home made hat block/stretcher for my Akubra
Posted: Mon Jul 19, 2010 6:29 am
I wanted to re-shape my Fed IV crown so the sides were dead parrallel and dome curve was flatter - for a 'boxier' look.
I also wanted a tad more snap in the brim.
I'd read somewhere on this site about a hat block made up in layers so I had a go. Credit to that person's idea.
My thought was to make a shaper that had room for the hat band and sweatband left on - so there is a 4 mm gap between the dome block and the brim shaper.
Using left over MDF, because it was cheap and easy to work, and an online calculator, I cut elipses with the precise circumference of my head - except the top elipses which were reduced to rough out the dome.
The brim shaper is larger all round than the hat brim - to give me the later option to use it for other hat projects.
A whole lot of gluing, whittling and sanding later - and three legs from an old 50's sideboard - and I have what looks like something from a 50's Sci-Fi movie. Perhaps Great Uncle George was really aiming for this look when he thought up the end to Crystal Scull?
The MDF is weighty enough to stretch the dome nicely and I found my Todd's belt ideal for tensioning a tea-towel across the brim to hold it till dry.
If you are going to make your own block I have two words of advice:
measure and draw very carefully, redrawing your guide-lines whenever they start to rub away,
work on a clean bench and keep back the sawdust - you can mix it with wood glue to make a matching filler for any over zealous wittling.
I also wanted a tad more snap in the brim.
I'd read somewhere on this site about a hat block made up in layers so I had a go. Credit to that person's idea.
My thought was to make a shaper that had room for the hat band and sweatband left on - so there is a 4 mm gap between the dome block and the brim shaper.
Using left over MDF, because it was cheap and easy to work, and an online calculator, I cut elipses with the precise circumference of my head - except the top elipses which were reduced to rough out the dome.
The brim shaper is larger all round than the hat brim - to give me the later option to use it for other hat projects.
A whole lot of gluing, whittling and sanding later - and three legs from an old 50's sideboard - and I have what looks like something from a 50's Sci-Fi movie. Perhaps Great Uncle George was really aiming for this look when he thought up the end to Crystal Scull?
The MDF is weighty enough to stretch the dome nicely and I found my Todd's belt ideal for tensioning a tea-towel across the brim to hold it till dry.
If you are going to make your own block I have two words of advice:
measure and draw very carefully, redrawing your guide-lines whenever they start to rub away,
work on a clean bench and keep back the sawdust - you can mix it with wood glue to make a matching filler for any over zealous wittling.
. 