Ask a question, get an answer

[belfastboy]

Got the box thing sorted, thanks to all - one more question - or maybe two - along these lines.

1.) What do you like for/where do you source packing material?

I bought what I thought was a good tape dispenser (previously I had been using these little rolls from like Dollar General) and I still hate it.

2.) Do you have a tape dispenser you like?

I buy from ULine....a great company. I get overnight delivery with any order placed before 6:00pm. I buy the kraft wrapping paper, their hat boxes, shop gloves and packing tape. The 14x14x7 is small enought...just...so it qualifies as a small box and gets the best postal rate. They fit most if not all fedora sizes. I have their 16x16x7 box for western dimension hats.

 

[BrimReaper]

I scored this gray Akubra Snowy River off ebay for less than $50 shipped. The brim needs shaping, which is no big deal, but there's some discoloration on the felt. The seller said it was "from water" but the felt is still matted down in the affected areas after brushing it. So the spots are from water... mixed with what?

Any suggestions about what I can do to try to remove them or at least make them less noticeable? I've brushed with a horsehair hat brush and used a hat cleaning sponge, and maybe I've reduced the appearance a little bit when I did it a second time after steaming the brim, but they're still pretty apparent up close. The good news is that they get less noticeable from further away, so they're not ruining the overall look of the hat, but I don't want to go too crazy trying to remove them on my own.

 

[jeffgarf]

I scored this gray Akubra Snowy River off ebay for less than $50 shipped. The brim needs shaping, which is no big deal, but there's some discoloration on the felt. The seller said it was "from water" but the felt is still matted down in the affected areas after brushing it. So the spots are from water... mixed with what?

Any suggestions about what I can do to try to remove them or at least make them less noticeable? I've brushed with a horsehair hat brush and used a hat cleaning sponge, and maybe I've reduced the appearance a little bit when I did it a second time after steaming the brim, but they're still pretty apparent up close. The good news is that they get less noticeable from further away, so they're not ruining the overall look of the hat, but I don't want to go too crazy trying to remove them on my own.

View attachment 812030
View attachment 812031

Others with more experience should weigh in, but for tough stains like that, first try Orvus paste or Fels-Naptha soap with water. As a last resort, try sanding with 600 or higher grit sandpaper to reduce the stained areas.

 

[Hurricane Jack]

Distilled White Vinegar is 5% acidic & 95% water. It is usually good for spot cleaning. Dab it on the spot with a dry sponge, rag or cotton ball. Don’t scrub. Allow the vinegar to dissolve the residue & bring it to the surface. It may take more than one treatment. After a good application of vinegar setting the hat outside in sunshine will sometimes help it to act faster.

 

[BrimReaper]

I like the style of the hat band, but I don't care for the color. I think a nice darker brown would suit the hat better. Is it worth trying to remove the band and stain it, or should I just get a new band instead?

 

[Oil Tanned]

In looking around the site for Stetson Royal DeLuxe I see the term sometimes used as if in reference to a hat style and other times it seems like it's a reference to a felt. Has Stetson conflated the term over time and if not, which is it?

 

[jlee562]

In looking around the site for Stetson Royal DeLuxe I see the term sometimes used as if in reference to a hat style and other times it seems like it's a reference to a felt. Has Stetson conflated the term over time and if not, which is it?

It's the felt grade above Royal. You are perhaps misreading posts that ID hats as "a" Royal Deluxe, which usually means there's no discernable model name. There was also a time were it was Royal Stetson Deluxe, but that's still the same relative quality felt grade.

 

[Hurricane Jack]

The seller said it was "from water" but the felt is still matted down in the affected areas after brushing it. So the spots are from water... mixed with what?

I wonder if it isn’t salt residue from ocean water? If so it should be easy to break down the residue. Perhaps someone who lives on the coast can offer an opinion. Salt water spray?

 

[RickP]

Ive had a couple folks ask me recently why my particular Akubra sometimes looks different than theirs. Short answer is that over time Ive decided I personally like a 2-3/4" to 3" brim. Several of my larger Akubra brims have been trimmed down. I normally edge trim so I hold a similar brim dimension to the origional shape. In cases where I have multiple similar hats, I may trim one dimensionally, and another rounder to the shape of the crown. (two hats with a similar crown but different brims can take a personality all their own and look totally different). Note that if Im thinking of a brim trim, I always break in the hat so it fits me before I do any trimming ( saves me a lot of brim wave correcting) . Lots of my hats start out as damaged hats that require some love. I most always trim in 1/8" increments... ya cant put felt back on lol. Im always fond of ending up with hats that someone else cant just buy

 

[Judgmentalist]

Is this weird?

https://ebay.io/m/ToEPc4

 

[blewnote]

Is this weird?

https://ebay.io/m/ToEPc4

View attachment 813384 View attachment 813385

Yes, those two bits of info are at odds with each other.

Does anyone know if that guy is a fellow lounger? For a while I thought it might be Bond, but I'm not sure he would make a mistake like that.

My guess is that it's a 3X that someone threw a Nutria liner they had lying around into, or a Nutria that for some weird reason got a 3X band during a renovation by a store that had OEM Stetson parts back in the day (although it would beg the question why they wouldn't have been able to find a Nutria branded sweatband in that case).

 

[Judgmentalist]

Yes, those two bits of info are at odds with each other.

Does anyone know if that guy is a fellow lounger? For a while I thought it might be Bond, but I'm not sure he would make a mistake like that.

My guess is that it's a 3X that someone threw a Nutria liner they had lying around into, or a Nutria that for some weird reason got a 3X band during a renovation by a store that had OEM Stetson parts back in the day (although it would beg the question why they wouldn't have been able to find a Nutria branded sweatband in that case).

That's what I was thinking. I would really like to know which data point is accurate.

 

[Judgmentalist]

That's what I was thinking. I would really like to know which data point is accurate.

Also, what crease is a couple inches lower than the current one and would leave that line? I would also like to know that. : )

 

[BobHufford]

Also, what crease is a couple inches lower than the current one and would leave that line? I would also like to know that. : )

Telescope probably.

 

[belfastboy]

Yes, those two bits of info are at odds with each other.

Does anyone know if that guy is a fellow lounger? For a while I thought it might be Bond, but I'm not sure he would make a mistake like that.

My guess is that it's a 3X that someone threw a Nutria liner they had lying around into, or a Nutria that for some weird reason got a 3X band during a renovation by a store that had OEM Stetson parts back in the day (although it would beg the question why they wouldn't have been able to find a Nutria branded sweatband in that case).

I think it is Scott (Bond)

 

[belfastboy]

I think it is Scott (Bond)

Scott does restorations so your speculation may be accurate.

 

[blewnote]

Scott does restorations so your speculation may be accurate.

Yeah, that's why I thought it might be him, but usually that seller is pretty clear when it's a restoration. Seems like he'd have mentioned the mismatched liner but who knows.

 

[blewnote]

Telescope probably.

100% agree. That Champ Texan I posted pictures of the sweatband the other day must have had a telescope crease because it easily slipped back into it and hid the lines on the felt you can see when you try to give it a different crease.

 

[RickP]

Is this weird?

https://ebay.io/m/ToEPc4

View attachment 813384 View attachment 813385

reminds me of a couple Stesons Ive got... Sweatband says Royal Deluxe, but the Liner says Royal

 

[jeffgarf]

Anyone ever come across a Stetson Twenty-Two? If so, could you date it (I'd guess early sixties?)?