Royal3

Gorgeous work - and thanks for the primer on clay firing, that’s enlightening!

Thanks for sharing this, Jason! What a great haul those folks found over the years, such an interesting mix, too.

Out-of-round machinemades happen - very few marbles from any manufacturer are perfectly round under a micrometer’s unforgiving measurement. If one is seriously out of round, however, showing flat spots or an egg or oval shape then steer clear - it’s been badly made or possibly polished. When approaching any marble to buy look closely at the surface - is it overly slick? Feel it between your fingers, does it want to squirt out when light pressure is applied? Polished or buffed marbles are extremely slick. Look at the surface thru a loupe - are the edges of the surfaced air holes sharp and squared off? Are they filled with a white substance (polishing compound.) Polished. Then look at how light reflects on the surface of the glass. Normal surfaces have imperfections, so as you turn the marble the light wavers. Polished marbles are nearly perfectly smooth so the light won’t waver or dance as you turn it. Reputable sellers will never knowingly sell a polished or buffed marble without stating so up front. I’ve bought a couple that were, and it stinks. It pays to know your source, and to study your good ones - and your mistakes.

Klay-taw-n you’ve certainly made some interesting looking mibs! They remind me of more colorful lined crockeries or jaspers. Welcome to the board and I hope you have a blast following these little round things...

Never, ever knowingly sell a polished marble without stating clearly up front that it has been polished - doing so is a fast ticket to huge problem and a loss of your reputation as a reliable seller. Polishing any marble dramatically reduces the value, often to a small fraction of the original. In the case of some large handmades there may be a case to made for polishing - I have a few in my personal collection, e.g., examples I really liked but were otherwise beat up so badly as to be unviewable. As for “naked eye mint” but loupe imperfect, there’s nothing wrong with describing the marble that way. Very, very few marbles can stand up to the scrutiny of 10X magnification without exposing a few problems. I think more information is always better - describe what you see.

Just for the record, I agree with Sami, I’d never polish any machinemade marble nor would I advise else anyone to do so. I’ve yet to see a polish or buff that has improved the look of one, and you’ve ruined a perfectly good marble that was well loved by some child or children - it had history. As for handmades, some larger heavily cased (lots of clear) marbles can be polished to good effect, but it does take a skilled, knowledgeable polisher. Sadly Leroy was the best - he was one fine gentleman, full of marble knowledge, life and good humor.

Akro made a few with an odd mercury-like coating, giving the marble an oily, iridescent-like finish. I picked up a small blue oxblood with it at a show nearly 20 years ago and Roger Hardy confirmed that it was a genuine production item. It’s a bear to photograph and I’m up to my knees in alligators right now - I’m recovering from hip replacement surgery and a dead car too - but I’ll try to get a photo posted soon.

Craig you deserve a medal for doing this. If you ever want to pass the hat to help offset costs I’m in, and I’m sure others would be as well.

I’m so sorry. I thoroughly enjoyed my brief time with him over the years. His generosity in sharing the Peltier Mansion run at JABO was truly impressive. We lost a great guy.

Wow...I don’t know what that top beauty is either but that’s one heckuva tree trim! Tinsel needs to play catch some serious catch-up. Merry Christmas, Steph, and thanks for the posts, it’s been a lot of fun. Thanks for all you’ve done for the us and the hobby, and may the rest of your holiday be as shiny and bright as the first marble you dream about tonight... Happy holidays to everyone! Royal

Sounds like it a contract “hit” lol - I’m sure one of Santa’s helpers has a tag somewhere.

Really well done, Stephen, thanks for sharing your extensive collection and knowledge. I just love those Guacamayas - and about 50 others, natch.

Andre is looking pretty good for a ghost 😆 That’s one fine Bee! Sweet MM too - is that a Liberty?

I just started my own letter to Santa Claus after that one! 😍

I’d say it’s highly likely from anecdotal evidence and the absence of other strong candidates.

Great work on saving all this history, Chuck. The contrast in the two cullet checks is interesting - the MK cullet is a penny a pound, pretty typical I think. The one to Bogard Cullet Co. is a lot of cash.

I wish I may, I wish I might... - a 7/8” turquoise German “9” slag with oxblood & egg yolk - a 7/8” black clambroth with sharp white pinstripes - a four-color lightning strike (red/green, blue/yellow) - just one drop-dead gorgeous Joseph’s coat and banded opaque (B.Bee, we might have to talk - I have a purple & yellow Canadian trans 😉)

Member wvrons club keeps an excellent listing of the nation’s marble shows @ http://westvirginiamarblecollectorsclub.com/news/

That’s just a fabulous handmade, and a nice size, too. I wonder if there’s a whole solitaire board of those out there (he says hopefully😉?)

I’m sorry I missed those, Galen, when I saw Lee’s collection - he’s got an amazing one. I bet those old German craftsmen didn’t waste much glass. I doubt those ‘fuseballs’ made it out into the field but probably stayed in the family. Most I’ve seen don’t have much if any play wear.

OK, I’m ignorant here - Canadian Mushroom marble?? Are they at all related to the Canadian transitionals? Is this purple/yellow a typical example?

Seems to be a two color swirl where the brown overlaid the blue in places making it look like three colors, but it’s difficult to tell definitively from your pictures. Fairly common combination for CAC, but they only produced marbles for about eight years. It looks mint, and if so I’d definitely keep that beauty.

LOL I’ll second that reaction! What a beauty! That oxblood is so rich on that white.

🤯 Only Hansel can come up with stuff like that! ☺️

I agree - I find these oddballs fascinating, as do many other collectors. This one is especially interesting.