newbie here? PICS

[dukedigsbottles]

I recently found about 100 old bottles. Some with raised lettering. All with glass stoppers. As far as I can tell they are from the early 1900's and earlier. Some are marked pat. March 25 1879 Whitall-Tatum Co.
My question is how to clean them without breaking/ruining them. And how to get some of the glass stoppers out that are stuck. I have soaked them in warm tap water and then putting cold water on the stopper and that got most of them loose.
My final question is how to aquire a tumbler or how to build one. I am new to the antique bottle world so I would appreciate any feedback!! Thanks In Advance!
Casey H.
SW MI

 

[dukedigsbottles]

RE: old chemist bottles*pic added

here is another picture its most of my bottles

 

[drjhostetters]

RE: old chemist bottles*pic added

Hey Duke...
Welcome to the forum...nice collection of bottles...look mostly like meds and apocrophy(sp.) bottles...but I was told recently that each glass stopper is ground to fit the particular bottle it was in....??? You may have decreased the value of your bottles by mixing them up...am I right fellow forum members? (Please correct me if I'm wrong in my observation.)
And be careful if they have any contents...age may have caused a chemical reaction that could be fatal...caution is advised...


Happy hunting...

The Doc...[X(]

 

[dukedigsbottles]

Hey Doc
Thanks for the info
how should I go about cleaning them.
Cause top openings are so small,help anyone.

And the stoppers I marked the ones that were in the bottles the other ones were just laying in a box so yhat might take awhile to match them up hehe.

Should I buy a tumbler?

Anyone from SW MI.
THE Duke

 

[diggerjeff]

unless those bottles came from the ground there would be no reason to tumble. being that they have strong embossing, ground stoppers ( which buy the way each stopper is individually fitted to a certian bottle, hope you didnt mix yours up!) and no doubt some are acid etched . tumbling would do more harm than good i think! try some strong lime scale removers or CLR on one and play with that for a while.

 

[WhiteLighting]

LOve the bottles "I collect mainly med/cure" bottles,and these ones you have I would say came from a old Pharmacy........the ones that are acid eteched do not tumble!!!!!!!!
Awsome!!! The stoppers are ascool,,,,
Where did you find these>,,,,,,u need more apothacary types?..