When I come to Australia, I want to come home with a nice old time Aussie camp oven.

11" might be just fine.

Sure every one has their views

Sure all have their price

& many here have shared their 'bargains'.

Many of those are higher than I would/could pay.

I've seen ones like that recent 11" go for $60.00 or below.

I've seen people here bid over $300.00 for something I would have let go by at $150.00.

===============

I thoroughly understand the post, is this the real Aussie item.

I find the post This will likely go for more than $250.00 a very unfreindly chatter box -town crier outlook.  I've already pmed Derek so these views are not news to him.  But it sure sounds like 'ha, ha our Australian goods will fetch as much as US auctioned goods'.  

Every time something like that happens you draw attention to an item and you probably make it harder for another member of COCIA to bid!!!!!

I haven't been told that others agree with me, but in reason, it's bound to be so.   Those of us with smaller purses have problems with talking up what appears rather average items on ebay or any other public auction.

:-/

I don't see it as a problem really.  It's no different to going to an auction where there are a number of people wanting the same item.  Most of us regularly check eBay to see what is there.  

From my perspective it's just a discussion point to see items talked about on here.

General opinion seems to think $150 was reasonable for the 11" that just finished on eBay, I think it was too much for an oven without the makers name but that's just my opinion. I'm still buying fairly regularly $120 being my upper limit, just bought a 12" Albion in VG condition for $70 off a dealer.
Bringing attention to eBay on COCIA only generates bids and favours the seller. I'll let you know when I put some of my unnamed pots on eBay and maybe you'll talk them up for me. TIC.

pd

Interesting! I have found heaps of CO's for sale without even going near ebay. I for one would be very nervous buying a CO on ebay. I have read many posts on here about CO's broken in the post,not what it was meant to be,unmatched bottoms & lids & the list goes on.
LK if your after an Aussie CO why not post it here and let us look for you, someone may even have one now. Who knows. Give us some particulars and I will keep an eye out, but I would need some guidelines! :)

Skip

I have bought ci on ebay.  Actually, I think I've done ok.  & one can do ok, but you need to know what your doing.

Again I do not see the point in promoting any comparatively ordinary item.  And that is all that you are doing, promoting.

I don't see it a giving information to the membership.

I don't see it as giving information on bidding tips.

I see as making it harder for members to find items of interest.  

==============

Skip, thanks for the spirit of the offer.  I'm not coming for awhile.  This year is retirement and move provinces.  I'm in the middle of that now.

8-)

People please, there are many different avenues for people to source these cast iron curios put in the time and effort and good things will come your way at the right price. I was going to place a bid on this oven, but after Dereks comment I decided not to. If I had of placed a bid the price may have gone for a lot more who knows, thats always the chance you take when bidding on ebay. More often than not you can pay too much. I have bought my fair share of cast iron on ebay some things at a bargain price some things I paid a bit more for, but you always run the risk of paying to much for anything in any auction type format. Sudden blood rushs to the head can be very detrimental to any bidder at any auction and generally thats why prices get pushed up above and beyond expectations.

In regards to that comment drawing extra attention to the item on ebay in my opinion COCIA represents a minority of cast iron collectors ( No disrespect Derek I love the site and the contributors). Yes we have our member base, but on the scale of things we are a relatively small group of people, some collectors and some of us just like the lifestyle.

Ebay would obviously reach a much wider range of Collectors, Dealers and the likes who would'nt even of heard of this forum, so in my opinion Dereks comments would have made no difference whatsoever to the end result.

I think that when anyboby makes a comment about Aussie made ovens LK thats purely because the majority of our foundries have gone by the wayside or moved their operations overseas. In a way for me collecting is about protecting and preserving a part of our history and the way things use to be, for my kids and eventually my grand kids to appreciate and enjoy when I'm long gone.

My Old Man always says we are just the guardians of these so called collectables, eventually they will get passed onto the next worthy advocate, hopefully along with some good tales and history with them for the next generations to enjoy as well.

Until the next chapter......

Astro

Good post Astro and not just because your views reflect most of mine.

I too feel that I am preserving a part of history especially when I buy an oven in a pretty sad state, painted or heavily rusted, and restore it. I started tagging my pots and recording where and when I bought them so my son and grandson can really appreciate their history.

Like you I have bought a number of ovens on eBay, three have arrived broken in spite of my warning the seller about packing them extra carefully and a couple have lids that are a bit sus, original or not ?

It's interesting, many of people running antique shops say that eBay is the worst thing that ever happened to them. Sure they sell on eBay but buying in stock is almost impossible, guess you can't have it both ways.

pd

Although I as a person who appreciates quality brands and where/how they are made mean very little to me.
My memories are in the using of the oven, the smells the yarns and the gathering around of those who mean a lot to me.
I have a freind who runs a youth group (Salvo's) and his enjoyment stems from the look on kids faces (remember they are city kids) when they help him prepare food in the camp cvens at their farm camp area and the pride they have when others tell them how good the food is.
I saw that persoally when some young rellies from Sydney stayed with us at Easter and I let them help me with the cooking one young neice emailed me a couple of weeks ago proud as punch that she had ar 12 bought herself a small oven from the local camp shop and as I had taught her used heat beads to cook her family a meal
So to me these are the important parts of using and cooking with a camp oven not its price or its brand etc I have been lucky that I have friends who I swap with or trade with but if I need something then I get it for its use not its collectable status (in saying that I have been lucky enough to get some nice ovens in trading usually for other objects) and being from the bush I still have contact with a lot of old fellas who are crippling up who give me a yell and offer what to them hold cherished lifelong memories of feeds and happy times and foolish as it may seem those old ovens and some are repaired ones mean the most to me because they hay my memories of a mate.
My kids will get mine (14) at last count and I know that they will see me every time they pull a feed as I now see my old mates.
Camp ovens hold their own history and that history is in the memories of what has been done with and around them and if you are like me I can sit and look at an own while I am cooking and a smell will bring back to me a happy time spent at another place.

I collect all right and thats because of what I have just described and without those old bits of cast iron I am sure that I woukld have lost a lot of memories that are precious to me now some happy and some sad

off the talkbox
Furphy













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I think that says it all Furph,
Some of my fondest memories of CO tucker are from when I was a kid & my father was cooking up rabbits in his CO on a shooting trip (not sure what brand or where it is now) but my kids will be the same, all the weekends we have got together with my mates & thier kids to cook up a good feed (sometimes not so good!) should stick in thier minds long after I'm gone along with the places weve camped or cooked at & I hope they will take on my ovens with pride & carry on the practice, most of my ovens are chinese but it doesn't matter, the memories will stay forever!!

Mick.

When you start a discussion, it's always nice when replies show careful consideration of the matter.  

Astro, I appreciate what your saying about the bidding process and I have seen your bids.

Furph, well, everything you say applies to me.  History has always interested me.  It's the story of people.  Over here, those who have read books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, such as, Little House on the Prairie may have learned about ovens from those stories.  I learned that there were spider's, as well as ovens,  that way.  My cast iron covers more than one century and not all of it named.

Of course, I want at least one Aussie oven with 'its own history'.

Now, Astro. as to COCIA being a small group.  Just go watch the stats here a bit.  
- That thread on that oven:  Yesterday at this time or a bit later = 135 views.  Today, up 10, when I last looked.
- This thread when I posted yesterday (morning to me) = 34.  After Astro yesterday = 51.  By the time you all woke up for your Friday morning = 67.  Now, = 120 views.

Where are these viewers coming from?  Guests, mostly guests.  Right now it's saying there have been 118 guests reading today.  All forums have lurkers, those who read, but don't share of their own knowledge.  I haven't changed my mind about 'promoting' by posting anything on auction.

:-/

I see your point LK for sure and for certain and I respect that view. But personally after seeing the final outcome of that oven on ebay but the results speak for themselves. Out of 361 lookers on the item there was 16 bids in total from only 5 bidders. Not a huge percentage of people actually placing a bid on the oven, despite the amount of people looking at it.
And I really do beleive that Dereks comments or anyone else's for that matter would'nt have altered the outcome. I don't have any Drama's with such things being mentioned on the site as we all know that the majority of us search ebay regularly and know whats on offer out there.
I have my fair share of ovens and as I mentioned before, and after Dereks comments I thought to myself, pull your head in and give someone else a chance.
This has been a good post and it has brought up some good points for all to consider.

Until the next chapter....

Astro.

I agree, good thread it shows clearly that we all interptret aspects differently and no interpretations are wrong just points of view.
I have thought a great deal about the views and how the numbers reflect actual lookers at the posts, I know I personally look at a thread every time a new post is listed  and because I was trying to understand points of view on this thread I looked quite a few times, so in reality I probably looked at this thread as many as 15 times.
Certainly made me aware of others views on this topic & let's face it that is what a forum is all about. :)

Thanks everyone!
Regards Skip

For me getting a bargain isnt as important as getting something that is unusual, useful and has a history.  I hadn't realised there were so many different shapes until some of you shared photos of your purchases with us.  I think regardless of exposure etc its just a matter of setting your mind to what value you are prepared to pay and take into consideration risks that we are warned about (breakages, cracks etc) and dont budge a penny more.

So far I haven't found anything but I live in hope  ;D

I am off to WA next week, I think a foundry there was mentioned.  Is it still going? and would it be worth a visit?

Just my two cents worth. If it wasnt for skip mentioning that there was a CO mate on Ebay I may have missed out on the deal of the century(thanks again skip). As far as posts here promoting prices at auction I cant see that anyone takes much notice of what we say. Any furphy oven that has gone up for auction usually astounds us as to the bidding prices and always ends with posts saying " I wouldnt pay that much". So one would think that if we are getting listened to, the bidders would be thinking to themselves they are getting ripped off. As I said just my thoughts, they may not be right but they are mine  ;)

shane

You can bet your boots, your brand new pair of boots that I won't be bidding at a time of the year when hosts of souls have to get up and call:  "hey, there's one, hey, there's one,  look, look there's one."  

& I don't think there has ever been a time when I intentionally bid hoping to bid someone else up either.

:-/