While in the Toowoomba area we took the opportunity to drive out to the Jondaryan Woolshed for a stickybeak. It  is a very interesting place with a heap of history. One of the many things I saw there was this beautiful old 18 inch Albion oven. I’ve never seen the lids marked this way before……only with the oval shaped logo. Thought Id post the photos for others who haven’t seen one
I asked the bloke who was cooking dampers at the time if he knew much about it …..His answer….” That old thing??…Buggered if I know where it came from……...we use it for a stew pot on busy days…leans up against the wall there mostly.”
He was using the roughest looking home made camp oven Ive seen to cook dampers in at the time. Sort of left me scratching my head…….I know which Id rather use….lol….any way his choice…..he’s cooking.

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The shed they use to cook in is a ripper…..like a huge chimney with walls……I think I need one in the backyard…….hehehehehe!

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SBB
Hansen & Walton were the original owners of Albion Stove Works in Maryborough before John Walton moved to Brisbane to start UMI.
LogFire

So how much did you offer him for it??? ;D

Or an exchange for a 20" Cabellas? ;D

What a top, purpose built cooking hut, hmmmm......where can i fit one of e'm.........??????


Stop it, youv'e got enough sh&t!! :o :o :o

Mick.

That's fantastic.  Have moved it to the "History" section as we need to keep that.

Saltbush Bill wrote on Feb 10^th, 2009 at 6:18pm:

He was using the roughest looking home made camp oven Ive seen to cook dampers in at the time.

Thanks for the info SB.

Just as a matter interest, did you get a photo of the home made camp oven? I would be interested in havin a bit of a gander

Jacko

Stumpy the oven in question can be seen in the left bottom corner of the photo titled cook house 2 . Sorry havnt got a better photo. It was basicly a 7 - 8 inch wide strip of steel plate rolled into a circle and welded. The bottom was a round piece of the same gauge plate welded in. the top was made pretty much the same way.....had short legs made from one inch pipe from memory. The whole show would have been about equal to a 20 inch oven.
SBB

I've seen a couple of home made ovens which looked quite professional, a 4" or 5" section of steel pipe with a floor welded in and a modified plough disc for a lid, handles, legs etc, pretty much the same as what SBB is talking about, $35 at a swap meet, went back for another look and it was gone.
At Millmerran there is no shortage of homemade ovens, usually recycled truck rims, 20" - 24".

pd

Thanks SBB

Homemade cookware really is a genre in it's own right. It never ceases to amaze me the serviceable cookware which old coots out in the back blocks have knocked up out of a bit of old scrap.

Many years ago, I attended a clearing sale near Broken Hill and during the sale I happened to stumble across what appeared to be a camp oven made out of a couple of old truck brake drums. It had 3" long legs welded to the bottom drum and the holes in middle of the drums which would normally take the wheel hub housing were nicely filled and welded with thick metal plate. The drum which formed the lid also had locating pins, so as to engage with the bottom drum or pot.
It looked a little rough but I'm sure it would have been a treat to cook with.

Would a brake drum camp oven made a  few years ago when all brake shoes contained a good percentage of asbestos fibre be considered a health hazard ?
Aaaah those pioneers were a hardy bunch lol.

pd

Brake drums are steel, and if cleaned thouroughly, there should be no residue....  If not, I am stuffed!!!!!

G'day Rastas

Do you own some cookware made from brake drums? If so, I would be interested in havin a squiz.

I used to.. We had our equivalent to a Pot Belly stove made of two brake drums..  It was complete with a door cut in the side and chimney flue spigot in the top.  (It was the first thing I ever cut with a plasma cutter and the first serious bit of MIG welding I ever did....)

We made a deep bowl out of a medium sized brake drum for cooking stew...

I left it all at the house we built it for coz it was too dang heavy to move...  (Wish I hadn't now, as it would have been ideal in the back yard instead of a brazier.)

If I was to build another one, I prolly would build one out of an old beer Gas cylinder (100kg one)

Rastas000 wrote on Feb 20^th, 2009 at 12:34pm:

Brake drums are steel, and if cleaned thouroughly, there should be no residue....  If not, I am stuffed!!!!!

Brake drums are Cast Iron Rastas, steel would warp with the heat & stress of a braking system, even on cars. [smiley=wink.gif]


Rastas000 wrote on Feb 20^th, 2009 at 6:51pm:

I used to.. We had our equivalent to a Pot Belly stove made of two brake drums..  It was complete with a door cut in the side and chimney flue spigot in the top.  (It was the first thing I ever cut with a plasma cutter and the first serious bit of MIG welding I ever did....)

Like this one I made years ago???

George, I will let you elaborate on this one......Welding Cast Iron with a MIG?
Can be done but as weak as piss!

Sorry Rastas! ;)


Cheers, Mick.

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BillyBushCook wrote on Feb 21^st, 2009 at 2:35pm:

rake drums are Cast Iron Rastas,

Absolutely....  Steel, cast iron.. Significant differences... but spoken as the same...  Bad me..

Yup the thing looks the sameish...

I made the frame it sat on the supports for the heat shield at the rear..    As I said, the most significant MIG welding I had done to date..

Geez I hate it when a pedant out pedants me...   ;)

Speaking of different metals, Ive often wondered whether anyone has ever cast a camp oven out of bronze.

I reckon it would make a bonza oven  :)

I don't know the down side of cooking in bronze but when I visited Billmans foundry last year to pick up some COs Max the owner gave Sundryed and meself a tour around the joint and a lot of the casting they were doing was in bronze.
They had a Holden there, in pieces, which they had used to cast a full size bronze replica of with Peter Brock standing on the roof. It was destined to end up at Bathurst, has anyone seen it ?

pd

poddy dodger wrote on Feb 25^th, 2009 at 12:22pm:

They had a Holden there, in pieces, which they had used to cast a full size bronze replica of with Peter Brock standing on the roof. It was destined to end up at Bathurst, has anyone seen it ?

PD

I was just talking to a bloke who used to work at the Peter Brock museum up here in Yeppoon. He says the replica is actually a Half (lenght wise) replica to go against a wall. It is at the Bathurst Museum at Bathurst.

Jono

poddy dodger wrote on Feb 25^th, 2009 at 12:22pm:

I don't know the down side of cooking in bronze but when I visited Billmans foundry last year to pick up some COs Max the owner gave Sundryed and meself a tour around the joint and a lot of the casting they were doing was in bronze.

Thanks for the tip PD, I will give Billmans a hoy to see if they would be interested in knocking me up a 15" in bronze.

I was at an Elmore Field Day about five or six year ago and there was a bloke there selling solid cast iron Chimnea made from 120 year old cast iron water pipe which was apparently excavated from Bendigo’s water supply system during a refurbishment; anyway he also had one made of old bronze water pipe. It weighed a bloody ton but by jingos it was bloody impressive chimnea, with solid bronze walls over one inch thick and a beautiful coppery patina.

Im wondering if maybe Bronze might be like stainless ....food tends to stick to it...and will it season ok. ....without looking into it ive got a feeling bronze might be a bit on the expensive side too......but as a one off personal oven.....yes it would be a a nice thing to own.

My vibes are that after having gone through countless eras of technical development, including the bronze age, if cooking in bronze made good food, we'd know about it.  

After all they spent ages eating with pewter only there's something in it like lead.  I know you can't combine tomatoes and pewter and folks thought the lovely, yummy, can't-live-without tomato was poison for the longest time because of that.

Start with google and something like 'cook with bronze' or bronze cookery.  & report back please,   You've got us curious.

:-/

G'day LK

Bronze cookware may have been good enough for our ancestors during the Bronze Age, but it doesn't sound a good idea these days. I found a site which suggested that bronze alloy also contains traces of lead and arsenic which may be released into fluids when the metal is heated.

It looks like I'll just have to stick with me good ole cast iron pots afer all.  ;)

Saw a 12" custom made stainless steel camp oven at the CO comp at Casino a couple of years ago. It was a thing of beauty (as I also suffer from "Chrome Disease" I'm attracted to anything shiny) but the owner said it took a bit of skill to control the heat over a fire and he only used it for display.
I was so impressed with it when I got home I tried to make one using a s/s bowl, welding legs and ears on it and fabricating a lid........ ahhh well, another unfinished dream lol.
Like you SJ, I'll stick to good old CI

pd

I have charts above my Lathe in the shed which show all types of metals, their properties & thier aplications for when I'm ordering metal to make engine components, bearings etc,
I just checked on the Bronzes,
It lists three main Bronze Alloys
1. LG Bronze - a leaded gun metal bronze.
2. PB Bronze - Phosphur Bronze.
3. (the one I use the most) AG Bronze - Alluminium Bronze, it has the highest Brinell Hardness, i use it for "little end" bearings in engines & other high impact bearings & bushings, it is more dense than the others (does not look porous) & is VERY expensive.

considering what they are Alloyed with, I would not cook with any of them!!!

Now these Alloying elements (Alluminium, Phosphur & Lead) are only the primary Alloying element, there is other crap in them too, I havn't looked at the actual chemical make up of them (it is on the chart too) but I'll bet it isn't good!!

If I was going to make a CO out of any thing other than CI, I would simply fabricate one out of 6mm steel plate!

Cheers, Mick. [smiley=chef.gif]

OK, just went out to get another beer & had another look,
The chemical components in all three Bronzes contain these elements in varying quantities,

Cu   Sn   Zn   Pb   Si   Al   Fe   Ni   Mn

Now going just from memory (yes I'm showing off now ;D) they are, in order:-

Copper,  Sn ?,  Zinc, Lead, Silicon, alluminium(pure), iron, Nickel & Magnesium.


Mick.

Thanks for that Mick....very interesting.....a lot of stuff in there Id prefer not to have in my tucker.

I'm only guessing now but I think Max at Billmans said he buys the bronze ingots in at $1800 per tonne, the cast iron comes in from scrap metal merchants, CI baths, manifolds, old pot belly stoves etc and gets recycled, you just never know what your oven was in a previous life.


pd

BillyBushCook wrote on Feb 21^st, 2009 at 2:35pm:

George, I will let you elaborate on this one......

G,day mick,the last couple of potbellies I,ve made didnt have a welded seam between the brake drums,infact the only welded joint was the flue spiggott out from the side of the top section.even heat and SLOW cooldown is very inportant.As for MIG welding CI,I wouldnt recommend it.
cheers George

Hmmmmmm interesting PD.......does that mean I could deliver my own cast iron....an arm load of old broken FJ holden manifolds or the family bathtub and have it come back as a camp oven......be a real novelty oven...and a one off.....especially if you had the (before photo)

SBB.  While we were there at the foundry a bloke was breaking up old cast iron baths etc and feeding them into an open top electric furnace, skimming off the slag (?) and pouring the molten metal into a crucible  before putting it into the prepared molds, 18" camp ovens, very interesting.

pd

So there may be a chance however slight that I may in times past had a bath in what is now Jonno's 18 incher.
I'll be Buggered          :D

sooty wrote on Feb 25^th, 2009 at 9:12pm:

So there may be a chance however slight that I may in times past had a bath in what is now Jonno's 18 incher. I'll be Buggered

Your probably right Sooty, and there's nothin stopping ya havin one in the future either.  ;D ;D

It would appear that many of todays commonly used cookware metals and coatings are not all that healthy either


STAINLESS STEEL

“The kind of steel used in most stainless steel cookware is not the best metal in which to prepare foods. Most stainless steel cookware sold in stores is of such a nature as to allow chrome and nickel to bleed out into foods as water and food chemicals react with the walls of the vessels as they are heated. The chrome and nickel salts are retained when ingested. They cannot be eliminated. They build up and in time can create troublesome conditions”.  

– Dr. Shelton’s Hygienic Review
Division of Science, Engineering and Technology, The Pennsylvania State University at Erie, The Behrend College, 16563 Erie, Pennsylvania, USA



NON-STICK COATED / TEFLON

Can scratch, chip and flake. "Exposure to Teflon resins at temperatures above 393ºF may produce a condition termed polymer fume fever characterized by flu-like symptoms such as chills, fever, body aches, nausea and occasional vomiting.

" Federal Aviation Agency Occupational Health & Safety Bulletin.
.


ALUMINUM

Very soft metal. Extreme chemical reaction between food and pan. "All Vegetables cooked in Aluminum produce hydroxide poison which neutralizes digestive juices, producing stomach and gastrointestinal trouble, such as stomach ulcers and colitis."

Dr. A. McGuigan's Report on Findings for the Federal Trade Comm. In Docet Case No. 540 Washington, D.C.

That is scary SJ,
Good thing I cook almost every meal in either a CI skillet or CO!!

We must be the healthiest eaters of all!!!!! ;D ;D ;D :D

Mick.

BillyBushCook wrote on Feb 26^th, 2009 at 7:29am:

We must be the healthiest eaters of all!!!!! Grin Grin Grin Cheesy

Blood oath Mick, cast iron cookware does seem to have the least health risk.. Us cast iron freaks are not only the healthiest eaters, fitter than Mallee bulls (especially what with lugging those whopping great ovens around) and we eat the best tucker  ;D

Speakin of health risks. My wife and I listened to this news report on the radio this mornin, which claimed that one glass of red wine a day for women was no longer considered therapeutic and actually increased their risk of cancer.
I then burst into laughter because the missus had this terrible, shocked, horror, ‘how much can a Koala bear’ look on her face, because 'her indoors' is quite fond of a glass in the evening.  ;)

Naturally as a gentleman and a caring husband, I insisted on saving her from the evils of cancer by offering to consume her nightly quota of red … ;D ;D ;D ; .............The offer went down like a lead balloon...... :( I just can't understand it .....:'( :'( :'(

LogFire wrote on Feb 10^th, 2009 at 10:12pm:

Hansen & Walton were the original owners of Albion Stove Works in Maryborough before John Walton moved to Brisbane to start UMI. LogFire

This is significant information - many thanks.

KD

Saltbush Bill wrote on Feb 10^th, 2009 at 6:18pm:

While in the Toowoomba area we took the opportunity to drive out to the Jondaryan Woolshed for a stickybeak. Itis a very interesting place with a heap of history. One of the many things I saw there was this beautiful old 18 inch Albion oven. I’ve never seen the lids marked this way before……only with the oval shaped logo. Thought Id post the photos for others who haven’t seen one I asked the bloke who was cooking dampers at the time if he knew much about it …..His answer….” That old thing??…Buggered if I know where it came from……...we use it for a stew pot on busy days…leans up against the wall there mostly.” He was using the roughest looking home made camp oven Ive seen to cook dampers in at the time. Sort of left me scratching my head…….I know which Id rather use….lol….any way his choice…..he’s cooking.

Well it is not on site there anymore, after a recent vist.

KD

Beryl just returned from a few days at 134 Neptune Street Maryborough (Qld!).
She grew up as a girl at this address and has added some interesting information re a Foundry next door.
- it was known to her family as the Walton Stove Works
- the foundry was still going when her parents bought the house (new just built spec home) in 1956/57
- the foundry closed in the early 1960's
- originally the foundry took up her parents block and 136 Neptune Street, she said her mother was always digging up iron when gardening
- Grannie Walton lived round the corner in Walker Street, Bob Walton lived on the corner of Neptune and Walker Streets thought to be grandson of John died only two months ago
- the wife in xxx Neptune Street is a Walton from the foundry family and can tell anything about the foundry history,  Beryl has her phone number and is well known to Beryl and KD as the lady was a friend of Beryl's late mother
- 132 Neptune Street is a white brick house and was the site of the scrap iron heap to be melted down, the foundry extended for several blocks beneath that house to 128 Neptune Street.

Not making any observations or comments other than facts above.

KD

Kingsthorpe David wrote on Dec 11^th, 2009 at 5:51pm:

While in the Toowoomba area we took the opportunity to drive out to the Jondaryan Woolshed for a stickybeak. Itis a very interesting place with a heap of history. One of the many things I saw there was this beautiful old 18 inch Albion oven. I’ve never seen the lids marked this way before……only with the oval shaped logo.

I hope I can stumble upon this locally one day.

KD

Kingsthorpe David wrote on Dec 13^th, 2009 at 7:27pm:

Beryl just returned from a few days at 134 Neptune Street Maryborough (Qld!). She grew up as a girl at this address and has added some interesting information re a Foundry next door. - it was known to her family as the Walton Stove Works - the foundry was still going when her parents bought the house (new just built spec home) in 1956/57 - the foundry closed in the early 1960's

Was this the same foundry as the Albion camp oven foundry?

KD

So does anybody know where the "Albion Maryborough"  Foundry site was in Maryborough?

KD

Kingsthorpe David wrote on Dec 16^th, 2009 at 9:08pm:

So does anybody know where the "Albion Maryborough" site Foundry was? KD

Yep.....Maryborough. ;D ;D

Robbo

Heap blessings on Google Maps, KD.

1st I put in Maryborough.

Then for 2nd pic I put in Albion Street and it pointed to Albion Road.

But I did the screen captures after I had done step 2, so the arrow points to Albion Road in both pics.

:)  :)   :)

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Can anyone confirm that the  Albion foundry was in Maryborough Qld and where was the Foundry site?

KDF

Kingsthorpe David wrote on Dec 30^th, 2009 at 6:26pm:

Can anyone confirm that the  Albion foundry was in Maryborough Qld and where was the Foundry site? KDF

David, it was definitely in Maryborough, Queensland.  The exact site I am not sure of.

PD has some information and may be able to shed more light on the old address.

Like the Furphy camp oven history thread about when the first was made, nobody has actually confirmed where the Albion camp ovens were made in Maryborough (Qld).

KD

Logfire did some research on Albion/UMI ovens and put it on this forum, possibly 18 months ago.

Derek - hows your serach engine.

H

I have posted before on the Albion Foundry at Maryborough in Queensland David. I emailed the Maryborough Historical Soc. several years ago and they forwarded my request to the Qld. Goverment Library in Brisbane who sent me a large amount of information including copies of photos. Can't find it right now but I do remember the foundry closed its doors for the last time in 1907. In the pic which showed mainly cast iron stoves and fire places there are half a dozen lids which look to be at least 18" and stacks of smaller pots.

pd

Its in here somewhere,I remember it.
cheers George

Like all Capricorns George, I've never thrown anything out, I know it's here some bloody where I've just gotta find it. ;D ;D ;D

pd

Well, I would have thought the foundry might have been on Albion Street, as I showed above.

Are you all thinking that there is an Albion street only because people of that name ran a business in that town and the location of the street doesn't mean anything?

:)

Visited the Hervey Bay Historical Village and Museum on Sunday.
Found an 18" camp oven marked under the lid:
Hanson Walton.
Albion Stove Works Ltd
No 18
No oval logo, just exactly as typed above.
This item is owned by the Association who own the village. It is not for sale and will never be for sale I was told. Many items are donated.
It is a deep camp oven like a Billmans 18".
Just for fun, how much do you think it would make if it was listed on ebay?
The pot was exactly the same as shown here:
http://www.aussiecampovenforum.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1234253908/all

KD

Kingsthorpe David wrote on Dec 4^th, 2013 at 6:03am:

Visited the Hervey Bay Historical Village and Museum on Sunday. Found an 18" camp oven marked under the lid: Hanson Walton. Albion Stove Works Ltd No 18 No oval logo, just exactly as typed above. This item is owned by the Association who own the village. It is not for sale and will never be for sale I was told. Many items are donated. It is a deep camp oven like a Billmans 18". Just for fun, how much do you think it would make if it was listed on ebay? The pot was exactly the same as shown here: http://www.aussiecampovenforum.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1234253908/all KD

Judging by the current frenetic activity for Aussie hardware on Ebay. I would estimate $700 plus, providing the vendor was prepared to freight, however if it was 'pick up only', then $450 to $500 :D

They are a very nice oven. I have given the one at the Jondaryan Woolshed a good looking over and taken some photos of it as well.

I reckon it would probably go for between $800 - $1000 as the present prices have been pretty high.

Jeff

Chally here are some photos I took of that 18 incher some years back. Its a very nice oven indeed.
http://www.aussiecampovenforum.com/yabbfiles/Attachments/albion_18_-_2.jpg
http://www.aussiecampovenforum.com/yabbfiles/Attachments/albion_18_base.jpg
http://www.aussiecampovenforum.com/yabbfiles/Attachments/abion_18_lid.jpg

Beautiful camp oven. Thanks for the pics SBB :)

SSB, It's still lookin' great mate!!!  :) I sure would have liked to have brought it home with me.

Jeff

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The last 6 Posts were moved here from Let's Chew The Fat by Derek.

Top job sticking that in the old post Derek, some entertaining reading Id forgotten about further back in the post. ;D