Photos of hatters tools

[TheDane]

If anyone else should be interested in a hat ruler, here is an "ebonized" version to go for

 

[bloc]

Well, not so much to say about the cloth. As heavy a white/natural canton flannel you can find. I just tried to seach The Bay and found this. I don't know how thick it is, but you could try and ask the seller about thickness. I got me some via an old theatre connection, so I don't have any advice concerning dealers.

Thanks for the info. Just ordered some cotton string, do you think this might do for the fabric?
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1m-White-...90858?pt=UK_Crafts_Fabric&hash=item20d95b454a

QUOTE]

 

[TheDane]

I don't know how coarse it is. Canton flannel is quite soft and is napped

 

[John Galt]

does anyone have or use the long handle brim irons? I think they were used to get under the curl on a derby or top hat.

I thought I saw one in an antique store the other day in a pile of old soldering irons, but hesitated because I haven't researched them & wasn't sure. I think you are right about the usage. Should be in Ermatinger...


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[John Galt]

The hatter's/milliner's knot:

Thank you! It is an interesting and functional knot.

I just built it and note that it is really comprised of three separate knots. The first slip knot forms the bight used to make the second slip knot, which tightens on the cord to lock it into place. The granny knot acts as a stop to keep the first slip knot from loosening its grip when the cord is cinched tight against the cord & block. Beautiful simplicity!


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[John Galt]

That is neat John

I like your hatter's rule, good luck with it

Thank you both. You are very gracious Hatter4.


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[bloc]

I don't know how coarse it is. Canton flannel is quite soft and is napped

I have some domette, I'll have a go with that first.

 

[TheDane]

I have some domette, I'll have a go with that first.

Whatever it is, I hope it tastes well

 

[Hatter4]

John - I have 5 long-handled brim irons in my collection. Three I got from an mail auction in London, England. Two I got from old hatters. One from England says "S F Hayes", there are two from Germany that say "D.R.W.Z. Spieler". The other two have no markings. It is my understanding that they were used after you used the shackle iron, then you used these long handles to smooth out the felt underneath the curl on both derby's and top hats.

 

[John Galt]

John - I have 5 long-handled brim irons in my collection. Three I got from an mail auction in London, England. Two I got from old hatters....]

Thanks for the photos.

The iron I saw resembled the second from the left, but was slighter & more artfully curved. It was obviously not a soldering iron (not being heavy & made of brass or copper like the others). I assumed it was probably a hatter's iron but was both uninformed & financially tapped, so I had to pass.






"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[John Galt]

My rounding jack prototype. The handle & head of this one are made of hickory. It still needs a little finish sanding, polyurethane, drilling, gluing & screwing, but the structure is all there. It will accept just about any "exacto" type cutting implement, and has a brass scale that goes to about 9 inches. It does not yet have the brass adjusters for cutting dimensional brims, but that may be an option at some point in the future if I develop the methodology or find a machinist who could make them for me at a reasonable price.

I believe that I can make & sell these for $175.00 (which is $100 less than the going rate for the lowest end rounding jacks available elsewhere) without losing money. Your thoughts?

"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[Hatter4]

John it looks great. Have you tried it yet? you are very talented.

 

[majormoore]

Looks good, I would say cut about 3" off the total slide rule, I have never cut a brim over 6" wide, most times 5" is the widest we can get, also try and make the blade holder to hold and clamp a standard box cutter blade.
Over all very nice job, I like the looks of it.

Major Moore

My rounding jack prototype. The handle & head of this one are made of hickory. It still needs a little finish sanding, polyurethane, drilling, gluing & screwing, but the structure is all there. It will accept just about any "exacto" type cutting implement, and has a brass scale that goes to about 9 inches. It does not yet have the brass adjusters for cutting dimensional brims, but that may be an option at some point in the future if I develop the methodology or find a machinist who could make them for me at a reasonable price.

I believe that I can make & sell these for $175.00 (which is $100 less than the going rate for the lowest end rounding jacks available elsewhere) without losing money. Your thoughts?

"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[TheDane]

Your thoughts?

Our thoughts ...?!??!!! Looking at this "alian", I think we ought to discuss your thoughts and "inner life". You're worrying me, Sir lol

That rounding jack is just wonderful! I really love to see creative people think out of the box and use materials, methods and gadgets that were never meant to be combined - thereby solving a problem in a new way.

If some day you don't want to make hatter's tools anymore, I'm sure you could be a great special effects man. This is how most theatre stages and movie sets look from behind. "We have to do this and that illusion, but we don't have the necessary tools and can't afford having the machinery made. Solve it!". And they do - every time and in ingenious ways!

Intelligent creativity, combined with the ability to make brains and hands communicate flawlessly ... that's a darned fine birth-gift to get. And you understand how to use it to the limit, John. Congratulations :eusa_clap

PS: I would second The Major, though. The longer the arm, the less acurate. You could very well shorten it and make it even better

 

[ManofKent]

Very nice work.

 

[John Galt]

Have you tried it yet? you are very talented.

No, it hasn't been fully assembled yet, so it is not structurally sound.

I would say cut about 3" off the total slide rule, I have never cut a brim over 6" wide, most times 5" is the widest we can get.

Thanks major. I had thought that might be the case. As for the blade, that will take some more thought. I am trying to find the right hardware, and it is difficult without an example. Maybe my euro model will arrive soon, or I'll find something else that works.

I really love to see creative people think out of the box and use materials, methods and gadgets that were never meant to be combined - thereby solving a problem in a new way.

[...] I would second The Major, though. The longer the arm, the less acurate. You could very well shorten it and make it even better

As you note, I have repurposed other materials to lessen the labor & expense. Also, my shop is limited. There are some limits to this, as the Major noted, but I think this should work for the hobbyist when finished & shortened.

Thanks for your input gentlemen! I will keep you posted.

P.S. what about the shape of the head?



"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[John Galt]

Major, how about a utility knife blade? Is that readily available enough to use instead of a box cutter blade? This may actually be semantics, but box cutter makes me think rectangular blade, vs the trapezoid used for most utility knifes.


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[tonyb]

That tool will work, but without a plate that goes under the brim, the blade will scratch whatever surface the hat is upon. And I suspect the blade will be dulled, more prematurely than it would be otherwise, for the same reason. (A sharp blade is really what you want. Makes the job go much better.)

I have three rounding jacks, two old ones and one of more modern manufacture. They all do the job, but the one that gets used the most is an old one that takes what we used to call single-edge safety-razor blades. They made those blades back when Grandpa was a boy, and they still make 'em today. The modern rounding jack, which is on indefinite loan to a friend, uses X-Acto blades. The other old (really old) one will take an X-Acto blade, but that's not what it was designed to take, and it lacks a bottom plate. So now it's mostly for decoration, although it could be retrofitted easily enough to address those shortcomings. One of these days, maybe.

A rounding jack with more heft is easier to use. (My favorite one is quite robust.) Rather than a handle at the end, like in your example, every other rounding jack I've encountered has a slide which is sandwiched between rectangular pieces of wood. The tool is handled pretty much in the middle, and the other hand is free to hold the hat crown (on a crown block or band block) to maintain a consistent cut.

Again, I'm confident yours will work fine, and I applaud your efforts. But without a solid, flat surface running from one end of the tool the other, holding the tool down, to keep the blade in the felt, will require a bit more attention on the part of the operator. And without a plate to go under the brim, the blade will cut into whatever work surface you're using.

 

[John Galt]

Thanks Tonyb!

Maybe I'll go back to the drawing board. I could probably suspend this scale in a similar framework and attach a plate without much effort, but the blade presents a more difficult problem (which is one reason I went with this particular hardware). Obviously ubiquity of blades is preferred. The real problem though, is that the more work I have to do, the less affordable the item becomes, and developing an affordable option is the real goal.


"Faint hat never won fair lady."

 

[alanfgag]

Look like a nice project.

I'd like to find an anti-rounding jack... one of those devices that puts back the material cut off by the previous owner. Looks something like this: