wvrons

It is a ball bearing. Not made or sold for any connection with toy marbles. True steelies connected to marbles are hallow and have a X crimp mark on one pole where they were folded closed. Most are steel but I have one brass hallow steelie with the X. These were marketed and sold for use with toy marbles. True steelie sizes are from 9/16 to 7/8 or near one inch. A few actual ball bearings were packaged and sold as marble steelies. But these solid ones were never allowed in any marble game. I find different ball bearings in 8 out of every 10 larger groups of marbles that I am ask to sort. Usually one or two ball bearings in every quart of old marbles in all the antique shops. The ball bearings are marble killers. Do not mix them with glass marbles. Unless you like hits moons chips fractured damaged low value marbles.

The video above is at Jabo. Jabo marbles were and are made from cullet. Jabo is a single stream operation with different methods or points of adding another color or colors to the base glass stream. Some of these colors can be added farther back in the furnace and some added just before the glass stream leaves the furnace to the shear. But the colors are added into the main furnace. Many of the older companies were multistream operation. With this operation colors could be heated separate from the main furnace and added to the glass stream as it exited the furnace. Many different methods were used to add the colors to the main base glass of multistream operations. This was expensive due to extra smaller furnaces or tanks for each color, the delivery route had to stay hot etc. . Sometimes this was 20-40 feet or more from the small tank to the main furnace. Cost had to be cut to stay in business. These were toys. It took several to be worth a penny. When the cost cutting was done the quality was less. Some companies survived and those who did not cut cost closed. Vitro and Peltier were a couple of the long life companies. Many new marble companies come about in the mid 1940's. Many marble companies closed by the mid 1950's. Another key in the closing of many marble companies was the introduction of the Japanese Cat Eye marbles.

Extra bright or nice white does not always mean a slag. CAC Akro some Alley and Ravenswood etc. made their own glass in their early years. This glass not made with cullet will be brighter richer and nicer white than when the same companies made their marbles from cullet. CAC is well known for their very nice white in their swirls.

The early machine made companies made their own glass. This includes MFC-Akro-Peltier-CAC-Alley-Ravenswood-Vitro-maybe a few others. As years passed by and more competition came about. The companies that were still in business had to switch to using cullet to make marbles. Cullet can be any scrap glass with the correct coefficient. Cullet can be clear whiskey bottles, red tail light lens, cold crème jars, beer bottles, vicks jars, Fenton glass, Vitrolite,a long list. Vitrolite of Vienna WV provided every WV marble compny with cullet including Akro. Some Vitrolite will glow but the majority does not. Vitrolite was mainly about 4 inch square tiles used in bathrooms kitchens restaurants and businesses. Some Vitrolite was larger and fancier, some was laminated multiple colors. Some was used for the view windows in WW11 tanks. It was all sheet glass different colors and thickness. Vitrolite made their own glass. Then the leftover or out of spec Vitrolite was sold to companies making marbles. Vitrolite was also used by Alox in St.Louis. The older machine made companies that made their own glass are usually more expensive and collectable today. Because they are better glass. The colors are brighter more rich or deeper,the colors do not bleed as much, the glass is tougher,etc. The marbles made with cullet are not as tough because certain things used in the older raw glass were outlawed because of health reasons. The colors of most cullet made marbles are added to the base glass or stream different than older non cullet marbles. Companies that used cullet are Vitro-Peltier-Akro-Alley-Ravenswod-MK-Champion-Jackson-Davis-Playrite-Alox-Mid Atlantic-Heaton-Cairo-Jabo- etc. As you can see some companies used both types, early their own made glass and later switching to cullet to make marbles with. Marble companies made their own glass and if not used or needed sold it to other marble companies to make marbles from it. Most marble companies in business during and after WW11 were making marbles using cullet glass from hundreds of different sources.

A lot or maybe most, maybe all of the transparent swirls were single stream and not injected.

The marbles are Champion. I was at the auction. Marbles were sold at the auction. The property was up for auction. I could be wrong but I do not think the property deed ever changed after the auction until a local lawyer purchased the property. Then it was sold by him. After that the new owner did not pay the taxes. I think the City or county took it for back taxes. It now belongs to a local excavating contractor. Myself and two friends had a signed lease to dig the property over a year and half period. The marbles are Champion and fine. The seller did buy marbles at the auction. I am not sure why he needs to add that he bought the property ?

First group is the time frame of the furnace marbles. The second group is from the late 1990's. The others are from about 1984. I don't think the seller ever had his name on the deed. That can be checked out easy enough. He had the highest bid at the auction. But the auctioneer told me that he backed out and never paid for it. I think that if you bought something that means you paid for it.

That is a lot of dumpsters to go through all of area code 541. LOL ! Some in area code 541 may be checking dumpsters more now ?

Where is that dumpster located ?

Recent found gear shift knob 1 3/4 inch.

Next color Blue aventurine.

Purple next.

PM sent. Thank you !

$26.00

$20.00

One is transparent One is opaque One has eyelashes One does not have eyelashes One is common color combination for Master Each are different color combinations One is earthtones colors One is bright colors Each marble has one cut line similar. Each marble has one cut line different than the other marble. Millions of marbles resemble two or more different makers. Try separating some Alley and Ravenswood's. Sometimes only one difference can point to a certain company.

Looks Master to me.

I see as many or maybe more Ravenswood's than Alley. Some nice Green Ravens etc. . How many marbles are in the lot ?

Two days remain for discounted hotel reservations for the WVMCC 15th annual marble show May 13,2017. Just a reminder time is running out for discounted hotel room reservations. This year each dealer receives one free table for set up during the Saturday show. Contact me for a free table reservation. The table list is growing. Another good show ahead. Looking forward to seeing some of you soon.

I remember when Bruce Griff and myself made those bunny droppings. Long time no see. Happy Easter !

Superboy . Not a Superman. Any yellow I see on this one is a bleed not a separate color.

I worked at Fenton in 1971. Almost if not every marble company in WV old or newer used Fenton cullet in their marbles. Also includes Jabo-D.A.S.-& Sammy's Mountain marbles. Plus many contemporary makers used Fenton glass. The two largest cullet sources for marbles in WV & Ohio was Fenton and Vitrolite. The main cullet supplier then and today is Gabbert Glass cullet in Williamstown WV. Second or third generation operating Gabbert Cullet Co.

Yes I played marbles in the mid 1950's. I played again at a couple WV marble shows in 2003 & 2005. I also traded a lot of marbles as a kid. I traded baseball cards or comics for marbles. It was all about eye appeal. I did not know one company from another and didn't care who made them or their age. Like several people now I wish that I had them back. I have been curious as to what I had back then ? I have found a few Ravenswood's and Vitro's in the ground where I grew up. Some of these were only halves. As I set them on fence post and shot them with my BB gun. Then I graduated to a 22 which split them easy. Recently found two or three Ravenswood's while digging a ditch for new electric service where my old sandbox was located.