Old VC Defiant

[upside]

I'm new to the forum, and I appreciate all the insight some older postings have offered. I've got a few newbie questions about a stove we've inherited with the house. It's a 1975 Defiant.
-the local dealer claims he gave me the oval to 8" adapter. It doesn't fit. Does anybody still make these?
-the inner fireback wall is cracked. It's more than a crack really - probably an 1/8" gap. The previous owner burned for years like this. Am I overreacting in thinking that's not real safe?
- There's also no firebrick - or really any place for it on the floor. Does it really burn right on the cast iron floor?

Thanks for any thoughts,
Kate

 

[webbie]

The fitting should be available - usually part #1855, but they may slightly differ. Either way, with screws and furnace cement it should work.
It burns right on the floor - cover it with a little sand for the first fires and let the ash build up.

The crack can be cleaned and furnace cement put into it. It is not unsafe, being as it in an interior wall in the stove - not open to the room.

Older manual here:
https://www.hearth.com/econtent/index.php/wiki/Vermont_Castings_Older_Stove_Models/

 

[downeast]

I'm new to the forum, and I appreciate all the insight some older postings have offered. I've got a few newbie questions about a stove we've inherited with the house. It's a 1975 Defiant.
-the local dealer claims he gave me the oval to 8" adapter. It doesn't fit. Does anybody still make these?
-the inner fireback wall is cracked. It's more than a crack really - probably an 1/8" gap. The previous owner burned for years like this. Am I overreacting in thinking that's not real safe?
- There's also no firebrick - or really any place for it on the floor. Does it really burn right on the cast iron floor?
Thanks for any thoughts,Kate

It was a great stove, for the time...an instant classic. No firebrick in the old Defiant. Return the adapter: an oval to 8" adapter fits snug and not difficult.
The answers to your questions depend on how you'll use the stove.

If the stove is for 24/7 full time heating, look carefully at an EPA newer stove; the cost will be absorbed by savings in an average house in under 2-3 years even buying cut/split/delivered wood. The EPA stoves burn cleaner, save wood, are more efficient than the best of the pre-EPA wood stoves. Get a good, reliable source of firewood first.

But for intermittent fires, check the stove out carefully --you can do it yourself.
1. Replace all gaskets. Messy and fussy but not brainy. The former owner probably didn't do much maintenance.
2. Get a smoke pellet ( not from the dealer that sold you the wrong adapter! ), close off the flue with fiberglass or aluminum foil, light the pellet, and look for smoke leaks all around the stove. You can also use a drop light inside the stove. The smoke pellet is best.
2A. Fill all plate gaps with (again) messy furnace cement ( procto or ER gloves are ideal for this...ask your favorite doc or nurse ).
3. Use a good flashlight to look for cracks in the exterior plates of stove: top, bottom, sides. Solid cracks in these plates will make the stove unsafe. Re: the inner fireback crack also. Cast iron can be brazed ( not welded ) by a competent welder, but still not a long lasting repair.

There are manuals and schematics for the VC Defiant online and here. Good luck, the Defiant was a model of quality manufacture and engineering at the time.

Damn, the boss got to it first....

 

[upside]

You folks are great. Thanks.

 

[peakbagger]

The rear fireback crack was a known defect on the early defiants. There was a recall long ago. VC used to sell a conversion kit to replace the single piece fireback with a two piece. Unfortunately, the kit was in the $500 range 10 years ago and the stove had to be complete stripped to replace it. I did it and it worked great but would be hard to justify for most folks.