Club Obi Wan

Hi everyone,
I've done some searches on this topic but I'm still looking for a bit of (current) info from everyone here ... ESPECIALLY any Vendor who might wander onto this question - (I'm talking to YOU, Mr. Penman!)

I'm currently waiting on 3 different hats from 3 different makers.
They are (in the chronological order from date the orders were placed):

- A Magnoli Herbert Johnson with S.o.C. Bash (via Mr. Steve Delk) the sable (rabbit?)

- A Penman Hat Co. Grey Raiders Clipper (from BendingOak) - pure beaver

- A Jimmy Pierce Designs Raven Bar Bash - the Cury Factory felt (rabbit/hare? - I'm not sure)

It looks as though Mr. Penman's hat will reach me first (as he's posted a photo of it and indicated it would be going to UPS soon) and so the arrival of his - and the other's - hats are now on my mind and I'm wondering what EXTRA steps I can take to look after these hats.

I often hear C.O.W. Members referring to giving their fedoras a spray of Scout Water Repellant...
Other times I've read about folks using Scotchguard on their hats...

My question(s) are these:
- Is there a common line of thinking for using these products?
- Are they ALWAYS a good idea?
- Do they work on ALL types of fur felts or are there some "mixes" I should stay away from?
- Will they harm - or discolor - any particulat types of felts?
- Does using these products make the hat stiffer?
- Should they NOT be used on hats which ALREADY have stiffener - or for THAT matter - water repellants ALREADY applied?

Like most folks here I'm looking for a nice, SOFT Screen Accurate felt hat that won't taper down too radically just from getting wet (NOT very original, I know)... But while I don't intend to "baby" these things, I don't want to do anything that's going to mess up a perfectly good hat right out of the gate, either.

Also worth noting - if it HELPS to know - is that I live in Nova Scotia, Canada...which has a climate probably pretty similar to London, England:
Yes, we get sunshine and our share of some beautiful, warm sunny days... but there is a very clear separation of seasons going on, too...
We definitely get our wet weather in the fall and winter (fog, morning mist, light "misky" rains, gentle rainshowers, torrential downpours, light snow and blizzards)...
Even the summer months are going to have me walking by the shores and feeling a bit of that sea spray as the waves crash onto the shoreline... so, I'm not exactly living in a dry, arid climate...

Anyway, any advice that those of you with experience could offer up on this topic would be, as always, GREATLY appreciated!

All the Best,
Mitch (Sometimes A.K.A. "Longwinded Jones")
;-)

Not to disrupt the thread, as it could yield usefull information about the products you are asking about, but didn't BendingOak say that he will be selling water repellant in the near future?

It might be usefull to ask him the differences of that product as opposed to those you already mentioned.

Regards, Geert

Yes, he did.

Just a brief note, folks have been using ScotchGard for years to help repeal water and stains. Heck, Bernie Pollack used almost a full can on Ford's gray AB in the train scene in CS due to it raining the day of the shoot!

That said, I've been told light misting is ok, but a heavy dose isn't the best as it makes it a bit more difficult if and when a hat is returned to a hatmaker for cleaning and reblocking. The product is a bit more resistant to the cleaners used when the hat is cleaned.

A product like Scouts is supposed to be more hatmaker friendly in the reblock, and supposedly more water resistant. I've never personally used it myself, and therefore will not say anymore about it. I'll leave it for those who have used it to comment.

I AM a user of ScotchGard, but on my rabbit felts. I have applied a light mist to my beaver and beaver blends, but only to help fight staining from handling, as the felt itself has pretty much shown to have it's own natural water resistance when it comes to rain and snow exposure. I've never had one soak through yet.

I've found the same can be said for hats like the Akubra, as their rabbit/jackrabbit hair blends tend to be more water resistant than a pure domestic rabbit hat. Once again, a light misting of ScotchGard has worked fine for me and my use....and I USE my hats in any weather that Mother Nature throws at me.

So, there's at least one 'opinion' you can mull over. ;-)

Regards! Michaelson

Thank you for your contributions, folks...
Good info!