How to take a grease stain out of a hat?

[Viviene]

I came across this lovely Dobbs 20 Guild edged hat. The brim is 2 inches wide. I do believe it is older than the other Dobbs I have (which is from the 1960s).

The hat has 4 grease slots on the brim. Two are the size of a pencil eraser (round) and two are smaller. Other than that this is a wonderful hat. I don't want to ruin it. So any suggestions on how to remove the stains would be appreciated. I've done nothing to it for fear of ruining it.

 

[Kevin Popejoy]

Do a search here for "naphtha". My method is to put about 3 gallons of naphtha in a large bucket and drop my hat in. I generally leave it in for about 24 hours. Naphtha is a refined petroleum product also known as white gas or lighter fluid. You can find it in some hardware stores with the mineral spirits and other solvents but the price tends to be higher there. I usually just buy generic camp stove fuel (Coleman Fuel). Nothing special needs to be done to the hat before you dunk it i.e., you don't need to remove ribbons, sweat band or anything. The naphtha is stinky so it's best to do this in a well ventilated area and use a bucket with a lid. Dry the hat by laying it out in the sun. If it's warm and dry the hat will dry relatively quickly. There will be no residual smell once it's dry. Naphtha works well for any stain that's soluable in petro chemicals e.g., body oils, grease and the like. It doesn't work for water stains.

Kevin

 

[Viviene]

Thank you very much Kevin. it is truly a wonderful hat and I hate to see it just sit here when it could be worn. Thank you for taking the time.