Unusal Fisher doors?

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john26

Minister of Fire
Oct 27, 2008
793
Wildwood MO
I ran across this Fisher insert for sale on CL, I have never seen fisher doors like this was this an early insert? or knock off? fisher.jpgfisher2.jpgfisher3.jpg
 
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It's an Insert IV (Mid 80's with larger glass openings than the first glass Series III) with optional solid cast iron panels installed. The only Insert made after this was the Tech IV and TF-88.
The panels were available for the smaller III opening in the full size stoves, the larger IV opening GM and GP, and the very small Honey Bear or honey Bear Insert. The Honey Bear Insert also had it's own glass or solid doors.

Grandma IV painted black 4.JPG Series IV glass doors used on Grandma IV and Insert IV.

IV cast iron door panels 1.jpg IV cast iron door panels 2.jpg Optional Solid panels. Great to have in case of glass breakage or to radiate more heat.

IV cast iron door panels.jpg Grandpa IV with solid panels installed

Honey Bear Cast Door Inserts.jpg Honey Bear optional solid panels with the III shape opening.

No other manufacturer offered so many options and accessories as Fisher. I don't think any do to this day.
 
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It's an Insert IV (Mid 80's with larger glass openings than the first glass Series III) with optional solid cast iron panels installed. The only Insert made after this was the Tech IV and TF-88.
The panels were available for the smaller III opening in the full size stoves, the larger IV opening GM and GP, and the very small Honey Bear or honey Bear Insert. The Honey Bear Insert also had it's own glass or solid doors.

View attachment 258314 Series IV glass doors used on Grandma IV and Insert IV.

View attachment 258315 View attachment 258316 Optional Solid panels. Great to have in case of glass breakage or to radiate more heat.

View attachment 258318 Grandpa IV with solid panels installed

View attachment 258313 Honey Bear optional solid panels with the III shape opening.

No other manufacturer offered so many options and accessories as Fisher. I don't think any do to this day.
There are plenty of manufacturers who offer multiple door options trim options base kits metal instead of glass warming shelves convective tops etc. There are tons of options out there if you look.
 
But I think at this point everyone has dropped the solid door option.
 
What ??
Stoves vented top, rear, left or right side.
Right or Left handed models.
Custom leg length, (6 inch min.) custom outlet size.
Doors; black, nickel, brass. (with matching air dampers, spring handles and hinge pins)
Nickel heat shields.
Solid, Glass, or "Glass and Brass" doors for all double door models. (ex Goldilocks, solid only)
Draft caps; unfinished, black, polished edge, or mill finish edge. Aluminum or solid brass.
Legs; bolt on Straight, Furniture, or Bear Leg styles.
Color options; The first to offer stoves other than black.
Metallic Brown optional paint (no competition in the 80's)
Outside air for Goldilocks and Honey Bear. I think 1978 Goldi was the first outside air inlet certified mobile home approved stove - back then again no competition - may have been the first pedestal ? Others followed in the 80's.
Pedestal or legs for freestanding Honey Bear
Classic or Contemporary stove and screen styles started 1980.
Chrome adjustable ball feet levelers
Bear Feet levelers in Black Iron Oxide, Chrome or Brass. Straight or angled
Solid cast iron panels for glass replacement.
Blowers for Honey, Grandma and Grandpa IV.
Multiple blower styles, single and dual for Inserts.
Swing away hot plate or cast iron trivet.
Belt buckles were sold in Nickel and Brass, multiple color hats, mugs and drinking glasses sold in sets;

Go ahead, drink the Fisher Kool-aid !

Glass 1.jpg (They offered everything except a smoke free fire :) )
 
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What ??
Stoves vented top, rear, left or right side.
Right or Left handed models.
Custom leg length, (6 inch min.) custom outlet size.
Doors; black, nickel, brass. (with matching air dampers, spring handles and hinge pins)
Nickel heat shields.
Solid, Glass, or "Glass and Brass" doors for all double door models. (ex Goldilocks, solid only)
Draft caps; unfinished, black, polished edge, or mill finish edge. Aluminum or solid brass.
Legs; bolt on Straight, Furniture, or Bear Leg styles.
Color options; The first to offer stoves other than black.
Metallic Brown optional paint (no competition in the 80's)
Outside air for Goldilocks and Honey Bear. I think 1978 Goldi was the first outside air inlet certified mobile home approved stove - back then again no competition - may have been the first pedestal ? Others followed in the 80's.
Pedestal or legs for freestanding Honey Bear
Classic or Contemporary stove and screen styles started 1980.
Chrome adjustable ball feet levelers
Bear Feet levelers in Black Iron Oxide, Chrome or Brass. Straight or angled
Solid cast iron panels for glass replacement.
Blowers for Honey, Grandma and Grandpa IV.
Multiple blower styles, single and dual for Inserts.
Swing away hot plate or cast iron trivet.
Belt buckles were sold in Nickel and Brass, multiple color hats, mugs and drinking glasses sold in sets;

Go ahead, drink the Fisher Kool-aid !

View attachment 258322 (They offered everything except a smoke free fire :) )
No no one offers custom outlet size because the outlet size is what it needs to be in order to work properly. Some offer the option of top or rear outlet. Many offer different trim finish options. And not they we're far from the first to offer stoves in other than black.
 
Thanks for the info. The price is doesn't seem bad he wants $250 but I dont think i want to swap out either of my epa inserts but I would kind of like a pappa bear for the basement, the 35' chimney liner is holding me back on that idea.
 
Yeah, there were porcelain cookstoves long before, but the idea of colors for high heat paint for the hearth industry started here;

No no one offers custom outlet size because the outlet size is what it needs to be in order to work properly. Some offer the option of top or rear outlet. Many offer different trim finish options. And not they we're far from the first to offer stoves in other than black.
Yes, there were colored porcelain cookstoves long before the first high temp painted stoves. But Fisher was the first in the hearth industry to have a paint supplier formulate them a color other than black. This was the first high temp paint attempt of other colors. Fisher became the talk of a trade show when they unveiled the first wood stove painted with their custom color formulated by Forrest Paints in Eugene Oregon. Known as Bark Brown today. (Stove Bright - by Forrest)

I have a message into Forrest Paints to find out what happened to their Employee Newsletter uploads. I posted a link on the thread above of the article over 6 years ago here, and now the link comes up with 404 Not Found.

This was the month of the trade show that Fisher had gone to Forrest Paints in Eugene for a different color than black.

It's a really good article and took a lot of pigment chemistry to take the heat without discoloring. I can't find where I saved the pdf. I'll have to go back searching the internet archives on the Wayback Machine, that's how I found some info the first time. I just wasn't able to save it or have the resources back then for storage capacity like we have today.
 
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Here are two Papa Bears from the 6 inch Bear Series special made for a customer that had a large chimney that required larger outlets and the fabricator made them to order.

8 inch Papa Bears.jpg 8 inch Papa flue.jpg Try to explain to the codes official today that you're reducing one of these back to 6....
 
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