Caskets . . . . .

asy · October 21, 2007, 06:32:42 PM

Quote from: TexasTimbers on October 21, 2007, 12:11:50 PMRun of the mill or not they are not priced that way eh?

No, and that's the other reason big funerals upset me. Often people spend tens of thousands on a funeral that they just don't have. I know when Dad passed away last year, Mum felt she 'had' to have this, and that, at the funeral, in the end it cost over $10k. We would have both preferred a small, unobtrusive funeral, but the Polish community has certain expectations... It was very upsetting for me to watch her throw away that much money, when she could have gone on a great trip with it... (I couldn't believe she was paying $1500 for a casket that was just going to get burned anyway!!!)

The worst thing was Dad always said "When I die, don't make a fuss, just tie a rock around my neck and throw me into the river out the back"... Of course he was kidding, but the sentiment was there... But the 'community expectation' HAD to be met...

Anyway, that's my bug-bear...

asy :D

brdmkr · October 22, 2007, 12:11:21 AM

I'm glad you brought this up. We buried my dad back in June. I did not like the experience at the funeral home at all. Trying to sell you this and that. We did NOT go for it. The funeral was still expensive, but not as bad as they would have liked. They try to make you feel like it is in someway disrespectful not to spend 2000 for a casket and another 1500 for a vault. That is pure hogwash! I told my wife that I was going to make both of our caskets and we could just store them OR figure out a way to use them until we needed to really use them. I need to get started on construction as we never know when our time will come.

asy · October 22, 2007, 05:00:15 AM

I've heard of people selling a 'casket-pantry', you buy it, use it as a pantry, then, when the time comes, your ancestors empty it out, remove the shelves and voilois, a casket...

Also heard of them being used as a coffee table, in similar vein...

asy :D

TexasTimbers · October 22, 2007, 07:35:38 AM

Yep and like i said, Vampires use them as bedrooms. :D

asy · October 22, 2007, 08:12:15 AM

That's a COFFIN, not a CASKET! hehe

A coffin shaped coffee table would be freaky!

asy :D

hiya · October 22, 2007, 06:53:36 PM

I found a pic of my first casket, so I brought it alone to the Forestry Forum

metalspinner · October 22, 2007, 07:04:17 PM

QuoteI found a pic of my first casket,

How many lives you got, HIYA? Sorry, I couldn't resist.

hiya · October 22, 2007, 07:41:09 PM

How many lives you got, HIYA?

Don't rightly know. The way I feel tonight I'm On the last one ;D.
Richard ( where's that half dead smiley?)

TexasTimbers · October 22, 2007, 08:10:51 PM

Hey that's one fine lookin ride there!

Haytrader · October 22, 2007, 08:15:26 PM

Was/is a member of the Oklhoma Red Cedar Ass. that built some nice caskets.
I don't have time to look it up to post, but he is out there, and has a mill too.

brdmkr · October 22, 2007, 11:45:52 PM

HEy, that is really nice. Where did you find the hardware?

thecfarm · October 23, 2007, 08:30:45 AM

I feel the after death thing is way over rated.When my Mother passed away alot of friends showed up that she only saw once in a year or two.I wanted to walk up to them and tell them she would of really enjoyed seeing you when see was alive just for a few minutes,15 minutes would of made her day.I would of heard all about the visit too.It would of really made her day and week.But a course I did not.Some of them would not be ½ hour away at times due to shopping or thier parents.It's too bad we never have time until someone is gone.Than there is a crowd that shows up.I did both of my parents as cheaply as the law allows.This was their wishes.I feel funerals are just to make the living feel better.Some feel that they did their part by going to the funeral instead of going when they was alive.I had no visting hours or funeral.We only had a graveside service that was set up by me and not the funeral home.I know I sound hard,but that's the way I am with alot of things.
Whatever that is hiya,it looks good.

olyman · October 23, 2007, 09:53:43 AM

the cfarm--you are very correct---funeral homes of today are BIG business--and they try and put a feeling on the living that you have to honor the dead properly with a 10 mil funeral--hogwash----like you said--where were the people when they were alive?????????????short,simple,and sweet--theyre dead already--think they care--not!!!!

asy · October 23, 2007, 09:56:37 AM

Well, I've had this discussion with my Mum.

Firstly I banned her from dying for at LEAST the next 30 years. She's 68 now, so I figure that's reasonable. Besides I couldn't handle it any sooner, I just adore her.

Secondly I told her she'd best spend her money NOW. Go on holidays, travel (which she loves) have FUN! I told her if she didn't, I would after she passed. She said "There's 10k in a 'funeral account', so you make sure you do it right. I asked her if she really cared? she said she didn't but didn't want to 'disappoint the community'. I told her since I lived 2000km from 'the community' I didn't care what they thought of me after she was gone, so she best SPEND IT NOW, cos there was no way on this, or any other, earth I was going to spend 10k on a funeral. I told her if she passed and that money was still there, I was gonna spend it going to a Piggy Roast (I really did tell her that!)...

So now she's going on a cruise for 10 days in November!

She really wants to go to USA and tour, but has no-one to go with and really doesn't want to go alone. She'd love to find a 'travel companion', but alas, the only friend she has who's got the money to travel and isn't married is a complete nutter. She's the person Mum's cruising with in November (I did warn her, but alas... She's sorry she booked it now, but it's only for 10 days...). I'd love to go with her, so we're thinking maybe in a few years time, Mum and I (and maybe one or both kids) will come over and tour and meet y'all!

asy :D

hiya · October 23, 2007, 08:06:38 PM

Where did you find the hardware?

I got my first hwd from Rockler. But it is expensive there.They cost $10.00 for a pr. of handle brackets there. I ordered a hundred from a casket supply house at I think about $1.00 a peice. A big savings. The bed frame they use to adjust the height for big or small people. Rockler wants $80.00. I found a place in NJ (manufacture) for less than $20.00. But that is a quantity price.
Richard

WH_Conley · October 26, 2007, 05:43:31 PM

Anybody have a direction to look in for the individual states as to what the law is for providing your own coffin/ casket/ box. Talked to a local feneral director a while back, jokingly told him I was bringing my own box, frowned on that. Money I can understand him frowning.

All that aside I have made my feeling clear to my wife and she to me, worms got eat to.

I did a search on Kentucky Revised Statutes and all I got was a headache.

I guess the short of it is, I would rather have a couple of neighbors ( some are very fine craftsmen) that thought enough of me to get togather and knock togather a box than pay big bucks for (fancy).

My daughter that will have to take care of all this was about to (freak out) when I told her all she would have to provide was a bottle of 100 proof to the neighbors that gathered to do the nailing. :D

Haytrader · October 26, 2007, 06:11:30 PM

OK, I found the link to the guy in Ok. who makes em.

http://redcedar.www6.50megs.com/

He has coffins, caskets, special caskets and urns.

Covers most all the bases.
;)

Ianab · October 26, 2007, 06:34:01 PM

One thing I suspect many people dont seem to realise is that funeral directors are working for you, just like any other contractor really. Often there aren't actually any laws thats say you HAVE to have a funeral director organise a burial, it's just tradition and a good idea to do so. People are upset enough with the death of a loved one without worrying about the paperwork and organisation that goes into a funeral. So you hire a professional contractor to look after that. But bottom line is, the Funeral Director is hired to HELP the family see off their deceased as the family want.

I have no beef with funeral directors in general, they have a pretty tough job and generally do it well, and earn the money they charge. And I can understand them refusing to do something crazy that puts themselves in a bad light. So they might want to inspect said homebuilt coffin to make sure the bottom doesn't fall out when it's lifted out the back of THEIR hearse. That would reflect badly on their business

But if they wont accomodate reasonable requests, time to find a different one that does ;)

A recent funeral here the deceased and immediate family arrived at the crematorium in 2 heavy lift logging helicopters provided by his boss and flown by his workmates. Unconventional maybe, but there is no law that says you have to use a hearse for a funeral either, and it made for a very memorable and fitting send off.

Cheers

Ian

WH_Conley · October 26, 2007, 07:13:34 PM

Ianab, I agree on the contrator part, I have no problem with that. I do not have a problem til they put so much money in the way that the family can't get what they want.

The chopper sounds cool, fitting, whatever you want to call it. I have an old friend that wants his body carried on a fire truck, should be, he has donated a great part of his life to the small fire departments around here.

pigman · October 26, 2007, 07:27:13 PM

Bill, I asked our local funeral director about using homemade caskets and he said that the only requirment was that the box fit in the vault if the cementary required one. It seems he tried to put a big fancy wooden casket in a required vault and it was too tall for the vault lid.

He said that after the family left he had to do some modification to the casket lid. ;D
He also told be not to go to the trouble of building a casket for myself that he had a large trash can that he thought he could put me inside. He used to be a good friend. ;)