how to judge condition of a VC defiant

[JillianL]

I'm looking at a used VC Defiant. The seller says that it is about 17 years old so I think that would mean that it is a #1910. I'm not sure b/c I've been a bit confused by the VC website. Anyhow, I'm going to go look at it next week. I have to drive an hour, so I want to be able to decide yes or no while I'm there. I'm mostly concerned about the interior/mechanical condition. I think I know what it is basically supposed to look like. I have a VC intrepid II right now, but of course they aren't identical.

What problems should I look for and what will they look like?
Does this particular stove have any common issues?
Any other input would be appreciated.

Thanks all, Jill

 

[leeave96]

Look for warped cast iron parts, dampers, doors, etc in working order - but most of all, look at the fractory assemblies for cracks and crumbling as they are very expensive to replace.

What kind of price are they asking for this stove? Don't want to discourage, but do some searching for this stove - VC had some serious issues in terms of reliablity. Were it my $$$'s, I might steer clear of this stove.

Good luck,
Bill

 

[leeave96]

Don’t want to discourage, but do some searching for this stove - VC had some serious issues in terms of reliablity.

Can you expound upon this a bit more in detail to educate the membership. I want to know why I have not replaced any parts in my two vc late 80's stoves.

and I would love to tap into your knowledge base to help me figure out what expenses I have ahead. BTW how many Vermont castings stoves have you owned,
so I may judge your first hand knowledge credibility?

I think I like the VC stoves looks as much or better than any stove out there. On paper, they are a very nice design from thermostat to ash pan. Having said that and to answer your question - my Dad owned a VC Defiant Encore and while he didn't suffer any refractory crumbling/cracking, it was not a good stove for him. When I looked at buying a stove the first stove I thought I wanted was a VC. I assumed they were the best. However, upon searching and asking questions on this forum, I quickly learned that VC had some very serious problems with their refractories crumbling/cracking/breaking and these parts were/are very expensive. Further, VC went through several owners and in the process voided lifetime warranties on older stoves. The new 2in1 stoves are said to have a much better refractory material and design - and the owner reports we read sound very happy with them. I also would very much consider the new 2in1 VC stove if I upgrade my Englander 30 down the road, however, I would not recommend the older stoves for the above reasons.

Bill

 

[JillianL]

Thanks for explaining a little bit more. I am new to woodstoves and had heard that VC had a good reputation. Right now we have a 25 year old Intrepid II that we bought a few months ago. It is in excellent condition. I'm guessing this is because it was hardly ever used despite it's age. It works beautifully for us, but it's way too small for our house. Of course I have no idea what problems will arise for us after using it for a while. Now I'm in the position that we need a bigger stove, but we can't afford a new one. I need one that can heat a 2000 sqft house. But I also need one that I don't have to put a ton of work into, and isn't going to make my homeowners insurance skyrocket. From what the guy has told me via email the stove very well might meet my needs, but I get the feeling he isn't going to put the time into figuring out it's every little problem before selling. He just wants to get rid of it because he got something else. Thank you for the information and the heads up about older VC stoves.

 

[JillianL]

I forgot to say, seller is asking $500 for the defiant.

 

[defiant3]

All true about V.C.'s reliability issues! Believe it or not though, the new gen. Defiants I've found hold up remarkably well. Problem with 1910's however is te top. Newer versions(1945 etc.) all have the reversable, seperate flue collar. 1910 does not. Problem is that I've seen a few tops crack, and the replacement tops are NO LONGER MADE! THat's V.C. for ya'. I might take a pass on a 1910, especially if you're going to make it work for a living. As a part timer it may be cool, but there's a world of good stoves out there, maybe go se some?

Good luck!

 

[JillianL]

Is it not safe to assume that if these problems have not arisen in 17 years, that it is probably ok? stupid question?

I'm going to double check that it is a 1910. From the information I could find about older stoves, I thought they didn't make the stove in blue after the 1910.

It is such a handsome stove though.

 

[defiant3]

Hard to know, but I'd want to know that not much could go wrong, and if it did I could mfix it. Like I said, there's a world of other good stoves out there. But hey, it's your party!

 

[begreen]

Is it not safe to assume that if these problems have not arisen in 17 years, that it is probably ok? stupid question?

I'm going to double check that it is a 1910. From the information I could find about older stoves, I thought they didn't make the stove in blue after the 1910.

It is such a handsome stove though.

That totally depends on how much use it had. If there are cracks developing in the interior of the stove (not uncommon at this age) then a rebuild may be in order. We either need lots of pictures or I would suggest having someone that really knows this stove inspect it. If you search on Defiant you should find several threads that have queries about rebuild or fixing this stove. Often there are pictures of the problems in these threads that you can use as guidance when inspecting this model.

 

[defiant3]

Begreen , you may be confusing this stove with the 1st generatiuon Defiants, quite a different beast altogether. The modern Defiantshave firebrick in the back of the firebox, and the problem areas are usually the catalyst and related doo dads. Still, the more pic.s the better, and it's always fun to deal w/ other peoiple's stuff rather than my own...

 

[begreen]

I was thinking it was an early cat stove. But maybe you are right. I thought this model have an upper and lower fireback and cat refractory assmbly. These are components I would expect to be at end of life with 17 years of regular service.

 

[defiant3]

Yes, if it were like an Encore or something. And you'd be so right.