Akubra hats are the best a person can wear. I speak from sixty years of hat wearing from that first schoolboy's grey up to my present stylish topper. Yes, I have worn one so long that I often forget that I have it on; once or twice finding myself not getting wet from the shower head.
Yes, I love my Akubras! I haven’t worn mine in the shower by accident yet, but now you’ve given me something to look forward to 🤣 Thank you for watching and sharing! Kris
@@HatLifeAdventures We might allow for that little bit of Mad Cow decease creeping upon me as I lurch towards the great round up in the sky. That shower wearing has only happened a couple of times in nearly seventy years, but I will also point to a few times when I have been confounded after leaping into the creek or dam and having in my haste forgotten all bout my headwear. Akubras can stand a good wash, a mere spritz or sprinkle without worry or even a cyclone's downpour as long as they are properly dried into their shape again. Cheaper hats make me wonder why they bother and once remember having my issued felt Railway hat dissolve into a puddle of sodden blue die during a Xmas cyclone at midday in Townsville.
@@StevenCampbell1955 you, my friend, are a fine Wordsmith and Storyteller! Yes, I never worry about what inclement weather or accidental abuse my Akubra can take! Quite simply: the best bang for your buck! Kris
You've got to buy 1 size up and pack with foam. The sweatband shrinks. For me, I measured 58 cm and a 58 felt good but the shop told me to get a 59. They packed behind the sweatband with adhesive foam strips. They told me the foam collapses and I could either leave it there or take it out later on.. Leaving your hat in a hot car will make it shrink too much.
Yes, I measure at a 57 but generally buy all my hats as 58s. I just sweat in mine a lot to get them to fit properly 🤣 Thank you for watching and sharing!
This is a really interesting video. I have an Adventurer - not sure it differs from a Federation. I love the hat but tend to baby it and wear it with either a flight jacket or long overcoat - I prefer other hats for outdoor work. I will try this softening technique with Lexol as I have that on hand for use wirh all my leather items - aling with Huberds shoe grease for restoring and old holsters etc. My size 59 hat is a perfect fit but this band still tends to dig into my forehead; I am hoping that softening the band will help. I sewed a really soft new reeded sweatband into a cowboy hat I am restoring - my first one so it took multiple tries to get the thing in right - but it never occurred to me to remove the wire. I would think that would make it even more difficult to position for sewing.
Thank you! Yeah, my oldest Fed - I’ve now named her ‘Old Blue’ - really forms to my head after removing the wire. I removed it after years of use and many rainstorms when it finally tightened enough to become uncomfortable. It is now my most comfortable hat. I will say that it was after removing the wire in that hat that I used Pecard on the sweatband. So I have now applied Pecard to a brand new sweatband and an old, well used one. Both hats fit great! If your Adventurer is from David Morgan, the crown is a little taller and brim is a little wider than the Fed. That model is exclusive to David Morgan and is the ‘sibling’ hat of the Federation. Akubra put out another hat called the Adventurer with a pre-bashed crown. A little confusing, I know. Thank you for your kind words and sharing! Kris
I would not recommend doing this at all. Leather has natural oils that will warm up the fibres and will keep it soft with use organically. If the hat hasn’t been used for a long time and the sweatband is stiff, you can use a variety of leather conditioners including regular skin moisturiser, but always to the outside, not the inside, of the sweatband. Just let it dry and absorb overnight and you will be good to go.
Hey! Thanks for watching! I appreciate your input! I used Pecard on my first Fed after the sweatband had shrank and I removed the wire. Afterwards, it’s tied as the most comfortable hat I have with my Broken Skull. I have experienced no ill effects from using Pecard. I started doing it upon advice from ‘old hats’ who’ve been topping their heads for decades. Thanks again for watching and commenting! Kris
Not that I can tell. Keeps it nice and soft from my experience. Good question, though because that never entered my mind. Someone who had been wearing hats for years gave me the advice and it seems to work just fine 👍
🤣This one I kinda baby but my other ones I definitely do not. I can see why you’d think that, though. My first Fed I’ve really put through the ringer and it’s still going strong! Thanks for watching!
Akubra hats are the best a person can wear. I speak from sixty years of hat wearing from that first schoolboy's grey up to my present stylish topper. Yes, I have worn one so long that I often forget that I have it on; once or twice finding myself not getting wet from the shower head.
Yes, I love my Akubras! I haven’t worn mine in the shower by accident yet, but now you’ve given me something to look forward to 🤣
Thank you for watching and sharing!
Kris
@@HatLifeAdventures We might allow for that little bit of Mad Cow decease creeping upon me as I lurch towards the great round up in the sky. That shower wearing has only happened a couple of times in nearly seventy years, but I will also point to a few times when I have been confounded after leaping into the creek or dam and having in my haste forgotten all bout my headwear. Akubras can stand a good wash, a mere spritz or sprinkle without worry or even a cyclone's downpour as long as they are properly dried into their shape again. Cheaper hats make me wonder why they bother and once remember having my issued felt Railway hat dissolve into a puddle of sodden blue die during a Xmas cyclone at midday in Townsville.
@@StevenCampbell1955 you, my friend, are a fine Wordsmith and Storyteller!
Yes, I never worry about what inclement weather or accidental abuse my Akubra can take! Quite simply: the best bang for your buck!
Kris
I did the same thing on my Stetson, just with Obbenhauf’s.
You've got to buy 1 size up and pack with foam. The sweatband shrinks.
For me, I measured 58 cm and a 58 felt good but the shop told me to get a 59. They packed behind the sweatband with adhesive foam strips. They told me the foam collapses and I could either leave it there or take it out later on..
Leaving your hat in a hot car will make it shrink too much.
Yes, I measure at a 57 but generally buy all my hats as 58s. I just sweat in mine a lot to get them to fit properly 🤣
Thank you for watching and sharing!
This is a really interesting video. I have an Adventurer - not sure it differs from a Federation. I love the hat but tend to baby it and wear it with either a flight jacket or long overcoat - I prefer other hats for outdoor work. I will try this softening technique with Lexol as I have that on hand for use wirh all my leather items - aling with Huberds shoe grease for restoring and old holsters etc. My size 59 hat is a perfect fit but this band still tends to dig into my forehead; I am hoping that softening the band will help. I sewed a really soft new reeded sweatband into a cowboy hat I am restoring - my first one so it took multiple tries to get the thing in right - but it never occurred to me to remove the wire. I would think that would make it even more difficult to position for sewing.
Thank you!
Yeah, my oldest Fed - I’ve now named her ‘Old Blue’ - really forms to my head after removing the wire. I removed it after years of use and many rainstorms when it finally tightened enough to become uncomfortable. It is now my most comfortable hat.
I will say that it was after removing the wire in that hat that I used Pecard on the sweatband. So I have now applied Pecard to a brand new sweatband and an old, well used one. Both hats fit great!
If your Adventurer is from David Morgan, the crown is a little taller and brim is a little wider than the Fed. That model is exclusive to David Morgan and is the ‘sibling’ hat of the Federation. Akubra put out another hat called the Adventurer with a pre-bashed crown. A little confusing, I know.
Thank you for your kind words and sharing!
Kris
THX for the video, yes, helped me ... I will try this on my Akubra's! 🤠👍🇦🇹
Sweet!😁👍
Hat stretcher works good with a little water.thats what i do to my Akubras
Hey, thanks for the tip!
Hey, great video!
Thank you!
The outside of the leather would be called the "grain" side. The inside is the "flesh" side. The grain side is the outer portion of the skin.
Thank you! I did not know that 👍
I would not recommend doing this at all. Leather has natural oils that will warm up the fibres and will keep it soft with use organically. If the hat hasn’t been used for a long time and the sweatband is stiff, you can use a variety of leather conditioners including regular skin moisturiser, but always to the outside, not the inside, of the sweatband. Just let it dry and absorb overnight and you will be good to go.
Hey! Thanks for watching! I appreciate your input!
I used Pecard on my first Fed after the sweatband had shrank and I removed the wire. Afterwards, it’s tied as the most comfortable hat I have with my Broken Skull. I have experienced no ill effects from using Pecard. I started doing it upon advice from ‘old hats’ who’ve been topping their heads for decades.
Thanks again for watching and commenting!
Kris
No worries about this causing the sweatband to shrink?
Not that I can tell. Keeps it nice and soft from my experience. Good question, though because that never entered my mind. Someone who had been wearing hats for years gave me the advice and it seems to work just fine 👍
Is there potentially any chance of the dubbing leaching into the satin liner or hat itself?
You know these are supposed to be hard-use Outback hats. right? You're treating your hat like a newborn baby.
🤣This one I kinda baby but my other ones I definitely do not. I can see why you’d think that, though. My first Fed I’ve really put through the ringer and it’s still going strong!
Thanks for watching!