Felt hat basics

[John in Covina]

Dry

Does naptha work on wool. Ralph

***
Yes Naptha works on wool but it doesn't work on sugars.

Naptha was one ofthe early "dry cleaning" fluids and works by disolving grease and oils thereby removing the dirt attached to them.

Carbohydrates and sugars from foods are not disolved and will remain behind, which is why if you have a food spill on dry clean only clothes you should let the dry cleaner know to spot remove with wet cleaning.

It is necessary to get the carbs & surgars out, otherwise they burn in the pressing and create a worse stain.

 

[Harley Quinn]

This thing is my usual companion on my adventures...

There, it's keeping the sun off in Montserrat, Spain... but it's turned blizzards, rain, and with the aid of a scarf kept the worst of gale blown rain off me...

It has no specific make on it, save it claims to be US made and I got it in Paris around 1998 (that picture is this century, IIRC, some time in 05)

In warm weather sometimes it gets salty, since I blast though the sweat band on some of the more strenuous bits and I've found that an old fashion rubber swede brush shifts it quite well...

 

[indycop]

Looks great! Also looks like you could flick your finger and knock those tiny people right off the edge!lol lol

 

[Harley Quinn]

fftopic: you've seen the next fram on my SD?

 

[GI Joe]

Cleaning up a vintage hat

What type of cleaning do you perform on a newly acquired vintage hat, specifically the sweatband and liner to remove any, uh, shall we say, remnants of the previous wearer?

Has anyone used this cleaning pad from Noggintops?
https://www.noggintops.com/page.cfm?p=83

 

[BobC]

Question about steaming

I have been looking at an Akubra Banjo Paterson. I like the lighter brown or tan color and the brim width and crown shape, but I learned today the the brim is not a snap brim. I am told that the back brim can be steamed to the shape I want (which is turned up), but I've never steamed a hat before and I wonder how it would look and how well the brim would hold its shape after steaming. Does anyone have any advice for me? Should I buy the Banjo or look for another hat that fits the bill better? Thanks for the help. Also, do any suggestions for an alternate hat come to mind?

Bob

 

[Spellflower]

I don't know about the Banjo, but my Fedration's brim holds it's shape okay when I reshape it. I prefer to use H20 in its liquid state rather than steam, as I suspect the heat added to the tapering of my Fed's crown. Steam should be fine on the brim, though, as long as you don't get it inside the hat, which could shrink the sweat.

 

[BobC]

I ended up buying a Fed Deluxe IV instead of the Banjo Paterson. The Fed is the same color as the Banjo I was looking at, and I love the hat. there it is in my avatar.

 

[waffle]

FOR THE FIT OF A HAT

You want a hat that doesn't bind when worn... something you don't have to tug off your head as with time such a tight hat will cause headache. You also don't want the hat falling over your ears.

With modern hats, if you feel you are in between sizes it is better to go for the larger size. I know you may think you want a snug fit that won't blow away in a gust, though hat leathers tend to get tighter over time with the expansion from moisture then drying out constantly. Modern day felt shrinks.

hey gents,

the one and only fedora that i own is a size 7 1/2, and fits me rather well. sometimes it feels a bit too snug when i first put it on.. but after a while it feels better.

my question is: what is the smallest size you think i should venture into? i'm really looking forward to expanding my hat collection with my first vintage hat, but i'm not sure how small i can/should go.

just some info.. my head is kinda long.. it's got this odd shape due to a bump on the back of my head that makes my head a bit longer than it should be (those of you with the same shaped head know how annoying it can be).

thanks ahead of time for any advice and info you guys can share with me..
-Adolfo

 

[MIJones]

General question: Does a good fur felt hat expand and contract minutely with the change of temperature and humidity?

If I had to guess (a shocking habit) I would say yes.

MIJones

 

[Lefty]

I don't know about the felt, but that's not what affects the fit as much as the sweat, and your own head. I certainly have a harder time getting a hat that's already a bit snug to fit in hot weather. Though the sweat might have more give, I guess my head gets pretty swollen.

If it's tapering that you're wondering about, that's a whole different can of beans.

 

[Bingles]

Waterproofing??

Back when I used to wear baseball caps, I used to buy a spray from the hat store that you would spray on the hat to allow water to bead and run right off it. Can this be used on fedoras? My hunch is no... but with all the rain we've been getting here in Buffalo I thought I'd ask.

 

[TBiley]

Light and Dark Brushes?

I was reading on VHS that I should only use dark bristles on dark hats and light bristles on light hats. Is there any special reason for that?

Also, (this may sound like a dumb question) how dark is the hat suppose to be to use the dark brush or cleaner? Does steel gray count as light? (I'm sorry, I think I need to get my eyes checked up.)

Thank you.

 

[Lefty]

If you brush your light hats with the brush you use for your dark hats, you're going to get lots of dark dust on your light hats (and vice-versa).

You wouldn't polish brown shoes with your black polish kit for basically the same reason.

As to the degree of lightness and darkness, that's up to you. Consider your own hat collection and separate them into light and dark as you see fit. There is no standard operating procedure for this.

 

[DanielJones]

For those do-it-yourselfer's I think this book will be of positive interest to you.

Scientific Hat Finishing and Renovating
by Henry Ermatinger, Hatter. c.1919

It is a spiral bound reproduction book that can be had on ebay for around $12 to $14. It is chock full of useful information on cleaning hats and for those that want to start their own hat shop it tells you how to as well.
For me the cleaning information was very valuable. Some of the chemicals they talk about in the book are hard or impossible to obtain in this day & age but some like hydrogen peroxide is easily had.

Hope that this is helpful to some.

Cheers!

Dan

 

[bolthead]

Thanks Dan....

I see that book all the time.
Actually, I have it saved on my watch list, one of these days I'm gonna pull the trigger on it.

 

[Stoney]

IMHO Anyone who cares for their own hats can learn quite a bit from the book.
I highly recommend that you grab a copy while you still can. The price is fair for what you receive.

 

[Lefty]

I'm pretty curious about the sellers "ownership" of this book. It seems as though it's probably in the public domain now.

The carefully worded warning in the auctions states that the images in the auctions are protected - which makes sense, as they're the seller's photographs/scans. However, I don't think that this would stop anyone from scanning the book and posting it here.

The seller also includes the following, which seems like an attempt to keep him/herself as the sole distributor of the book, though it's hardly binding if the book is p.d.

All printed works are for the sole use of the purchaser, and may not be reproduced in any way. By making this purchase the buyer agrees to this. Any violation of this agreement may result in legal action.

Any thoughts on this?

 

[Rick Blaine]

Any violation of this agreement may result in legal action.

Any thoughts on this?

FOLDEROL!

 

[AlanC]

If it's in the public domain anyone would have the same right to copy it. It's an effort to intimidate others so she can have a monopoly.*


*I am not an attorney nor do I play one on tv.