Styrofoam block

[Jerekson]

I was taking a look over at COW recently and it seems that the ever-dedicated 3thoubucks has taken up a new theory - the styrofoam block.

I've been working on a beautiful wood block for ages now and getting sort of impatient to see the end of it. So I thought I'd give this idea a try (surprised I didn't think of it myself!).
$15 at Joann's bought enough to make two 6 in. blocks with.

Well, I shelled out the first one within 20 min. No joke.

I put some strips of duct tape over it to sort of toughen it up and stretched my soaked Akubra over it. I had alot of trouble getting the hat to stretch towards the top since it was accusomted to alot of taper - but I think it will be easier the second time, or with gradual forming.

I'll post the results when I have them. I'm pretty confident.

This could be a REALLY great development for cheapskate experimentalists like myself. Just imagine - a custom block for every hat in your collection!

 

[kaosharper1]

Can we see the block?

 

[Jerekson]

Yeah, of course. When I take pictures of the hat tomorrow I'll get a couple of the block too.

 

[jpbales]

sounds like a great idea for us cheapskates! Not to mention the time it saves. At 15$ for 2 blocks, and 20 mins per block, you might as well just re-make styrofoam ones every time you need a block. Hopefully someone will find a way to make a tough coating for the styrofoam so that it doesn't fall apart (something better than ducktape!). I'm interested in seeing how it turns out.

 

[Jerekson]

I was going to experiment with some acrylic clear coating, but it looks like I've run out. All I've got in terms of toughener is Bondo, and I doubt that'll do much but give the block a snakeskin.
Some sort of resin would probably work, but the problem lies in getting an even coating...

 

[Gutshot]

There are a couple things you might try...

Bondo actually wouldn't be a bad idea. It's a polyester resin so if you put on a thick enough layer and then shaped it back with files and sand paper it should come out pretty resilient. It's used pretty commonly with MDF which can be stacked up and shaped with rasps and such quite easily. The bondo seals it and allows a smooth finish to be achieved. Don't know why it wouldn't work with Styrofoam. Actually, MDF and Bondo might not be a bad block choice either. Something to consider anyway.

Another thing might be fiberglass resin. A thin coat of this might do the trick. I'd be tempted to give the whole thing a coat of acrylic paint or some such first to seal it though. I've found out the hard way that Styrofoam will dissolve quickly due to the thinners in many of these kinds of products. But if I'm not much mistaken it's pretty common to glass over Styrofoam.

The last is a Styrofoam hard coat product used by sculptors who use the foam as the underlayer for sculptural work. I've never worked with these kind of hard coat products, but it's what they're intended for. Of course, they're specialty, harder to find, and likely expensive.

 

[Gutshot]

Now I'm curious... what did you end up doing?

 

[Jerekson]

I've been out of town, and ended up leaving my camera there, so I won't be getting it back for a few days. Sorry guys.

The results are REALLY nice though, believe me...

 

[CRH]

...

The results are REALLY nice though, believe me...

My faith and patience is a little short these days. We need pics :whip:

 

[Jerekson]

The block. The strips of duct tape on the sides are covering up the seams where I glued the layers together.

As you can see, there's a little ripple effect on the top of the crown where I couldn't stretch it properly. I'm almost positive this will go away with more reblocks.

Came out nice and square, just like I like. Still could use a little tweaking though, because it's a little odd looking from certain angles, such as behind.

 

[RobFedoraField]

shaping the styrofoam

what did you use to shape the styro? how did you not get the "crumbs" all over the hat?

Thanks,

 

[Jerekson]

I used some rough sandpaper to shape the block - it cuts through the stuff like butter. Not really sure what you mean about the crumbs though - it's pretty clear from the third picture that they are all over the hat!

 

[jpbales]

My Endevours

Well, I've started on my own Styrofoam hat block.
I initially purchased two pieces of appx. 2"x12"x18" green Strofoam blocks to make the block from.
I made a tracing of my head shape, and then I traced out 4 of them onto the Styrofoam blocks.
I then cut out the 4 pieces using a hack saw. I initially tried several different knives, which only broke the pieces apart and was quite inaccurate. The teeny serrations of the hacksaw were perfect for cutting the foam.
This left me with four 2" blocks.
I then glued the blocks together. They didn't line up very well, which I expected. I was going to sand them anyway.
I then proceeded to use a small rotary sander with 400 grit sand paper to sand the pieces smoothly together and create the final block shape.
I had used RoseArt School glue to glue the pieces together, and it didn't hold very well, FYI. I will later re-glue with gorilla glue or something else that won't come apart.
I also did a finishing sand by hand with a 600 grit paper, which made it as smooth as possible (for foam)
I had to be careful when sanding, because a couple of times the corner of the sandpaper caught the pores of the foam and caused it to tear and make a hole in the foam. I need to find something to fill in the holes with.
Right now, here are the results:

Right now, I'm looking to A) fill in the holes and cracks and B) put a coat on the outside. Here's the best thing that I could find concerning coating Styrofoam:
"depends on what kind of surface you are looking for:
smoothness, durability, ease of application/shaping, and cost

assuming you taking about polystyrene foam (i.e., Styrofoam), it is easily dissolved by most solvent based materials (esp. polyester resins like fiberglass, Bondo, or fast dry spray paints), but a barrier coat of some kind (such as the gesso suggested above, or shellac, or glued-on paper or foil) will let you use any of these

for durability, fiberglass or a polyurethane plastic ranks best. see www.smooth-on.com for some sprayable plastics. these tend towards expensive, hard to apply, and toxic

for something relatively small, Bondo (automotive body filler) is a good option-- almost as strong as plastic or fiberglass but simple to apply (though still toxic)

plaster impregnated gauze ("plaster wrap") or cheesecloth is easy to apply and smooth, as well as relatively cheap, but brittle

joint compound (plaster paste used for covering the joints in gypsum wall board) over a glued-on paper (applied with wall paper paste) is even easy to apply and smooth, very cheap, but takes longer to set up and dry

a hard wax (such as parrafin) melted down and brushed over an aluminum foil barrier (applied with spray adhesive) is an option I have used frequently, as it is easiest of all, but least durable

and of course, simply gluing on a layer of paper using wall paper paste or aluminum foil using spray adhesive will give a pretty good surface, though not completely smooth.

good luck
Brad"

I have a whole can of polyurethane, so that's probably what I'm going to go with. Several coats, sand, and maybe some more coats.

I'm trying to finish this block and then block/finish my panama hat by next week, cause I'm going on a trip to Savannah, GA.

 

[bolthead]

Did you try....?

I then cut out the 4 pieces using a hack saw. I initially tried several different knives, which only broke the pieces apart and was quite inaccurate.

How about an electric knife? I works great on regular foam.....[huh]

 

[Mike in Seattle]

Here's a link to one of the stupidest, flimsiest looking devices on the planet. With two D batteries, it cuts through foam effortlessly - in fact, maybe a little too effortlessly until you're used to it. And no crumbs!

 

[jpbales]

ya

they sell a foam-cutting thing at Joanns for 20 bucks, but I was too cheap to get it I figured I would just clean up the crumbs.

I'm working putting on the coats of polyurethane, but it takes 3-4 hours between coats. I've got two coats on right now, will probably put on a third one, then will sand it with a fine paper, then put on one last one before bedtime (which is going to be late!). Hopefully it will be fairly smooth and durable.

 

[jpbales]

well...

I finished the hat block and it came out pretty well... but...

I couldn't get my hat to stretch over it It's my Montecristi panama from Bob. Now, I have to try to get it back into wearable shape again :eusa_doh:

 

[jpbales]

well...

you know what they say "try and try again"
I've been trying again and having success with my panama on my foam block. I removed the sweat and soaked it in a 5-gal bucket of water (that's been sitting for some time, not right out of the faucet) and I've been able to get it to stretch over the foam block. The only thing is that there's a big dimple in the top of the hat where it was originally blocked as a tear drop. This is the forth time that I've re-soaked it/re-blocked and it's almost gone. I think if I give it a little ironing it may flatten out- or else I'll just re-soak and try again.

I'm using a strap that I happened to have already to cinch it down to the block (it's originally for camping). The only thing about the block is that if you push too hard in any one spot you can push in the foam and make a dent.

I'm also going to need to flange or elsewise straighten out the brim when I'm done too. I may be able to just cut a hole in some cardboard and iron the brim flat- then re-shape later to give some snap to the brim. What do you guys think?

 

[Akubra Man]

That is brilliant guys ... two thumbs up from a guy who can only wish to make one because I am all thumbs. :eusa_clap

 

[jpbales]

Success!!

I've finished re-blocking and finishing my panama. It took four or five soakings before I gave up trying to get rid of the dimple on the top of the straw body where the weave starts.

I'm pretty satisfied with how the block turned out- now all I need to do is make a foam flange so I can fix the brim. After soaking it five times, there's about zero stiffener left in the straw and it doesn't hold a bash or any shape that well- and the brim just does what it wants. It's really soft and floppy tho.

I won't lie- I got exited and impatient when I was finishing the hat, so the crease and sweatband work isn't exactly perfect. Fortunately, I already had the ribbon work done from a previous time when I had more patience and attention to the quality, so it looks good.

I used a grosgrain ribbon for the sweatband, after seeing it used in other hats in a previous thread (and the old sweatband wasn't big enough after the block- so I didn't have much other choice). It's VERY comfy and conforms amazingly well. I'm sure it will breath better as a summer hat as well.

And, of course, the before picture:

Overall, I'm happy with the outcome. This is going to be my summer beater/fishing hat.