Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Discussions on Talking Machines & Accessories
User avatar
Jwb88
Victor II
Posts: 400
Joined: Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:41 pm
Location: Riverside, California

Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by Jwb88 »

I bought a London Upright for a very low price. Now, I know a lot of collectors dislike these cheaper Edison machines, but I kind of like the looks of the London line. In my opinion they're modest and charming, yet I allow that they're cheap and simple to others. Here's something we can agree on: we'd probably all buy one if it had a Dance reproducer. This one did :D

The machine was pretty trashed. Water damage, lifting veneer, white paint spots, very worn finish, missing grille, no turntable, no governor, broken spring. My plan was to keep the reproducer (I've never owned a Dance or Edisonic before and wow, I love this thing!) but part out the machine otherwise. And then it just sat there, looking like a beaten puppy.

I decided to experiment on the finish. I was definitely not going to refinish it. I'm kind of fascinated by the type of finish it has. I'm still not sure. There seems to be a silvery wash underneath, and I'd argue that the areas under the lid and inside are very pretty with a reflective metallic quality underneath some sort of brown obscuring finish. I've since found a 1920s ad that describes the LU finish as "antique". It's too bad so many didn't survive well. Anyway, I cleaned everything up, glued together the severely warped cabinet and veneer, and got it looking presentable with stain and wax.

Then I was lucky enough to find someone parting out an absolutely destroyed London Upright from the same vintage and I was able to get the motor parts that were missing very cheap. I got it up and running and I was surprised how much I like it. Firstly, this is one of the narrowest uprights, at only 17 ⅝" wide. Having a small space (or rather too many things), this is a plus for me. Also, as I've come to find out, this is an early LU, #10367, presumably from November of 1922 or so if Frow can be trusted (not always) and it retains the speed control! Having that made me like it more as it's easier to use a lateral adapter.

But what about that grille? It'd probably cost at least $40. Is it worth it? Should I bother checking? Who needs it.
That's when I remembered I had some very thin junk plywood someone gave me. Some of it had mahogany veneer. It might work, I thought, but it was too thin. I started looking online at photos of the grille and found one photo that was nearly head-on and very detailed. I played around with the image on the computer until I got it somewhat even and printed it out on two sheets of cardstock about the right size. I taped it together and cut out a stencil.

Then I had to figure out how to glue two sheets of that thin plywood together. Rather than ask anyone with real knowledge how or if it could be done, I just went ahead with a goofy plan: gorilla glue the crap out of two pieces and use screws to hold the pieces together while it dried, using the stencil to guide where I could put holes in the areas that would be cut out anyway. I also used clamps, just to make sure.

Amazingly, it worked. I used a jigsaw to cut it out. Not the best job, but with enough sanding and filling, plus the admittedly murky brown finish I was matching, it came out surprisingly well. And it was free! I went with a red grille cloth because for some reason it seems to look better with the wood tone to me.

I apologize for the very long story and photos, but hopefully it might help someone. If anyone has any tips on how this might have been easier or how the finish could be improved, let me know. There are still areas that appear silvery where the top coat looks worn away. Furniture wax helped.In the last photo I used a flash, so the wood looks at its worst and the cloth looks much lighter, but I promise it looks much better in person.
Attachments
EdisonLondonBefore1.jpg
EdisonLondonBefore2.jpg
EdisonLondonAfter4.jpg
EdisonLondonAfter2.jpg
EdisonLondonAfter1.jpg
EdisonGrille1.jpg
EdisonGrille2.jpg
EdisonGrille3.jpg
EdisonGrille4.jpg
EdisonGrille8.jpg
EdisonGrille9.jpg

User avatar
phonogfp
Victor Monarch Special
Posts: 7384
Joined: Wed Jan 07, 2009 5:08 pm
Personal Text: "If you look for the bad in people expecting to find it, you surely will." - A. Lincoln
Location: New York's Finger Lakes

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by phonogfp »

Good grief! What a transformation! :)

You're a real craftsman, and good karma on you for rescuing that LU-37. The grille is very convincing. The finish doesn't have the all-too-common shiny gloss, but a warm sheen. The whole thing looks great!

I've had a real cherry LU-37 in my basement for over a decade. It's beautiful, with original finish, original grille cloth, and even the nickel crank is still shiny. But as you note, we collectors can be a jaded bunch, and I just don't have room upstairs for it. I'm hoping someday a collector will see it and want to take it home and love it. I'd give it to a deserving youngster. Until then, it sits in my dark (but dry) basement... :(

Congratulations on an epic save! :)

George P.

User avatar
gramophone-georg
Victor VI
Posts: 3984
Joined: Mon Jan 20, 2014 11:55 pm
Personal Text: Northwest Of Normal
Location: Eugene/ Springfield Oregon USA

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by gramophone-georg »

I agree. Very nice work! :shock:
"He who dies with the most shellac wins"- some nutty record geek

I got PTSD from Peter F's avatar

User avatar
Jwb88
Victor II
Posts: 400
Joined: Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:41 pm
Location: Riverside, California

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by Jwb88 »

Thanks to you both. George, I'd ask to be the lucky recipient of that LU if only I didn't already have one now, lol! I really do think this model is a great one for a small space.

martinola
Victor III
Posts: 952
Joined: Wed Feb 11, 2009 1:30 pm

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by martinola »

Very nice! I commend you for your fortitude and craftsmanship!

Martin

Jerry B.
Victor Monarch Special
Posts: 8510
Joined: Tue Feb 10, 2009 11:25 am
Personal Text: Stop for a visit when in Oregon.
Location: Albany, Oregon

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by Jerry B. »

There's no doubt you have skill and determination. Jerry Blais

User avatar
Curt A
Victor Monarch Special
Posts: 6412
Joined: Fri Jul 09, 2010 8:32 pm
Personal Text: Needle Tins are Addictive
Location: Belmont, North Carolina

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by Curt A »

That can only be considered a labor of love... you did a great job.

I did something similar with an Edison H-19 that nobody wanted (arguably the homeliest cabinet ever made). It sat in an antique shop for several years until a child tried to pull out the grill, which is made of molded sawdust, dropped it on the floor and it shattered into many small pieces... :(

I got it for $60 and spent several weeks restoring it and actually gluing the grill back together like a puzzle using a heavy duty file folder as a backboard to glue it to. When it hardened I cut it out with an X-Acto knife and it actually was stronger than the original grill. After it was completely restored, I placed it on a movers dolly in the garage, where it got bumped and decided to roll out the door and down the inclined driveway where it fell flat on its face... :o :( :cry:

Amazingly, the grill survived completely intact, but I had to replace the motor mounts and a piece of molding on the front. I finally sold it to an antique store, since no collectors wanted it and the last time I saw it, it was still in there after two years... :? :lol:

Hope it finally found a good home... :roll:
"The phonograph† is not of any commercial value."
Thomas Alva Edison - Comment to his assistant, Samuel Insull.

"No one needs a Victrola XX, a Perfected Graphophone Type G, or whatever you call those noisy things."
My Wife

User avatar
Jwb88
Victor II
Posts: 400
Joined: Mon Jul 27, 2015 10:41 pm
Location: Riverside, California

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by Jwb88 »

Curt A, I love that story! I can relate. I too think the H-19 is the homliest Edison ever, but I'd consider an oak one with the sawdust grille would be the best incarnation. I'd like to see more of that model in person to judge. The fun thing about DD machines is that, no matter the cabinet, the majority of them have the standard very good-quality type B motors. A sort of equalizer.
Last edited by Jwb88 on Tue Feb 20, 2018 1:15 am, edited 1 time in total.

larryh
Victor IV
Posts: 1601
Joined: Wed Jan 07, 2009 7:44 pm

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by larryh »

The London upright was how I got back into collecting Edisons about 10 years ago. I don't know if you have the larger Edisons or not? The sound was all right but as i got the larger horns I realized how much difference in sound existed between the styles. Mine luckily was in very nice shape for a machine from a sale. I am pretty sure it was what they called Edison Brown. Eventually I traded it for my William and Mary Console which needed about as much work as your London. I also ran into a London Console which I tried to save the cabinet to but the sound was not too my liking and I eventually parted it out rather than just burning the thing.

You did a very nice job of restoring the cabinet and your grill is professional looking for sure.

tomb
Victor IV
Posts: 1381
Joined: Sat Oct 24, 2015 10:46 pm
Location: riverside calif

Re: Edison London Upright - fixed up on the cheap

Post by tomb »

Excellent job. A few more of these and you can open your own repair shop. A second job that you can enjoy. I jus purchased a baby grand regent by Columbia. It looks like a table but has the gramophone built into it. You may have seen it on Craig's list. I am in the process of putting together a suitcase home. I jus ordered the parts. Tom

Post Reply