Custom Rounding Jack; Marc Kitter's Adventurebilt Hat (new Indiana Jones movie) Fedora Brim Cutter

This Rounding Jack (Brim Cutter) was a commissioned piece, and so it has been sold.

If you would like something similar, please email me at

mark@decoustudio.com

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Customer Testimony Printed with permission:

”I’ve received my rounding jack together with the tolliker a few days ago and I cannot believe how I have managed to work with other tools in the past. Asside from being a piece of art and a pleasure to look at, both tools are a TREMENDOUES ease when it comes to professional hatmaking. The angle of the blade on the rounding jack, the exactness of the cut, the easyness of adjusting the width of the cut and the overall superb craftmanship and construction, combined with the ergonomics that went into the design, makes this rounding jack the best available – vintage or modern – by far. Thanks for making these available.”

Marc Kitter
The Adventurebilt Hat Co.
www.adventurebilt.com

Kind regards,

Marc

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This project is a “brim cutter” that hatmakers use to cut the brims of Fedora and Western style hats. Actually, any style of hat can be cut, with a brim size ranging from 1.25”-8” in width.

The wood used on this project is Kansas Black Walnut. The rest of the parts are yellow brass. The inlay piece is synthetic ivory with Marc Kitter’s business logo scratched with a knife by hand in a scrimshaw style artwork.

I enjoy mixed-media work, and making things that are pretty (handsome) and useful.

Project Story:

Few custom hatmakers can say they made history, but Marc Kitter and his business partner Steve Delk are two that can. After spending months of hard work researching and studying the old Indiana Jones hats from the early 1980’s movie trilogy, they designed and built all of the Fedoras for the new ”Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” Spielberg movie.

They told me that they made 48 hats in all for the movie, some were souvenirs that the production staff kept, as well as the ones used in the filming.

Now, they are selling copies of the exact hat that they made for the new movie. If you would like to order one of Steve & Marc’s Indiana Jones’ hats, you can contact them at their website. This is a popular item this summer to order, and so do it quickly to get on their project list:

www.adventurebilt.com

Steve Delk found my Rounding Jacks on the lumberjock postings a few weeks ago and placed his order for the first of my production models. His Rounding Jack is serial number 2008-03 (the first two serial numbers are my protypes). A few days later, his partner in Germany Marc Kitter ordered one, serial number 2008-05.

Display Stand: The display stand is designed to sit on the hatmaker’s work bench and hold the cutter when it is not being used. The retractable blade can remain extended this way between uses. This particular stand shown in the photos is Kansas Black Walnut. This display stand is meant to make the whole project look like a functional-art sculpture, while it serves it’s functional purpose of the Rounding Jack safely.

To make the cut. The blade guard knurled nut is loosened, the blade dropped down and the nut retightened. The slider nuts are loosened and the desired cut width is indicated by the pointer, and the slider nuts are tightened. The hat is placed on a wood crown block to give a firm resistance to the pressure being applied with the cutter, and the brim is placed between the bottom brass plate and the bottom of the cutter. Then, depending on whether the hatmaker is a Clockwise, or a Counterclockwise cutter, the Rounding Jack is slowly moved around the contour of the crown while pushing the cutter toward the center (head). Felt Hat Blanks are very expensive, so after the cutting is complete, a big sigh of relief is heard from the hatmaker.

The Adjustable Brass Crown Band on the front of the cutter is used when the brim is to be cut wider on the sides, than on the front and back. By adjusting the curve of the brass band, the cutter is pushed away farther on the wider curve of the crown sides.

Thanks for looking,
Mark DeCou
www.decoustudio.com

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More Hat Tools?:
If are you into “Hatmaking” or “Hatmaking Tools” you might enjoy seeing these other projects I have posted:

Economy Hobbyist-Hatter Model Rounding Jacks:

1. Walnut Rounding Jack w/ Bench Top Display Stand
2. Walnut Rounding Jack w/ Laser Engraved Ruler

Deluxe Model Rounding Jacks that have been Sold:

1. Hat Brim Cutter; Rounding Jack made from Maple Wood on a Walnut Bench Top Display Stand
2. Custom Rounding Jack; Brainpan Hat Shop in Sumner, WA Ready to Cut Fedora Hat Brims
3. Custom Rounding Jack; Steve Delk's Adventurebilt Hat (new Indiana Jones movie) Fedora Brim Cutter
4. Custom Rounding Jack; Marc Kitter's Adventurebilt Hat (new Indiana Jones movie) Fedora Brim Cutter
5. Custom Rounding Jack; Pyrate Trading Co.'s Brim Cutter for Triangular Shaped Pirate Hats
6. Custom Rounding Jack; Walnut Brim Cutter for the Infamous Hatman Jack at Wichita Hat Works
7. Custom Rounding Jack; Inaaya Hat Co.
8. Custom Rounding Jack; Penman Hat Co.
9. Hatmaking Tools: Hat Brim Cutter, Rounding Jack
10. Prototype Hatmaking Tool: Brim Cutting Rounding Jack

Formillion & Conformer:

1. Prototype Formillion & Conformer

Tollikers:

1. Elk Antler and Birch Tolliker on a Display Stand
2. Walnut Wood Tolliker on a Display Stand
3. Three White Birch Wood Tollikers
4. Walnut Brim Shaping Foot Tollikers
5. Wooden Tollikers, Double Birch Set on Display Stand

Wooden Curling Irons:

1. Hat Brim Edge 2-Piece Wood Curling Iron
2. Hat Brim Edge Pencil Curl Curling Iron

Puller Downers:

1. Birch & Maple Brim Puller Downers

My Website with other woodworking, including furniture, walking canes, scrimshaw artwork, custom knives, and other misc. items

Mark DeCou Studio Website

(Note:This project story, project design, photos, text, spelling, everything I can possibly list is copyrighted in 2008 by the Author, M.A.DeCou. If you want to use any part of this posting or the photos, for any Feeds, or a book, or another website, or for any reason whatsoever, even ones that I could not have dreamed about you doing before you did it, you must ask for permission first. Please)

-- Mark DeCou - Kansas Flinthill's Artisan