Want to order a Fed IV...questions

[scottyrocks]

"Screen reminiscent". I like that! As I stated in my previous post, like you I wasn't looking for an exact duplication of any of the hats seen in the four Indy films, just a nice fedora that was "Indy-esque". In fact, the hat I liked best was the style seen in Kingdom of the Crystal Skull because it looked the most like a regular fedora (no tight pinch, no "Indy swoop").

If you want a hat exactly like that, you need to contact Steve at Adventurebilt. He's a member here, and on COW. He and his partner made the hats for CS. They are pricey, but if you want the real deal, then he's the man. However, if you just want an Indyesque hat, as I do, I feel you cant go wrong with a Fed IV.

And btw, youre not the only one that had trouble with turning a Fed IV. They just dont seem to respond well to that look.

 

[scottyrocks]

As I understand it, distilled water is preferred since tap water often contains chemicals that can affect the dyes used on the hat, correct?

Yes, thats correct.

"Ooch". Interesting terminology; it that a professional hatter's term? lol

I understand what you're describing--the tighter the curve you want, the smaller diameter of the ball you use to shape it. I must say, however, that it's only the downward turn at the front of the brim I'm having trouble with; the egdes of the rest of the brim curled up nicely during the first few days after receiving my hat, and I'm quite satisfied with the look.

Well, you may need to use another 'hatters' term' - smoosh, to get the front to stay down. I found, during my Fed's initial shaping, that I couldnt be gentle with the front of the brim. It wouldnt stay down until I 'showed it who's boss,' so to speak. When you bend it down, exaggerate the movement it bit, even rolling it a little, and do it repeatedly, and it will conform to your wishes. Dont forget to spray it first.

Actually, I quite like the tall taperless crown. In fact, for me it may be a necessity--even with what I consider to be a rather shallow center dent (only an inch or less) the top of my head rests against the inside of the crown (or vice versa) when I'm wearing the hat, and this tends to push the center dent out a bit. A teardrop bash might be better suited to my melon, but, a) I'm not crazy about the look, and b) I think I'm far too inexperienced at hat bashing to try it in the first place.

What size are you, and how far down on your head are you wearing the hat?Fed IVs have a relatively tall crown and 'shouldnt' touch the top of your head when center-dented.

Although I had tried a quickie teardrop in this hat, I knew I wasnt going to wear it that way because I want an Indyesque hat, so I didnt care for it that way, either.

The easiest way to solve this would be to post photos of me wearing the hat so you could all tell me, "Ah, you're crazy, it looks fine." But I don't have any. Maybe one of these days I can sweet-talk my wife into taking a few...

If you have a digital camera, take a few of yourself, either at arm's length, or in the mirror. Im sure Im not the only one who is curious about you and your hat.

 

[Zombie_61]

If you want a hat exactly like that, you need to contact Steve at Adventurebilt. He's a member here, and on COW. He and his partner made the hats for CS. They are pricey, but if you want the real deal, then he's the man. However, if you just want an Indyesque hat, as I do, I feel you cant go wrong with a Fed IV.

I'm familiar with Steve and Adventurebilt, and I'm a member of Club Obi Wan as well (I go by the screen name "Zombie Jones" there). Terrific hats, but definitely out of my price range.

Except for my apparent inability to shape the front of the brim to my satisfaction, I love my Fed IV. At the time I bought it I wanted a hat that would last, and Akubra's reputation for durability was one of the major selling points for me. Winter of 2008 I wore it whenever it rained (which wasn't often) with no problems, but lately I've been using my Real Deal Brazil as my go-to hat for wet weather--less than half the cost of the Fed IV, and looks better the more weather-beaten it gets.

Well, you may need to use another 'hatters' term' - smoosh, to get the front to stay down. I found, during my Fed's initial shaping, that I couldnt be gentle with the front of the brim. It wouldnt stay down until I 'showed it who's boss,' so to speak. When you bend it down, exaggerate the movement it bit, even rolling it a little, and do it repeatedly, and it will conform to your wishes. Dont forget to spray it first.

Oh, I've bent it, rolled it, tweaked it, whatever, and wasn't gentle; I'm convinced I've worked all the stiffener out of it by now. Water may be the key, as I've only "wet shaped" it after the mildest of wet weather which, as I stated earlier, only slightly dampened the surface of the felt.

What size are you, and how far down on your head are you wearing the hat? Fed IVs have a relatively tall crown and 'shouldnt' touch the top of your head when center-dented.

60 cm on the nose. Whether I place it on my head pulled forward so that the sweatband is just above my eyebrows, level, or tilted backward slightly so that the front of the sweatband is near my hairline (which is my preference when wearing it, very much like Harrison Ford is wearing his in this photo) the inside of the crown just touches the top of my head (and the underside of the brim is about 1/4" above the tops of my ears). Some might say the hat is a size or two too big which allows it to rest too far down on my head, but that's where it feels the most comfortable to me. I probably have a mis-shapen skull to accomodate my larger-than-normal brain. And if you believe that, I've got a bridge to sell you. lol

If you have a digital camera, take a few of yourself, either at arm's length, or in the mirror. Im sure Im not the only one who is curious about you and your hat.

That might work; I just have to remember to get the camera from my wife, who tends to carry it around in her purse a lot.

BTW, my most sincere apologies to Chum. My posts seem to have hijacked your thread, which was not my intention.

 

[DarthBish]

This is my first post andI think it's appropriate that it's in Fed IV thread as I think they're beautiful hats.
I've got 5 so far and intend on completing my collection soon with a Carbon Grey.
I think I've been hat mad since about 1980...(yes, it was initially an Indy thing)...but recently my passion has expanded beyond that to Fedora hats in general.
I just think that they're a wonderful item of fashion.
I get goosebumps when I see a nice one and think "mannnnnnn where did they get THAT hat.

As far as HatsDirect go....They are TERRIFIC to deal with.
Jen, Deb and the team have always been nothing but a pleasure to deal with.
Oh, and if you get one from them, do me a favour and say "hi" from "Scott the hat tragic"

 

[scottyrocks]

Oh, I've bent it, rolled it, tweaked it, whatever, and wasn't gentle; I'm convinced I've worked all the stiffener out of it by now. Water may be the key, as I've only "wet shaped" it after the mildest of wet weather which, as I stated earlier, only slightly dampened the surface of the felt.

I believe thats the key. Spray it down, top and bottom of the brim, and go at it.

 

[chum]

BTW, my most sincere apologies to Chum. My posts seem to have hijacked your thread, which was not my intention.

I am enjoying reading this...no apology necessary...

 

[Zombie_61]

I believe thats the key. Spray it down, top and bottom of the brim, and go at it.

I'm glad you mentioned this; it hadn't occurred to me to spray the underside of the brim as well. Should it be saturated through the entire thickness of the felt, or just dampen the two surfaces?

This is my first post andI think it's appropriate that it's in Fed IV thread as I think they're beautiful hats.
I've got 5 so far and intend on completing my collection soon with a Carbon Grey.
I think I've been hat mad since about 1980...(yes, it was initially an Indy thing)...but recently my passion has expanded beyond that to Fedora hats in general.
I just think that they're a wonderful item of fashion.
I get goosebumps when I see a nice one and think "mannnnnnn where did they get THAT hat.

From one new guy to another, welcome!

I never thought much about hats myself until I saw Raiders of the Lost Ark for the first time in 1981. I realized I'd always liked fedoras and thought Indy's was just about the best looking hat I'd ever seen, but at that time fedoras were still considered to be an "older gentleman's" hat (in my area, anyway). Also, home computers and the Internet weren't exactly common household items in those days, so my resources were limited. But after seeing Kingdom of the Crystal Skull and being one of those older gentlemen now (sort of) I finally decided to get one of my own. The Internet, some research and...well, here we are. If I ever got another Fed IV, and I have considered it, the Carbon Grey would be my choice as well.

I am enjoying reading this...no apology necessary...

Thank you for being so accommodating to one of the new kids! :cheers1:

 

[chum]

to Zombie_61 I did this...I hung my Fed off the rounded edge of a table by putting something heavy on the front edge of the brim. I then spray misted the hell out of it and blotted off the excess. I let it dry naturaly for about 2 hours and it worked perfect! The front swoop stays and if I push it back up it snaps back down!
Being satisfied with this I found my perfect bash I soaked the rest of the hat and just worked the back and sides of the brim a bit with my hands and so far that is fine too!

Back to the original topic of this thread now for a bit! As everyone must know I now I have my Fed IV. It is a little bit too big, but I feel, if I had gotten a 56 instead of a 57, it would have been a little too small, which would have been worse. If and when it shrinks I feel it will fit perfect!

 

[Zombie_61]

to Zombie_61 I did this...I hung my Fed off the rounded edge of a table by putting something heavy on the front edge of the brim. I then spray misted the hell out of it and blotted off the excess. I let it dry naturaly for about 2 hours and it worked perfect! The front swoop stays and if I push it back up it snaps back down!

So, if I understand your description correctly, you essentially hung your Fed off of the edge of the table and let the hat's weight and stiffness of the damp felt determine the amount of "swoop" to the front of the brim. Interesting; I never would have thought of that.

Back to the original topic of this thread now for a bit! As everyone must know I now I have my Fed IV. It is a little bit too big, but I feel, if I had gotten a 56 instead of a 57, it would have been a little too small, which would have been worse. If and when it shrinks I feel it will fit perfect!

As I understand it, the Fed IV was created with the amount of shrinkage of the sweatband taken into account--essentially a "shrink to fit" design--which is why they fit a bit loose at first. IIRC it's perspiration (or other form of moisture) that causes the shrinkage, which seems to have held true in my case since I received mine in early summer when the weather was quite warm, and it shrank to (what I consider to be) a perfect fit in only a few days. I agree with you however; a hat that's slightly too large is preferable to one that's too small, and IMO you made the right decision with regards to sizing.

 

[scottyrocks]

When I spray my hats for reshaping, I spray them so that the color darkens completely but I do not saturate the felt. The felt is very easy to manipulate. I suppose you could lay it down as suggested and let gravity do its thing, but I like to shape it by hand first, and then set it down to dry, right side up, with the front hanging. I use an old half-shell motorcycle helmet.

 

[Zombie_61]

Well, after all this I believe my wife and I have sorted out the problem with my Fed IV--it's my head. I can shape the front of the brim to my satisfaction when I'm holding it in my hand, but when I put it on it just doesn't look right. As it turns out, my head is a bit wider than the shape of the crown. As such, when I put it on my head pushes the sides of the crown slightly outward, causing the front of the brim to distort so that it "dips" downward in the center. :eusa_doh: Short of having my skull narrowed, is there any way to alleviate this?

 

[Chuck Bobuck]

Well, after all this I believe my wife and I have sorted out the problem with my Fed IV--it's my head. I can shape the front of the brim to my satisfaction when I'm holding it in my hand, but when I put it on it just doesn't look right. As it turns out, my head is a bit wider than the shape of the crown. As such, when I put it on my head pushes the sides of the crown slightly outward, causing the front of the brim to distort so that it "dips" downward in the center. :eusa_doh: Short of having my skull narrowed, is there any way to alleviate this?

If you mean you're more of a long oval and it needs to be longer front to back, you could put the front of the Fed over your knee and pull, while grabbing inside, on the sweat band. You can stretch it out this way. I had a Squatter that I couldn't get the brim right on, so I did the above and it fit much better. Ron at Hats Direct gave me the tip. You could stretch it side to side if that's the issue.

To shape the crown and brim, I do what scottyrocks suggests with spraying with water. Shape and hang to dry.

 

[Zombie_61]

If you mean you're more of a long oval and it needs to be longer front to back, you could put the front of the Fed over your knee and pull, while grabbing inside, on the sweat band. You can stretch it out this way. I had a Squatter that I couldn't get the brim right on, so I did the above and it fit much better. Ron at Hats Direct gave me the tip. You could stretch it side to side if that's the issue.

To shape the crown and brim, I do what scottyrocks suggests with spraying with water. Shape and hang to dry.

Actually, it's the opposite. Apparently I'm more of a round oval, so the distortion is side-to-side rather than front-to-back. Hold a fedora with your hands inside the crown, push outward on the sides (just above where your ears would be if you were wearing the hat), and watch the front of the brim; you should see the distortion I'm trying to describe.

However, I did try your stretching suggestion by inverting the hat and aggressively pulling outward on the sides of the sweatband, essentially distorting the hat to the same degree as putting it on my head and then some. After re-bashing the crown and placing it on my head, the distortion was slightly lessened. However, that same distortion is now present when I remove the hat, just not quite as severe. As soon as I can get some distilled water I'll try wet-shaping the brim to see what effect that has. If nothing changes, I guess I'll just have to live with it.

Interestingly, I saw Shutter Island today. At the beginning of the film Leonardo DiCaprio wears a fedora, and I noticed the brim of his hat had the same deformation as mine (to a lesser degree, but noticeable if you're looking for it). Apparently it's a common problem for those of us with a fat head.

 

[AlterEgo]

Well, after all this I believe my wife and I have sorted out the problem with my Fed IV--it's my head. I can shape the front of the brim to my satisfaction when I'm holding it in my hand, but when I put it on it just doesn't look right. As it turns out, my head is a bit wider than the shape of the crown. As such, when I put it on my head pushes the sides of the crown slightly outward, causing the front of the brim to distort so that it "dips" downward in the center. :eusa_doh: Short of having my skull narrowed, is there any way to alleviate this?

A large vice would work. When your wife is in a bad mood--like after, say, you forgot your anniversay--she'd probably be more than happy to turn the screw.

Interestingly, I saw Shutter Island today. At the beginning of the film Leonardo DiCaprio wears a fedora, and I noticed the brim of his hat had the same deformation as mine (to a lesser degree, but noticeable if you're looking for it). Apparently it's a common problem for those of us with a fat head.

That's good news for you--a second career as Leo's stand-in!

 

[Joeyeah_right]

FedIV has arrived!

My FedIV has arrived today. It's only my second fedora (the other one being a Christy's Knightsbridge - the one in my avatar).
It is such a beautiful hat, and I had the pleasure of getting to bash it.
I was planning to use it as my main hat, to keep me dry in the rain and basically get it battered around, but now i'm not so sure as it's such a nice hat.

I can't post photos yet, so here's a link to the photo i took of me wearing it.

http://www.okonah.co.uk/sp/fed4.jpg

Sorry for the poor photo, but I had to take it myself by holding my camera at arms length.

 

[Chuck Bobuck]

Joeyeah_right, nice hat. The carbon grey Fed is my favorite too.

 

[cybergentleman]

impressed

Joeyeah_right, i like your fed iv.

now, i am seriously considering the carbon grey...the brim is very flat though, any thoughts about curling that thing in the near future?

 

[Joeyeah_right]

Joeyeah_right, i like your fed iv.

now, i am seriously considering the carbon grey...the brim is very flat though, any thoughts about curling that thing in the near future?

I intend to curl the brim at the back and sides and get the front swooping down, but i didn't have time to steam it or anything. i dry-bashed it straight from the box and put it on and took the photo.

Joe

 

[jlee562]

Joeyeah_right, i like your fed iv.

now, i am seriously considering the carbon grey...the brim is very flat though, any thoughts about curling that thing in the near future?

Get it wet. I've got a Carbon Grey Fed IV and while I could get the bash to set in with a little steam, the brim didn't want to do anything until I had worn it out in the rain a few times.

 

[Zombie_61]

A large vice would work. When your wife is in a bad mood--like after, say, you forgot your anniversay--she'd probably be more than happy to turn the screw.

Oh, so you've met her then.

Joe - Nice Fed, and it looks great on you! Glad to hear you're planning on shaping the brim a bit, as I agree with cybergentleman's comment about it's flatness. Please post photos after you've done so.