Rock-Ola Oiler

[John R.]

I was chatting with a good friend this afternoon and since he was off to a VA show tomorrow asked him to see if he couldn't find me a couple of M1 Carbine oilers and a 'D' clip Korean era sling in new or as near as dammit condition.

He asked me what markings if any did I want on the oilers.I understand that IS(as in International Silver) made most of them so I told him that "common or garden variety" oilers would do.I was told that IF I had a oiler stamped IR on the bottom(I jokingly said "Ingersoll-Rand"? as my grandfather,my father and even yours truly worked for that firm at one time or another) and was told"No,that's International Silver for Rock-Ola and they are worth something like $150 EACH......".Now THAT I couldn't believe so I decided to ask the"GURUS" around here.Is this TRUE ? I DO have a 2 rivet handguard marked RMC which supposedly means "Rock-Ola Music Corp".Are they made from "unobtainium" too.

I await your pontification on these artifacts.have a good weekend too! JR

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[Bruce McAskill]

John it's Rock-Ola Machine Corp. and only a fool would pay that kind of money for any oiler. Some people feel the IR oilers are worth a bit more and others don't. It's a personal thing more then anything else. The same with your RMC marked hand guard. Value is more in the condition then anything but there are fools who have more money then sense.

[John R.]

Hey Bruce:

I WAS more than a little taken aback with that $150 bit.As Phineas T. Barnum opined"there is a sucker born every minute".Only problem is that I think he was OFF by at least 3.

I used to sell Winchester, Narrow base, Garand gas cylinders at a discount if you purchased TEN.One would set you back $90 .But, IF you bought TEN they were $70.All of a sudden I get about 50 e-mails asking when I started selling them on fleabay(which I DETEST as the refuge of the terminally GREEDY).Seems that at least two guys who were well known on the old board got ambitious and started"auctioning" the gas cylinders.WORSE YET nitwits were paying as much as $175 for gas cylinders I would have sold them for $90..Truly AMAZING how much money some folks have to throw around ! Coming as I do, from a long line of"THRUFTY" Scots Jews,I always RESEARCH any hobby related purchases.I also stopped selling "ten packs" of WRA gas cylinders.This was about 8 years ago and I still have WRA narrow and wide base gas cylinders at only a slight inflation adjusted price increase.

As usual your comments were very informative.My thanks again,JR

[ScottR]

A) Rock-ola Music Corp.
B) Rock-ola Machine Corp.
C) Rock-ola Manufacturing Corp.
And the correct answer is, "drum roll"...................................
C.

lol Scott

[JimF4M1s (Deceased)]

As Bruce said:

"Some people feel the IR oilers are worth a bit more and others don't. It's a personal thing more then anything else."

But personal or not, marked oilers are a lot harder to find then an IS oiler. And then some of the different marked oilers are even harder to find. ISP and IR seem harder to find the IU, II, IQ, IN, IW. It seems IW oilers as all Winchester items just cost more.



Thus the cost of supply and demand. If you want to put all IS oilers in your guns you will find them fast and save some money. If you want to put in all marked oilers it will be more in time and money. Personal choices. Mine is I like having a marked oiler in all my guns.

That being said, $150 for an IR oiler seems pretty darn high. Someone wants to spend that kind of money, send them my way. I can play PT Barnum, I have 6 mint in the wrap.

[Bruce McAskill]

Scott, your 100% correct and I don't know where I pulled machine from.