Regular Oval vs Long Oval

[HamletJSD]

My dad had that exact problem, a long oval hat that hurt the sides of his head from being so tight, but I was able (with steam and manual stretching) to expand the sides enough for it to be comfortable.

I do believe you could make it work for you. No guarantees, though .

All of my hats fit with the same; slight gaps on the sides while tight in front. I am no where near long oval so far as I can tell. I am, as you, somewhere between the two shapes.

So I could really use the opposite advice from anyone willing to offer ... how can you shrink the sides of a hat in a bit without causing total shrinkage?

 

[Stoney]

Need Slight Shrinkage and Conform?

It depends upon how well the sweatband in your hat will respond to this.
Some shrink quicker, and better, than others.

Turn the sweatband inside out.

Try wetting the rough side of the sewatband with plain tapwater.
Let the water soak into the leather. Keep putting it on until you have wet the leather evenly all around the sweatband.

Be very careful here>>> It is easy to ruin a sweatband if you overheat it.

Option1

Use a hair dryer to dry up most, but not all of, the water in the sweatband.
Turn the sweatband back in and wear the hat for the next hour or two.
The sweatband will shrink as the water dries out and the shape of the sweatband will conform to your head.


Option2

Place the hat on top of a lampshade. Turn the lamp on and check it every few minutes to see how wet it is. When the leather starts to look dry, put the hat on and wear it as above.

** Don't walk away and leave your hat on top of the lamp for 20 minutes or so.
You may come back to find that the leather has dried out and curled up into an ugly mess. (I know since I ruined the original sweatband in a vintage Boraslino.)

This is why I prefer the hair dryer method. Drying the leather is quicker and you can monitor the progress easily as it is drying. You can also try the hat on a few times while it is being dried to see if it has already shrunk down enough.

Again be careful as to how much heat you apply and never dry the seatband completely out. It's a good idea to rub in some Lexol, or Pecards leather dressing after you achieve a good fit to heal the trauma that you've put the sweatband through.

 

[HamletJSD]

Thanks Stoney, that worked famously on my beater ... now I just need to try it on a nicer hat !!! lol

 

[Stoney]

Just be careful when you do this! It works great but this is a high risk operation.
I'm glad you practiced on a beater first.

Also note that if you end up shrinking it too much you have two options.

1) Force the hat on your head to stretch it back out a little.

2) Buy a hat stretcher.

lol

 

[Dietzatron]

new strategy!

Okay, new idea. Would anyone who has a Whippet (or similar Stetson) in 7 1/4 Long measure the interior front to back and side to side? That seems like the easiest way for me to figure out if if I can wear a Long Oval or not. Thanks!

 

[dhermann1]

Question: Obviously a long oval means that the hat has a longer shape than average. How off kilter would a long oval hat look on a regular shaped head?

 

[carter]

Probably not too bad.
Does it have a self-conforming sweatband?
What constitutes "regular"?

 

[Justdog]

Question: Obviously a long oval means that the hat has a longer shape than average. How off kilter would a long oval hat look on a regular shaped head?

Its actually the same circumference. If its worn it will conform I have a new 1950 LO and it conforms like the reg o

 

[MattJH]

My favorite hat that I own (which is now being challenged by my newly acquired Stetson Whippet which is almost on its way to Graham at Optimo for a restoration) is a 7 5/8 LO MacLachlan. I'm not an LO, but it fits me perfectly. I also used to own a Dobbs Golden Coach "25" in 7 3/4 LO and that, oddly enough, also fit me perfectly.

Who knows. Maybe I am a long oval. But the 7 5/8 hats I have from Akubra fit me perfectly, too, so I'm at a loss. All I know is that, with or without the LO designation, 7 5/8 and 7 3/4 hats fit me fine.

I've never had a wide oval hat before. I'd be curious about that.

 

[ScionPI2005]

When I got my first custom from Art and sent the conformer back to him, he told me that I'm a size 7 LO. While that is the size that seems to fit me the best, I also have a few 7 1/8 LO's, as well as a one 7 regular oval, and a few 7 1/8 regulars, that all seem to fit well. Seems like the exact shape of the hat's oval can really vary across hat makers and between modern and vintage hats.

 

[cooncatbob]

Round oval is 5/8 inch longer than it is wide
Regular oval is 1 3/8 inches longer than it is wide
Long oval is 2 1/8 inches longer than it is wide
X-Long oval is 2 7/8 inches longer than it is wide
XX-Long oval is 3 5/8 inches longer than it is wide
XXX-Long oval is 4 3/8 inches longer than it is wide

 

[suitedcboy]

IS there really anyone who is a XXX long oval? That one is hard for me visualize.

 

[carter]

My favorite hat that I own (which is now being challenged by my newly acquired Stetson Whippet which is almost on its way to Graham at Optimo for a restoration) is a 7 5/8 LO MacLachlan. I'm not an LO, but it fits me perfectly. I also used to own a Dobbs Golden Coach "25" in 7 3/4 LO and that, oddly enough, also fit me perfectly.

Who knows. Maybe I am a long oval. But the 7 5/8 hats I have from Akubra fit me perfectly, too, so I'm at a loss. All I know is that, with or without the LO designation, 7 5/8 and 7 3/4 hats fit me fine.

I've never had a wide oval hat before. I'd be curious about that.

My Mallory Coast to Coast is a 7 5/8 wide oval. It actually fits better than some long ovals.

 

[Baron Kurtz]

IS there really anyone who is a XXX long oval? That one is hard for me visualize.

Friendly bartender Scotrace, i believe. A very difficult man to fit.

bk

 

[Mahagonny Bill]

I was at my local hat shop this weekend and was talking to the clerk about sizes. I mentioned that I had just picked up a vintage Long Oval hat and the clerk told me that the big companies don't make long oval sizes any more. She said that they will send Long Oval tags on request, but all hats are actually regular circumference. Does this ring true with anyone, or was I getting a hard sale to buy what was in stock?

 

[Michael Bonner]

Factory long ovals

In my very, very limited experience, only Stratton and Beaver Brand will make a "factory" hat in long-oval; but, these are actually "made to order" and not stocked. I've been told resistol makes some western's in long oval.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

The brim of an oval on a long oval head will distort a bit so that the sides curve up higher than normal. The brim of a long oval on an oval head will distort so that the sides flatten out more than normal.

This has the potential to be true. I'm a 7 LO like Scion, and if a hat is really a regular oval it tends to make the sides of the brim ride up a bit and the front and back drop down a bit when on my head.

 

[HarpPlayerGene]

I was at my local hat shop this weekend and was talking to the clerk about sizes. I mentioned that I had just picked up a vintage Long Oval hat and the clerk told me that the big companies don't make long oval sizes any more. She said that they will send Long Oval tags on request, but all hats are actually regular circumference. Does this ring true with anyone, or was I getting a hard sale to buy what was in stock?

I believe it. I have an older Open Road which is truly LO and a newer one which only purported to be LO. The newer one binds in the front and back.

 

[John in Covina]

IS there really anyone who is a XXX long oval? That one is hard for me visualize.

******
The Alien is that XXXXX-LO

 

[indycop]

The brim of an oval on a long oval head will distort a bit so that the sides curve up higher than normal. The brim of a long oval on an oval head will distort so that the sides flatten out more than normal.

This has proven painfully true in my case with panama hats. I am an extra long oval and even after long ovaling and flanging my head will still distort the brim.:eusa_doh: