Edison Gem Model D

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Jerry B.
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by Jerry B. »

Are all of the D's maroon? I was just wanting a black combination Gem.
Great question! I like odd examples of machines like a specially decorated VV-XI or mahogany Standard. I had a nice maroon Gem D in my collection. But when I had the opportunity to buy another D Gem I noticed that it had maroon paint over its original black finish. Both the horn and machine body have little blemishes where black shows through. I have no doubts about it being original. The vast majority of maroon Gems and machine horns have an iridescent look. Mine looks different because its maroon over black. I think it's interesting. Has anyone else seen a maroon over black Model D Gem?

Jerry Blais

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Steve Levi
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by Steve Levi »

There is an interesting article on Canadian Antique Phonograph Society concerning different models of Gem phonographs. Apologies, unable to link. It describes the model "E" as the same as Jerry B. describes his model "D". I don't really know what that means, but thought I would share as I find it interesting to say the least. Article says D and E model Gems similar. I would assume data plate is stamped for particular model (I don't know). Still, it is very interesting that Jerry's. model D has black paint beneath the maroon.

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phonogfp
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by phonogfp »

Jerry B. wrote:
Great question! I like odd examples of machines like a specially decorated VV-XI or mahogany Standard. I had a nice maroon Gem D in my collection. But when I had the opportunity to buy another D Gem I noticed that it had maroon paint over its original black finish. Both the horn and machine body have little blemishes where black shows through. I have no doubts about it being original. The vast majority of maroon Gems and machine horns have an iridescent look. Mine looks different because its maroon over black. I think it's interesting. Has anyone else seen a maroon over black Model D Gem?

Jerry Blais
Jerry,
The Gem D I pictured in this thread has a horn painted maroon over black, but I don't see any traces of black around the blemishes on the machine itself.

George P.

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briankeith
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by briankeith »

Not sure about the Model D but:

In October, 1911, with the sale of the attachments being slow and most of the Gem machines still not converted to play 4-minute cylinders, the Edison company decided to reduce the cost of all the attachments and reproducers.

In 1912, the model "E" Gem, which played only the four-minute cylinders, was introduced. Very similar to the model "D", the machine and the horn were finished in maroon. Unlike the model "D" though, the maroon paint was applied over black paint. The result was that the maroon color was not the same shade as on the model "D".

Phonofreak
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by Phonofreak »

George, I never saw a 1 piece maroon horn. Were these horns used on the Fireside as well? Did these horns have a Gem or Fireside decal?
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phonogfp
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by phonogfp »

Phonofreak wrote:George, I never saw a 1 piece maroon horn. Were these horns used on the Fireside as well? Did these horns have a Gem or Fireside decal?
Harvey Kravitz
The horn here is labeled "Fireside." Whether they were used on Firesides is anyone's guess, but I'd bet "probably."

George P.

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Wes K
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Re: Edison Gem Model D

Post by Wes K »

Wow phonogfp, that is one clean Gem.
It is a shame Edison didn't use the maroon finish as standard on other models, it really gives the machine a classier look.

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EdisonWizard
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Re: WANTED: Edison Gem Model D

Post by EdisonWizard »

phonogfp wrote:I wanted a Model D gem for decades, but the going price (along with a mortgage and two kids) always held me back. Three years ago at Union, I decided to buy a beautiful example for $1300, but by the time I approached the dealer, someone else had bought it. Last fall, after 49 years of collecting, I finally bought one. This one was $1000, but it was quite dirty. Still, you could see the paint was good under all the grime, and the all-important horn paint was unusually good. Here are photos of it after cleaning it up. Believe it or not, the horn paint and body paint match exactly. Lighting these maroon Gems is tricky:
GemD1.JPG
GemD2.JPG
GemD3.JPG
GemD4.JPG
I don't usually show off my acquisitions, but all this maroon Gem talk was too much for me. :)

George P.
George, what did you use on the case of the machine to clean it up so well yet not damage the paint?? That is beautiful.
J.F.

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phonogfp
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Re: WANTED: Edison Gem Model D

Post by phonogfp »

EdisonWizard wrote:
George, what did you use on the case of the machine to clean it up so well yet not damage the paint?? That is beautiful.
Thanks for the compliments on the Gem. As I mentioned, it was quite dirty when I obtained it, so I used Goop a couple of times to remove the grime. Then I applied a coat of Johnson's Paste Wax (in the yellow can - used for floors) and buffed it.

George P.

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EdisonWizard
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Re: WANTED: Edison Gem Model D

Post by EdisonWizard »

phonogfp wrote:
EdisonWizard wrote:
George, what did you use on the case of the machine to clean it up so well yet not damage the paint?? That is beautiful.
Thanks for the compliments on the Gem. As I mentioned, it was quite dirty when I obtained it, so I used Goop a couple of times to remove the grime. Then I applied a coat of Johnson's Paste Wax (in the yellow can - used for floors) and buffed it.

George P.
Thanks so much for the info. Hopefully we'll get email notifications back soon I almost missed this! Where do you get the wax? I think I'm going to try this on my model A GEM first and see how it comes out. I wish I had a dirty/nasty bedplate to practice on, but I guess you can't really mess it up. The GOOP is just that hand cleaner?

Edit: never mind, I've seen both of those things at Walmart. I'm going to grab some tomorrow and try it on something. I learn so much stuff here! Next on my list is restore a finish!
Last edited by EdisonWizard on Sun Aug 13, 2017 10:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
J.F.

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