Page 1 of 1

New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2018 10:54 pm
by dennislpr
Hello everyone, about two weeks ago someone listed on letgo a Sonora. When I saw it I had to go and take a look at it since it wasn't very far from house anyways. When I got there the first thing I saw was the wooden tone arm, I was so exited! I said to my self I have to take this baby home with me. The lady who was selling it was very nice and she told me that it belonged to her grandmother, they used to live in New York but they move to South Florida recently. The good news is that she let me have it for a great price, the bad news is that it needed some work, the rear section of the tone arm was broken and the grill was missing, thanks to George from Great Lakes Antique Phonograph I was able to get an original grill for it. Also the brake needed some work, the finish needed some TLC and the volume knob had some cracks but I was able to fixed that also. George also sent me some gasket material so I could rebuild the reproducer. Take a look at it, here are some pictures and a YouTube video of it.

YouTube Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKIjwRyp0PU

Re: New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Sat Jun 09, 2018 11:00 pm
by audiophile102
Congratulations on obtaining a real treasure. I play my Sonora almost every day. Finding great 78rpm records in excellent condition can take time, but it's worth every moment. Be sure to preserve that beautiful finish and keep it out of direct sunlight.

Re: New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Sun Jun 10, 2018 12:11 am
by dennislpr
Here are the pictures that the lady who sold me the Sonora posted on the letgo listing.

Re: New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Wed Jun 13, 2018 9:32 pm
by larryh
Do you have any other classical selections from the period? I have looked on you tube and most of them are playing records never intended to work on an acoustic machine. The first sample you put up peaked my interest again in Sonora's.

Re: New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2018 9:28 am
by dennislpr
Hello Larry, here are some more videos I just uploaded to YouTube. This are all one-sided records played on my Sonora.


Amelita Galli Curci - The Barber Of Seville - Una Voce Poco Fa: https://youtu.be/RxxCJKaI2RA

Rosa Ponselle - Verdi La Forza del Destino - Pace, pace mio Dio: https://youtu.be/kXtvSR4lRW8

Enrico Caruso - Canta pe`me: https://youtu.be/6YwyotnQyEU

Enrico Caruso - Vieni sul mar: https://youtu.be/lnqVDZgn8KY

Enrico Caruso - Di Quella Pira from Il Trovatore: https://youtu.be/vw-HobRpIps

Mischa Elman - Massenet Meditation From "Thais": https://youtu.be/mHkJtlp_f4w

Jascha Heifetz - Ave Maria - (Schubert): https://youtu.be/vDM2h0A02ik

Re: New find, 1919 Sonora Elite

Posted: Thu Jun 14, 2018 1:43 pm
by larryh
Thanks so much for adding these selections. I have a few chores to take care of this afternoon but hope to hear most of them this evening.