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I'm going to look at this nice little machine tomorrow, I think it's worth the $50 asking price....Yes? No? What can anyone tell me about this machine historywise? What model is it? From the pics, it looks like it'll do well with a nice bath. Besides exploded pot metal in the tonearm, is there anything else I need to look for?

Looks like the "Favorite" or model 50, and is a common machine.
The price seems fine from here.
I see in second photo, the lid hinge is detached.
An unusual lid support mechanism that projects to the front of the lid, early design?
Possibly a wrong crank.

If you're lucky, Harvey (Phonofreak) will comment on this further.

James.

PS: take look here...
http://www.radio-antiks.com/IndexRadio- ... ola_50.htm
The one shown has an extra needle cup and a different support, but look at the advertising image of the unit, it has the odd lid support drawn, and no extra cup. If the information here is correct, it is the first generation with louver sound doors, 1913 -1914

PS: PS: I found this ad, too. The crank looks correct, and it mentions the "push button hinge lock".
So aside from the hinge issue... look the rest over for function.
.

Well worth the asking price. Is the tone are stuck? I didn't see the "exploded tone arm"

That is an early style Grafonola crank, they later went to the more comfortable style with the ball shaped grip

I don't know if the tone arm is stuck - I haven't been to look at it yet. I just know the pot metal tonearms are known to swell and /or completely disintegrate. I guess the term "exploded" was a little overkill...I wasn't referring to this particular one.

Make sure the arm moves well in all directions. If you get a little resistance, you can remedy that pretty easily, but if the joint is really stuck, it can be difficult to free it.

And of course check the usual things - the spring hold a wind, the reproducer thumbscrew is present and turns easily, etc.

It looks like the lid hinge has been pulled out of the case (2nd picture) and the lid is loose. That's probably what bent up the lid support.
If it's just a matter of replacing the hinge screws, no big deal. It's still a good buy at $50.

Larry Crandell

He says the hinge has been "repaired" which made me cringe... I hope he didn't just run drywall screws into it like I've seen people do on other various "repairs". I'm not concerned too much about what you can see, more about what you can't. I was basically curious about the motor itself, if there was anything particularly troubleprone in these I should watch for (besides the pot metal issues), whether it looked original outwardly to those who know...Buying it pretty much was a done deal with me from the first time I saw it... I'm still looking for bargaining chips, though....

andyjon100 wrote:He says the hinge has been "repaired" which made me cringe... I hope he didn't just run drywall screws into it like I've seen people do on other various "repairs". I'm not concerned too much about what you can see, more about what you can't. I was basically curious about the motor itself, if there was anything particularly troubleprone in these I should watch for 9besides the pot metal issues), whether it looked original outwardly to those who know...Buying it pretty much was a done deal with me from the first time I saw it... I'm still looking for bargaining chips, though....

One thing to look for in the motor- Columbia used a fiber gear to drive the governor- if this gets soaked with oil it can soften & strip out. In all other respects Columbia motors are very reliable.

I picked her up, and was pleasantly surprised - for the most part... Except for his "fix" for the hinge, which involved drilling new holes between the originals.... In his defense, it was already broken at one of the original holes, so the search for a nickel plated piano hinge is on. I DID, however use it to get the price down to $40.... Other than that, the motor wound up and runs really quietly (it's still going to need a tune up, of course - same for the reproducer). The tonearm is free and moves easily. There is an obviously very old repair to the lower slat, which I'm on the fence as to leave it as part of the machine's history, or fix it more invisibly (I'm not a perfectionist, so I'm not hating the way it looks. It isn't obtrusive, in fact, I didn't notice it until I was scrubbing the grime off of the front of the machine. There are 2 spots at the back edge of the top where it looks like there was tar or paint of some sort globbed on it, which I wasn't able to remove completely during today's cursory cleanup - there is also a ring melted into the top finish, like some kind of chemical can was set on it that will need attention - Once again, it's not glaring so treatment, if any, is up in the air. Here are a few pics.