Tranparent Yellow Swirl

[Marbleneophyte]

I know that transparent swirls can be particularly difficult to ID.  I thought maybe the yellow base might help to narrow it down.  Measures 19/32."  Thoughts?

[Steph]

I think odds are pretty good of Champion. 

[Al Oregon]

I agree

[Marbleneophyte]

Thanks guys! 

[wvrons]

No yellow base. It is clear base with yellow swirls. Probably Champion.

[Marbleneophyte]

Thanks Ron.

[Spherophile]

The yellow is so even along all of the edges of the marble, with no clear areas evident anywhere. Are you sure it’s not a yellow base?

[wvrons]

I think the majority of the marble is clear glass. Clear glass is 50-75% cheaper than colored glass.  Clear is even cheaper than opaque white which is next down the cost list.  The main furnace or glass tank would have contained clear cullet glass.  Then they would add small amounts of the yellow to the furnace downstream near the outlet.  They could have had 5000lb. of clear and made 1000lb. with yellow, 1000lb. with blue, 1000lb, with green, 1000lb with white,  1000lb, purple.  If any red the amount would probably be smaller.  Red is the most expensive and most difficult to control.  The yellow in the marble above just spread, thinned or bleed to spread. Champion and many others used the single stream method of making machine made marbles. Most older and high dollar machine made marbles have better glass and the colors do not bleed or thin much. These companies used a multi stream method. Which cost more with everything and requires more equipment. When cost cutting happened to all of them or go out of business. Most of the companies then used single stream method.  With the single stream method the colored glass flows and spreads, thins more. They get more marbles for each pound of colored cullet glass. Your Champion is probably from about 1975-1990's. 

[Marbleneophyte]

Thanks Ron!  Great information as always!

[Spherophile]

Very informative. You’re a wealth of knowledge!

[wvrons]

Quote

 

I don't know about wealth, it does not pay much.  The people connected to many marble factories were amazed that anyone cared about what they did or made. Most all of them are gone now. All they ask of me was to share what they told me. I was a pest for them over several years with never ending questions. Some of them became very close friends to me. They are missed every week. Like most marble people, I wish that I had ask even more questions.     

[Spherophile]

The amount of information I find online is far greater than what I see in the books I’ve found, but boy do you have to dig for it.

I have been selling a lot of my Akro Agate reproduction boxes (a lot more demand than I expected), and am getting a lot of requests for additional items. I always wants to research them so I have an idea of what it is I’m offering, how they were originally marketed, etc. Occasionally I’ll come across a post with a lot of information that you just can’t find anywhere else. Steph’s library on here is an excellent resource, but the loss of the old image host was a big setback. I know she’s working hard to restoring it.