Club Obi Wan

So, I know than putting a hat down flat on a table like Indy does is a no-no because it distorts the brim. What about putting it on a ledge? In such a way so that front of the brim is able to hang off without bending it flat or anything? Thoughts? (I know this is sort of an odd question, but I have nowhere to store it at work!)

I think it would be best if you put it on the crown.

Regards, Geert

That won't cause taper will it?

I shouldn't think so: everybody says that when you get your hat wet, you should pop the bash out and put it on its crown to prevent taper. So I dont think it would work so much differently with a dry hat.

Regards, Geert

I usually hang my hat over a ledge at work and I've never had any problems because of it. It it gets soaked from rain, then I'll place it on its crown to dry, but I don't believe it matters whether you place it on its crown or hang it over the edge of a table.

That was my thought Bink. It seems like hanging it over a ledge doesn't distort the brim so I think I'll try that for now. Thanks!

Hanging it over a ledge is fine short term. However, long term... not so great. If kept that way for long periods, or as the usual means of storage, it will speed up the taper process. The quality of the hat and the amount of stiffener will play a role in combating this, but to my mind, why take chances.

Chewbacca Jones wrote:Hanging it over a ledge is fine short term. However, long term... not so great. If kept that way for long periods, or as the usual means of storage, it will speed up the taper process. The quality of the hat and the amount of stiffener will play a role in combating this, but to my mind, why take chances.

So do you really think resting it on the crown is an ok option in that case?

I think the best option is to levitate it indefinitely. ;-)

So are you saying I should use the force?

I typically can't leviate it anywhere at work, not even a COATRACK!

But Bink-you're saying in your experience hanging the brim over a table edge hasn't caused taper? It just seems to me that resting it on the crown will mess up the bash/block job....

indyrocks wrote:So are you saying I should use the force?

Use the force, Luke!

You're worrying too much. Let the hat take on some character of its own. Throw it anywhere, and however it lands it stays until you wear it again. That's my motto anyway. I bought an adventurebilt because I didn't want to baby the thing. And while I'm on the topic, I think too many hats that I've seen here look too pristine, too nice, too perfect. It's time to loosen up fellas. The Cairo bash didn't happen on purpose you know.

Amen! I mean, I try to take care of my hat - I don't dump it in the closet and let it get crushed by all the other hats and junk in there, and I don't sit on it or wear it in a downpour, but I just plop it on top of its hat box on a shelf with the brim hanging over the edge, and don't worry about it. My hat's not an Indy hat, but it's a fairly nice hat, and it still looks pretty good some 15 years later. Previous poster is right - the Cairo bash didn't happen by taking great care of the hat...!

inexpensive_jones wrote:You're worrying too much. Let the hat take on some character of its own. Throw it anywhere, and however it lands it stays until you wear it again. That's my motto anyway. I bought an adventurebilt because I didn't want to baby the thing. And while I'm on the topic, I think too many hats that I've seen here look too pristine, too nice, too perfect. It's time to loosen up fellas. The Cairo bash didn't happen on purpose you know.

Amen indeed! I am in agreement with all points made. I was being a bit careful because it's an HJ and simply won't take what an AB will take, nor will it last as long. But I agree with not liking the look of pristine hats. Steve said this himself yesterday in a post. Get em dirty, and most importantly, let them take on CHARACTER. I was just concerned with taper, but hey! there's always the option of a reblock.

I definitely want to take advantage of the thin/floppy aspect of the HJ and hopefully it will look something like SOC eventually.

indyrocks wrote: But Bink-you're saying in your experience hanging the brim over a table edge hasn't caused taper? It just seems to me that resting it on the crown will mess up the bash/block job....

Ultimately, what I'm saying is that I think you're worrying too much. Inexspensive_jones and jasonalun bring up a good point in that you shouldn't be afraid of your hat tapering just because you lay it down one way or the other. There will always be folks who say laying a hat this way is better than that way and vice versa. I've rested hats both over ledges as well as on the crown and I have yet to see any adverse damage or change to any of my hats because of it. And trust me, I have a LOT of hats! Heck, if people saw how I stack some of my hats at home, they'd flip! The only time I worry about possible taper is after the hat has been soaked in a rainstorm.

So let me say this again: enjoy your hat. Wear it, don't baby it. And resting over a ledge or on its crown will not break your hat. Think of it this way. The hat receives more stress from being worn than by resting on a table. ;-)

That's the spirit! I've never heard of taper resulting from storing a hat upright on a surface (not to say it couldn't happen), but there's always a re-block for that. I'm even considering making my own block off the open-crown shape of my Henry (that's on the way any day now hopefully! ) so I can re-block it myself if it ever tapers too much down the road. And if you're not that adventurous, there's always some good men here who can do it for you.

Well said gents! I appreciate all of the input.

I've only ever owned a second hand Peters Bros that was too small and an Akubra Fed from a few years ago. Now that I have a hat I deem to be of higher quality, I'm being a bit, admittedly so, overly causious. But I will certainly become more lax as time goes on I'm sure.

Plus eventually I'll have an AB!

I hang my hat on the top corner of my cubicle at work, and use my Squier Strat in its stand at home as a hatstand -- if I'm gonna play guitar I just put the hat on, it helps me play the blues better. ;-)

Some of us LIKE worrying about our hats!

I never "just toss it anywhere" unless it's a beater. Placing it on the crown might sometimes mess up the bash, but that's easier to fix than a taper. And with an HJ, taper is one of the hat's issues. I would not leave my HJ brim down for more than a couple of hours, tops.

If that makes me a worrier, than I embrace that.

Hey, Chewie, does Diet Pepsi make a hat taper? ;-)

Chewbacca Jones wrote:Some of us LIKE worrying about our hats!

I never "just toss it anywhere" unless it's a beater. Placing it on the crown might sometimes mess up the bash, but that's easier to fix than a taper. And with an HJ, taper is one of the hat's issues. I would not leave my HJ brim down for more than a couple of hours, tops.

If that makes me a worrier, than I embrace that.

I don't know.....it seems to me that as long as the front of the brim is hanging over an edge, it's not distorting or bending in anyway since the sides and the back bend UP. I can't see how this would cause taper....then again I'd rather not find out the hard way.

Some of us LIKE worrying about our hats!

No you don't, you like to pamper your hats. And that's not very Indy.

inexpensive_jones wrote:

Some of us LIKE worrying about our hats!

No you don't, you like to pamper your hats. And that's not very Indy.

I have it on good authority that he does NOT put diapers on his hats.

binkmeisterRick wrote:Hey, Chewie, does Diet Pepsi make a hat taper? ;-)

inexpensive_jones wrote:

Some of us LIKE worrying about our hats!

No you don't, you like to pamper your hats. And that's not very Indy.

I am a hat wearer first, an IJ gear wearer second. Thus, I take proper care of my hats. When I'm rich enough to retain a wardrobe department to constantly replace and maintain my hats, then I will treat my Indy hats like Indy does. Unless, of course, you are volunteering to be my Hat Medic pro-bono...

I handle my Keppler like most on the this forum. However, I took a cue from a previous post on storing the hat. Maybe Oak could chime in since he did on that post. I purchased 2 black (look like iron) paper towel holders from Target. One is used as the base and the other is inverted and used as the hat holder. All I did was use black zip strips to keep them together. I don't know if this is a good way to store the hat ,but it seems to have done the job. I'll try and post pics.

Matt

I hang my hat on the closet door, it's a bi-fold so I open it and place the hat on the opened doors.Or I hang my hat on the curtain rod in my bedroom, wife doesn't mind, besides it's on my side oof the room.

I am a hat wearer first, an IJ gear wearer second. Thus, I take proper care of my hats.

We're coming from two different worlds then. I want a hat to take care of me! to protect me from the elements, etc. when I'm experiencing life. Then when it gets a little character from doing so, I can look at my hat and remember when I did "such and such".

I think a lot of it has to do with how many hats one owns and what their budget is. Right now I only have one hat and it's my Mag HJ and considering it's price I'm not exactly anxious to put it through something it can't take. But with that said, I've already noticed it to take on some great character the more I wear it an handle it. I've also noticed myself being less and less gentle with it.

I have to agree with what seems to be the general consensus, Indy wouldn't baby his hats, and they ALWAYS look better more beat up than pristine right out of the box.

JMHO, but this is of course subjective. Maybe we could start a "contest" thread of sorts to see who has the most "Indy" looking fedora based on how beat up it is and how much character it has. Steve posted his in another thread a couple of days ago that takes the prize IMO. Just a thought...

Here are the pics

http://i381.photobucket.com/albums/oo25 ... C04179.jpg

Sorry, here is the other pic.


http://i381.photobucket.com/albums/oo25 ... C04178.jpg

Here's our solution: get a clipper grey hat and keep it pristine. Then get a brown fedora and beat it to death.

That's what Indy does.

crismans wrote:Here's our solution: get a clipper grey hat and keep it pristine. Then get a brown fedora and beat it to death.

That's what Indy does.

Just waiting on my Grey Indy Traveling hat from Penman to wear with my dark grey and navy suits. Then I can take my brown Fed 3 Dlx with me next time I'm in Peru or Egypt.
One question. How exactly did Indy pack his brown hat when traveling?

The Librarian wrote: One question. How exactly did Indy pack his brown hat when traveling?

It's just a movie...

Indiana Strones wrote:

The Librarian wrote: One question. How exactly did Indy pack his brown hat when traveling?

It's just a movie...

Are you trying to tell me Nazis don't really melt?

indyrocks wrote:
Are you trying to tell me Nazis don't really melt?

Not in the Mediterranean. It's strictly a southeast Asian phenomenon.

Chewbacca Jones wrote:

indyrocks wrote:
Are you trying to tell me Nazis don't really melt?

Not in the Mediterranean. It's strictly a southeast Asian phenomenon.

Well THAT explains it...