Making a hat...smaller?

[John Galt]

Probably depends on the color & condition of the hat. I did this with a lighter chestnut-colored brown adult-sized hat for my son. The result was unsatisfactory for anyone but a child, because a discolored ring was left on the brim where the old "foot" had been at the junction of the crown and brim. I had a black vintage hat professionally re-sized for my son though, and it came out just fine. I have had success resizing up. Nutshell, it is better to make a small hat bigger & hide the ring in the hatband than to try to make most hats smaller.


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[bigbuc]

I wear a size 8. So I learned this the wrong way... once... I left a stretched 7 7/8 in the truck for about an hour or so in summer... Texas 105° so about 120+ in the truck. Dang thing shrunk.


Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

 

[Christian Ristow]

HERE is a thread I started recently about a hat I got that was too big. I decided to just shrink the hat myself, with great success. Details, and some pictures, are on the second page of the thread.

Cheers!

 

[zackefeller]

When you purchase a hat that's slightly too large for your head but don't want to buy a size down because it would be too tight, the typical solution is to purchase foam sizing strips that you stick to the inside of the sweatband in order to provide a better fit.

Great idea, except these strips cost way more than they should! Because I simply refused to pay for a foam strip, I decided to use toilet paper as a sizing strip instead.

Simply take 3-4 squares of toilet paper, fold them up on the lines, then roll it up to the width of the sweatband and stick it on the inside of the sweatband. Bam free hat sizer strips. It works like a charm, and it's easy to add or remove (in case you get a haircut or you grow your hair out really thick).

 

[gtdean48]

I use paper towels. Sweat will turn toilet paper into a mess....

 

[moontheloon]

groundbreaking !!!

 

[FedOregon]

Brawny paper towels for those hard driving adventure hats!

 

[zackefeller]

I use paper towels. Sweat will turn toilet paper into a mess....

That's a good point! I've been living in cold weather so sweat hasn't been an issue for me. Perhaps an even more durable option would be to wrap the paper (whichever you chose) in tape.

 

[moontheloon]

old timers used newspaper or dollar bills even

 

[FedOregon]

Newspapers can leave gray smudges from the print, but dollar bills would be cool IMO.

 

[moontheloon]

Newspapers can leave gray smudges from the print, but dollar bills would be cool IMO.

those cats didn't give a about ink smudge ... they were nowhere near as anal about their hats as we are

to them they were another pair of shoes... another tie ... another shirt... another hat ... they weren't these treasures we hold them to be

 

[Redfokker]

groundbreaking !!!

+1

 

[Redfokker]

old timers used newspaper or dollar bills even

A vintage hat deserves a old time solution. A couple of bucks could come in handy at a later date.

 

[moontheloon]

A vintage hat deserves a old time solution. A couple of bucks could come in handy at a later date.

I have a Stratoliner that belonged to my grandfather that has a $50 bill under the sweat since the 1940s ... I won't dare try to take it out because it is as brittle as a leaf in Oct.

 

[FedOregon]

I have a Stratoliner that belonged to my grandfather that has a $50 bill under the sweat since the 1940s ... I won't dare try to take it out because it is as brittle as a leaf in Oct.

Man, that is stone cold cool!

 

[moehawk]

Would using dollar bills count as free?

 

[Redfokker]

Would using dollar bills count as free?

Depends on the exchange rate...

 

[Frunobulax]

old timers used newspaper or dollar bills even

What's a "newspaper?"


Sent directly from my mind to yours.

 

[Redfokker]

What's a "newspaper?"


Sent directly from my mind to yours.

Nowadays you would have to raid the junk mail. Too hard to stuff a computer screen in your sweat!

 

[Bob Roberts]

Blah blah blah...
I can't believe the activity here.