Hat placement and removal question

alanseijas · Post by **alanseijas** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:01 am

Hello all. This is my first post, and I must say that I am very impressed by all the knowledge available here. I stumbled upon you while searching for info on TKOCS. Thanks in advance for your help.

I have an Akubra Adventurer. The hat came with a 'care sheet' that stated not to place or remove the hat on or from your head by pinching the crown. It says that you could wear a hole that is unrepairable. What is your experience with this, and how do you place and remove your hat

:

Post by **Michaelson** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:16 am

First of all WELCOME!!!

Second of all, I remove mine by the brim. It's quite true that when felt is pinched or flexed too much or too hard in a tight direction, it will eventually wear a hole. Don't pinch the front of the crown if you can avoid it.

That said, though, don't treat it like it was a crate of eggs either. It takes a LOT of repetition to make such damage occur. Removal by the front with care will not cause the damage as mentioned in the flyer.

Glad you're here, and post when you have the chance!

HIGH regards! Michaelson

WeeMadHamish · Post by **WeeMadHamish** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:17 am

I usually handle my fedora by the brim or the base of the crown. It's true that you can eventually wear a hole in the crown by handling it by the pinch, especially if you have that razor-sharp Raiders style pinch.

Post by **Michaelson** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:20 am

WeeMadHamish wrote: It's true that you can eventually wear a hole in the crown by handling it by the pinch, especially if you have that razor-sharp Raiders style pinch.

Another reason why the Raiders style has never been my personal favorite.

Regards! Michaelson

Erri · Post by **Erri** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:35 am

Welcome and nice to meet you. About your worryings, I wouldn't bother too much. Just don't pinch too hard and it will be fine.

I've always taken my hats off my head by the front pinch. Never had any problem. I have raiders hats though and I've already bashed them with tight pinch as they should be.
I don't see all the fuss about not taking the hat by pinching the front. Doesn't need to be pinched to death to take the hat off. I've personally never seen the beginning of a possible hole in the felt

Considering that you have an Akubra Adventurer, may I ask you to show some pictures of it? There aren't too many on this board yet and I've been very curious to see them. Did you order it open crown or came already bashed?

alanseijas · Post by **alanseijas** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 9:51 am

Thanks for all the quick responses. The friendly environment here is very warming!

I waited for this hat to be released by Akubra for over a month. It came unbashed. I feel it is VERY good quality. The brim didn't need any adjustments, though. It came perfectly shaped. I already stepped on the hat once when a tv fell on my head, and it snapped right back to shape!

I will post pictures soon. I don't have the ability right now while I'm at work!

Bufflehead Jones · Post by **Bufflehead Jones** » Tue Feb 05, 2008 11:08 am

Erri, like Michaelson said, eventually it will wear a hole. When you have had your hat long enough and it wears a hole in it, you'll be sorry that you didn't head the advice.

Erri · Post by **Erri** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 12:20 pm

Ok I'll keep that in mind

alanseijas wrote:
I will post pictures soon. I don't have the ability right now while I'm at work!

I thought I would have never used it again but.... here it is

;0

Chevalier Krak · Post by **Chevalier Krak** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 8:36 pm

It's like removing glasses. They always say, remove your glasses with both hand, pulling straight from the face without any torque. I'll bet even the optometrists don't do that. My hat is almost like a pet animal on my head. I remove it by the brim, running my hand along the curve to bring it up a touch, by the front and side pinches to increase the definition a bit. I mush it and bash it when it gets out of shape. I have always treated my fedoras this way and have never had a problem. All of my hats up til now have been second hand, so they have already had some wear before I got them.
It is true that I usually end up with glasses held together with wire, solder, Gorilla Glue and tape, and that I have not actually owned a hat for ,ore that 3 years. Also, I can;t be sure that I won;t be far more careful with my first new hat, the AB I currently await with palpating heart and drooling mouth. I will probably change all my hat habits when that little sweetie comes home to roost.

RockBottom · Post by **RockBottom** » Wed Feb 06, 2008 9:00 pm

Erri wrote:Considering that you have an Akubra Adventurer, may I ask you to show some pictures of it? There aren't too many on this board yet and I've been very curious to see them. Did you order it open crown or came already bashed?

Open crown

alanseijas · Post by **alanseijas** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 7:50 am

Strider · Post by **Strider** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 12:54 pm

Welcome aboard. I rather like what you've done with the hat. It looks like my Akubra Fed. The side views look really good!

Also, taking your hat by the front pinch has another effect on it that I hadn't seen before I started doing it to a hat I used to have. Your fingers have oils on them, and over time, the oil will cause the felt to be "marked" wherever your fingers routinely press against it while you take it off/put it on. Like a section of carpet you walk over all the time vs. a section you don't. After awhile, I was able to tell where my thumb and finger touched the felt when I took it off or put it on, and that used to bug me, even though it was subtle.

Michaelson & Co. are correct, pinching it by the front when taking it off and putting it on will eventually wear a hole in the felt, but it's going to take a long time for "eventually" to become a reality. That said, when it happens ... 4, 5 ... 10 years from now, good luck replacing the hat, especially if it's an AB.

When I put my hats on, I put them on by very lightly gripping the apex of the pinch until it's on my head, and then I pull the brim down to solidify the hat's place on my head. I turn it, and I'm done. When I take it off, I usually push the underside of the brim up and grab it.

Long story short, a few pinches here and there isn't going to kill it, but repeated pinching and grabbing over an extended period of time will eventually cause it to wear out.

WeeMadHamish · Post by **WeeMadHamish** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 1:06 pm

You'll wind up with a fed that looks like this:

JulianK · Post by **JulianK** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 2:00 pm

You'll wind up with a fed that looks like this:

Pinches? We don't need no stinkin' pinches!

eazybox · Post by **eazybox** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 6:12 pm

JulianK wrote:
You'll wind up with a fed that looks like this:
Pinches? We don't need no stinkin' pinches!

No, but if our hats do have torn pinches, we could cover up the holes with stinking badges.

Jack

Post by **Michaelson** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 6:39 pm

You know it's getting slow around here when we have to fall back on lines from 'Blazing Saddles'.

Regards! Michaelson

IndyFrench · Post by **IndyFrench** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 6:45 pm

Actually, Michaelson ol' friend the line is originally from Treasure of the Sierra Madre...but I'm sure I'm just missing your sense of humor.

Post by **Michaelson** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 7:22 pm

It also appeared in Blazing Saddles when Slim Pickin's signed up a group of Mexican bandits to help burn down the town of Rockridge and offered them badges to wear......

See, I watch DIFFERENT classic movies than YOU do.

Regards! Michaelson

binkmeisterRick · Post by **binkmeisterRick** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 8:20 pm

I'm... sooooo... tired. I'm pooped!

Shtick · Post by **Shtick** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 8:22 pm

[ resists urge to make dress comment ]

I remove my hat by the pinch. But then, it's a Dorfman, and I'm trying to wear holes in it, so then I'll have to buy a new hat!

Castor Dioscuri · Post by **Castor Dioscuri** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 9:40 pm

Well, the main reason I like fedoras is because of classic movies... And though I'm in the minority here, I'd support taking off a hat by the brim. I mean, can you name a single classic movie that features the characters taking off their hats by the brim?

Though there's that counter-argument that "it's just a movie...", I'm sure the pinch-practice reflected reality at the time, or the fashion magazines back then would have had a field day...

While taking off a hat by the brim is better for the hat in the long run, to me, it just seems more 'right' to do it by the pinch!

Strider · Post by **Strider** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 9:43 pm

That's mainly because doing it that way in the movies shows a kind of devil may care attitude, which makes the character cooler without us realizing they're doing that. That, and a lot of times, a hat wasn't considered a treasure like we consider some of ours to be. They were not really disposable, per se, but they were expendable and replaceable. 20 years from now, an AB will be irreplacable.

ij1936 · Post by **ij1936** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 10:11 pm

alanseijas wrote:...place or remove the hat on or from your head by pinching the crown. It says that you could wear a hole that is unrepairable. What is your experience with this, and how do you place and remove your hat :

Had a HJ years ago that I wore a hole in the crown. It took quite a long time to do, but a hole will be the result. Gave the hat to Goodwill.

Kokopelli · Post by **Kokopelli** » Thu Feb 07, 2008 11:18 pm

RockBottom wrote:
Erri wrote:Considering that you have an Akubra Adventurer, may I ask you to show some pictures of it? There aren't too many on this board yet and I've been very curious to see them. Did you order it open crown or came already bashed?
Open crown

...man I like that hat more every time I see it!

Kokopelli · Post by **Kokopelli** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 12:03 am

alanseijas wrote:Hello all. This is my first post, and I must say that I am very impressed by all the knowledge available here. I stumbled upon you while searching for info on TKOCS. Thanks in advance for your help.

I have an Akubra Adventurer.

Hey- did yours come with the red liner?

Erri · Post by **Erri** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 5:33 am

I like the work you've done on it alanseijas. Personally I'm not a fan of the super-tight-pinch but yours surely recall the idol grab scene and some cairo shots. The front pinch could be slightly lower if you want my suggestion, so to make some side humps more evident

alanseijas · Post by **alanseijas** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 7:30 am

citRon wrote:
alanseijas wrote:Hello all. This is my first post, and I must say that I am very impressed by all the knowledge available here. I stumbled upon you while searching for info on TKOCS. Thanks in advance for your help.

I have an Akubra Adventurer.
Hey- did yours come with the red liner?

No, it is white.

http://storage.vnunited.com/image_files ... turer4.JPG

Mark Brody · Post by **Mark Brody** » Fri Feb 08, 2008 4:11 pm

I always set the hat on my head by the pinches, but push it down firmly from the top of the crown. I take it off by pushing up on the back of the sweatband.

I had an old fedora from my grandpa (when I was 6, so I didn't take care of it). I definitly pinched the front tight and often, and ended up with some nice holes in it after a couple years.

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