Club Obi Wan

Video http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3CC1q6lRS8o The hat in the video is on a second 2 inch tall block or form, that is the same circumfrence and SHAPE as the customers head, so this should be what the hat will look like when he's wearing it. (No doubt he'll shape the brim a bit more, since I have done no folding/tweaking to it.) I asked him to crumple a couple feet of aluminum foil into a rope, and conform it to his head and send me a pic. Here is mine for example. (It is a longer oval than the customers.) http://s530.photobucket.com/albums/dd34 ... t=foil.jpg Below, being blocked on the primary block- The main block is the same circumfrence as the customers head. I asked the customer to measure the width of his head, then made the block 1/4 inch wider than his head at the block's widest point. This means the hat will be stretched a bit front to back when worn.That worked for my hat, so that's my basic formula.

that looks great 3thou$!!! i'd love to see pics of the hat on someone's head.

i see you've made symetrical creases on the side dents. i was thinking of doing that for the next hat......(just been through about 1.5 hours of pouncing).

cheers,


G

Thanks G!

Indiana G wrote:that looks great 3thou$!!!

i see you've made symetrical creases on the side dents. i was thinking of doing that for the next hat......(just been through about 1.5 hours of pouncing).

cheers,


G

I didn't think about being symetrical with the side creases. The one on your left just fell into place. The one on the bow side I line up with the front of the bow cinch and crease a bit. about 3/4 inch tall, top to bottom. The bottom is the pork pie line at 3.5 inches above the brim break, the top, is the line on the block where it transitions to flat on top. I pounced this hat (inside of crown) for many hours with the heaviest grit available. 50 grit. I need to wear a dust mask during pouncing, or I can't breath right for the next few days... Just measured- the bow side crease goes back 4 inches, other side 4 1/4. (22 inch head size.)

oh man, i hear you. i was pouncing for about an hour yesterday. the first 45 minutes, i wore a rag over my face like a 'bandit'. then in the end it got too hot so i took it off for the last 20 minutes..........i was sneezing and coughing and wheezing........stupid fur dust!!!!!!

At least it's not mercury fur dust!

Thats wh yI try to do my pouncing outside whneever possible.
The stuff is gets everywhere!

3thoubucks, I especially like your hat rotator apparatus... ;-)
Nice looking hat too.

Thanks Dalexs. Here's my favorite type of dust mask for pouncing- lightweight, very comfortable, with a valve to expel exhaled air. http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3292/278 ... 71.jpg?v=0

That's a fed 4? Whoa. I really like the color and style.

Yeah, a Fed 4. I like the color, the ribbon and the sweat on Fed 4s. The customer has a 22 inch head. He would normally order a size 57 Fed 4, which fits 22 to 22 3/4 inch heads. But I ordered him a size 58 for my re block. I ended up removing only about a 1/16 inch from half the circumfrence of the brim, because a Winston 360 is a very full 360 stovepipe block, and uses up the extra felt. ..... - The customer just pm'd me. He would normally order a size 56. So this hat has a lot more volume than a normal Fed 4. - Still,.. it should be a very tight fit when he gets it!

Are you just not using sweatbands? Many think the SOC hat had the sweatband removed, and I think that is possible.

By the way 3M$, that block looks like the blanks I use to make my own blocks. I don't leave them a straight 360 though. But, I know that a straight 360 block will make a very good Raiders fedora. Bernie would say it was a caricature, but my thought on this is, once the hats shrink a bit, you end up with a hat that still looks very Raider-esque, and more so than some hats that taper to the TOD look. Your hats look great! Fedora

Fedora wrote:Are you just not using sweatbands? Many think the SOC hat had the sweatband removed, and I think that is possible.
Fedora

I'm using the Akubra band, which is thin. ..my own hat was very uncomfortable, but actually became comfortabe after 6-8 weeks, it must have stretched. ..Screenused says his sweat is still in... Sometimes I think my hats might be a bit of a caricature, but I also think they aren't even as tight as Ford's, looking at the Well of Souls Sunset and Waco. (I admit, it was very windy on top of the Well of Souls, and if there was a deleted Waco scene, where Ford arrives, they may have stuffed the sweats in both those shots to keep them on.) I have a strong feeling my customer's head is closer to Ford's, a rounder oval than mine.. His hat looks different than mine with more side taper up high and fuller camel humps. ...I won't admit my blocks need some taper at this point, maybe later, but this real tight 360 stovepipe is going to look better than a bigger comfortable fitting 360 would. ;-) I just saw some kind of KOTCS comercial on TV while typing this

The video I posted is a bit fuzzy, but can you make out the channel under the ribbon in the front dent? Here it is from above. - This is formed 100% with ribbon tightening. No pinching of the felt with my fingers. Screenused noticed no stitch or anything that would make the channel, so I quess it's just from ribbon tightening. - A 360 stovepipe gives you this channel with a minimum of ribbon tightening, compared to a tapered hat. Also, the front 4 inches of my sweats are only tacked in with one stitch in the middle. I think the Raiders hat might be set up like that, if the front of the crown was transitioned into brim. This lets the felt move independent of the sweat in front and bunch easier. The four inches are at the front of the hat before turning, so there's about 2 1/2 inches on the channel side. The channel is within this area.