Plastic in lining of vintage hats

[seed]

I just recently won a hat on eBay, but was originally hesitant to get it for a few reasons. One of the reasons was the plastic in the top of the liner. Odd as it may sound, I have never personally experienced a hat with plastic on the top portion of the liner. I shave my dome down to the skin once or twice a week and am little concerned that the plastic will bug me. But the price was right and so I took the gamble

What do you think? Am I being silly, or will the plastic possibly be annoying?

 

[PabloElFlamenco]

I would invite the board to correct me if I'm wrong, but -ordinarily- I would not expect the top inner surface of the liner to touch my scalp. I can't know for sure, because I have (long) hair.

Paul

 

[seed]

I would invite the board to correct me if I'm wrong, but -ordinarily- I would not expect the top inner surface of the liner to touch my scalp. I can't know for sure, because I have (long) hair.

Paul

On low crown hats, the liner can just touch my shaven scalp...not at all uncomfortable with silk.

 

[PabloElFlamenco]

Ok - then I've learned that, Seed...

In case the hat is not sherished for its "museum vintage quality", you might of course consider carefully trimming the plastic off the liner. I don't off the cuff know if that is feasible, for instance, it could leave a sliver of plastic "trim" very near the stitching of the plastic, even though I guess even that should be fully removable, given some very nifty scissorhands...

And the plastic might even be glued but I'm pretty sure it usually isn't, in the case of lined hats.

Anyway you do it,
good luck!
Pablo

 

[Michaelshane]

It will bother you when you take the hat off,or when you adjust it.It will stick to the top of your head.Not that big of a deal though.

 

[jimmy the lid]

I, too, hate the feeling of the plastic liner protector directly against the top of my head. There are three different options. The first is to crease the hat in a way that elevates the top of the crown so that it does not sit directly against the top of your head. This is the method I use for vintage lids, since I want to keep all parts of the original lid intact.

Alternatively, you could simply remove the plastic protector. I routinely do this for more modern lids. It is easy to do, and, as a result, the plastic will not stick to the top of your head.

Lastly, you could simply remove the liner entirely. I am becoming more of a fan of going without a liner. This is also a technique you could use on a vintage lid, as well -- and then just keep the liner stored away in its original condition. You can always replace it if you change your mind.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[Mr. Paladin]

I won a beautiful Borsalino homburg off e-Bay last week and the plastic liner in it was shredded through deterioration. I very successfully removed the plastic at the stitching with some fine tipped scissors similar to embroidery scissors. It was not difficult at all.

 

[MattJH]

The one I had on my Herbert Johnson was yellowing and cracked, so I just tore the plastic out with my hands. It came off the liner extremely easily.

 

[carter]

It is worth noting that the "plastic" shield in a vintage hat may not be plastic. It is an older material called "oilskin/oil silk/fish skin". There is a discussion in this thread.

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/showthread.php?t=32623&page=2&highlight=oilskin

 

[MattJH]

Thanks, carter. That's definitely what was in my Herbert Johnson. Not plastic, but that stuff. It came out very easily.

 

[Justdog]

Liner

I believe they call that brylcreme (sp) Should not cause you an issue. It protects the liner and the graphic if any underneath it.

 

[MattJH]

I believe they call that brylcreme (sp) Should not cause you an issue. It protects the liner and the graphic if any underneath it.

Brylcreem is a men's hair care product. It's what sometimes stains liners after extended use, which may be where you picked the name up from in connection with hat liners.

 

[Feraud]

It is worth noting that the "plastic" shield in a vintage hat may not be plastic. It is an older material called "oilskin/oil silk/fish skin". There is a discussion in this thread.

Just to expand on Carter's comment.

A hat liner may have a plasticky semi-opaque looking piece of material in the lid like this -

which is the oil/silk/fishskin material

or it may have a plastic cap like in this one -

 

[jdbenson]

Stuck to my head

I've had challenges with the plastic dome liner on my hats sticking to my bald head as well. I've got a large domed head and no matter how I bash them, ALL hats touch the top of my head. I'd take my hat off and the entire liner would turn inside out and hang out of my hat.

Rather than cutting out the plastic or removing the liner entirely, I stitched the liner to the top of the crown. I used a very fine needle and didn't actually pentrate the felt, just went thru about 1/2 of the felt's thickness. I put one stick at each of the 4 points of the compass around the plastic in the liner (Thanks to Art F. for the tip!). I've done this to my Campdraft and my vintage Resistol OR clone.

No more problems!

 

[seed]

Thanks for all the help...keep the tips and ideas coming.

The hat in question is a vintage Stetson Centennial I won off of eBay. Ironically, I wasn't even really trying that hard to win it, but I did. It's even one size too small. Well, I got it for a good price so I can't complain about the liner or size. But being that it is some sort of historically significant hat, I am personally afraid to cut out the plastic unless I can do it in such a way that it would not look unprofessionally done. And I am even afraid to do any stitching as jdbenson described. If you want to see the hat, there is a thread with pictures of it (eBay stories thread...sorry, but I'm being extremely lazy by not including the link) which is always refreshed with new posts. It is on page 111, I believe.

Should I just leave it alone? Or since it is my hat now, should I go ahead with lid surgery?

 

[Michaelshane]

I have memories of my Grandfather taking his hat off,taking the handkerchief he had in his hat wiping his brow,putting the handkerchief back in his hat and putting his hat back on his head.

 

[seed]

I have memories of my Grandfather taking his hat off,taking the handkerchief he had in his hat wiping his brow,putting the handkerchief back in his hat and putting his hat back on his head.

Screw that! Did he ever somehow mention that he was overheated by retention of heat and lack of escape of moisture caused by the plastic liner?

 

[Feraud]

Should I just leave it alone? Or since it is my hat now, should I go ahead with lid surgery?

I say leave it alone.

 

[jimmy the lid]

Since the lid in question appears to be a little piece of Stetson history, I would not remove the plastic. I would, however, see if I could crease the hat in such a way so as to avoid contact with the top of my head. Or, if it's still too warm, I'd remove the liner entirely and tuck it away in a safe place.

Cheers,
JtL

 

[gtdean48]

... I'd remove the liner entirely and tuck it away in a safe place.
Cheers,
JtL

:arated: what Jimmy said. I'd go so far as to find a liner out of a beater to be a replacement player if you are going to wear it. You can buy new ones for a sub fairly cheap, too.