Club Obi Wan

Just a general question, but I always wondered if using a hat stretcher would affect the block shape of the fedora? To be more precise, let's say that you had a AB fedora built on the KotCS blockshape. Would using a stretcher change the structure of the fedora, so that it no longer has that KotCS block shape? By the same token, if you had a fedora built from a conformer/conformateur (sp?), would using a stretcher destroy that 'custom' fit?

Just something I always wanted to know...

*EDIT: Also, another thing I wonder about was whether storing a fedora in a hat box will affect the shape of the fedora as well? Seems to me that storing it in one of those hat box 'circles' will make the fedora more rounded, even if it was meant to be a long oval to begin with...

I can't tell about hat stretchers, but to your other question. Unless you have a very large head or a small hat box, I wouldn't think that the box could change the shape of the hat body. However I do have to re-shape the brim whenever I take my hat out of the box. Gravity always makes the brim go up when I flip the hat to put it on. I'm thinking of getting one of Todd's hat stands which will store the hat crown up.

Matt