Barn Sale finds

[Doug T.]

Hi All!

Well, I seem to be finding too many nice things to pass up!
Today, Barb and I went off on a little road trip, just to get away for the day. A couple of miles down the road from our place we saw a sign "Barn Sale" and an arrow pointing down a side road. I always stop for yard sales, you never know what you'll find.
We pulled in and were just about the first shoppers of the day.
I asked the fellow if he had any cameras,or other photo junk. He had a box in the back of an old truck and brought it out to me. It was mostly junk (really), but there was a Ricoh 500 rangefinder and an Ansco B2 Cadet Box Camera. "How much?" says I, he says 30 for the Ricoh and 15 for the box. "Too much" says I, "The Ricoh doesn't work, the case is in pieces, and boxes only go for a couple of bucks,I'll give you 10 for both." He said how about 15, and I said ok.

Then I wandered off into the barn where he said he had some old furniture cheap. Right away I spotted what appears to be a Federal chest of drawers with a box built in on top. It looks like mid 19th century.
It's been treated to a very bad re-finishing job at some point. I asked again, "How much?", he said he couldn't do any better than 75 dollars. I pointed out all the ways it had been mangeled, and told him I wouldn't give him more than 20 bucks. He said 50, I said 30, he said "OK".
I almost swallowed my teeth!
It even has the original wooden casters and drawer pulls!
So for 45 bucks I got 2 nice old cameras, AND a Federal period chest of drawers!!
What a great day

Doug

[Stephen]

But what film size does the Federal chest take?......
Stephen.

[Doug T.]

Stephen,

It will take any kind of film that you want to put into it

In addition to being a certified "photo nut", I'm also a cabinetmaker by trade. I get just as excited over an antique piece of furniture as I do over an old camera.

Doug

[Stephen]

I was expecting that reply!! that's why I posted the query! and I do cabinet making as well, my step father manufactured Antique style furniture for many years. Although my workshop at home is mainly for Model Engineering and cameras, wood work is done as well. oh... and Grandfather was a coffin maker in his youth!

I recovered his surviving stock of Cuban Mahogany from the loft, 1912 period, including one leaf of a massive Victorian table, one width!, used as flooring board in the loft!

It made up to a 6x3ft7in table top, try finding one un-jointed piece of Mahogany like that these days. When I bought the frame and legs for the refectory style table in modern mahogany, the specialist wood merchant made several offers for the top when he heard the size...about 10x the cost of the legs etc., in substantial sizes, I was not tempted as it would have meant a jointed top, and I do not like them!... and I needed the dining table.

Stephen.

[lloydy]

Just as I was about to finish working a large building was being demolished where I worked, and in that building was a laboratory room with about 90 running feet of bench, about 40 inches deep and and 1 1/2 inches thick. It was mahogany, not one piece but very well joined strips about 6 inches wide. The whole thing was heavily varnished and in great condition.
Waiting for the opportune moment I went in armed with tools to liberate the bench, and some b****** had beaten me to it!