Chrystal Crawford 112 Restoration

With the meticulous job you are doing on this stove, you are giving Nortcan a run for his money in that department. I'm am anxious to hear how the stove does for you once you start using it. The previous owner was pretty happy with it even in its unrestored state. So please continue to post as you move along.

That's a good job you are doing Jason. You really are going whole hog on that Crawford. She's gunna be a beauty when done. Excellent find on the shaker handle too! That is a very handly item to have you will find. These stove take way more shaking than the Glenwood's with the bar grates. That said, the upside is that they hardly waste any coal due to shaking. My Herald burned the coal to powder pretty much. I would sift the "shakin's" from my Glenwood cookstove and throw the cokes back into the Herald. Yeah, I do have a little Scotch in me on my father's side
Tomahawk does a good job. I had a spare done by them too. The JB Weld is the same stuff I used also to fill the three worn area's along the round grate where it rubbed on the tabs it sat on for 100 years. What you send them is what you get back and there is a slight shrinkage (in the casting) so be liberal with the JB. I make a wooden fork from 1/4" ply for my dump fork because I wanted it longer for lack of one of those shaker handles you have.

wsherrick wrote:With the meticulous job you are doing on this stove, you are giving Nortcan a run for his money in that department. I'm am anxious to hear how the stove does for you once you start using it. The previous owner was pretty happy with it even in its unrestored state. So please continue to post as you move along.

No problem for me to compete with someone having so nice feet

Thank you guy's for the kind words. I have a bit of OCD when it come to things like this. My everyday job has very few physical rewards, so when I get a chance to stretch my working man legs I want do it right. There is just a bit of romance working on a piece of american craftsmanship, from an era when we actually made stuff in this country.
Well the parts to be re-dipped are off to newchrome, I cant wait to get everything back. Still waiting of fab shop.

Steve- I got your msg, I have two cans of Thermalox on the hearth waiting for me. They are just black, but after seeing your photos you have my gears turning in the color dept.. Earlier you mentioned the sand blaster and table. the sand blaster is called a spot blaster I got it at harbor freight for pretty cheap. It does a good job, I would not use it to make my living or anything but for around the house it is an awesome deal. The table is just an folding X table from HD that I made a top for.

William- I will keep postiing throughout the entire restoration and into some burns.

Nortcan- You are making my wife blush

I forgot to mention that my last trip to Bryant's Stove Shop produced an extra baffle for the back pipe on Chrystal. It is my understanding that these often warp and crack. The one that came in the stove is in perfect condition opposed to the one I bought for $20 which has a very slight bow in it. I will use the bought one this year and maybe have mine cast next summer.

Last week I repaired a few areas on the hearth, so today was spent cleaning the brick with muriatic acid. It took an hour or so which left plenty of time to re-paint the wall surround. I want Chrystal's home to look good, I anticipate she will be a show stopper who deserves a tidy spot to watch over my family this winter.

You are really going to town Jason! I think you're right that your Crawford will be a beauty! You'll be surprized at how well it heats for it's size to and how it utilizes just about everything out of the coal it burns. As I mentioned, those type grates require allot more shaking than your bar grates in the Glenwood, but the payoff is in very very little waste. When you do the lining, try to make it as uniform as possible and avoid the temptation to make it too thick as you'll be wastinf coal space. An inch is more then enough and try and get the sides as smooth as you can after it's applied. The wet sponge with a scotch bright side works well to smooth the surface after you got it on. I did this as I progressed (on the cookstove) and then again after the whole lining was on. The smoother you can get it the better the ash falls. On my Star Herald, I found that a poker was handy to use as the coal bed is deep and narrow on these types and the ash will tend to "bridge" below. Before shaking a little poke in the middle (you'll see the whole thing collapse) helped reduce shaking time, and every so often push the the poker down a side or two the to dislodge any "hangers on"..........but I digress............

All parts received one coat of Thermalox satin black. I re-assembled the base and ashpit (not final assemble, I did not seal joints).. as I do not know the best angle to install the refractory. The original bolts that held the ash pan together were ruined during dis-assembly (they were in bad shape anyways). I used flat head bolts too a coupler, too a treaded rod, too a nut on the bottom. I decided against stripping the zinc off all the bolts. I don't like the look of the plated bolts once painted but the plating will be better off in case I ever dis-assemble her again. I am using all square nuts to be as original as I can. I am still waiting for the metal fab shop to finish the barrell and back pipe, Been three weeks now, I am getting kinda impatiant. I got my quote on the nickel (Holly Crap) and I am still waiting for the quote on the cast.....Jason....

It's looking good. I would put a little pressure on the sheet metal people. You will be needing your stove in a week or two. Hopefully, they do a good job. You would be surprised at how difficult it is to find competent workmanship these days, even for a simple task like rolling a stove barrel. I hope you get the parts soon and that they fit right.

Yeah Jason, I knew you'd have a HS moment when you saw the plating cost. I know I did but once done, it done for our lifetime with proper care and it sure beats th heck out of silver/chome paint. Once you get that jacket and back pipe it will go together quickly.

Steve & William
Both you are correct, Which is why I am doing it all now instead of a little at a time. I want it to be as it was the day it was made. William I am still waiting on the New Chrome shop, they told me 6-8 weeks , I told them I use the stove to heat my house and they said they would move me up in line as I do not have a big order. I figure the nickel will be the last thing to be complete. I hope end of october..
The fab shop told me the first of this next week they will have my parts done. I hope they did good work so I don't have to go through this again, with them or someone else.
Tomahawk said they would only take a week and the parts will be shipped back. The price for re-castings are much cheeper than I had anticipated. So that is good.
My wife is not all that impressed at the ever rising cost of this resto. but if Chrystal lives up to my expectation she will be a staple in my living room for the most distant future.

Hum, the plating job is quite long but if the work is well done it worths the long delay... nickel is the touch that gives a stove a special look. You will see what I mean when you will put the plated parts on your stove. Anyways, not so in a hurry for the first fires, take your time, that way you will avoid to make errors and start over again...the same job.
What you did actually is very nice, bravo.

The stove is comming along nicely, great work.

I am interested in hearing your assessment of the nickel when you get it back as I need to find a place to send mine in for replating. If you have their contact information and wouldn't mind passing it along I would appreciate it.

Alright, you can all now officially tell me I am going overboard. I am recasting the top row of fire bricks (the fire pot will be moldable refractory). I took the best brick I had, filled in any gaps/pores with light weight drywall compound and sanded it smooth. I then painted the brick with clear spray paint to smooth it out as much as possable. I covered the brick in a light coat of patrolium jelly. I did three coats of 100% silicone caulk (see pics 2,3,4) the first coat was the detail coat, I made sure to take my time and fill in all nooks and cranies. I then made a mother mold out of some glass bondo I had in the basement (the mother mold helps the silicone keep its shape when you make your castings.

Here you can see the master brick, silicone mold and mother mold. then I covered the whole thing in expandable foam to help support the molds when casting.