trunkman

I have enjoyed collecting various items over the years. Most of the things i have aquired have come by chance, as picks or as gifts or finds. Little by little they gI have enjoyed collecting various items over the years. Most of the things i have aquired have come by chance, as picks or as gifts or finds. Little by little they get added to and begin to form a grouping. As you may have noticed, one of my main interests is trunks. Trunk collecting began 25 years ago when I noticed an old trunk teetering on the top of a big item garbage truck. I followed the truck for six blocks until I could finally get alongside of it and flag it down. I asked if I could have the trunk and he said for the price of a cup of coffee it was mine, so I gave him a dollar and gleefully came home and cleaned it up. I have rescued over 15 trunks since then and have recently started to augment my collection through specific purchases, trying to get one of each type that I like. I will post them from time to time. What a great forum this is! (Read more)

Posts

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Ruinart Champagne Bottle - Bottlesin Bottles
Holy Bible Revised New Testament - Booksin Books
Vintage Cortebert Watch 17 jewels Swiss made - Wristwatchesin Wristwatches
1947 Studebaker Dealer's Wallet Adverstising - Advertisingin Advertising
Antique Jenny Lind trunk 1860 - Furniturein Furniture
LESNEY MATCHBOX  39-1 FORD ZODIAC CONVERTIBLE  - Model Carsin Model Cars
Lesney Hillman Minx no 43 and no name - Model Carsin Model Cars
LESNEY MATCHBOX - TRAILER CARAVAN - #23 - Model Carsin Model Cars
Matchbox Lesney no. 2 Bedford Car carrier  - Model Carsin Model Cars
Lesney Jaguar XK140 no 32 - Model Carsin Model Cars

Comments

  1. I believe they started using screws around the end of the 1700's. The early ones often had offset centers and flat bottoms. The ridges on them were not even either. You will find some good examples in...
  2. Looks like a 1940's suitcase. It is made with vulcanized fiber. Cool find -- nice handles.
  3. Kinda depends on the extent of the damage. If it is just water damage then I would use a dark stain on the trunk to hide it. If the wood is actually broken I would attempt repair with wood glue and cl...
  4. That's "Freedom Fries" fyi.... And I did say good luck...
  5. Thanks Boutchky -- it is not a difficult thing to do to take off old canvas from a trunk -- an exacto knife along the seams, a damp or wet cloth to wet the canvas, a scraper to take off the residual ...
  6. This trunk is a lovely example of a dome top trunk with alligator tin pattern. Most likely an early 1900's trunk -- as in the mid to late 1800's they used some cast iron pieces for hardware -- this pi...
  7. Fabulous European trunk that has all the hallmarks of a quality piece. I have one on my site of the same type, although it is a dome top. Take a look and you can see what they looked like refinished. ...
  8. Fascinating -- they are similar in style and form to a civil era trunk and I have never heard of a "packing trunk", so this is helpful information for me. Great to hear another opinion about the leath...
  9. That is great information to know -- answers one of my longstanding question of the patterns on some of my hardware.
  10. That has to be the nicest box I have ever seen!! All of those brass fittings and the studs throughout -- a real gem. Even better with the old tackle and reel in its original box. Wonderful, wonderfu...
  11. Love the shoe box -- any chance of getting a picture of the box it sits on -- it looks pretty interesting in its own right.
  12. Thank you for your wonderful sense of humour and all the great things you share with us. (I wish at times we could have a separate forum for private comments!) You have made me smile so many times...(...
  13. Thank you very much Agram.m -- appreciate you visit and comment!!!
  14. You are welcome -- the interesting thing I find about collecting is that you begin to appreciate quality pieces in whatever forum they may be found. I was drawn into the craftsmanship that is evident ...
  15. That is an awesome piece!
  16. I love your depth of knowledge on this subject -- and your great pieces that go along with it...
  17. Thank you petey for the love...
  18. It is a very lovely trunk well worth the restoration. You must show us a picture when it is completed!!
  19. I never knew cereal was that dangerous! :) Cool tin!!!
  20. You are most welcome -- you realize of course since you are back, that I have to follow you all over again... also really enjoyed reading all the comments on this post from these wonderful contributor...
  21. Yes those straps or bands along the edges and through the center are vulcanized fiber. This material started to make its way onto trunks late 20's to early 30's and then became common in the 40's and ...
  22. I have the same one -- at one time while looking this piece up I saw the entire garage set that it originally came with -- way cool!
  23. Beautiful example of a Taylor trunk. I usually tung oil my wood slats for a little extra protection. Really nice find -- a Taylor trunk is still on my list...I have yet to see one in my area after th...
  24. Nice old English dome top trunk -- usually these are covered in leather, first one I have seen in canvas. Probably made around 1910 or 1920. Great that you have the makers label -- most do not. Those ...
  25. Thank you for posting on CW! Alas, your stamps do not appear to have much value as they are not old enough, from what I can tell -- however the picture quality makes it difficult for anyone to give yo...
  26. Greetings trunk lovers from Connecticut! You have in your possession a lovely dome top trunk from the late 1890's to early 1900's. Style and the hardware helps to date it -- yours has latches and a lo...
  27. Pretty impressive! I have a B & W spigot from around 1930's on my site if you care to take a look see. You must take some highlight pieces and post them.
  28. Good call... I would have done the same!
  29. Lovely old trunk from around the time the railroad sticker indicates. There were many companies making this sturdy units at the time, so it is fortunate that you have a makers label as most do not. Th...
  30. Senor_trunk, thank you so much for the kind words and of course your most gracious offer of a key. I do not have one trunk that has a key!!!! (so very excited at the possibility) You had asked about ...
  31. Thanks officialfuel and filmnet for the visit!
  32. It would be nice to see a picture of the interior. Thanks for the post!
  33. Nice old chest or dome top trunk -- seems to be from about 1890 or so. Unusual looped latches on it. This trunk in my opinion would be a good candidate for restoration or refinishing. A good cleaning ...
  34. I have seen so many reproductions but never one this age. It is really fabulous -- particularly nice to see the quality of the brass and the way the cover works to hide the keyhole. The design has an ...
  35. Awesome piece of history to have. The latch on this is often copied on many reproductions -- it is great to have an authentic one to look at -- if you have an opportunity at some time I would love to...
  36. I know very little about this type of trunk -- what leads you to believe it is from the 1870's? The wood is probably camphor.
  37. Welcome back -- lovely piece.
  38. The other age indicator would be the dovetailing for the joints. From the very small area pictured it appears as if they are hand made because they are thick, far apart and seem uneven. (from the smal...
  39. Correction -- Dowry Chest would be more appropriate name for this.
  40. Lovely 1880's or even later 1870's dome top chest. A good candidate for refinishing in my books -- although there are some who would advocate putting on new leather. Not sure about the name on the lit...
  41. Value is hard to discern as I do not know your market area. There are lots of classified trunks for sale that should give you a fair idea. I cannot see it decrease in value if you refinish the wood sl...
  42. Looks like an Indonesian hope chest probably early to mid 1800's. Looks like it has spent a lot of time by the ocean, as the brass seems to have had some salt caused erosion on it. This probably sat o...
  43. Looks like a 1900's to 1910 "monitor" or "waterfall" trunk. Looks like it is in great shape. Really nice piece -- thanks for letting us have a look at it.
  44. You have a canvas covered trunk from about 1890 - 1910. The nice part about this trunk is the hardware on it. All of the latches and clamps and corner pieces are made of cast iron pieces which is the ...
  45. You should have no problem removing the canvas -- you will discover a nice pine base underneath to refinish. It will not change the value much and for some it is more desirable refinished. Looks to b...
  46. Short of using a crow-bar, alas I have not discovered an easy way of opening these locks.
  47. I do not believe you will find a Taylor mark on this trunk. It would be obvious to see. This trunk was made by someone else with generic Taylor parts. I do not have any links, and some of my informat...
  48. This as you know is a beautiful high quality flat top trunk, made from late 1880's to early 1890's. Part of the dating for this comes from the cast iron hardware that was typical of its time. Withou...
  49. A pirate's chest is simply a chest that has been owned by a pirate. If you can prove that a pirate owned this one then viola -- the real deal! Otherwise you have a really nice old 1890's to 1900's sli...
  50. The early civil war era trunk did not have slat clamps -- they were held on with rivets and most often ended with beveled ends (although not this one). Slats clamps came into full use a little later o...
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