Weatherproofing a Felt Tricorn...

[Jack Roberts]

SO I was thinking of using beeswax and some sort of oil. Then heating it up to combine the ingredients. Next brshing it on and seeing what happens. Any suggestions? I'm not sure what is normally used.

[Red Sea Trade]

I live in the Sunny South, where beeswax plus anything would equal a permanently soggy chapeau.

I have treated my felt hats with a mixture of shellac (1 part white, 3lb. cut) and denatured alcohol (2 parts).

Brush on, let it soak in, then repeat on both sides until you have the desired degree of saturation.

It dries nicely, plus it helps maintain the shape of the hat over the long run.

Just a thought.

[Jack Roberts]

Sounds good, for I too live in the south and wouldn't want that to happen to my hats. I one question though, what do you mean by 1 part white, 3lb cut? I not sure I understand. 3lb cut, is that the type of felt? And the shellac is white? Thanks again for your insight.

[Mick MacAnselan]

Sounds good, for I too live in the south and wouldn't want that to happen to my hats. I one question though, what do you mean by 1 part white, 3lb cut? I not sure I understand. 3lb cut, is that the type of felt? And the shellac is white? Thanks again for your insight.

White 3 lb cut is the type of shellac. Mix one part of that with 2 parts denatured alcohol.

[Jack Roberts]

Thanks for clearing up my ignorance.

[Themarko]

I too send thanks for the info, and the clarification. I have a nice felt hat that will now soon be a tricorn.

[BattChief]

A couple of cans of "CAMP DRY" spryaed on works well also.

[Mick MacAnselan]

I too send thanks for the info, and the clarification. I have a nice felt hat that will now soon be a tricorn.

Themarko, if you're building from a felt blank, here's a link that might be helpful. There's a couple different methods in it, including the one I use.

Tricorn Thread

[Themarko]

Thanks Mick, that will prove a quite handy bit of info when I get a chance to start on my hat. It is a felt blank and should make a nice little learning experience.

[Jack Roberts]

Yes thanks again. The hats turned out great! Hard as a rock, but they shpaed beautifully while they were wet. I was able to get minw to sit just right on my head. Had to steam and reshape my wifes a bit, but it came out great also. Thanks. I'll post some pics when I get the camera back.

[Cap'n Pete Straw]

I cheated, but it worked out great.

I rubbed fabric paint into my felt hat. It's a polymer, and imbues a complete waterproof finish. The only clean-up was getting the stuff off my fingers. It looks great (and, yes, it dried virtually rock-hard, but that helps hold its shape)

[Themarko]

Cap'n Pete I have but one thing to say......BRILLIANT!!

[Cap'n Pete Straw]

Actually, this was a hold-over from my (financially) cutting corners in creating my Civil War kit. I made a completely authentic haversack out of canvas according to U.S. military plans... but had to "tar" it. I had discovered some time earlier that black polymer fabric paint (available in most craft and fabric stores) when rubbed into the fabric, made it look as if it had been tarred, and was then waterproof.

After using that haversack for about twelve years, the "tar" had really started to wear off. Just last winter, I took a new bottle of fabric paint, re-applied it, and the decade-old haversack now looks as good as new.

Ever since I saw Bilgemunkey's tarred hat (last year) I had been wanting to try the paint on a felt hat blank... again, I am quite happy with the result.

[Niko]

SO I was thinking of using beeswax and some sort of oil. Then heating it up to combine the ingredients. Next brshing it on and seeing what happens. Any suggestions? I'm not sure what is normally used.

Rather old thread I'm bringing up here but I would like to note I used a 1/2 pound of white beeswax and about 1/3 cup of hemp oil melted it down and brushed it on. It didn't seem to absorb as much as wanted it to so I a little bit more on the hat and threw it in the oven for a few minutes on low to melt the wax into the felt and then let it cool. The hat is hard but not too hard and the outside is water proof while the inside is still like normal felt which helps to absorb sweat from my big head. I love the damned thing.

[CaptainSatan]

If you can find a hat made of beaver felt (as opposed to rabbit).

It will be much more water resistant than less expensive hats.

I have had good results treating cheaper hats with Scotchguard.

I have a recipe for a home made water proofing from at least as

far back as the 18th century. It may be older than that. I'll look

for that book when I go home tomorrow and I'll post the recipe.

Edited May 26, 2009 by CaptainSatan

[Captain_MacNamara]

Wouldn't pine tar work for weatherproofing? And be period as well? Or am I making an assumption? The reason I ask is because very soon I will have to be weatherproofing at least 2 hats.

[CaptainSatan]

In case you decide to take the modern route.

How to waterproof a cowboy hat.

Edited May 27, 2009 by CaptainSatan

[CaptainSatan]

OK I checked the limited resource materials that I have at the house.

The earliest waterproofing that I could find was from 1758.

"The cloth was water-proofed by coating it with a boiled linseed and

"litharge of gold" (lead oxide). After several coats of the oil preparation

were dry, the cloth was well sealed and remained flexible."

I also found a post period home made recipe.

Canvas Waterproofing

1 cup soybean oil

1/2 cup turpentine

Mix ingredients together in a bowl and apply with a brush.

Edited May 28, 2009 by CaptainSatan

[CaptainSatan]

In case anyone is curious how a hat treated with oil & wax looks.

I noticed that Captain Jack's Pirate Hats has a page showing different finishes on their hats.

Hat Treatments

Edited June 5, 2009 by CaptainSatan

[Grymm]

A thinned bitumen paint like you can buy in a hardware store painted on the hat and allowed to cure, pref somewhere dry and ventilated. Hard as nails and waterproof.

A few layers it still looks like felt but solid, many layers make it suede like, lots of layers it looks like a semi polished leather.

[Quartermaster James]

Well, what I did ain't PC, but it don't change the look of the hat.

I got a big can of silicone waterproofing spray from the hardware store.

Great stuff. I've used it on all sorts of things. Gotta keep the stuff hanging in the garage while it cures.

No visible change, no hardening, no greasy feel, water rolls right off.

*Oops!* Just saw the earlier post about Camp Dry...that's the stuff!