Oils 'aint oils and just because it has Furphy on the lid does'nt mean it was made in Shepparton by Furphy. I had a long talk with a bloke in a foundry (both unnamed) who told me they had the Furphy molds for a while in about 2000 and had made ovens for Furphy as well as Sovereign Hill in Vic.

Earlier this year I went into an Antique shop in Victoria which had for sale a 12" Furphy lid in pristine condition. ( $200 and no I did'nt buy it). Later in the course of my conversation with this foundry worker it turns out they had made and sold six lids to this dealer a couple of years ago, sure they were Furphy lids but genuine Furphy's in the true sense of the word ?
The bottom line is "Buyer beware".      Rob.

"Astute collectors", well unfortunately I left my run too late and there are not a lot of ovens out there any more or at least I can't find them.
I was told this story at Millmerran by a bloke who was camped next to me, maybe its an urban myth but you can judge for yourself.
His best mate had been a camp oven collector  for many years and after this mate died earlier in the year his widow sold off the entire collection in one lot for several (ten he said) thousand dollars.

Maybe there are sets of Furphy's out there with matching dates on the lids, I'll just have to keep looking.

pd

In my wanderings this weekend I came across a General Store at a little village called Coolac just north of Gundagai.  In the window were two new 15" Chinese made Furphys for $155 each. 

Not a bad price if you want a new Furphy.


Derek