Expanding a Squashed Hip Flask

A squashed hip flask sold at an online auction site
A squashed hip flask offered for sale
at an online auction site

I bought a hip flask during my student days in Leeds, as I had always wanted a hip flask for some reason. It’s called a hip flask because it is contoured to fit your hip (if you keep it in your back pocket) or thigh (if you keep it in your front pocket)! I used to keep a small amount of Malibu in it, to keep me warm on those cold winter nights.

It is not uncommon to find hip flasks which have been compressed due to pressure differences between the inside and the outside, or simply squashed due to someone accidentally sitting on it.

A quick search for hip flask online revealed some online auction sites selling a number of hip flasks which are old and squashed.

Well, old would be great since these were presented as vintage items, but if you feel the sale value of the flask could be a lot better if it were at or close to its original shape, then trying what I am about to suggest below may help improve its value or chances of getting it sold. Unless of course, if part of its charm is in its squashed appearance.

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Fixing my own Squashed Hip Flask

A pewter hip flask with a compressed surface on its convex front
A pewter hip flask with a compressed surface on its convex front

So I have a hip flask which had crushed from impact (see photo above). Not sure if I had sat on it, or if some liquid inside had “contracted” and caused it to be compressed. Either way, I was determined to get it back in shape.

I tried what seemed like the most convenient thing to do: opened the steel cap and squeezed it at the sides with my fingers to try and pop the front surface back up. This would likely work if the flask were made of rigid plastic. So no, this method did not work. I got my brains to work a little harder, and thought of this, which worked well enough:

See the dented surface where my finger is? Here comes Dr Pepper to save the day!
See the dented surface where my finger is? Here comes Dr Pepper to save the day!
1. Fill the flask with a carbonated drink. In my case, I filled half the flask with Dr Pepper. I bet Coke would have been a better option, but Dr Pepper was the only choice I had in my fridge. Fill it only halfway as you need to leave some air in there to expand in the direction of the affected surface. I will explain shortly what this means.
2. After filling in halfway with a carbonated beverage, tighten the metal cap and ensure there is no leakage of air or liquid. Make sure it is a freshly-opened can of drink with a healthy dose of gas.
3. Shake the flask vigorously to induce a build-up of gas within the flask. Lay the flask lying down with the affected side facing up, and watch as the squashed surface rises up slowly.
Shake the flask vigorously to induce and release latent gas from your carbonated beverage of choice
Shake the flask vigorously to induce and release latent gas from your carbonated beverage of choice
Lay the flask down with the affected area facing up, and as the gas expands and rises to the top, watch as the squashed surface begins to magically bulge out and bloat gradually back to its original shape.
Lay the flask down with the affected area facing up, and as the gas expands and rises to the top, watch as the squashed surface begins to magically bulge out and bloat gradually back to its original shape.
4. Once the squashed surface has sufficiently risen and the original shape of the flask restored, open the cap to release excess gas and empty the fluid. You have just successfully brought a hip flask back to shape! You can pour away the beverage or simply drink it down. Burrrrp!
A previously squashed hip flask restored to its original contour and shape.
A previously squashed hip flask restored to its original contour and shape.

Soda with Salt

Some of you may think of adding salt to Coke inside the flask to induce a large amount of gas quickly; I thought of the same but was not sure if that would be too fast, or too much gas beyond my control. Didn’t want to end up with a bulge on the flask that I would have to try and compress back into shape after.

Anyway, without the salt, the time taken to expand it back to shape was under 5 minutes. Best to be patient with this.

Get It on eBay

The method outlined above should work with any metal canister that can be filled and capped air-tight, so if you find yourself in a similar situation with a squashed canister, go ahead and give it a try! Provided the canister is not squashed to a crease…

Disclaimer

Please proceed to use the above method at your own discretion. If your vintage hip flask is of great provenance or of significant historical value, using the above method may cause further damage to the hip flask e.g. over-bloat or leak at the joints and edges and as such, the dent may be best left on its own.


HIP FLASKS

SEE ALSO:

HIP FLASKS



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Fred Platt
Fred Platt
8 years ago

Squashed my flask over 10 years ago. It was worse than the one pictured above, Just tried this method using coke. Half filled flask, lid on and a quick shake gave an instant ‘pop’ as the flask went back into shape. Thank you for posting.

Sam Brown
5 years ago

It worked nicely for me. Tried heating it from the outside with a hair dryer first thinking it would behave like a car door but nothing. This did it in a few minutes.

Dylan
Dylan
3 years ago

Malibu??

FE
FE
2 years ago

Brilliant idea. Needed a bit of warming in simmering water too and it’s not quite the shaope it was but it looks like it has lived and now I can use it again so much thanks.

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