Gifting a portable gramophone

[nostalgia]

After almost one year on the forum, and after collecting a rather wide range of gramophones during this year, I decided a week back that it is on time to return somthing to the world, or to be more specific, gift a gramophone to a person that possibly could continue our hobby in the next several decades. To possbily ignite a spark of interest in someone, I have scrolled through friends and relatives, but it has not been an easy task, in this digitilized world where music is mostly downloaded, or now even more..streamed. But I decided to not give in this easily, I made a promise to myself, to be able to continue collecting, you must find someone to gift a gramophone!

When visiting my best male friend a few times during the last 3 months, his daughter, aged 23 has during the same visits asked several times if she could visit me with her father to see my collection of gramophones. Despite her father's laziness of not driving her out to see my gramophones, I was able to find out last week that she also loves old architecture and history in general, and also love music from the 1950's and 60's (blues and jazz) an even progressive rock from the 70's (classically inspired). One week ago I asked my friend on phone if he could ask his daughter if she would like to have a gramophone. Thirty minutes later she sent me an sms and was delighted to know that she possibly could receive a gramophone, and asked me several questions about what kind of records she needed for this gramophone, already knowing she could not play 45 or 33 rpm on it. After her father telling her about my offer, she had already googled wind up gramophones and read quite a bit.That is what I call interest!

The decision was then easy for me to make, I wanted for sure to gift her a gramophone, and 5 days ago I started the hunt for her first acoustic gramophone. I first looked in my closets, and under my bed where all the (for now) wrapped up portables are stored..but no, these are gramophones that for myself are collectable, hard to find, or part of a growing collection where each gramophone are (more or less) carefully chosen before being purchased. I then in a corner of my closet spotted my first portable bought last summer, I have not even looked at it since I bought it last summer, a few days after joining this forum, since I discovered when I got home that day, that the soundbox was not working. When now reopening the case, looking at the soundbox, I discovered the membrane needle was loose, after some gluing, it was one hour later playing like intended. STILL, I started to get uncertain if this was the correct portable to gift, a Odeon no 5. With its beautiful wooden motorboard, and a good working autobrake etc. I decided I not wanted to depart with it, and after googling the model, I was even more sure. This was not a portable I wanted to depart with, and for a first gramophone I also not wanted it to have an autobrake or be too complex.

Then there was only one thing to do, search for a new portable, carefully chosen for this young lady. Two days ago I found the gramophone I wanted to buy for her, an Odeon Lindese, simple, well working and easy to use. I made an offer to the seller, 20 euro and got it. Then yesterday I spent 6 hours renovating and servicing the Odeon Lindese. I serviced it, but was not able to open the spring container, if someone reading this know how they are to be opened, please leave e a note. I was not able to pull out the shaft, and also the cover has no screws. To open the container, it looks like one need to use a rubber hammer along the lid, but since I was not able to remove the shaft, I left the spring uncleaned. Luckily it was very good working, powerful and no signs of being messed up inside, so I don't really feel a spring service is necessary for this particular machine right now.

After servicing the rest of the motor, it plays amazingly well. The speed adjustment on the governor brake pad was very different from HMV models, but not too difficult to grasp ( luckily I took some photos before I started the job). The motor was running like wildfire when I opened it, and the problem was (again) the governor, but this time it was easy to fix, since it was the tightening screw preventing the axis to run over the worm gear that was not tightened.

The Lindese was originally equipped with a velvet turntable cover, but has now been substituted with brown felt (she chose the color of the felt). The Lindese was equipped with a Goldring soundbox when I bought it, which I assume is not original to the machine, but admittedly I was very suprised by how well it sounded.

I am uploading photos of both the Odeon No 5 (that was not gifted), and the process and details of the Odeon Lindese, which will be gifted over the weekend, along with some good 78 rpm records..and of course some needles. This will be the first gramophone I am gifting to someone, and my goal is to be able to make this an annual tradition !

AND, I already know I have made the right decision on who to gift a gramoopone this year, because yesterday she sent me a text message, saying: " I look forward to hear the old music on an authentic recording, and also expressing much gratefulness for preparing this portable for her"...............

[epigramophone]

Martin, you have done the right thing by gifting a machine which is reliable and easy to operate. I have been known to do the same thing myself.
A bad machine can so easily put a beginner off the hobby for life, and this hobby needs all the new blood it can get.

[JerryVan]

Good for you! Appears that you made excellent choices, both in the gift and in the choice of recipient.

For the past several years I have been donating a phonograph to my church, for them to sell in their annual rummage sale. (They tend to get some very nice donations and offer some nice quality items!) I always ask the lady who runs the sale about the person who buys the phonograph. Each time I have been well pleased with the buyer. It always seems to be a non-collector, (at least for now!), and someone who might not have otherwise thought of buying one. They're always thrilled with the "find". I figure it helps the church and the hobby, and it most likely makes someone's day. (And, I've never seen it posted on eBay 2 days later )

[Marco Gilardetti]

Despite her father's laziness of not driving her out to see my gramophones...

Good grief. Then people complain about youth being apathetic and uninspired today...

Very nicely done, this model is more or less equal to the simple portable with which I begun when a kid! I still have it and, just as you did, I also would like to pass it to some young cousin or nephew of mine, but none ever showed any interest in gramophones, unfortunately. Well, we'll see what the future will bring...

[nostalgia]

I am happy to read the replies, hopefully this small thread can be a reminder and signal to remember the importance of gifting, to secure that our hobby survives and even hopefully is getting rekindled in the years to come.

[NEKTREG]

Two nice Odeon Portable from Germany ! As you may recognised, it‘s not „Lindese“ - it’s „Lindex“. The Soundbox you need for this Is the same as on your Nr.5 (picture). The soundboxes sometimes are missing because most of them are potmetal. The Record Album for the lid in the Nr.5 is missing too, someone doomed it just like many record tray‘s in a 102.

Maybe interesting for you: Columbia was a part of the Lindström conglomerate and the patents of Columbia were used to build the soundboxes or autobrakes - the Odeon 301 soundbox is very similar to the No.15a Columbia

A page out of my Parlophon catalog, Parlophon and Odeon were brands of Lindström and often sold the same machines with minor changes: Sold for 90 RM and with double-spring Motor for 100 RM.

I also add material for the Nr.5

[nostalgia]

Thank you "Nektreg" for posting this valuable information about the Odeon Lindex and Odeon no.5. Actually, when I started this thread, I had to google the name of the Odeon portable, since I was not able to read if it was "Lindese" or "Lindex, and when not getting any hits when googling "Odeon Lindex" but got a few hits from "Odeon Lindese", I chose the latter. So, I guess I am not the first person, mixing these two names:) Thank you for correcting this though, happily received and stored in the "database". Is the soundbox attached to the Odeon No 5, a Odeon 301 soundbox? Learning a bit more about Odeon is always welcome, also since I a few days ago was lucky to receive an (yet unidentified) Odeon floor gramophone, which photos are posted in another thread on this forum.

[VanEpsFan1914]

That was good of you to get someone started in the hobby like that--and a high-quality European portable seems like a great way in. Surely she will enjoy it.

This is how the craft is passed on!

[nostalgia]

Yes, "VanEpsFan1914", this is the way how the craft is passed on, and that is also why I started this thread, to send a signal:)