Flattening Brim & Stitching Sweatband?

[belfastboy]

Thanks, guys! Can always count on the lounge

I have a number of Bond's sweats and I think they are great quality.

 

[moehawk]

Or, you could buy the sweat from him and do the work yourself, risking gaining a new obsessio...er, um, hobby. But knowing the feeling of pride that a DIY'er gets when finishing a project.
Just a thought.

 

[Frunobulax]

Or, you could buy the sweat from him and do the work yourself, risking gaining a new obsessio...er, um, hobby. But knowing the feeling of pride that a DIY'er gets when finishing a project.
Just a thought.

I resemble this remark.

 

[mmbarnes]

Anyone know of anyone who can replace the sweats in derbies or top hats? I've had the devil of a time finding someone (for years). Apparently, there are significant differences in the equipment needed versus soft felt hats. As for soft felts... Bond does a great job. My experience has been that his sweats are very nice. Reasonable prices and a pleasure to work with, too.

 

[Dm101]

So.....uh....any advice on sewing in a sweatband?
I tried...failed...seems like the material I used bunched up when I flipped the sweatband back in.
May have to try sewing it straight to the hat instead of just one edge....I dunno...kinda lost.

 

[Bamaboots]

So.....uh....any advice on sewing in a sweatband?

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/stitch-awl-tutorial-sweatband-installation.38010/

 

[Dm101]

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/stitch-awl-tutorial-sweatband-installation.38010/

You, sir, ROCK!!


Thanks!!

 

[Dm101]

Meh...couldnt' find a speedy stitcher last night at walmart and didn't feel like doing it by hand....again.
So I got some fabric glue and glued on a cloth sweatband made from an old sock on top of the leather sweatband.
Works great and is way more comfortable than the bandana I had in there.

 

[BobHufford]

So I got some fabric glue and glued on a cloth sweatband made from an old sock on top of the leather sweatband.

Could be worse ...

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Meh...couldnt' find a speedy stitcher last night at walmart and didn't feel like doing it by hand....again.
So I got some fabric glue and glued on a cloth sweatband made from an old sock on top of the leather sweatband.
Works great and is way more comfortable than the bandana I had in there.

Whole new visual for “stick a sock in it”!

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Could be worse ...

And then there was this!!
Show off!

 

[Dm101]

Could be worse ...

Ouuuuuch!

Whole new visual for “stick a sock in it”!

Lol...where it once protected my foot...it's now migrated to the other end of my body.

 

[belfastboy]

If it is a reeded leather I can give you some tips. Since you apparently will not be assembling the band, I take it you mean you need tips on sewing it in. Here goes, although this is info that for some reason hatters keep close to the vest.


Remove the ribbon and liner. Position the leather in the hat, and sew it in temporarily,(better to use highly visible white thread), by pushing the needle through the band, between the reed and the leather. You can make stitches around an inch long. They will be coming out anyways once you sew it in permanently. Once you have attached the sweat to the felt with the white thread, lie a pencel on the brim, and use this a straight edge to draw a chalk line around the hat. The width of the pencil is perfect. Move the pencil around the hat and scribe a line around the circumference. This will be the line that you sew through, not only for a nice, straight apperance, but also to keep the leather seated equally inside the hat.

Fold down the sweatband. In doing so you will expose the plastic tape. This is what you sew through to attach the sweat to the felt. Start from the inside, pushing through the tape around 1/8 an inch from the bottom of the tape(where it is sewn by the factory to the leather) Watch the needle and hit your chalk line on the outside of the hat. Push through that line from the outside, to the inside, watching where your needle comes through. You want it to be the same 1/8 inch from the bottom of the plastic tape. The key here is consistency with the stitches. It is essential, and takes a bit of practice until you get good at it. At this point you must decide if you are gonna use lock stitches. This will take you longer to sew, but is well worth it. This stitch keeps the sweat in, even if you bust a stitch or two in the future. Don't ask me to describe this technique, as I have tried to in the past, and only confused folks.

So, you just sew through that line around the hat and tie it off with another lock stitch. I use nylon braided thread for attaching sweats to the hat. And, I just use a single thread. If you double it up, it will show through the ribbon, if you have good ribbon on the hat to begin with. The modern stuff is so stiff, that you do not have this problem. Well, that's about it. Oh, once you get it sewn in, just fold it back up in the hat, and remove the temp stitching. If the sweat is not pulled inside the hat at the bell, or if it does not stick above the opening, you have done well. If not, you will have to start all over!! It generally takes me an hour to sew in a sweat, but I nail it the first time now. The pencil width is the secret. Fedora

I just uncovered this from waaay back and thought it useful info and worth a reprise.

 

[jlee562]

BTW, in case it's been lost here on TFL, "Fedora" = Steve Delk of Adventurebilt hats, who made Harrison Ford's hat for Indy IV.

 

[belfastboy]

BTW, in case it's been lost here on TFL, "Fedora" = Steve Delk of Adventurebilt hats, who made Harrison Ford's hat for Indy IV.

Yes, and just think, he started out hand sewing in the leather sweats!

 

[jlee562]

Yes, and just think, he started out hand sewing in the leather sweats!

I believe he kept on hand sewing everything. John Penman still hand sews everything too.

Now, I'll preface this with: I haven't built my first hat, so I have NO IDEA what I'm talking about from practical side. But there is this belief on COW that's been repeated a few times that sewing machines have a detrimental effect on the integrity of the felt. Steve posted this once or twice, and it kinda took hold, because he's one of the only hatters who would actually discuss hat making on the internet (much less to detail oriented folks like the COW crowd). Again, I don't know if that's true or not, just recalling some posts of Steve's (I went deep into the wormhole this past weekend). So there's certainly a bias among Indy fans for "handmade is better."

 

[belfastboy]

I believe he kept on hand sewing everything. John Penman still hand sews everything too.

Now, I'll preface this with: I haven't built my first hat, so I have NO IDEA what I'm talking about from practical side. But there is this belief on COW that's been repeated a few times that sewing machines have a detrimental effect on the integrity of the felt. Steve posted this once or twice, and it kinda took hold, because he's one of the only hatters who would actually discuss hat making on the internet (much less to detail oriented folks like the COW crowd). Again, I don't know if that's true or not, just recalling some posts of Steve's (I went deep into the wormhole this past weekend). So there's certainly a bias among Indy fans for "handmade is better."

Yes, there is the whole 'bespoke' or 'couture' mystique. I have removed the sweat bands from many a hat and resewn in the sweat and the process of tearing out the old did not seem to distress or weaken the felt in any way and some of them were crappy old beat up westerns. It would be an interesting discussion. I took heart in reading his post that it took him an hour to complete. I am down to about 75 minutes for both the baste and the final sew so I am perhaps not as clumsy as I think i am. And lately I am not drawing much blood from my fingers either!

 

[humanshoes]

I've heard the claim that machine sewing a sweatband will "tear up" the felt. This has not been the case for me. Granted, the dedicated sweatband machine does take some fine tuning to set up properly. Thread gauge, thread tension, attachment spacing, and feed dog height all have to be spot on, but when it's right it turns a 1 hour job into a 3 minute job. I've sewn the same sweatband into the same hat at least 5 times due to operator error and noticed no apparent ill effect to the felt. That's just my experience though and others may have had different results.
I hand sewed sweatbands for years and always found that tactile, hands-on method to be quite satisfying if somewhat tedious. It definitely becomes easier and less time consuming with practice. Still, with my aging hands and diminishing eyesight, I wouldn't trade my 1107-1 for a barrel of beavers.

 

[belfastboy]

I've heard the claim that machine sewing a sweatband will "tear up" the felt. This has not been the case for me. Granted, the dedicated sweatband machine does take some fine tuning to set up properly. Thread gauge, thread tension, attachment spacing, and feed dog height all have to be spot on, but when it's right it turns a 1 hour job into a 3 minute job. I've sewn the same sweatband into the same hat at least 5 times due to operator error and noticed no apparent ill effect to the felt. That's just my experience though and others may have had different results.
I hand sewed sweatbands for years and always found that tactile, hands-on method to be quite satisfying if somewhat tedious. It definitely becomes easier and less time consuming with practice. Still, with my aging hands and diminishing eyesight, I wouldn't trade my 1107-1 for a barrel of beavers.

Yes, I too enjoy the hand sewing now. It is out of the land of vexation and I can relax and get into the process. Plus the fact I no longer have bleeding fingers...well for the most part.

 

[Kell-Hammer]

I've heard the claim that machine sewing a sweatband will "tear up" the felt. This has not been the case for me. Granted, the dedicated sweatband machine does take some fine tuning to set up properly. Thread gauge, thread tension, attachment spacing, and feed dog height all have to be spot on, but when it's right it turns a 1 hour job into a 3 minute job. I've sewn the same sweatband into the same hat at least 5 times due to operator error and noticed no apparent ill effect to the felt. That's just my experience though and others may have had different results.
I hand sewed sweatbands for years and always found that tactile, hands-on method to be quite satisfying if somewhat tedious. It definitely becomes easier and less time consuming with practice. Still, with my aging hands and diminishing eyesight, I wouldn't trade my 1107-1 for a barrel of beavers.

I think this becomes an issue with a hat when you try to reblock it. Pull it down onto the block can some times reveal that weaken that was done with a machine and rip the felt on the brim break where it meets the crown. Not always, but it can weaken it to this degree.