Is this a real Newhouse barrel used for shipping traps or a homemade one? I have never seen one so I don't know. Bringing a good price with a few days to go. Here's the item# 161935846753. Thanks Steve

Looks legit! Would be nice for a zero collector or anyone else for that matter. Hah!

Newhouse was very meticulous about everything they did, and when they marked their crates, and or Barrels, which the stencils came from 3rd party manufactures, the lettering was very meticulous and uniform. As I wrote two articles in the TRAPS MAGAZINE about the barrel shipping stencils that they used on their Bear, wolf, and accessory items I will try to give a reasonable analysis of the one that is on e-bay. On Their larger size traps, wolf traps, and accessory items. The stencils I have here are of three different sizes, which show that they used 3 different size barrels to coincide with the trap, or accessory item that was being shipped.

The Larger barrels were the size of what you know now as a 5o or 55 gallon wine or whiskey barrel which held the bear traps from #6 down to #50. The stencils I have for their #4 & 1/2 wolf trap will fit the lid of a 30 gal size wooden barrel. The smallest stencils I have are for their #5 clamp, #6 clamp, and wolf trap wrench which would coincide with the smaller what we always called a 22 pound nail keg which is about the size of the one now on e-bay.

Besides barrels, Oneida also used shipping crates, but once again as with the barrels, the stenciling was very uniform on them.

The smaller barrels which would fall in to this very small 17 inch barrel that is now on e-bay, were the 22 pound nail keg style barrels which were used for accessory items like the #5 and #6 clamps as well as the wolf trap wrenches, chains, etc. If you look closely at the one on e-bay, the bands look new on the barrel, and the stenciling looks like a 4 year old tried to draw it on with a Black Magic Marker, with nothing being uniform about that stenciling. Also the number of how many dozen of a certain trap was put on the barrel being shipped, and it is not on this one.

In the Oneida catalog it makes reference to shipping various traps and how many dozen traps a barrel would hold. The #0 size reference says a barrel will hold 30 to 50 dozen #0 size traps. Take a tape measure and look at the dimensions of the barrel that is on e-bay. It is 17 inches tall and 12 inches wide. would 30 to 50 dozen #0s fit in that barrel? Now in another aspect and using a hypothesis that maybe someone just wanted a dozen or two, well the shipping address is no where to be found on the barrel as I have seen pictures of Triumph shipping barrels and the address is stenciled there to see. There are many discrepancies that I can find with this barrel, but the biggest is the sloppy non uniform lettering on it. Stay away from that one, someone is going to get burnt bad on that one.

OH DARN!!!! Sure hope I can cancel my bids.....

Nhousecattrapper - do you have any pictures of what a genuine Newhouse trap barrel or crate would look like for authentic stamping. Would be interested to see one for comparison.

Thanks.

Looks Fake

I thought it looked to good to be that old but you never know what is out there, that's why I was asking. Also the amount of traps Newhouse shipped there should be a stencil of the word Newhouse at one time instead of using letters one at a time. The bottom of the barrel doesn't look strong enough to hold many traps even #0's. Thanks for the replies. Steve

Here is a small sampling of various items to show how precise the stenciling is on the Kenwood Trap crate and the Triumph shipping barrel as well as how precise the lettering is on the Barrel lid and crate stencils from the Kenwood, and OC periods.

We all have to remember that one important phrase: Trap collecting is not a hobby, it's a disease.
I also think some collectors have more "cents" than they do "sense".

The more I look at it the more it looks like it was printed with a Magic Marker.

What's the story with the stencil that's say ship to africa, and how big would one of these barrels be... 30 gal, 55 gal?

The #6 full round Stencil is a 19 inch full round. which would fit the larger 55 Gal Barrel. That particular # 6 was a non production trap that was made in very limited supply and shipped to Africa for Elephants.

This trap was an open bottom trap which I would imagine would be on the same idea as the Abbey's, only this #6 was a bigger trap than the regular #6. It was designed with a circular bottom plate large enough for an elephant to put its foot through. The cross piece, pan and dog were fitted to the side of the circular bottom but not riveted to it. They were loose so they would drop off when the trap was sprung.

The plan for setting the trap was to dig a hole in the ground, bridge it with sticks, set the trap on it and camouflage. The elephants foot would go through to the bottom of the hole and the trap would be well up on the animals leg.

Apparently this trap was made as a sample trap as per request and never put in production or put in their catalog. One interesting mention that is in this article is that the jobber that shipped the Elephant traps to Africa, and the Tiger traps to India or Burma about 1900-1901 was Montgomery Wards. The traps that went to India and Burma were regular #5s and #6s for trapping tigers.

Very cool!!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/OLD-original-STO...GUAAOSwZG9WjxKG

How about this? I think I may go into stump carving.

You would be way better off spending your money on that stump than on the barrel.

Well said Dale, and those Victor Stumps usually go pretty darn high.

I guess I'm the ignorant one. I figured the stump was something someone made themselves but I guess it is a legitimate item.

don't feel bad. I didn't know there was such a thing either. I am scared to buy anything without asking someone that knows more than me first.

That is one of the better stumps,usually the hooks are all torn out. I would love to have it.

Well at the closing price of $949.10 including shipping, someone got burned badly on that one.

sure didn't take long for someone else to try to cash in. at least this one is stated to be a repro.

Dustin I sent him a question right after the listing came on yesterday evening. He bought two barrels and did say he made them up and put one in his trap room and thought someone might like to have the other for display. He did state in his description, and stated very clearly that it was not a real barrel and he made them up thinking someone might want it to display in their trap room. The thing actually looked better than the piece of crap that just sold, only this one had darker, wider, and more uniform lettering. After about two or three replies back and forth between him and I and me explaining about remakes and repros, on not only that but everything, and it was nothing but trouble in the making, he pulled it and I thanked him for doing so.

I noticed it was gone.

can you imagine having a barrel of wolf trap wrenches.....

Hello Bruce, Could you tell me were you found the information on the open bottom elephant trap? Do you know if anyone has one?

Thanks, Dean

I too would like to see some info on the elephant trap. Taking into account the shape of an elephant's leg, wouldn't the best place to catch, and attempt hold one be just above the foot? Just a little too unbelievable for me to swallow. Now ... if you had said that the trap was made by Ed Hutzel, I'd believe it!

Seems to me that an Oneida Community Barrel of traps marked #6 would have #6 size traps in it. I would think anything larger than a #6 would have been marked #6 1/2 or #7. They never marked a barrel of #4 1/2's #4.

Hey, I was wondering if anyone wanted to sell me a bridge or a skyscraper. Poken around on the internet and noticed people writing about this poor guy who bought a fake wooden Newhouse barrel for $949 on Ebay. I thought a while and said, "Duh. I think they are talking about me". I just bought a Newhouse barrel on Ebay so I put 2 and 2 together and it came out I was the Chump of the Year. Yep. I'm the guy. What can I say. I wanted so bad for it to be real. Someone said its not a hobby its a disease. I'm really sick.

Well, you guessed it, the seller doesn't allow returns and said he thinks it's real and therefore I have to keep it. Ebays policy states you must be certian something is real before listing it. I'm really glad I seen what you guys were writing as Ebays return policy is only good for 30 days and time was running out. It may take a while but hopefully I can get most all of it back again. Did anyone try to contact the seller and point out your suspicions? Ebay will make a decision sometime after Feb 11th so any advice on this purchase will be appreciated. Any general advice like find something else for a hobby or let your family manage your money is expected as well.

Best advice I can give you - do your research BEFORE spending your money. Don't believe everything an eBay seller tells you.

Sorry for your lose.

I did contact the guy and tell him that it looked like a fake to me. He got all up in arms about it. I am sure that ebay has all the emails that went to him. He also sold a trap that had standing bears on it at about the same time. Whoever (you i guess) that bought the Barrel had high bid on the trap for a while. The bears also looked fake to me. Maybe ebay can find out what the buyer of the trap thought of it when he got it. Doubt this will be of any value to you, but its all i have.

Pat tc,
The seller of that barrel is the same guy that sold that Bailey Beaver trap a few years back with the Fake looking Gibbs Hand stamping on it that looked like a four year old stamped it. Probably the same kid that stenciled that barrel with a black magic marker. Buyer beware as they are out there.

Best thing we as members here can do is post our suspicions here on this forum as soon as we see them,,don't accuse just state what you honestly believe,,I know I would appreciate a heads up,,,,,I wonder if the buyer on that herters bear trap with the ATC pan has found his error,,,

I just got this message from the seller of the barrel wanting me to show proof it is not a fake:

Hi Pat, would you please have your friend post a picture of a Newhouse shipping barrel? Not the picture of decals or Triumph barrel. I follow online comments too as well as the jokster who made homemade nailkegs based on this barrel. Opinions don't change the fact that you were given a complete and truthful description of the barrel YOU received, complete with measurements. If you don't want it,Why don't you sell it on line. Sincerely, Mary

This just got even more interesting.

Seems like proof that it is authentic should be with the seller. In my opinion.

Ebays Authenticity disclaimer policy:

Sellers should make sure that their items are authentic before listing them on eBay. Sellers may not disclaim knowledge of, or responsibility for, the authenticity or legality of the items they offer in their listings. If a seller cannot verify the authenticity of an item, it can't be listed on eBay.

Make sure your listing follows these guidelines. If it doesn't, it may be removed, and you may be subject to a range of other actions, including limits of your buying and selling privileges and suspension of your account.
...........
Sellers are not allowed to:
List items that aren't authentic
List items if they're not sure if they are authentic
In addition, sellers can't disclaim authenticity of their item by stating, for example:
"I cannot guarantee the authenticity of this item, so please bid accordingly."
"Vintage handbag Chanel???"
"Looks like this could be a Louis Vuitton bag"
"I believe this is painted by Degas, but I can't be sure."
"I got this from an estate sale, so I have no idea if it's real or not."
"The autograph looks real to me."
"I'm no expert, so look at the pictures and decide for yourself if it's real."

If I remember correctly this same seller sold a Bailey beaver trap fasley stamped as Gibbs in 2014. So I would have to seriously question the authenticity of this one.

I didn't see the listing in 2014 of a bailey live beaver. There is either two of them out there or the buyer of the one in 2014 put it back on ebay. I saw a Bailey live beaver trap, hand stamper Gibbs, on ebay a month or so ago.

Here is the live Beaver trap that sold recently.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Gibbs-Live-Trap-...=p2047675.l2557

It was listed as a Gibbs. Same one. Different seller.

This just keeps getting better...(more interesting)

There is no better about it! It is a sad state of affairs when someone gets burned on an item and someone else thinks it's funny. It's like someone thinking, oh here's some juicy gossip. When it happens everyone should take offense because the next guy could be you. I'm pretty sure we have all been burned at one time or another. It happens and we learn from it. But it is a bitter pill to swallow.

Bigmack2, You could not have said it better.

Agreed, I should have worded that post differently. It's just that a couple of things have come up here now that are hitting pretty close to home. One has to do with a deal gone bad and I paid for the education. Dale

I really like collecting traps. It;s fun and relaxing for me. I'm not out to make money. I bought several hundred traps this past year and because I like to collect so much, I sometimes will pay top dollar. When I start to get too many I sell some of the ones I had a while. If I loose a little I consider I rented the trap for that price. Still a not real expensive hobby.
When I get burned I stop having fun. Makes me question my judgement. Makes me mad. I also get afraid to buy thinking it might happen again. I start to realize, or imagine the collector trap industry is contaminated with fakes. Those fakes, as you have shown, will show up again and again as the buyers start to figure out they might not have the real thing. Its human nature to consider relisting it as an original to recover your some of your lose. Throwing it in the trash is the last resort. Next guy gets burned, he stops having fun, and it goes on and on. Keep reporting and pointing out things that don't look right, it will help us all.

All collectors will do themselves a BIG favor by investing $25.00 per year and joinng the NORTH AMERICAN TRAP COLLECTOR'S ASSOCIATION. In Care of: Tom Parr, P.O. Box 94, Galloway, Ohio 43119

Tom is very knowledgeable, as are the members of this good organization. Tom has worked diligently for the benefit of NATCA members, and he continues to do so. There is much valuable information to be received from the bi-monthly newletter entitled TRAPS. There are numerous antique trap shows around the USA and Canada for members...and there are some great friendships to be made with other members of this great organization. You will be in close contact with people who know about different collectibles, and they can usually identify and expose fraudulent or questionable items, and they can offer their own opinions and advice, giving you the chance to stay away from such items. There's a lot of good to be obtained from a membership in the NATCA. Don't take my word for it. ask around. There is also a NATCA group page on Facebook with some of the founding members regularly contributing. Check it out!

I know guys like to have free stuff...but really, the $25.00 annual dues is worth paying up for membership in a first rate organization!

My note above is NOT MEANT to be an advertisment...but rather a public service notice for collectors who need information....NATCA is a mutual benefit non-profit organization!

Great advice red raider, it is a great club. I am a life member for over 30 years.

Life Member as well, great magazine put out by many knowledgable collectors... money well spent.

Remember the guy who bought the trapping barrel with questionable stencels. Well, it took a while but I received a full refund from Ebay and the trapping barrel is now back with its original owners. Thanks to everyone on this site who commented on this or I would have been out $940.

Glad to hear it Pat!

Great news Pat. Now hopefully the seller wont relist it on e-bay when he gets it back.

Glad to hear they made good on it