Tackling the block... and flange

Hat and Rehat said:

I'm bumping up this old thread of Alan's because it came up in searching I'm doing to get a better grasp on matching crown blocks and brim flanges.
It's a great little tutorial, Alan, and the comments after would have been nice to see prior to getting one of my home made blocks stuck inside a hat and learning the hard way. I had to carefully rip the sweat stitches and take it out with the block, then put it back in.
Maybe I should be posting this in Ask a Question, Get an Answer, but Alan's matching (or mismatching) of blocking components segues into what I'm trying to understand. A size 7 1/8 crown block should measure apprx. 22 1/2" around. A block that measurement should be stamped 7 1/8. Will the inside measurement of a flange block stamped 7 1/8 actually measure more than 22 1/2", with extra room for the felt already calculated in? If so, are tolerances loose enough so various felt weights and finishes can all be done on the same set? Or does a hatter have to try, by trial and error, to match the blocks and flanges to the particular hat he's working on?
I have two blocks on the way now, though I'm also still fabricating crown blocks of my own. Both are 7s, which I thought would work inside of my own 7 1/8 finished hats. I also thought I could block 7 1/8 stripped hats by adding thickness to size 7 blocks with another felt. Ermatinger's book gave a name to this, which escapes me at the moment. He made it sound like a very common practice back "in the day". It raises another question I have, if anyone here can answer it. Does this mean a block can be used for two or three sizes greater by adding multiple felts?
My most pressing question is the flange size one though. There's a flange at the Bay of 7 1/4 and a 2 3/4 brim width. I'm considering an offer on it. Could I only use it on crowns blocked 7 1/4., or could I use it on 7 1/8 crowns? Might it actually be exactly what I want for a 7 1/8 crown if the hat is trimmed, like Alan's use of blocks numbered consecutively?
I'm using the size that I wear to help me understand these things, but figure that from there I will also understand it related to all hat and block sizes.

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deadlyhandsome said:

Have you read through this thread?

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/buying-hat-blocks-what-does-one-need-to-know.74078/



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deadlyhandsome said:

Have you read through this thread?

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/buying-hat-blocks-what-does-one-need-to-know.74078/



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hatsandcanes said:

I have a new upturn brim flange being made for me. I have read everything related to flanges on the forum and have come up short on using one to fix wavy and unkept brims. I ordered a 2.5 inch upturn; however, the majority of my hats are 2 3/8”.
I know the flange has a groove around the bottom so I am guessing that you put Some kind of cloth over it and tie it up tight to keep it in place while it drys.

Any advice would be very appreciated,
Randy

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belfastboy said:

My blocks are marked 2 5/8" inch and I have used them for brims 2 1/2" to 2 3/4" with no ill effect. I does affect slightly the degree of upturn on the brim. I use a 100% cotton muslin of a fairly heavy weight but not quite canvas duck weight. I wet it and cover the underside of the hat inserted into the flange with the block still inside the hat. Cover with the cloth, wetted thoroughly. And, this is the critical part: smooth the cloth out so all the wrinkles and puckers are out of it. Then I attach the cord to the groove in the flange and snug it up, then pull the cloth as tight as I can get it again making sure the puckers/wrinkles are smoothed out. With my fingers I massage the felt itself to make sure there are no wrinkles in the felt itself. Give the cord a final snugging up then I give a good pressing with a hot iron (on the cotton setting). The only time I have had a problem is if I did a shitty job of smoothing the cloth out and it has transferred the wrinkles/waves into the felt....usually in the area of the brim where it meets the crown. It is fixable but it takes more work as I have now set the wrinkles with the steam and pressing. I have learned to do a better job getting the wrinkles out before hand. I leave it overnight to dry. I hope this all makes sense.

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belfastboy said:

My blocks are marked 2 5/8" inch and I have used them for brims 2 1/2" to 2 3/4" with no ill effect. I does affect slightly the degree of upturn on the brim. I use a 100% cotton muslin of a fairly heavy weight but not quite canvas duck weight. I wet it and cover the underside of the hat inserted into the flange with the block still inside the hat. Cover with the cloth, wetted thoroughly. And, this is the critical part: smooth the cloth out so all the wrinkles and puckers are out of it. Then I attach the cord to the groove in the flange and snug it up, then pull the cloth as tight as I can get it again making sure the puckers/wrinkles are smoothed out. With my fingers I massage the felt itself to make sure there are no wrinkles in the felt itself. Give the cord a final snugging up then I give a good pressing with a hot iron (on the cotton setting). The only time I have had a problem is if I did a shitty job of smoothing the cloth out and it has transferred the wrinkles/waves into the felt....usually in the area of the brim where it meets the crown. It is fixable but it takes more work as I have now set the wrinkles with the steam and pressing. I have learned to do a better job getting the wrinkles out before hand. I leave it overnight to dry. I hope this all makes sense.

Click to expand...