I have ordered my first fedora (Fed Deluxe IV) - It arrives!

Jens_Hoppe · Post by **Jens_Hoppe** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 7:16 am

So this is my first foray into the fedora section of the message board...

Re-watching KOTCS yesterday convinced me I had to have a fedora myself. Price and small waiting lists being priorities, I went with a Federation Deluxe IV. It was in stock and should be sent straight away - and I'll let you know when I get it. Provided I got the size right (I went with a size 60), I will probably be asking your advice on how to shape it in a few weeks' time...

morganswift · Post by **morganswift** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 12:17 pm

Congratulations. It's a great hat. Be sure to post some pics when you get it.

Cool Moomintroll avatar by the way

Cheers
Alex

DanielJones · Post by **DanielJones** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 12:56 pm

Congratulations! Can't wait to see what you get & do with it.

Cheers!

Dan

Terrasolo · Post by **Terrasolo** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 2:12 pm

braver then me, I was not ready to attempt to shape my own hat just yet so I went with a custom shaping. Will be interested in seeing before and after shots on this.

Jens_Hoppe · Post by **Jens_Hoppe** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 2:36 pm

Terrasolo wrote:braver then me, I was not ready to attempt to shape my own hat just yet so I went with a custom shaping. Will be interested in seeing before and after shots on this.

It's not very hard. At least that's what I have read and what I keep telling myself! "It's not hard, it's not hard, there's nothing to be afraid of..."

Terrasolo · Post by **Terrasolo** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 2:54 pm

Jens_Hoppe wrote:
Terrasolo wrote:braver then me, I was not ready to attempt to shape my own hat just yet so I went with a custom shaping. Will be interested in seeing before and after shots on this.
It's not very hard. At least that's what I have read and what I keep telling myself! "It's not hard, it's not hard, there's nothing to be afraid of..."

LOL, I'll track your progress, it might just convince me to have a go.

Vaderbreath · Post by **Vaderbreath** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 3:08 pm

Guys, shaping these hats (especially the Fed) is not hard at all. Take your time... the felt is pretty forgiving, and just keep checking in the mirror. I love to bash my own hats, but I also remember the first one I did and I was nervous to even touch it. After I mustered the guts to bash it, I was okay. In fact, a few weeks later, I just mashed the whole thing up and sat on it. It still came back just fine and looks great. The main thing-have fun with it!

-Corey

IndianaBogart · Post by **IndianaBogart** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 9:39 pm

Congratulations on your new hat! I have a Fed III and I love it. And from what I hear the Fed IV are even better.

prairiejones · Post by **prairiejones** » Tue Jun 03, 2008 10:31 pm

Good choice. From what I've seen, these new Feds look great. I got one three years ago. The old block was ok, but nothing like this new look. I had mine reblocked by Fedora, and the shape is just like my AB.

Shaping is a breeze. Just follow some of the good advice on here. NO STEAM!!!!! And turn it. Any questions, PM me.

Jens_Hoppe · Post by **Jens_Hoppe** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 3:09 am

After only a week, the hat has arrived! It looks beautiful.

... And it's too big.

My measurement of 60 must have been a bit on the large side. However, I can bring it into size by applying foam strip all the way around the inside of the brim, so I am guessing that a 59 would have been perfect.

I have also, possibly a bit too impetuously, applied Akubra's "step 2" in their sizing guide, ie. sprayed water on the sweatband and subsequently heated it with a hairdryer, and since that wrinkled up the sweatband a bit (without seeming to do anything about size), for all I know I might have lost my right to return it...

And no, I haven't made any serious attempts to shape it yet.

What to do? As I wrote, the hat can be made to fit, but is foam strip all the way around an unsatisfactory solution?

BazzanoJones · Post by **BazzanoJones** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 4:05 am

Depending in how many size you must shrink it. If the hat is a 60 and you need a 59 the adesive foam it's a perfect solution. Wear it for a while: foam will go in shape and the sweatband will shrink a little. Remember: better a larger hat than a little one!

Of course, if you have a 60 and need to shrink it to a 56...this is a problem!

blueoakleyz · Post by **blueoakleyz** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 5:37 am

Jens_Hoppe wrote:After only a week, the hat has arrived! It looks beautiful.

... And it's too big. My measurement of 60 must have been a bit on the large side. However, I can bring it into size by applying foam strip all the way around the inside of the brim, so I am guessing that a 59 would have been perfect.

I have also, possibly a bit too impetuously, applied Akubra's "step 2" in their sizing guide, ie. sprayed water on the sweatband and subsequently heated it with a hairdryer, and since that wrinkled up the sweatband a bit (without seeming to do anything about size), for all I know I might have lost my right to return it...

And no, I haven't made any serious attempts to shape it yet.

What to do? As I wrote, the hat can be made to fit, but is foam strip all the way around an unsatisfactory solution?

someone else here said they got a 60 which was too big, returned it, got a 59 which was too small after realizing it shrank half a size after a week and then got a 60 again. So give it time to shrink.

My head measures a 59 but I'm still going to get a 60 and trust hatsdirect when he says it's really a 59.5

Indiana Strones · Post by **Indiana Strones** » Wed Jun 11, 2008 6:00 am

It's better a little larger than smaller. Put the foam inside and it will fits perfectly. Then the hat will shrink a little, naturally, during next months. My Fed III was quite large, now it fits perfectly without any artificial shrinking.

Jens_Hoppe · Post by **Jens_Hoppe** » Mon Jun 23, 2008 1:16 pm

I have posted a couple of pictures in the Fed IV thread.