Brick retainer clips

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Desmond

Member
Mar 12, 2017
24
Kingston, Ontario, Canada
A few years ago, I refurbished a Grandma Bear. I was surprised to see that the brick retainer clips were set so high that the side bricks had to be set on top of the bottom bricks in order for them to even be held in place by the clips. I recently got ahold of a baby bear and see the retainer clips are the same. I was always under the impression that the side bricks should be put in first, and then the bottom bricks set up against the sides in order to hold the sides in place. Do you think it would be a good idea to refasten the retainer clips lower?
 
My understanding is stoves were made both ways. Apparently the clips were lowered so that the bottom bricks would hold the sides in to prevent breakage during shipping.

Interesting that I've owned probably 8 Fisher stoves over the years and none of them had the higher side clips.
 
Yes, the original prints call for the clips to allow the bottom bricks to fit under the side bricks. Stoves that were bricked at the fabricator, then delivered suffered breakage by crashing out, so most fabricators lowered the clips to allow the bottom layer to hold the sides tight and reduce breakage. Technically it gives more brick surface area inside when done the original way, which was to raise firebox temperature, so that is best for use, not for transporting with brick installed.
I just picked up a single door Honey Bear this weekend and it has the lightest weight bricks I've ever felt in it. Usually they are dense, heavy and smooth, these are firebrick but are porous and light like lava rock for gas grills. As far as I know they are original from 1984 since the stove had little to no use. Very strange.