Heer winter cap

[Twice]

Hi all,

I am new to WW2 militaria,

I recently bought and received a world war II German winter hat. The hat is in great condition but it seems very small, I thought I should be able to wear it as I have another modern winter hat(Hungarian ushanka) that is size 56, the same size as the German winter hat.

But the German winter hat feels two sizes smaller and it is very tight on my head almost unwearable.

Is there a way where I can stretch the hat safely? I assume the hat is smaller than the specified size as it's vintage it must have shrunk over the years.

Here are some pictures of the hat:

[Nr16Lueneburg]

Hey Twice, if I were you I would keep it as it is and use it only as display piece. If you want to wear one of These hats you should buy a repro one on the Web.
Imo it would be a shame to alter a historical piece, if its real.
Greetings from northern Germany.

[SHEMP H]

Stretching the hat too much could tear the seam, I would leave it as is

[rbminis]

It looks original to me.
You may be able to figure out who the maker was.
Look through this RB Nr. thread and see if this number is listed.
The Reichsbetriebsnummer RB numbering system.
Ralph.

I would leave it as it is also.