hat stiffness

[ben woodling]

hey guys,
i recently purchased a very ,luvly ,new ,gorgeous "dube" derby hat.
Im just wondering if the brim has to be super stiff, and if so how can i keep it stiff(no viagra please). how carefull have i got to be when using my hat, as not to break it?

thanks alot guys,

Ben

[Tom B]

I havent had expierence with the dube derby hat, but I do own a dube top hat. I also have a Poll Bowler hat. Now that is a GREAT hat. Its triple layered wool felt. It stands up to much more abuse than my top hat. And its deeper than the derby = room for more $$$
I do know that Andy Heads hat video had directions on how to stifen up the body of a hat.
I guess this didnt help much [img]rolleyes.gif[/img]
Have fun with your new hat!
Tom B
www.tombartholomew.com

[Steven Ragatz]

It depends on how stiff you want the hat and brim. You can add sizing to your existing hat to stiffen it up some, but this won't change the feel much. For hat millinery supplies, check out:

http://www.judithm.com

If you want it to be really stiff, then you can glue suede to it for reinforcement. Additional layers of felt can be glued to the suede, or the suede can be painted or dyed to match the rest of the hat.

For what it's worth, you can check out:

http://www.stevenragatz.com/Backstage/hat1.htm

The instructions are incomplete, but even I have better things to do then to spew random noise out into cyberspace. It can give you an overview of building your own derby (particularly if you want it to be really stiff.) If you have any specific questions, feel free to email me.

Steven Ragatz

[ben woodling]

thanks guys. but tom your scrarin me now(my hats not good enuf?)
cheers
ben

[Tom B]

tom your scrarin me now(my hats not good enuf?)

No I didnt intend for it to sound like that. I have had a lot of use out of my Dube Top Hat, and its great. I am sure that the Derby is simmilar in construction. I have had my top hat for a couple of years and its still in good condition. I just really like my Bowler.
Tom

[ben woodling]

ok man, cheers. im gonna see if i can put some starch or summit onit.
thanks alot
ben

[Scot Free]

I use an iron and steam my hat when I want to re-shape it, it works great, after it cools it is pretty stiff.

[flooglestreet]

Don't ask why, but I used to wear a felt smokey bear hat. I would soak it in ScotchGard (spray the brim until its sopping wet) put a hatform on the brim and then bake it in an oven for about an hour. My hatform was two piecesof plywood, perfectly smooth, and slightly larger then the hat. One of the pieces was cut to fit the crown exactly, and the other was just the square. I heldmine together with C clamps, others had holes drilled in the corners to acceptscrews and wing nuts.