Columbia Type AH – Cylinder Graphophone??

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rodpickett
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Columbia Type AH – Cylinder Graphophone??

Post by rodpickett »

In researching APS knowledgebase articles regarding the Columbia AH disc graphophone cabinets:

http://forum.talkingmachine.info/viewto ... =2&t=35714

I downloaded the 1970 issue of “The Talking Machine Review” which referenced the Columbia Grand cylinder graphophone as the AH, sometimes known as the Paragon. This article was in reference to Sears’ marketing of Columbia Phonographs

Question One - Did Sears rename the Columbia offerings for their catalog?

Question Two – There is reference to a “universal record shaver for the Q Graphophone”. Has anybody seen one? There is a Simplex Columbia shaver referenced in the F&P books, but I find no other reference to a “universal record shaver”.

A portion of the 1970 article follows:



SPRING 1901

A curious item, a 'universal record shaver' for the Q Graphophone was available for seventy-five cents. The record listing had grown to three pages,

FALL 1901

While the standard line remained the same, one of the most interesting and hard to find Graphophones for the Grand and for the standard sized cylinders was offered.

This is the Type AH, sometimes called the 'Paragon' It is a key-wind outfit somewhat resembling a pregnant Type B, but it has a bigger frame on which the large cylinder mandrel is slipped over the permanent, standard size mandrel, to play the large records.

Perhaps the most grandiose 'outfit' for exhibition was built around this model. This consisted of the Paragon Graphophone, a 42-inch spun brass horn,6 grand and 12 standard records, a SerocoSiereopticon, three sets of song slides for the Grand records, and a miscellany of 1,000 admission tickets and 500 advertising posters.

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phonogfp
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Re: Columbia Type AH – Cylinder Graphophone??

Post by phonogfp »

Question 1: Yes, Sears often gave Columbia Graphophones marketing names that bore little or no resemblance to Columbia nomenclature. Since the article you found was in The Talking Machine Review, I suspect the "Paragon" name was unique to UK marketing. The machine described sounds like an AB Graphophone. I wonder if the "AH" designation was a 1970 typo?

Question 2: Never heard of a universal record shaver for the Q. Again, possibly a British item and not available over here.

George P.

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