clear, natural adhesive that looks like a miniature bottle of fingernail polish with the brush in the cap. It was in a smoke shop and cigar smokers use it to repair cigars that start to come unraveled.... don't know if it's even available anymore, but it works real well for straw hat nubs that stand up.

 

[Hat Masterson]

My vintage purchases spend 48+ hours in the freezer first (mostly for moth larvae). I brush them and steam them and then brush them some more. Sometimes I use a hat sponge too.

You can give it a naptha bath if there is oil/grease soiling, but that can sometimes cause more problems if it’s own. Most just get a bruising and lots of steam.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

Nice. Thanks. I contemplated taking them to my hatter for a clean, but I guess all he'd be doing was what you describe--which is what I can do. Is there a brush recommendation that's general knowledge?

 

[scottyrocks]

Nice. Thanks. I contemplated taking them to my hatter for a clean, but I guess all he'd be doing was what you describe--which is what I can do. Is there a brush recommendation that's general knowledge?

Sure, a horse hair hat brush. I have two. The lighter one for lighter colored hats, and a dark one for darker colored hats.

I'm not necessarily recommending this vendor, but this is what I am speaking of:

https://hobbyhorseinc.com/horsehair-hat-brush/

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Nice. Thanks. I contemplated taking them to my hatter for a clean, but I guess all he'd be doing was what you describe--which is what I can do. Is there a brush recommendation that's general knowledge?

Cheap alternative....Kiwi shoe polish brushes. Boar’s hair i believe. $5 each, found in the shoe section at Walmart, etc. on the shoe polish/laces rack. Works great.
B

 

[drmaxtejeda]

Nice. Thanks. I contemplated taking them to my hatter for a clean, but I guess all he'd be doing was what you describe--which is what I can do. Is there a brush recommendation that's general knowledge?

Yes, horsehair brushes like the ones Scotty recommended are excellent, because they are firm enough to remove dirt without damaging the felt.

I would just add that I like to run the bristles across the edge of a door, or some other hard, clean object every ten strokes or so, to get rid of the dust and felt hair that accumulate on the bristles, so you're not just replacing the dirt on the hat with the dirt on rhe brush.
I also wash the bristles with hand soap and water when I'm done.

If you brush a felt hat in natural sunlight, you will see a lot of fibers floating around in the air, so I highly recommend using a mask. I am pretty sure they could be harmful if aspirated regularly.


Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk

 

[Hat Masterson]

Nice. Got it, that a good brushing with a decent brush helps "cean" it out. How about this-what is the danger?

If you brush a felt hat in natural sunlight, you will see a lot of fibers floating around in the air, so I highly recommend using a mask. I am pretty sure they could be harmful if aspirated regularly.


Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk

What's the harmful thing here? Had not considered a mask situation in the cleaning/prep to wearing a vintage hat.

 

[drmaxtejeda]

Nice. Got it, that a good brushing with a decent brush helps "cean" it out. How about this-what is the danger?



What's the harmful thing here? Had not considered a mask situation in the cleaning/prep to wearing a vintage hat.

Those short, thin hair fibers floating around in the air getting into your lungs. You'll see them if you brush a felt hat in the sunlight.

Sent from my LG-H870 using Tapatalk

 

[Tukwila]

It's the dreaded Black Felt Lung.....