Possible cure for a green Akubra Fed?

Shawnkara · Post by **Shawnkara** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 8:22 pm

Now, I've never tried this so take it for what it's worth...
I dye a lot of fabric in my line of work. Iuse RIT dye which comes in concentrated liquid and powder form. When I first read of this problem my first thought was, "Just dye it!". Well, submerging a fedora into HOT water and dye is a stupid idea. Then my second idea came...
I've heard that some hatters use a topical powder that you rub into the felt to even up the color. Given that I'm thinking you could do this same thing with the RIT powder. Just sprinkle it evenly on the hat, dust it in with a brush or something and srritz it with COLD water to activate the dye a bit so it's not just powder. After the spritzing you could run a damp cloth lightly over it to even it more. Like I said, I've never done it. Just a thought.

Mola Ram · Post by **Mola Ram** » Wed Mar 30, 2005 8:24 pm

I believe Steve delk has dyed hats using hot water and RIT dye
with good results.

id ask him about it.

Adam

VP · Post by VP » Thu Mar 31, 2005 2:02 am

Shawnkara · Post by **Shawnkara** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 2:54 am

VP, I don't think my little trick would fix that

May I suggest trading in your Indy gear for Joker gear?

rick5150 · Post by **rick5150** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 5:07 am

I would be really careful. Anybody who has worked with this dye knows that,

a) it is very concentrated. The powder will be very dark. Usually you wet the material prior to dying because this helps it dye evenly. You ever get a few stray dots of powder on something and then wet it? You end up with darker spots where the powder was. This should be mixed thoroughly in water prior to putting clothes in.

b) ...so you may thing about mixing the dye in a spray bottle and applying it . Not a good idea either because...

c) materials need to be rinsed very well after dyeing to remove excess dye.

I picked up a free pool table a few years ago. It was god-awful ugly - white with an orange felt.

I thought I was being a genius and mixed some black RIT dye in a spray bottle and made the felt black. Over time, it made anyone who touched it walk away with black hands, stained the balls black and you never want to throw clothes on it, that's for sure.

d) lastly, you will not want to get caught in the rain. Or any moisture. That dye will come off sporadically for years after if it is not rinsed.

Talk to Fedora because he would immerse his hats in boiling water for a long time and still not penetrate the felt completely. I realize you are only trying to get the green out or neutralize it, but this may not be the best way.

On the othe hand, it is good to see someone who is concerned about this problem and offering suggestion to remedy it...

Renderking Fisk · Post by **Renderking Fisk** » Thu Mar 31, 2005 7:51 am

Fedora has a better solution... might be expensive though.

I'm at a loss to explain what's going on with the Regular Akubra Federation's. The one I've owned for almost three years never turned Green. I wonder if it has smething to do with the stiffener.

J_Weaver · Post by **J_Weaver** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:27 am

Renderking Fisk wrote: I'm at a loss to explain what's going on with the Regular Akubra Federation's. The one I've owned for almost three years never turned Green. I wonder if it has smething to do with the stiffener.

My dad has a grey regular fed. In certain lighting it definitely has a green tint to it and its only a few months old. The stiffener is a good possibility.

:idea: I've been told that some of the feds are very stiff (like my dad's) and some are softer. Now if we could just get an idea of how stiff the 'green' hats were when new. Suppose that all the 'green' hats were stiff when new and the softer ones never turned green or at least not as bad. This might prove your stiffener theory Ren.

Shawnkara · Post by **Shawnkara** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:13 am

Well, like I said I've never done it

It was just a crazy idea. Most of my great ideas stem from the stupid ones, so I embrace them all

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 8:25 am

J_Weaver wrote:
Renderking Fisk wrote: I'm at a loss to explain what's going on with the Regular Akubra Federation's. The one I've owned for almost three years never turned Green. I wonder if it has smething to do with the stiffener.
My dad has a grey regular fed. In certain lighting it definitely has a green tint to it and its only a few months old. The stiffener is a good possibility.

:idea: I've been told that some of the feds are very stiff (like my dad's) and some are softer. Now if we could just get an idea of how stiff the 'green' hats were when new. Suppose that all the 'green' hats were stiff when new and the softer ones never turned green or at least not as bad. This might prove your stiffener theory Ren.

My regular Akubra Fed is very soft and very green, though not as green as VP makes it look above!

Renderking Fisk · Post by **Renderking Fisk** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 9:25 am

Someone needs to point VP in the "Joker Gear" forum... that fedora would fit right in.

J_Weaver · Post by **J_Weaver** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 11:42 am

Hemingway Jones wrote:My regular Akubra Fed is very soft and very green, though not as green as VP makes it look above!

Well Ren, that shoots down our stiffener idea.

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 11:44 am

J_Weaver wrote:
Hemingway Jones wrote:My regular Akubra Fed is very soft and very green, though not as green as VP makes it look above!
Well Ren, that shoots down our stiffener idea.

Weaver, I have felt the stiff Akubras (Indiana Fist has one in gray) and they are almost cowboy stiff. After a year of ownership, my brown Akubra is pretty soft and somewhat green.

Renderking Fisk · Post by **Renderking Fisk** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:17 pm

Steve posted a year ago that once when he was reblocking a fedora, he soaked it and the water turned green. He thought that was the stiffener, because the felt body returned to it's natural color and wasn't so stiff.

I say the green color is the dirt reacting to the stiffener residue.

Hemingway Jones · Post by **Hemingway Jones** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:18 pm

Renderking Fisk wrote:I say the green color is the dirt reacting to the stiffener residue.

Are you saying I have a dirty hat!

VP · Post by VP » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:23 pm

Well when did she last take a bath?

Swindiana · Post by **Swindiana** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 3:18 pm

To me, this sounds like copper reacting with oxygen, making... well... green copper oxide residue?

Could it be?
I thought about what happens to old guitar strings and what ends up on the fret board after a while when oxygen react with the metal and the sweat from your fingers.

I did a search and found this;

The initial stage is the production of a cone. This is produced by placing a certain quantity of fur onto the top of the forming chamber (an upright cylindrical compartment - within which is housed a copper cone approximately one metre in height). The cone which is perforated revolves slowly and an exhaust fan beneath it ***** the air and the loose fur in the chamber down onto the revolving cone, creating a matt of loosely interwoven fibres. The cone is then immersed in a vat of very hot water where the heat of the water shrinks the fibres thus starting the felting process. The fur, which has formed into a loose layer of felt, is then removed from the cone.

Does anyone know if Akubra use copper cones?

Regards,
Swindiana, hopeful apprentice

rick5150 · Post by **rick5150** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:59 pm

I think you guys are looking into this too deeply. Brown dye is predominantly a mixture of green and red. It may simply be that the red fades and makes the green tinge more prominent. Just a thought in a different direction.

J_Weaver · Post by **J_Weaver** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 6:14 pm

rick5150 wrote:I think you guys are looking into this too deeply. Brown dye is predominantly a mixture of green and red. It may simply be that the red fades and makes the green tinge more prominent. Just a thought in a different direction.

Yea, I've often wondered if its just not the way the felt is made. But what about the gray hats?

Swindiana · Post by **Swindiana** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 11:32 pm

rick5150 wrote:I think you guys are looking into this too deeply. Brown dye is predominantly a mixture of green and red. It may simply be that the red fades and makes the green tinge more prominent. Just a thought in a different direction.

May very well be, just stirring the pot looking for possibilities.

Then again, WHY does the red fade on some hats and make them become green?
I don't like to have a green hat when it is supposed to be brown and would sure like I cure or a reason for it, whether it is made at the beginning or at the end of the process of a hat coming to life and later being worn. I haven't had the problem yet, but would for sure not go "It's green, I'll get a new one." without at least having tried to figure out what the problem is, whether possible to solve or not. (Not all brown hats turn green, right?)

Not over analyzing or anything, just speaking from experience what happens to copper in contact with salt water and air. OT, might be, but still a long shot of an eventuality of a possibility if there's some copper in the dye or coming from the hat building process.

Regards,
Swindiana

Jersey Raider · Post by **Jersey Raider** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 12:11 am

About a year ago, I purchased a regular mid brown Akubra Federation. I did NOT like the color at all as it was almost BLACK out of direct light. In the light it became lighter but it was a weird greenish color, as the Raiders hat was medium brown with a redish tint, and tan in sunlight. I had no experience with dye so I reluctantly took it outside and spread mud on my fingers and then rubbed the whole hat with my fingers. The mud hardened into like a dust and then I crushed the hat, sat on it, etc until the dirt actually settled into the hat. After doing this several times, I rubbed off the dirt. After several months of distressing and reshaping the felt color changed to brown and the felt softened considerably.[/quote]