Need advice on bootle found on seabed...

[CoilyGirl]

That bottle is a great find!

 

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[BVI Hunter]

That bottle is a great find!

Thanks!

 

[Harry Pristis]

thanks!!

or food saron type wrap maybe??

No, not Saran Wrap. The adhesive is important to keep the acetone-glue solution from spreading over the exterior of the bottle through the porous cracks. Vinyl tape is available at any dollar store . . . you don't have to re-invent the wheel for this project.

Vinyl - and many other common tapes and adhesives - will not withstand the acetone for long. Take care of business and decant the excess glue solution right away (if you like, save it for second treatment after the first liner is dry). Any vinyl tape I've ever used has a very weak adhesive which is easily removed.

The interior of the bottle should be completely dry before this treatment. If there are lingering droplets of wash-water, flood with an ounce or two of 70% rubbing alcohol which will speed evaporation of all interior water.

If there is unexpected leakage of the glue solution, remove when cured with an Xacto knife or razor blade.

 

[Harry Pristis]

That would be the size (generally) of a squat bottle... 90% chance or higher that it held wine.
I originally stated 1780.... but excuse me on that...after thinking and a quick check.... squats have dated as early as the 1760's through 1810's..... well I was right on the later date
...

Using Roger Dumbrell's book, UNDERSTANDING ANTIQUE WINE BOTTLES, cylinders and squat cylinders have been used since 1735 and 1740 (respectively) up to 1830. The bottle to be repaired dates to about 1790-1800, according to Dumbrell.

​

 

[Bass]

Wow. I would say its just a matter of time before you lose the bottle. I'm with Harry.

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[BVI Hunter]

No, not Saran Wrap. The adhesive is important to keep the acetone-glue solution from spreading over the exterior of the bottle through the porous cracks. Vinyl tape is available at any dollar store . . . you don't have to re-invent the wheel for this project.

Vinyl - and many other common tapes and adhesives - will not withstand the acetone for long. Take care of business and decant the excess glue solution right away (if you like, save it for second treatment after the first liner is dry). Any vinyl tape I've ever used has a very weak adhesive which is easily removed.

The interior of the bottle should be completely dry before this treatment. If there are lingering droplets of wash-water, flood with an ounce or two of 70% rubbing alcohol which will speed evaporation of all interior water.

If there is unexpected leakage of the glue solution, remove when cured with an Xacto knife or razor blade.

I just bought all the stuff so will try Monday. What consistency do I make the mix? Like water? And how long do I have to work with it?
Can I repeat to "thicken" the inside?

Thanks so much

 

[Harry Pristis]

I just bought all the stuff so will try Monday. What consistency do I make the mix? Like water? And how long do I have to work with it?
Can I repeat to "thicken" the inside?
Thanks so much

I might dissolve a tube of DUCO CEMENT (the plastic model glue variety) in 4 or 5 ounces of acetone.

The acetone-cement solution needs to be inside the bottle for seconds, not minutes.

Vinyl - and many other common tapes and adhesives - will not withstand the acetone for long. Take care of business and decant the excess glue solution right away (if you like, save it for second treatment after the first liner is dry).

Acetone is a nasty solvent . . . don't breathe the fumes. Use in a well-ventilated area . . . such as outdoors. The fumes are explosive . . . no smoking, no sparks.

 

[BVI Hunter]

I might dissolve a tube of DUCO CEMENT (the plastic model glue variety) in 4 or 5 ounces of acetone.

The acetone-cement solution needs to be inside the bottle for seconds, not minutes.

Vinyl - and many other common tapes and adhesives - will not withstand the acetone for long. Take care of business and decant the excess glue solution right away (if you like, save it for second treatment after the first liner is dry).

Acetone is a nasty solvent . . . don't breathe the fumes. Use in a well-ventilated area . . . such as outdoors. The fumes are explosive . . . no smoking, no sparks.

thanks so much!

will report back after the weekend!

 

[Mud Skipper]

thanks so much!

will report back after the weekend!

There is a good chance it was blown in Barbadoes, bottles were made there cheaper than to import, search for bottles from Guyana, are you sure they are cracks it may be soap stone lines which look like cracks, but are in fact not all the way through the glass but are just surface or below.
When it comes to saving the bottle with cracks resin is the answer clear hobbyist resin, brushed over after soaking it in water with "salt away" for a week or so, just my two cents worth from wayward Toronto and your back door ha ha

 

[BVI Hunter]

There is a good chance it was blown in Barbadoes,

yeah, like a few charter skippers I know.......

 

[BVI Hunter]

are you sure they are cracks it may be soap stone lines which look like cracks, but are in fact not all the way through the glass but are just surface or below.

for sure - neck plugged and bubbles come out thru cracks when submerged.

just dealing with some delayed rain issues then will try for repair!


thanks!

 

[Harry Pristis]

There is a good chance it was blown in Barbadoes, bottles were made there cheaper than to import, . . .

If you go to Barbados, you will see that there are no forests to provide fuel for a glass furnace. I'd venture a guess that there was no glass-making industry on the island in 1800, since all fuel would have been imported and therefor expensive. Bottles from that colonial period would have originated in Western Europe -- Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, and Netherlands being important sources.

 

[Mud Skipper]

There is a good chance it was blown in Barbadoes, bottles were made there cheaper than to import, . . .

If you go to Barbados, you will see that there are no forests to provide fuel for a glass furnace. I'd venture a guess that there was no glass-making industry on the island in 1800, since all fuel would have been imported and therefor expensive. Bottles from that colonial period would have originated in Western Europe -- Britain, France, Germany, Belgium, and Netherlands being important sources.

Perhaps by 1800 the forestation was gone, I know the islands were very different back then with good timber sources now depleted and cut down, I have not followed this forum until last year for years, let me dig out some notes to verify what I said previously maybe I stand to be corrected, I am sure Barbados was one of the biggest suppliers of rum for export and while in cask form much was bottled, It doesn`t make sense to have shipped that many empty bottles from Europe for refill to make it worthwhile export, what do you think?

 

[Mud Skipper]

sounds itchy..

 

[Mud Skipper]

for sure - neck plugged and bubbles come out thru cracks when submerged.

just dealing with some delayed rain issues then will try for repair!


thanks!

I would try hobbyist resin, about 10 years ago I found a brown and blue torpedo sent it to California for repair since its the only one I have seen like it, they reheated and use epoxy and charge me 75 bucks i think shipping was double to Vancouver, so after that I started to experiment, usually on bottles I called "sick glass" peeling etc - the cracks you described wont survive unless you remove the salt from inside - "Salt Away" is a cheap alternative to soak it in, then again I am sure hobbyist clear resin, leave it outside so when it kicks off the heat doesn't cause more cracks, you could also add a black tint to the resin which will hide the cracks and make it look new from a distance.

 

[Limitool]

Thanks!

The cracks are such that if I submerge it in water bubbles come out of the cracks - it's THAT delicate!
So swirling around is not an option?

Any thoughts?

Thanks

Neat bottle guy.... And it does sound very fragile if air is coming out the cracks. Your probably lucky you got it up from the seabed intact. But with that said.... if it stayed intact with whatever pressure the surrounding sea had on it maybe you could swirl... Was the bottle empty or filled with seawater? If filled then I totally understand.

Maybe wrap in duck tape.... Kidding, kidding... kidding!!!!

 

[Harry Pristis]

Perhaps by 1800 the forestation was gone, I know the islands were very different back then with good timber sources now depleted and cut down, I have not followed this forum until last year for years, let me dig out some notes to verify what I said previously maybe I stand to be corrected, I am sure Barbados was one of the biggest suppliers of rum for export and while in cask form much was bottled, It doesn`t make sense to have shipped that many empty bottles from Europe for refill to make it worthwhile export, what do you think?

Barbados is a very, very small island . . . an ancient coral reef, actually. There never could be enough forest to support a glass industry. They learned to burn bagasse to meet the needs of distilling rum from sugar cane.
Do some research to see that many, many empty bottles --from demijohns to beer bottles -- were imported from Western Europe into the Western Hemisphere, including into the United States.

 

[Mud Skipper]

Barbados is a very, very small island . . . an ancient coral reef, actually. There never could be enough forest to support a glass industry. They learned to burn bagasse to meet the needs of distilling rum from sugar cane.
Do some research to see that many, many empty bottles --from demijohns to beer bottles -- were imported from Western Europe into the Western Hemisphere, including into the United States.

Interesting point of view, perhaps you are correct about the bottles however the coral island and no forest is not accurate, in fact there was "a great clearing" of the forests of Barbados which took 15 years or so, on or around 1647 prior to this the island was forested it was at this time that it was systematically cleared to make and grow sugar cane and in turn rum (our favourite) the trade moved from Brazil to Barbados and then it exploded with the demand for rum in years to come. So the point of no forests I am not sure you are right, wether they blew bottles I will research further it wasnt thumb sucked I respect your input and points and again I may be wrong but it did not come from nowhere, when I get time I will dig into , in the mean time, soak the bottle in salt away...

 

[Harry Pristis]

No, I think you imagined the Barbadian glass industry. "They make rum on Barbados, so it stands to (economic) reason that they would also make the bottles to contain the rum." You simply did not have enough facts to support your supposition.
Not only is the island too small to supply enough wood to support a glass industry, the forest was gone before inexpensive bottle-making was developed in about 1700. The first truly mass-produced, disposable glass bottles are 'onion' bottles from Britain and a few years later from the Continent.

English onion circa 1710​

 

[Mud Skipper]

No, I think you imagined the Barbadian glass industry. "They make rum on Barbados, so it stands to (economic) reason that they would also make the bottles to contain the rum." You simply did not have enough facts to support your supposition.
Not only is the island too small to supply enough wood to support a glass industry, the forest was gone before inexpensive bottle-making was developed in about 1700. The first truly mass-produced, disposable glass bottles are 'onion' bottles from Britain and a few years later from the Continent.

English onion circa 1710View attachment 1046210​

Harry you must be right, I referred to my notes it came from a website "history hunters" and a guy called Diving Doc aka Jim Mc something
my bad, as I said if I stand to be corrected and I am, your points are valid about the bottles, the glass blowing etc, I like your site, I should send a pic of a demi i found on my friends waterfront, as for the bottle BVI found, still think soaking and then resin...all the best to both of you