I Need an Appraisal on a Magee Crown BB

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:13 pm

Hello I am a new member who has caught the hand fired coal stove flue,
I was looking for a way to save money on my heating costs and I thought that coal was the way to go...
after searching on Craigslist for a couple days, I stumbled upon a Magee Crown base burner,
it is missing the mica windows but everything else seems to be there, but I need some advice as to what are some red flags when dealing with an 100 year old furnace
and I have not a clue of what to offer for a price?

Tony

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:15 pm

Where are you located?

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:17 pm

I am located in North Walpole New Hampshire....

Tony....

wilsons woodstoves · Post by **wilsons woodstoves** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:20 pm

110 or 112 ??

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:22 pm

Welcome to the FORUM Tony--People from up your way will chime in & give you an idea what they're going for up there, & what parts might entail $$$ wise. Be real nice if you got more info, to post it--grates, firepot, general condition??? They all tend to look real nice on CL:(

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:23 pm

wilsons woodstoves wrote:110 or 112 ??

it is a 112 model

Tony...

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 9:27 pm

freetown fred wrote:Welcome to the FORUM Tony--People from up your way will chime in & give you an idea what they're going for up there, & what parts might entail $$$ wise. Be real nice if you got more info, to post it--grates, firepot, general condition??? They all tend to look real nice on CL:(

I am going to look at it on Saturday with a helper just in case I decide to buy it, of course I will pay for all the beer and a steak dinner too...
I have to act quickly as the persons that are selling the stove are also selling their house...

one CL ad wants $400.00 for the Magee and the bottom picture is for $1500.00

Tony

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:09 pm

Tony, go to upper right corner--search box-- type your stove in & hit search--see what comes up--give you some reading till some of these guys pop in to help ya out

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:18 pm

freetown fred wrote:Tony, go to upper right corner--search box-- type your stove in & hit search--see what comes up--give you some reading till some of these guys pop in to help ya out

I used the search all day yesterday ( slightly exaggerated the searching time )
and the only person that has a Magee Crown is ashburnham55 but he has not logged in since January

Tony

scalabro · Post by **scalabro** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:20 pm

Hi Tony

I went and looked at the $1500 dollar one in Sterling Ma. It's looks Ok but there was lots of creosote in it which was a red flag for me and being a 110 was on the small side for my needs.

The guy in Sterling had a Glenwood 111 also.

Have you talk to any of the stove shops yet?

There would be no way I would bring home a stove like that and light it up inside my house without a pro going through it first. That's just me

The problem is if the stove has no documents, like receipts from a stove shop proving its quality, you have no idea what you are getting. There are lots of internal parts that can be warped or cracked, sometimes both depending on how the stove is operated by is current & past owners.

Whatever you do, don't buy the first one you see, unless you get it for say 100 bucks, bring cash and a the means to remove it right then and there, and don't be afraid to lowball.

Then either go through it yourself or bring it to a shop like the Stove Hospital. It's the end of the season so you have three seasons to tune it.

Cheers,
Scott

tonythetiger · Post by **tonythetiger** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:29 pm

I am really all about safety and I would never hook up a stove without having it checked out first...
I am also merchant marine that works with oil fired boilers on a daily basis and can troubleshoot any problems and maintain them like a pro ..
I think that is why all of a sudden I want to tinker with an antique stove, as it is a challenge for to try and see how it works...
I am also the type that hates the way that Americans have become lazy and just flip a switch or press the button on a remote control...
I have to be busy as it is my nature...so stoking an old Antique like in the 1900's seems fun to me....

Thanks for posting!

Tony

scalabro · Post by **scalabro** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:38 pm

No P.

Keep us posted.

freetown fred · Post by **freetown fred** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 10:54 pm

Then the biggest thing you want to look for is cracks in the cast, doors fitting snug, missing parts, right size for your needs-- people on here have done refurbs that came out real nice but the BASICS were solid

Like was stated, shop around Tony!

wsherrick · Post by **wsherrick** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 11:11 pm

Magees are right up there with Glenwood, Herald and Crawford as far as quality goes. They were all in intense competition with each other and the designs are very similar.
This is not just an Antique. These stoves are highly advanced, highly engineered heating appliances. They have the highest ratings in efficiency of any stove type, period, hands down.
There is no comparison.
1,500-2,000 bucks is what you would pay for a totally restored one brand new. An unrestored one in excellent condition are around 400 to 600 dollars.
You won't regret getting a base heater and once you use it you will be astounded at how easy to use and efficient they are.
Since you are already familiar with heating plants you will really appreciate one of these.

wsherrick · Post by **wsherrick** » Thu. Mar. 20, 2014 11:16 pm

If you can swing it, I would recommend the large one, it would have enough heating capacity to heat most if not all of your house for the entire season.

I Need an Appraisal on a Magee Crown BB

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