I love the Fed IV!!

[Maguire]

thanks all for the instructions, i've decided to go a bit crazy and order one tonight. What the hell.

One final thought- if for some catastrophic reason, my hat proves unbashable by my awkward, clumsy hands, are there places for folks like me to get this bashed?

And will i need any kind of hat stands, blocks/flange etc? Or will it just stay the way i put it?

Thanks all, wish me luck folks, i look forward to putting it on.

 

[Goose.]

thanks all for the instructions, i've decided to go a bit crazy and order one tonight. What the hell.

One final thought- if for some catastrophic reason, my hat proves unbashable by my awkward, clumsy hands, are there places for folks like me to get this bashed?

And will i need any kind of hat stands, blocks/flange etc? Or will it just stay the way i put it?

Thanks all, wish me luck folks, i look forward to putting it on.

Hey Maguire...you ever seen "Stripes"? Well, here's line from that move for you, "Lighten up Francis". And, I mean that jokingly...you'd be hard pressed to ruin a Federation via bashing.

I have bashed my Sydney more than a dozen times, trying diff things, and it's still doing well.

There are places you can go, but save your coin. You'll do fine.

For stuff, I'd at least get a Hallett stretcher. Not to strech it, just to maintain and someplace to place it at night is what I do.

 

[scottyrocks]

I'll have to stand with Goose on this. Get a spray bottle, put some water in it, and you can't screw it up. If you're nervous about steam, then water is the way to go.

Do you have a collander or a big bowl? Turn one upside down, and you have a perfect hat stand, at least to let it dry over night.

 

[Maguire]

well like a diver on the edge of a diving board i went, i ordered, and i can't wait to see it arrive. If it is not up to expectation I'm going to make a thread to complain and whine about the inferiority of this hat.

 

[Belegnole]

Maguire, As a relative noob in the finer aspects of fedoras I too was hesitant about bashing the Fed. This even though I have been a employed as a fine craftsman for the last 20 years. When my hat arrived I got all my things together and went at it. I was a bit anal about the whole thing and had pictures etc. to go off of. Once I got past the part of trying to make it "perfect" I had fun and things worked out fine. The biggest problem I had was dealing with my nose....lol

it's not straight

 

[Maguire]

All of this is very encouraging, and i thank you all for your patience, but we'll see the verdict when this arrives in the next week or so. Naturally i will have pictures of this glorious headgear.

 

[Johnny.]

Originally Posted by Goose

Johnny, sorry I kind of jacked your thread about my Federation IV Deluxe (FIVD) Moonstone. I didn't want to start another thread as I'm guessing there are some non-Akubra fans that would roll their eyes and think "oh gosh. Not ANOTHER Federation thread?!?!?".

Agreed, you did a great job on that hat Goose.

I have a slight... proposition. Seeing as heaps of people are getting the Fed IV all the time, we're going to have a lot of threads about it (not that I blame the owners - the Fed IV IS something to rave about).

However, if everyone started posting about their newly aquired in the same thread, a) everyone could go to the one place to get information, post pictures and just generally rave about the thing, and b) tell us all that you've got a great new hat and how you've bashed it.

It's just a suggestion that hit me. We could always re-name this thread to "The Federation IV Thread" or something along those lines - thoughts?

- Johnny

I think a lot of people missed this point of mine way back on page four

- Johnny

 

[Johnny.]

By the way, I'm interested.. how do you guys steam your hats? Persoanlly I haven't really given it a go, Mumsie was making a cuppa and I put my Fed IV over the kettle where the steam was coming out. Worked quite well but it wasn't a true "steaming."

 

[ex812]

Scunci Steamer??????

 

[Belegnole]

I steamed the bejesus out of my Fed. As my first bash I took some time and was not fast by any means. Plus I had the kettle going when I wasn't using the steam. I used a gallon of water to do my hat. Next time I would not because now I have a feel for it. First you need a kettle that is really putting out some steam....I mean a rolling boil here. HOT steam will loosen up the felt on a Fed and it turns into putty. Someone else here on the lounge said the same thing and I agree. One of the things mentioned around here is making a funnel out of tin foil to direct the steam and concentrate it. My kettle being electric and over powered didn't need it but I can see where it would be of service. Second I used distilled water as to not leave any extra mineral deposits on my hat. I also knew ahead of time what I wanted to do...in my case a couple of Indy CS pictures and a couple of old movie stills which I was found of....I played until I was happy and most of the time was spent dealing with my broken nose. Trying not to accentuate a long crooked nose with a tall crown is....difficult for the first timer....lol

Today I went to a antique show held locally and it was a letdown in the hat department. If I was into rebuilding there were two pieces of felt for low pieces I would have picked up....(maybe I will go back and grab one for practice). They were in the same booth and misshapen. Not being able to help myself I took the worse one and popped the top redid the top crease and set the pinch. Took a few moments with the crown and it looked like a new hat...

 

[OddSteve]

I used a standard electric plastic kettle for creasing my Fed.

Possibly not the best tool for the job, but I discovered that if I open the kettle's lid just slightly, it produces much more steam and the automatic shutoff doesn't work anymore... Don't know how that works, but I like it

 

[djgo-cat-go]

My first ever hat!! and new to bashing too..

This is my first fedora-felt ever and I love it.. My first go for a bash also.. I think that I have to tinker with the bash some , I'm into a more casual look with a not too sharp pinch in the front and a diamond/shield like bash.. but I have a big head and I need the crown to taper a bit more. if the crown is too boxy I look ridiculous. Also a sharp 'tugboat'-shape doesn't look good on me, the front of the crown higher than the back of the crown makes my head look waaay longer than it really is..haha Not good pictures, it's a medium-brown standard Federation IV..

 

[Goose.]

...
This is my first fedora-felt ever and I love it.. My first go for a bash also.. I think that I have to tinker with the bash some ...

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap Cool beans on the hat choice and the bash!!!

You should tinker with it. Not because I think anything is wrong with what you have...it's great. It's just fun, you learn, and you may find something you like that you never thought of.

I was in the waiting room for two and a half hours today while my wife was seeing the doc. It was bash my Federation Moonie or read left over "Good Housekeeping".
I chose to bash.

Ended up back with the diamond telescope tugboat. I just like it. But, the time goofing with a zen moment.
I love my lids.

 

[djgo-cat-go]

:eusa_clap :eusa_clap
It's just fun, you learn, and you may find something you like that you never thought of.

I was in the waiting room for two and a half hours today while my wife was seeing the doc. It was bash my Federation Moonie or read left over "Good Housekeeping".
I chose to bash.

Ended up back with the diamond telescope tugboat. I just like it. But, the time goofing with a zen moment.
I love my lids.

Yes sir! I couldn't imagine how much fun it is to bash a hat.. I forgot the time and wash molding and shaping and reshaping the hat till suddenly I realised it was long past midnight which left me with few hours to sleep (actually dreaming of me wearing my hat lol ) If there's an effective way to meditate, bashing a hat certainly is..

Thanks for the compliments on my first bash. Didn't dare to use steam or water and didn't make too sharp creases.. just not sure if this is the look I really, really like.

 

[CRH]

...Didn't dare to use steam or water and didn't make too sharp creases.. just not sure if this is the look I really, really like.

Looks good!

Do you really know what you really want?

Just let the crease evolve. It's interesting how hats can change over time just with wear and normal handling.

 

[Mr. Paladin]

This is my first fedora-felt ever and I love it.. My first go for a bash also.. I think that I have to tinker with the bash some , I'm into a more casual look with a not too sharp pinch in the front and a diamond/shield like bash...it's a medium-brown standard Federation IV..

Nice hat choice and color for your first. Looks like you got a good start on creasing it. Knowing (or thinking you know) what you want is a great starting place. It looks good from the front and side views to me; I might straighten the brim a bit in the front and snap it down a bit more but I am just picky about that sort of thing. I worried about the boxy crown on my Camp Draft but I quickly got used to it. Wear 'em like you like 'em; its your head and your hat!

 

[Maguire]

I just gave it a bashing and i am pretty pleased with my first attempt but i'll let you be the judge. the hat itself is HUGE but i'm pleased. I just wish the gray was slightly lighter but i haven't worn it with a suit yet, i just walked in to see it. here it is.. the brim is huge but i'm pretty pleased with what i see so far. I wish i hadn't had to use the foam but what can one do.

My apologies also, i just walked in from class and hadn't had much sleep, this is probably the first time i wasn't dressed in a suit in awhile and (obviously) it doesn't match the hat.

 

[Woodfluter]

I steamed the bejesus out of my Fed. As my first bash I took some time and was not fast by any means. Plus I had the kettle going when I wasn't using the steam. I used a gallon of water to do my hat. Next time I would not because now I have a feel for it. First you need a kettle that is really putting out some steam....I mean a rolling boil here. HOT steam will loosen up the felt on a Fed and it turns into putty. Someone else here on the lounge said the same thing and I agree. One of the things mentioned around here is making a funnel out of tin foil to direct the steam and concentrate it. My kettle being electric and over powered didn't need it but I can see where it would be of service. Second I used distilled water as to not leave any extra mineral deposits on my hat. I also knew ahead of time what I wanted to do...in my case a couple of Indy CS pictures and a couple of old movie stills which I was found of....I played until I was happy and most of the time was spent dealing with my broken nose. Trying not to accentuate a long crooked nose with a tall crown is....difficult for the first timer....lol

Adding a few things to Belegnole's helpful post...

1. Some soak, some steam. I like steam - it works just as well 98% of the time for me, and it will dry in about 15 minutes and mold to your head, vs several hours of wearing a wet hat...if you see my point. Plus it's easy and fast to go back and do a minor change after things set. But either works.

2. I might use a teacup of water to shape a hat, not a gallon. Seriously. You don't need to get the thing soaking of course, just enough moisture to loosen it up a little.

3. I steam only the part I want to shape and then work fast. Then steam another part and shape that. Which might account for the smaller amounts of water!

4. Distilled water won't matter. The steam is water vapor only, the minerals stay in the kettle - which is a good argument for using filtered water and washing out your kettle often, but nothing to do with hats.

5. Speaking of water vapor, I think that's why it is so effective - without any need to get the felt soaking wet. The water molecules are very small and permeate the felt deep and fast. More so than water in the liquid state.

6. Speaking of water vapor again, it's the humidity - not the heat. Or so I think. The hat will cool fast but it will stay moldable (for want of a better word) for a couple of minutes. The point is, you don't need to heat up the hat excessively with associated risks of shrinkage. You can hold the hat a little way from the steam jet and get sufficient heat (just warm, not hot) and still get lots of moisture into the hat. Also keep it moving so you don't overheat anywhere. But yes, you need a rolling boil in there.

7. I was the aluminum foil suggester, and this relates to point 3. If you shape the far end around a wooden spoon handle or dowel or something like that, you get a nice directed jet of steam that only affects what you want to shape without messing with the rest.

8. Lastly, unless you are absolutely sure you want a really sharp crease somewhere and won't change your mind, keep things "softer". If you have to work a previous sharp crease out, steam that part very thoroughly (closer, with more heat in this case) and iron it by rolling a glass bottle or stemless wine glass (for flat or curved surfaces, respectively) over the creases to iron them out.

Not posing as some kind of expert here, but this scheme has worked for me on the Feds and vintage hats too. Johnny & Maguire, best of luck and ask all of these helpful folks if you feel daunted.

- Bill

P.S. I have a crooked nose issue too, but steaming it never seemed to work.

 

[Maguire]

just one quick question more- the 59 size was too large but i'm sure a 58 is too small. I put the foam in the hat and now it certainly fits, but its rather tight. Not so tight that i really have to force it on, but tight enough for a little bit of a push to get it sitting right. Is this a problem? Or rather, should i be worried that this may ruin the hat's shape ?

 

[Goose.]

just one quick question more- the 59 size was too large but i'm sure a 58 is too small. I put the foam in the hat and now it certainly fits, but its rather tight. Not so tight that i really have to force it on, but tight enough for a little bit of a push to get it sitting right. Is this a problem? Or rather, should i be worried that this may ruin the hat's shape ?

Before I get into the foam gig Maquire, I wanted to thank and commend Bill for taking the time to write an excellent post.

Like he stated, I only steam what area of my beat up old Sydney needed it. It was creased badly in part of the crown and brim. All fixed up.

Same goes for spraying with water...an example being my Fed IV D Moonie.
It came with a mushroom taper and the point just wouldn't stay with a dry bash. Sparayed that area with water and let it air dry. Still holding.

As for the foam...I wear a 60. But, have been ordering 61 Akubra's lately (except for the FIVDs...still 60). Ordered a size up due to my concern with shrinkage/taper. The foam works great and doesn't seem to ruin the shape. I place my foam right where the felt meets the band.

If you think it's too tight, try just using a portion of the foam instead of the entire strip. For my CEO I used a half strip. For my Bogart, about four inches. If I had used the entire strip, they'd be way too tight.