Hat care tools??

[Cigarband]

Hat Brush or Tape...That is the Question

To quote from Joseph Freeman,
"Forget the hat brush, I recently bought a nice short brimmed rabbit fur brown hat in a gallery mall in Brazil. I already have many fedoras and black hats; I drilled the guy about caring for the hat. He says forget the brush, use tape.

He pulls out a three inch wide boxing tape, the clear kind, and pulls out a six inch strip (doesn't rip it off) and folds it backwards on the roll, so the entire roll has facing up tape. He then begins to roll the tape over the hat, and it picks up all the dust and impurities.

I was amazed, I've always use horsehair brushes, and it definitely wears down the had after a while. The guy says the the tape methods will not wear it down. He pointed to the hat he was wearing and said he's been using this one for five years, and it look great!"

What say you, fellow Loungers?

 

[anon`]

I use both. Tape is nice when you let a cat get too close to your hat, or it sits out and collects dust all winter long.

A certain Mr Fawcett also once advised me that a vacuum cleaner worked very well on dust, also. It does.

 

[FurFeltFedora]

I use a lint roller maybe once a week or if there's a lot of dog hair in the air (two huskies) and I give a quick brush after most days of wearing. I couldn't get a proper hat brush, but I've been using a high end natural bristle paint brush and it's worked great.

 

[Tomasso]

I use both brush and lint roller. BTW, lint rollers are made for use on fabrics whereas some types of tape could have a deleterious effect.

 

[feltfan]

As Tomasso implies, I'd be worried about building up tape
adhesive on the hat. I'd use care with tape in any event.
I have never had to use tape, but I can see where it would
help with dog hair.

The brush is certainly kinder to the felt. But don't forget
that for a lot of felt hats, there is a second purpose for
the brush. It's removing dust and such, but it's also
realigning the felt, counter-clockwise.

I'd never use tape on velour or furry hats!

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

I've heard about this bit where 'tape is better than brushes'.

Well, Velcro is better than shoe laces - and Polyester is better than wool... to some, but not to me.

 

[jpbales]

I always used a lint roller before picking up a real hat brush from a local Western store a little while ago. The only thing about the lint roller or tape is that it's hard to get around the crevices (like where the brim meets the crown) while a brush's bristles can get down in there.

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Besides the tape possibly leaving a residue which would then attract even more dust, wouldn't it also have a tendency to also raise the nap of the felt and perhaps lessen it's life or give it a more "fuzzy" appearance?

 

[ScottF]

Besides the tape possibly leaving a residue which would then attract even more dust, wouldn't it also have a tendency to also raise the nap of the felt and perhaps lessen it's life or give it a more "fuzzy" appearance?

I took my hat into Byrnie Utz's the other day, and the owner wrapped a piece of clear tape around his hand and went to work. When I buy new hats from him, he uses a hat brush on it. He's been around a long time, so I suspect he knows what he's doing - certainly they are not shy about telling me their opinions, so I'll stop by and ask this week.

 

[bendingoak]

Besides the tape possibly leaving a residue which would then attract even more dust, wouldn't it also have a tendency to also raise the nap of the felt and perhaps lessen it's life or give it a more "fuzzy" appearance?

You are correct sir.

 

[Inusuit]

I took my hat into Byrnie Utz's the other day, and the owner wrapped a piece of clear tape around his hand and went to work. When I buy new hats from him, he uses a hat brush on it. He's been around a long time, so I suspect he knows what he's doing - certainly they are not shy about telling me their opinions, so I'll stop by and ask this week.

Maybe he wants to sell you a new hat? I vote for the hat brush. I share concerns that tape will eventually, if not right away, raise the nap of the felt.

 

[Chinaski]

A question on hat brushes. I bought a light bristled one and a dark bristled one at a western store. They are shaped a bit like a question mark - ?, but the curve is not that extreme. Does anyone know the reason for the curve in the brush? It's not apparent to me.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

A question on hat brushes. I bought a light bristled one and a dark bristled one at a western store. They are shaped a bit like a question mark - ?, but the curve is not that extreme. Does anyone know the reason for the curve in the brush? It's not apparent to me.

That shape just naturally helps to work on the top of the brim as you go around the oval shape of the crown. Also, it was probably particularly useful back in the day when kettle curled and pencil curled brims were more common.

 

[Chinaski]

Thanks, Gene! So is that the common shape of a hat brush?

 

[ScottF]

Tape is great for grosgrain, where a brush is ineffective.

Brushes do alter the felt, softening it and making it fuzzier. Depending on the hat, you may want that or not. I usually like the effect.

lanolin baby wipes also work great on grosgrain, as long as you're not trying to get stains out.

 

[Mr. Paladin]

I strictly use brushes shaped just like Chinaski described, but I like the tape idea on the ribbons.

 

[Bruce Wayne]

Perfect hat brush bristle length

What does everyone consider the perfect bristle length to be on a horsehair hat brush?
Thanx!!!
Charlie

 

[FurFeltFedora]

Couldn't find a good hatbrush so I've been using a high end 3" paintbrush so my bristles are abour 3 1/2 inches long and it's been working great for me.

 

[Cigarband]

Got a vintage advertising hat brush off the bay with 2" bristles, does a fine job.

 

[matei]

Brush query

Hi all,

Regarding hat brushes... I read somewhere once that one should have a light coloured brush for light coloured hats, and vice versa for dark coloured hats. Does it really make a difference?

I need to sort out a new hat brush (had the aforementioned set but they were lost during a recent move) and was just curious if one would do the job of two...