Photos of hatters tools

[T Jones]

Dammit. These tools are just stupid beautiful!

Thank you, Rick! I definitely agree. They're beautiful pieces, indeed. I'm still blown away at how nice they are.

 

[belfastboy]

Longest rounding jack build to date. This one's headed for Romania and will cut a full 10" (25.4cm) brim width. That's a brim size that would make even Joao proud.
View attachment 143581

10" is not a brim it is an umbrella posing as a hat.

 

[humanshoes]

Sorry for this repost of sorts, but it just tickles me to no end that a set of my handmade hatter's tools is now in the capable hands of a very talented lady hatter in Bucharest, Romania. If you get a moment, check out her Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/decorinahats/

 

[steur]

Sorry for this repost of sorts, but it just tickles me to no end that a set of my handmade hatter's tools is now in the capable hands of a very talented lady hatter in Bucharest, Romania. If you get a moment, check out her Facebook page here: https://www.facebook.com/decorinahats/
View attachment 146339

You can be justly proud of your work, Rick. Looks beautiful.

 

[steur]

Don't know where else to post this. Came upon this article a while ago and it's been sitting on my computer ever since. Shellac is something we take for granted as a part of the hatmaking process, but that wasn't always the case. Shellac has been around for a long time and has been used in a myriad of ways, but hats were stiffened in different ways as this article of 1799 indicates. The part on hats starts on the first page lower right and ends on the second page top left. It's in 18th century Dutch: good luck!

O, okay then. Here's the translation.

Economic newspaper for betterment of domestic science, industry and trade 1799

Improved way of making up hats

In the making of hats it’s custom to coat the inside of the crown and the brim with a sticky substance, that, when dried, keeps the hat firm and in shape. For this purpose one usually uses a glue, which consists of Arabic and domestic gum, mixed with Flemish glue solved in water and boiled down to a certain thickness.
This stiff solution makes the hat meager and brittle and after a few months a sort of gray crust forms on the surface, which ruins the hair or beaver.
Chaussier suspected, that the Arabic gum, which was added to the glue, was the cause of this, and he attempted to replace these substances, especially the gum, with the juice of domestically grown plants. Because of the glue that is found in many plants, is easily drained out by cooking and an artificial gum can be prepared by distillation, which is soft and sticky, he wanted to dissolve a strong glue in a decoction of linseed.
This preparation was used for a long time, being cheap to produce, by the hat factory in the department Cote d’Or, and resulted in high quality hats. Subsequently Margecou investigated the glue that was obtained from the leaves of the Indian Chestnut, and found that these, especially when in growing season, produce a high amount of glue, which is why at this factory since then this substance was used, instead of the linseed decoction, for the production of hats.

Here's an example of an early seventeenth century hat found in a shipwreck off the Dutch coast. Wonder how that was stiffened? I find the shape of it striking.

 

[humanshoes]

You can be justly proud of your work, Rick. Looks beautiful.

Thanks Stefan. At my age, though, practicality wins out over pride every time. To me, it harkens back to a day when young apprentices were required to learn to make the tools of the trade before they were ever allowed to learn the trade itself.

 

[humanshoes]

Don't know where else to post this. Came upon this article a while ago and it's been sitting on my computer ever since. Shellac is something we take for granted as a part of the hatmaking process, but that wasn't always the case. Shellac has been around for a long time and has been used in a myriad of ways, but hats were stiffened in different ways as this article of 1799 indicates. The part on hats starts on the first page lower right and ends on the second page top left. It's in 18th century Dutch: good luck!
View attachment 146523 View attachment 146524
O, okay then. Here's the translation.

Economic newspaper for betterment of domestic science, industry and trade 1799

Improved way of making up hats

In the making of hats it’s custom to coat the inside of the crown and the brim with a sticky substance, that, when dried, keeps the hat firm and in shape. For this purpose one usually uses a glue, which consists of Arabic and domestic gum, mixed with Flemish glue solved in water and boiled down to a certain thickness.
This stiff solution makes the hat meager and brittle and after a few months a sort of gray crust forms on the surface, which ruins the hair or beaver.
Chaussier suspected, that the Arabic gum, which was added to the glue, was the cause of this, and he attempted to replace these substances, especially the gum, with the juice of domestically grown plants. Because of the glue that is found in many plants, is easily drained out by cooking and an artificial gum can be prepared by distillation, which is soft and sticky, he wanted to dissolve a strong glue in a decoction of linseed.
This preparation was used for a long time, being cheap to produce, by the hat factory in the department Cote d’Or, and resulted in high quality hats. Subsequently Margecou investigated the glue that was obtained from the leaves of the Indian Chestnut, and found that these, especially when in growing season, produce a high amount of glue, which is why at this factory since then this substance was used, instead of the linseed decoction, for the production of hats.

Here's an example of an early seventeenth century hat found in a shipwreck off the Dutch coast. Wonder how that was stiffened? I find the shape of it striking.
View attachment 146525

Thanks for that excellent historical tidbit Stefan. That hat looks almost exactly like the first few hats I ever made. Hah!

 

[steur]

Thanks for that excellent historical tidbit Stefan. That hat looks almost exactly like the first few I ever made. Hah!

 

[Redfokker]

Had a nice visit with Mike Miller at NW Hats in Eugene today. He says Howdy to you all. He has a cool new machine on the bench. He calls it a "Sandbagger". The press has a sand weighted bag on a movable arm. Presses the brims on hats on a flange. He still has to rig up a heating system in the sand. The old style they used is kind of dangerous and a fire hazard. It is called a "Hatmaster" Cool name!

 

[ChicagoWayVito]

Had a nice visit with Mike Miller at NW Hats in Eugene today. He says Howdy to you all. He has a cool new machine on the bench. He calls it a "Sandbagger". The press has a sand weighted bag on a movable arm. Presses the brims on hats on a flange. He still has to rig up a heating system in the sand. The old style they used is kind of dangerous and a fire hazard. It is called a "Hatmaster" Cool name!

View attachment 148213 View attachment 148214 View attachment 148215

Oh, wow. I am a bit envious. Have been looking for a sandbagger for a while. You don't get anything useful on the internet when searching for the term "sandbagger".

 

[humanshoes]

Had a nice visit with Mike Miller at NW Hats in Eugene today. He says Howdy to you all. He has a cool new machine on the bench. He calls it a "Sandbagger". The press has a sand weighted bag on a movable arm. Presses the brims on hats on a flange. He still has to rig up a heating system in the sand. The old style they used is kind of dangerous and a fire hazard. It is called a "Hatmaster" Cool name!

View attachment 148213 View attachment 148214 View attachment 148215

Very nice.

 

[Redfokker]

Oh, wow. I am a bit envious. Have been looking for a sandbagger for a while. You don't get anything useful on the internet when searching for the term "sandbagger".

Mike helped sell off a closing hat shop and kept the best equipment.

 

[humanshoes]

A brief pause in the hat making action to build a suitable table for the newest member of the PHC family, the ASM 1107-1 sweatband sewing machine. An old Singer cast iron treadle base paired with some weathered mahogany boards I had lying around the shop added up to the antique looking table I was shooting for. Now it's time for this pricey ba***rd to either earn it's keep or get the hell out.

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

A brief pause in the hat making action to build a suitable table for the newest member of the PHC family, the ASM 1107-1 sweatband sewing machine. An old Singer cast iron treadle base paired with some weathered mahogany boards I had lying around the shop added up to the antique looking table I was shooting for. Now it's time for this pricey ba***rd to either earn it's keep or get the hell out.
View attachment 151074

Very very nice!! Will it do unreeded sweatbands?? I hope i hope!!
Bowen

 

[humanshoes]

Very very nice!! Will it do unreeded sweatbands?? I hope i hope!!
Bowen

Nope. This dog won't hunt that bird Bowen. Singer made the 46-100 just for unreeded sweatbands. It's basically a heavy duty fur sewing machine with a special attachment.

 

[humanshoes]

First sweatband sewn in with the new ASM 1107-1 machine. I had to make adjustments to the factory set up and I will definitely need more practice, but the actual installation, after the sweatband was prepped, took less than a minute. Goodbye hand stitching...forever.

 

[Frunobulax]

First sweatband sewn in with the new ASM 1107-1 machine. I had to make adjustments to the factory set up and I will definitely need more practice, but the actual installation, after the sweatband was prepped, took less than a minute. Goodbye hand stitching...forever.
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Better living through technology!

Sent directly from my mind to yours.

 

[humanshoes]

I'm constantly is search of simple yet workable alternatives to heavy industrial hat making machinery. As most hat maker's will likely tell you, much time and effort are spent on brim work without the benefit of a proper hydraulic brim press. Enter the newest member of the PHC family. A vintage New York Electric Iron from the New York Pressing Iron Co., Inc. This bad boy weighs in at a whopping 15 pounds, roughly 2.2 pounds lighter than 2 gallons of milk. Maximum pressure, minimum effort. Granted, no replacement for the brim press, but much better than my standard steam iron. I've also built a rig that allows me to mount the hat block horizontally or vertically so that I can use this iron on the crowns as well as the brims. Better living through old technology.

 

[belfastboy]

I'm constantly is search of simple yet workable alternatives to heavy industrial hat making machinery. As most hat maker's will likely tell you, much time and effort are spent on brim work without the benefit of a proper hydraulic brim press. Enter the newest member of the PHC family. A vintage New York Electric Iron from the New York Pressing Iron Co., Inc. This bad boy weighs in at a whopping 15 pounds, roughly 2.2 pounds lighter than 2 gallons of milk. Maximum pressure, minimum effort. Granted, no replacement for the brim press, but much better than my standard steam iron. I've also built a rig that allows me to mount the hat block horizontally or vertically so that I can use this iron on the crowns as well as the brims. Better living through old technology.
View attachment 154142

Did you ever discuss this with Art or Mike at NW Hats? They have brim presses made by a millwright from the old Beaver Factory that cost a fraction of factory made ones. I know Mike loves his as it saves him a ton of time and produces a better finished brim.

 

[humanshoes]

Did you ever discuss this with Art or Mike at NW Hats? They have brim presses made by a millwright from the old Beaver Factory that cost a fraction of factory made ones. I know Mike loves his as it saves him a ton of time and produces a better finished brim.

Thanks for the tip Belfastboy. I have considered sourcing one of the tabletop model brim presses, but another consideration for me is space, in that I'm out of it. I'm looking forward to retirement and my planned hat studio where I'll have room to spread my wings a bit.