Repairing a dug bottle

[baltbottles]

I have an odd stance on repairing bottles. I have many bottles with small and large chips in my collection. and none of them have been repaired. I personally don't care to repair any of my own stuff the damage really doesn't bother me that much and i like to keep my bottles they way I found them.

However when I first started digging I was finding alot of pontiled medicines with chipped up flared lips. I was given some tips by someone that repaired bottles a bit years before I ever tried and I expanded on them until I had a process that worked well for me. I soon after realized that i don't like repaired bottles in my collection and my main motivation for doing repairs was gone.

Since then I have done a few repairs mostly for friends and forum members that asked me. I like doing artistic and creative things so a repair here and there I find enjoyable. But honestly for me to do it commercally I would want $50 an hour to do it and very few people would be willing to pay that. I probably make about $15 an hour off the few repairs I have done for others.

I guess that's why when someone emails me and really has an interest in learning how to do it I will help them. But I really don't want to be spending a lot of time explaining everything I do to a bunch of different people. It gets old fast.

As for repairs ruining a bottle. Everything I do is completely reversible just by soaking the bottle in acetone. So the integrety of the bottle is still there just its appearance has been enhanced by filling in areas with colored resin to simulate the missing glass. where as tumbling is a non reversible destructive process.

Chris

 

[blobbottlebob]

There are some great collectors chiming in on this. I love what Gunth has to say. He is the consotantly the voice of reason. I am not sure that museums tumble glass items, but even if they did, I still wouldn't. Part of this stems from the fact that I knew somebody who cut and cut and cut until he achieved his freaky greasy desired finish. Aweful. The guy was so slimy himself that after he completely removed the ring of the slug plate on one example, he tried to sell it to me as a rare 'propriety mold' version. Yuck. (What an a-hole eh?) He demolished that bottle and consistantly removed clues to the glassmaking process. Some of the items he worked on were very rare local bottles. Oh well. They were his, but what a waste.

 

[blobbottlebob]

I personally don't care to repair any of my own stuff the damage really doesn't bother me that much and i like to keep my bottles they way I found them.

Chris. I also love to see your collection. (Did I say collection? I meant comments[]). I do prefer to find minty bottles. But I often appreciate unusually rare damaged ones almost as much. However, when a bottle has chuncks missing, it's hard to view it as a whole bottle even if it is your only example. And when I get something great but with serious condition problems, I think of it as a crier. I can't help it.

Having said that, two years ago I recovered a bottle from the murky depths that had only been seen as a small partially embossed fragment, The piece I found was a whole bottle but missing part of the neck and blob. The author of the collecting guide that I use, was very interested in seeing it and then right away wanted to buy it. I actually told him that he could have it for all of the work he did to advance our hobby. He said that he wasn't comfortable with that and wanted to buy it. I said okay. He told me to name my price. I said 'You can have it for free." He said "How about twenty bucks?" I said "deal." []

 

[blobbottlebob]

One last comment. Generally, I like the patena on the bottles I find from the water. Often, they are opalized or mineral stained and its kinda neat. You can tell which way a bottle was resting on the bottom by looking at the stains sometimes.

But I definitely alter them when I find them. Immediately, their history changes. They used to be a great spot for fish eggs or a minnow's lair. Zebra mussels grow on the ouitside. Now, I pry off every zebra and remove the fine filament that held them on. I clear the dirt, muck and grime as best I can. I guess what I'm saying is, cleaning is fine. After that, the rest is just historical residue.

 

[blobbottlebob]

He is the consotantly the voice of reason.

Sorry Matt. I meant to say that you are consistantly the voice of reason. But if you choose to type consonants, that works too.

 

[captcadillac]

Thanks to everyone who posted how they feel about this subject. Great points were made pro and con about if repairs take away the history of a dug bottle.
You guys are definitely not knuckle draggers, but have some excellent insights and great thoughts on this subject.
CaptCadillac

 

[MINNESOTA DIGGER]

i like bottles that have been tumbled lightly still having several scratches and dings showing , i like the sickness to be gone , , over tumbled bottles are ruined , when the bottle sparkles in the light that is great , every one has there ideas on this , however how many people buy an old car . and restore them . lots of people