Where Are The Big Ravenswoods?

[m!b$]

Re. the thought that there weren't many smaller ones assuming we're talking about 5/8". Well.....not! In 1987 two tons of them surfaced in a warehouse in WV. This is doccumented in Castle & Peterson. I went through many of the 50 lb. boxes that were shipped to California in 1989. There was a s---load of them! And my suspicions are that those two tons worth were just the tip of the iceberg production-wise. David

Hey! I was just trying to make small talk.

[david Chamberlain]

Hi m!b$,

Nothing personal. You know me; I get wound up at times. Will be away from the computer most of this coming week.....David

[m!b$]

No offense taken! I was just going by what I see on eBay, and there aren't many Ravenswoods of any size listed, that I've seen.

[wvrons]

I have seen a few hundred original Ravenswood bags,mesh,plastic and many many boxes. I have never seen a one inch or larger swirl in any of those original containers. I have had this magazine article for 12-15 years,but i still question it? One simple BIG reason is where are the one inch and larger swirl marbles? We know for sure what the larger Alley marbles look like. Most people think these are Ravenswood. I have never had a one inch or larger swirl, that i could say 100% was made by Ravenswood Novelty. There may have been a few larger swirls made at Ravenswood by employees expiermenting,etc,but i am not convinced that they made them as normal production. They did make many in the 11/16 size and some 3/4 size. Maybe the bigger size that the article talks of was the Paul Bunyans? You may have a problem convincing people of that? No one knows of Ravenswood having a set of one inch rolls. Most all the one inch rolls were well known and where they were or went. One inch Ravenswoods,????????? i will not say impossible!

I noticed something at Jabo during this last run. Which i had not seen before. A open end,box end wrench hanging at the end of the rolls. The two operators used this wrench to guage the size of the marbles coming off of the rolls. I have a older newspaper article where Edwin Safreed was interviewed. He was there since it's very first day,Ravenswood Glass until the last day of Ravenswood Novelty. He also did it all,from,mixing batches,hauling cullet,all repairs,running the machine to packaging. In the interview,he stated that they used a end wrench for sizing the marbles. Still today the same equipment and methods being used in making marbles.

[Steph]

Fascinating that something that specific and that close to the source would be questionable.

Seems like there must be some missing puzzle piece to explain why it was said.

But of course I don't know what the missing piece could be.

[wvrons]

Another missing puzzel piece. That keeps marbles new and interesting,always searching. Someday someone will get more and more pieces and fit them in place. I see more missing pieces than i will ever have time to complete. There has been many changes in thoughts the last several years. I am sure we are not done yet. Still scratching my head also.

[I'llhavethat1]

I'm curious what a 3/4" + ravenswood would look like if they existed? It might seem like a rhetorical question,

but like a smaller ravenswood pattern/construction/color, only larger? Or is there another differentiating feature like not found in original packaging that indicates they weren't made, such as range of available adjustment on the rollers? Interesting,