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Machine blocked panamas
- Thread starter Davidson
- Start date
SHARPETOYS
Call Me a Cab
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- 2,425
- Location
- Titusville, Florida
The machine blocking the hats can weaken/ stress the fibers and I have seen the straw cracked on some. I think a hand blocked Panama will last longer.
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Thanks, Sharpetoys!
Some ebay and online vendors specifically state hand-blocked. Many say nothing, so I assume machine blocked. I can see where sharp angles in machine blocking could be a problem, but I thought those with more gentle curves could be OK. You've probably right in all cases, though.
Some ebay and online vendors specifically state hand-blocked. Many say nothing, so I assume machine blocked. I can see where sharp angles in machine blocking could be a problem, but I thought those with more gentle curves could be OK. You've probably right in all cases, though.
Panamabob
Call Me a Cab
- Messages
- 2,012
- Location
- Fort Wayne, Indiana
We sell TONS of machine blocked hats yearly. On the coarsest straw you do see straw damage on almost every hat that has sharp creases. Hats like the Optimo, and other light creases look pretty good.
HungaryTom
One Too Many
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- 1,204
- Location
- Hungary
Few more Q's
Dear Davidson,
Machine blocking of Panama hats(Cuenca&Montecristi) is an interesting thread raising many more questions to be addressed at FL experts (A-Z order) here:
#1 Art, as master hatter. Where would you say that the hat is worth of hand blocking or restoration done by an artisan? How many times can be a hand-blocked hat re-blocked? Is it worth to get a very simple hat body (in weave) hand-blocked?
#2 PanamaBob, as vendor of unblocked &blocked Panama hats in all quality ranges; you answered elsewhere that most hatters buy in the 300-500 wpsi from you. Besides this range is readily available -many weavers do it in acceptable quality and it has a moderate price, could it be that this straw quality still "accepts" machine blocking? Does it make sense at all to get high weave-count hats (900-1000 and upwards) to be sent to machine block just to save some money? At which range do you offer machine blocked hats and which one are hand-blocked? Are your Ecuadorian hats hand-blocked? Are the Homero Ortega hats are all machine blocked? How does the process of machine blocking look like?
# 3 Sharpetoys, as a hat collector; you own many Panamas from average Cuenca to high-end Montecristi and some vintage Montecristi museum grade hats. Which of your hats with fine toquilla would you give a no-go to be stamped/stomped by a blocking machine, if they needed reshaping? Do you prefer hand block over machine block?
Kind Regards:
HungaryTom
Dear Davidson,
Machine blocking of Panama hats(Cuenca&Montecristi) is an interesting thread raising many more questions to be addressed at FL experts (A-Z order) here:
#1 Art, as master hatter. Where would you say that the hat is worth of hand blocking or restoration done by an artisan? How many times can be a hand-blocked hat re-blocked? Is it worth to get a very simple hat body (in weave) hand-blocked?
#2 PanamaBob, as vendor of unblocked &blocked Panama hats in all quality ranges; you answered elsewhere that most hatters buy in the 300-500 wpsi from you. Besides this range is readily available -many weavers do it in acceptable quality and it has a moderate price, could it be that this straw quality still "accepts" machine blocking? Does it make sense at all to get high weave-count hats (900-1000 and upwards) to be sent to machine block just to save some money? At which range do you offer machine blocked hats and which one are hand-blocked? Are your Ecuadorian hats hand-blocked? Are the Homero Ortega hats are all machine blocked? How does the process of machine blocking look like?
# 3 Sharpetoys, as a hat collector; you own many Panamas from average Cuenca to high-end Montecristi and some vintage Montecristi museum grade hats. Which of your hats with fine toquilla would you give a no-go to be stamped/stomped by a blocking machine, if they needed reshaping? Do you prefer hand block over machine block?
Kind Regards:
HungaryTom
