Scotch Guard? Scout Felt Hat Protector?

[Edward]

My safari-ised Akubra Riverina was on my head all day in Hong Kong in 2008, when I was caught in the worst storms in that territory in 125 years. Dried out naturally in the hotel room, no problem at all.

 

[tonyb]

Hats are like most other clothes ... they'll withstand you, being caught in the rain. Suits and dress hats were never made for rain showers, though. An umbrella, protecting both, works for me and many others

That's pretty much the same thing I tell customers who ask how the hat will hold up to weather. I liken it to a nice topcoat. It likely won't be much the worse for getting a little damp on a walk across the parking lot in a light(ish) rain, or a longer stroll in a misty drizzle. But don't then put it in a crowded closet before letting it air dry.
I add that even a high-quality, properly blocked all-beaver hat just may taper and even dimple if repeatedly soaked, and especially if it is left to dry in a hot environment, such as the rear deck in a car interior or near a heat source indoors. But even then it's nothing to lose sleep over. Just mail that babe back and I'll reblock it. A high-quality hat can be made good as new (better, perhaps) at least a couple three or four times, provided it isn't irreversibly stained or worn thin at the creases.

 

[tonyb]

Quite often when feeding the ponies with the rains....main reason I have a couple of beater Resistol westerns & Akubras....rotate thru them to spread the fun around...

Sounds like a good system. I keep a few beaters around just for use in rough conditions. Thick, stiff bodies hold up to it better, typically. Such hats aren't as luxurious as, say, a lightweight all-beaver with vintage ribbon, etc. But then, you don't take your Mercedes Benz SL four-wheeling, either.

 

[John Galt]

I treat my felt hats like dogs. A walk in a light rain or mist is nice, and I actually use the opportunity to tune up the hat. A torrential downpour requires a different hat.

 

[T Jones]

The best way to waterproof your fur felt is not wear it in the rain. I have ball caps for that purpose....

 

[jhe888]

Fur felt isn't waterproof, but some rain won't hurt it. You don't want to allow it to get saturated, and you certainly don't want to let the sweatband to get soaked, but a little time in the rain won't hurt it.

If you need to wear it in a drenching rain, a plastic, shower-cap cover is the thing I guess. Or an umbrella.

 

[Nyah]

If the leather sweatband in one of my hats ever does shrink, I will probably re-saturate it with water and then stretch it back.

 

[gtdean48]

If the leather sweatband in one of my hats ever does shrink, I will probably re-saturate it with water and then stretch it back.

Leather shrinks when water evaporates taking the oils in its pores with it. Just using water to re-saturate isn't going to replenish those needed oils.
Leather conditioner does that.

 

[John Galt]

I condition first with Lexol, before getting sweats wet. I also try to wet them indirectly - by spraying the felt & letting it gradually wet the sweat.

When I was new to this, I got a vintage hat very wet all at once, and the sweat, which had looked ok, curled into a slinky. Even with precautions, the edges on old sweats sometimes start to curl when damp.

I have not tried it yet, but I recently learned that there are professional leather stretching products that cobblers use. I will try one next time I have to stretch a sweatband.

 

[-30-]

"there are professional leather stretching products that cobblers use."

Alcohol.


Regards,
J T

 

[John Galt]

I looked into this, and you are right about alcohol. Thanks for the tip.

This brings me to a self-effacing cautionary tale regarding the use of alcohol on finished hats:

I recently used alcohol to try to soften the shellac in the brim of a rare & wonderful hat I was renovating for a fellow lounger as an afterthought - having already stretched the hat, and applied a new vintage ribbon & nice bow.

I was (perhaps naively or foolishly) shocked and surprised when the dark-colored ribbon immediately started bleeding color and staining the very light-colored felt.

I quickly stripped the ribbon and all other trim off the hat and poured more alcohol (2 bottles) on the hat until I'd washed almost all of the color out of the hat body.

A mad dash to the local drug store, three more bottles for a more dedicated alcohol bath, some Scout light hat cleaner & some good old fashioned brushing ultimately removed all the color and left me finally free to start from scratch again with re-blocking, sweatband & trim.

The verified & dated early 1950's grosgrain ribbon I used obviously had some acetate content that had dissolved in the alcohol and bled color. The ribbon itself was crispy and had a burnt texture afterwards.

I have learned other lessons the hard way as I teach myself the hatter's trade, but this was by far the most dramatic. Luckily the hat body came out undamaged in the end.

I'm a bit embarrassed by my failure to anticipate this problem, to be sure, but I thought that in this context telling the story might well save someone a similar and potentially disastrous experience. Do not do as I have done...

 

[LuvMyMan]

The leather stretcher you make it, put in a spray bottle, but half distilled water and half rubbing alcohol.

Lexol is an "o.k." conditioner, but try using something that will leave more of itself behind....Cadillac boot and shoe care. A suggestion if you want to treat a sweatband while it is still in the hat, and you are a little worried about turning it down to work on it...take some long strips of wax paper, make the strips twice the width of the leather sweatband so you can fold it in half the entire length. Stuff the edge of the folded half down inside the leather until you have it in as deep as you can get it. Over lap strips like that all the way around behind the leather.. now you have some protection from any conditioner you will apply to the leather and will keep it from bleeding through onto the hat or liner. This works well, I have done my hats, and Daniel's hats with the same way. Normally will apply a heavy few applications and then let the hat sit for a day or two, then rub the sweatband with a clean white clothe.

 

[Zombie_61]

"there are professional leather stretching products that cobblers use."

Alcohol.

But do they apply it to the leather, or drink it?

 

[Landman]

Pecard's Antique Leather Dressing works well on sweatbands. It does not run like Lexol and can easily be applied with the tip of your finger. It has the consistency of petroleum jelly where Lexol is a liquid and can run on to the liner. I apply the Pecard's and let the hat sit for a day or so to let it soak in and then wipe off the excess. You can order it online by doing a Google search. I've not found anywhere local to buy it.

 

[-30-]

"But do they apply it to the leather, or drink it?"
Zombie_61

Cobblers NEVER apply it to the leather, they only drink it; the reasons being:

No 1 They have hammers

and/or

No 2, That is why they are also known as Shoemakers.
LOL


Regards,
J T

 

[Zombie_61]

Cobblers NEVER apply it to the leather, they only drink it; the reasons being:

No 1 They have hammers...

So, they get hammered and then use hammers?

I was thinking about the issue of waterproofing fur felt hats, and the thought of ranchers, cowboys, and lawmen/bounty hunters going about their business in the American Old West came to mind. Somehow I couldn't imagine that, when they found themselves in the middle of nowhere in a torrential downpour with no shelter, their primary concerns were whether or not their hats would survive getting wet. lol

 

[gtdean48]

I don't have any concerns getting any of my westerns drenched. The felt bodies for them are such a different grade of firmness from dress weight bodies.
As I stated earlier, my beaters for foul weather are old westerns that I've converted or just like they are. My "good" westerns don't get any pampering when the wet starts....

 

[-30-]

"But do they apply it to the leather, or drink it?"
Zombie_61

"Cobblers NEVER apply it to the leather, they only drink it; the reasons being:
No 1 They have hammers
and/or
No 2, That is why they are also known as Shoemakers.
LOL"
.........................................

As we were mentioning sweatband/leather stretching along with alcohol and whether to "do and/or drink",

I was "playing smart" at the expense of drunken cobblers, in that anyone having consumed rubbing

alcohol and they also having a hammer becomes, as the old and derogatory saying goes, "He a Shoemaker".

EG:

"Do you know if he is a good painter for my car?"

"No! No! No! That guy will ruin your car; he is a Shoemaker."
(Aka a poor workman; not a Craftsman.)


Regards,
J T

 

[John Galt]

Just mail that babe back and I'll reblock it. A high-quality hat can be made good as new (better, perhaps) at least a couple three or four times, provided it isn't irreversibly stained or worn thin at the creases.

Well said!

 

[John Galt]

Pecard's Antique Leather Dressing works well on sweatbands. It does not run like Lexol and can easily be applied with the tip of your finger. It has the consistency of petroleum jelly where Lexol is a liquid and can run on to the liner. I apply the Pecard's and let the hat sit for a day or so to let it soak in and then wipe off the excess. You can order it online by doing a Google search. I've not found anywhere local to buy it.

Thanks Landman, I've seen it and noted it - now I'll buy it. Quality & functionality conjoin, it seems. I agree that Lexol can be a pain to apply. My brother treated the sweat of a light-colored hat I made him with Lexol and promptly stained the felt, requiring a lot more work.