Old Leader Evap

[Cardigan99]

Pulled this from under years of leaves and stuff. The whole rig measured about 14X3 Feet. Can any one tell me about how old this is?http://106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/cardigan99/OldLeaderEvap.jpg

Thanks for the heads up Hanging Around

http://106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/cardigan99/OldLeader02.jpg

[Fred Henderson]

I would say it was made some time in the mid 40's or early 50's. The pockets on the pan will only have 1 1/4" passage holes.

[Cardigan99]

Thanks Fred. sounds about right. the place had been abandon until 1982. I've been up back there a ton of times since then, and june was the first time I'd come across it. Doesn't appear to have been a sugar shack. No timbers, tarpaper, glass or anything like that nearby. Can't even find what might have been a road close by.

[nhmaple48]

Leader moved from Enosburg Falls to Burlington in 1909, so it could be any time after that.

[Fred Henderson]

Sometimes they never put up a shack. They would use it for the season and cover it when they were done. The front of that is still useable. I guess there are some guys out there that still have them like that front is made.

[Sugarmaker]

I have three pans that match the look, they are 2 x 4 feet. You could start to bring this rig back! Front look servicable and look at the size of those doors for easy firing!

Chris

[Cardigan99]

the front IS still useable. My wife saw the pictures and would like on the front our fireplace!

[Cardigan99]

Finally got a chance to get up back and dig around that old evaporator. Here are a few pics of the pans. Or what's left of them. Any info you could provide would be great.

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/cardigan99/P1010354.jpg

Syrup Pan. 30" x 18" The piece below the handle in the middle is a hinge. There are actually two of these.

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/cardigan99/P1010348.jpg

Sap Pan. This pan is about 30" x 8 ft it had two dividers down the middle and raised flues (3 per section) each about 1 1/2 inches high by 1 1/2 inches wide

http://i106.photobucket.com/albums/m257/cardigan99/P1010349.jpg

Sap Pan Close up

Thanks

Todd

[Parker]

Wow- I have 2 syrup pans that look just like that style, but are in new condition,,and are english tin,,I think mine are 4' by 24" ,,I was wondering what make they were,,,,,,,

[Dave Y]

I made syrup with pans just like those the last two years. I have retired them. they are a real adventure to boil with. I had a 30x5 sap pan like you discribed and 3 -30x18 syrup pans. when you would draw off syrup you would have to lift one side of the pan and pour off the syrup. the pockets on the side are sphion pockets. you would sphion the consentrate from one pan to the next. It was a great adventure. always some thing to do.

[Cardigan99]

Wow. I guess they are fairly common pans. Parker, I'm way too new to this to even guess the manufacturer. I can say they appear to be made of tin. Have you boiled with your pans? Are they the adventure Dave Y says? Sounds like too much excitement for me.

How's the arm holding up? Looking forward to getting down that way and seeing your set up when I have a few hrs to get away. Hoping before the snow flys, but I've got a feeling that may happen early this year.

Todd

[nhmaple48]

The pans are Grimm Champion style, the corrugated pan goes in front, over the fire, syrup pans in back. They were cheap and they sold thousands of them.

[Cardigan99]

Thanks nhmaple48. any idea of roughly how old this set up might be? the location still baffles me. 300 yrds off the nearest path at the time and right up against a hill that partially breaks out of the treeline. very steep terrain, but there are quite a few sugar maples in the area.

Todd

[Parker]

i never used the pans,,,,the arm is getting better,,,slow process

[Russell Lampron]

Todd,

Alot of the old timers set up their sugarhouses that way. Down in the woods close to where the sap buckets where hung. When they did everything with horses it was easier to bring the evaporator to the sap than the other way around.

There are remnants of an old sugarhouse in my fathers woods which is close to a 1/2 mile from the road. The evaporator is gone but there are pieces of old grates and gathering pails left there. Nothing salvagable though unfortunately.

Russ