Club Obi Wan

For those using Fedora's "Raiders" block to maintain, not reblock, your hat, are you using this procedure?

If you are using the smaller block to keep your hat straight sided, push the block in, as far as it will go, by working it down with your hands. Now, hit the top lightly with steam and tug it the rest of the way down til the felt is tight against the block. Steam again lightly and let it dry for an hour. Now, the steam has relaxed the felt, and it tightened up when the drying process took place, but it is not as tight as it could be. Now, lightly spray the hat with water, the complete crown, stopping at the ribbon. Rub it in lightly, and let this dry naturally overnight. This will help the felt to tighten up, internally even more, and that is a good thing. You do not want it to tighten up once it is off the block. Hope this makes sense. Fedora

Any additional tips? Richard has just UPS dispatched my block.

Sincerely,

additional tips? Richard has just UPS dispatched my block.

I remove the liner during the reblock. Fedora

Fedora:

Thank you for making your block available to us "semi wanna-be" hat shapers. You are a gentleman, craftsman and artist.

Sincerely,

Glad to do it. I was a fan and member here prior to hocking my version of the Raiders fedora. The hatmaking deal started out as a hobby, as I used to do free reblocks using my reverse engineered Raiders block for guys who wore my hat size, a 7 1/4. And I reblocked and put back together so many hats, I lost count. So the AB hats and the block I have on file for you guys were developed here on this very site. The history of that is all here somewhere unless it was lost when this site crashed. And while I did the physical work of making the block, the guys here were essential in its design, with certain sharp eyes like 3M$ being heavily involved. Not just him, but several. I just remember 3M$ so well because he and I are passionate about this hat, and tend to argue. But I think highly of the guy and I don't reckon there is anyone here that I do not like and think highly of. As Will Rogers said, I never met a man I didn't like.

And as always, if you ask me a question, or even let me get my foot in the door, I tend to say more than was asked, or needed!! But, I don't get out much due to the demand for my hats, and this place suffers because of that!! Kind of like many years ago when I went on an extended solo backpacking trip that lasted for weeks and weeks. The first human that I saw suffered immeasurably from my non stop chatter!! Isolation does that to ya!! Fedora

Received the Fedora/Lamode block. It is 5 and 3/8 inches from base to dome. Richard sent a 23 and 1/8 block for a size 7 and 3/8 hat. He explained hats are created on a block one size larger than the hat's size, as the "internals" size the hat down.

Pulled/tugged on the old Stetson (the beater and trial/error hat) and gave her a steam and misting. Perfectly open crowned by the next morning. The old bash was completely erased.

The crown felt now feels noticeably thinner and softer. Is this the result of the steam/wetting and drying/tightening? In this process, can there be too much steaming?

Sincerely,

Can someone remind me again how much the Fedora/Lamode blocks are?

$150.00. $8.50 shipping and insurance.

Sincerely,

Danke. Now to start lifting more wallets. That's money well spent for serious hat wearers, though!