Old Rundle Spence Cast Iron Tub (sorry about the mess!)

[Chester]

Hi All,

I brand new here to the forum. It took me a while to find a antique forum; a lot of other ones a filled with spam  
The reason I joined is because my family has several antiques and we live in a town with LOTS of old houses and LOTS of garage sales

In my first post I want to ask you antique experts about about a cast iron tub I helped my grandparents remove from their bathroom. It is a Rundle-Spence Mfg. cast iron tub. It has the clawed feet and is about 65 inches long by 28 inches wide and 19.5 inches deep from the top of the rim. This tub came from my grandparents house. Their house was built in the 1880s up here in Washburn, WI.

Sorry that the pics are so messy. I have a bunch of my old stuff in it and it is tucked away in a corner in the garage. I wanted to write you guys to see what its history and possibly worth is before dragging it out of the garage to take pictures of it. It still has all of its legs and nothing seems broken. I hope what I gave you guys is enough. Thanks so much in advance!

[sapphire]

Welcome to the forum Chester.  I couldn't find much on your Rundle Spence, other then a brief company history on their current site.  I did however find this link which may help you place a value on your tub.  Another suggestion would be to check out your local Kijiji or Craigslist sites (state wide even better) to gauge what how the prices are running in your area......you'll also notice in the article that value often depends on location, along with other helpful info.

http://www.homeimprovementweb.com/information/how-to/clawfoot-tub-appraisal.htm


Hope this was of some help. 

[hosman321]

Hey Chester,
Never apologize for a mess! Trust me, we're antiquers. A mess just means there's treasures nearby.
I just wanted to say that I've never seen one with a wood rim like yours, very unique. At least in my neck of the woods it's rare. (Washington State)
I imagine the wood was damaged/rotted/cracked often and didn't last long. Great that all the hardware is in good shape, too. A lot of the time that was also damaged and replaced with newer stuff.
Please post whatever old stuff you find, we love it! Good luck at those yard sales.

[sapphire]

Found one similar, the owners state they are not experts so maybe are going by the age of the house is comes from......

http://chicago.craigslist.org/chc/atq/1882409357.html

[cogar]

I just wanted to say that I've never seen one with a wood rim like yours, very unique.

That was my thoughts also, Hosman.

Antique dealer friends, the Keno twins parents, had a copper lined solid oak one. It was a pretty thing. Curved and/or shaped just like the claw-foot cast iron ones.  

[sapphire]

Chester, just wanted to check......is your tub definitely cast iron or could it be tin?

Reason I'm asking is I can across another with wood trim, this one from a vintage salvage/restorers.

ROW 7 , COLUMN B

http://www.historichouseparts.com/vintage_tubs.htm

[hosman321]

Look at this cool wood one. I'd love one of those.
http://www.flickr.com/photos/50097578@N00/2734597248/
Woah, or this one.
http://s34.photobucket.com/albums/d138/leighpod/Casa/bathtub.jpg

[Chester]

It is definitely cast iron. It took three of us to manhandle it onto a cart. Thanks for all of your responses!

[fancypants]

Very wonderful old cast iron bathtub , Chester !

I'd say that it's a premo candidate for a restoration job , which in this case (IMO) , would increase it's value quite a bit .

You may find more info on the foundry/manufacturer/model #'s underneath the bottom of your tub (groan) .

If the enameling is intact (not cracked/broken) that's a big plus that would increase the value even more .

I'm of the opinion that the hardware manufacturer is not the same as the foundry that made your tub (might be wrong , but...) .

If the enamel is intact (here's a generally un-published restorers' tip) it can be restored to it's original lustre by using the rare earth compound cerium oxide (an optical polish) !

Thanks for posting it here !

[KC]

Once again.....agree with fancy!

Nice find!!!!!  With TLC and elbow grease....you will have a very, very, very nice item that will be very, very, very desirable!