HMV Model 97B portable, in red color

[nostalgia]

I could not resist buying this red HMV model 97B, since I know they are not exactly turning up every day. I did not have an option to check it before buying it, the geographical distance was too long, and after receiving it I do absolutely not consider it my best buy, but I do not regret buying it, since the restoration process also will teach me more about restoration these "newer" HMV portables. And well..I also kind of like its neat look and the fact that it is very lightweighted to carry. In total it cost me 170 euro, including a rather expensive postage, but that was the only way to get hold of it.
I am sharing many photos, since I really would appreciate much ideas on how to restore it properly, in a way that it deserves. The photos will also reveal its flaws. The corner shields that HMV skipped on these later models is really taking its toll on these gramophones. The tonearm end also has underwent some bending at some stage when someone tried to remove the soundbox in a wrong way, the soundbox itself has survived though, so I need try to find a way to amend the tonearm, if I can. Again, any suggestions are welcome !
The motor is not running, it is totally stuck, but I still have not been able to remove it from the motorboard, since I am still waiting for warmer temperatures. I am however not too concerned about the motor, at least not at the time of writing this. I am uploading many photos, since I felt possibly many in here would like to see the details of this HMV model. Everything looks very different than on the model 101 and 102, and I guess it is a combination of both saving money as well as adding some improvements when this model was made. ( At least the carrying handle is more robust than on the 102).
So far I have only cleaned it with Swarfega, but as we can see the case cover is worn, and I have ordered some boxes of red shoe polishing cream, and will carefully mix the different colors ordered if needed, trying to find a color as close to the original as possible. I will also need to glue the corners, using recommended glue. I think I have read before on the forum that PVA glue is recommended. I have already discovered cleaning the felt with Swarfega is not a good solution, I tried using it, and it left marks. Has anyone by the way found a good way to clean the felt without having to remove it from the turntable? But now it is time for some photos! Pay attention to the resting place for the winding key, and also to the date written on the back side of the turntable:)

[Phono48]

I've seen a lot worse! Use PVA adhesive to stick the loose fabric, paint it onto both surfaces and wait a few minutes till it goes tacky, the press down and remove any excess with a damp cloth. Shoe polish is good for covering scuffs and scratches, but it will not cover the bare wood where the covering has worn away. I use acrylic paint, mixed to a shade lighter than needed, as it dries darker, but it takes a bit of trial and error to get it to match exactly. I note you say the carrying handle is more robust than that of the 102, but to me it looks identical? If your attempts to straighten the end of the arm fail, I have a spare you are welcome to, but the 97 used two different soundboxes, both with different sized mountings. As your machine was made in 1937, I guess it would have the first soundbox, with the rubber insulator on the back (no.21)?

Barry

[nostalgia]

Thank you Barry, for suggesting using acrylic paint on the corners, the corners were my main concern, since I somehow need to add a layer of a material to the corners before adding shoe polish on top. I also think it would be too difficult, and messy, trying to cut any covering material from inside the motorboard to be used on the corners. You are probably right about the carrying handle, it just seems more solid on my 101 and 102 models, and have survived much better, but that could simply be due to the fact that this gramophone has a much lower weight and the carrying handle survives better on this machine.
Thank you a lot, for offering a tonearm, I will gratefully return to you, if I am unable to amend the tonearm.
I attach three photos of the soundbox, as we can see it is also numbered. But what I see now is that this is actually not a HMV soundbox, anyone recognizing it? Not strange it does not fit the tonearm, and has caused the tonearm end to bend.
I was now able to detect a small logo on the side of the soundbox. Photo uploaded. Odeon?

[epigramophone]

UK Columbia acquired Parlophone in 1925, so in 1931 it became part of EMI. The later Odeon portables share some parts with the HMV97 and Columbia 204.
The correct soundbox for your 1937 machine is the No.21, which is a Columbia 15A with an HMV badge. The Oakley/Proudfoot HMV book states that the No.23 is found on some wartime examples.

[Curt A]

To straighten the end of your tonearm, I would try needle nose vicegrips. The clamping action is better for staightening metal parts than standard needle nose pliers... In a tight space, like the end of a tonearm, you don't have much room to get the proper movement to bend the metal. I usually adjust the vice grips as far closed as possible and force them to clamp the metal, which usually straightens it without too much trouble. A smaller size plier is probably best, since they come in various sizes. Just an idea...
Good luck with your restoration.

[Marco Gilardetti]

It may be a matter of brand of shoe polish, as conversely I've found that those I commonly use are sufficient to also re-colour scuffed corners. The portable is definitely not in bad shape and it will be wonderful again with some retouch here and there.

The mounting screw itself of that wrong soundbox is possibly what bent the tonearm bayonnet. Personally I would try to bend it back by inserting a smaller tube inside the tonearm, applying heat if feasible.

Seen the way in which the horn was "engineered" there is not much room to talk about any improvement over previous models. Cost cutting is what actually springs to mind. I agree that also the handle looks - at best - equal to that of the 102, but perhaps it's just the picture.

[epigramophone]

A check of my portables confirms that the "Pakawa" carrying handles of the HMV97/Columbia 204 and HMV102 are identical. The absence of wear suggests an easy life indoors.
The 97 was essentially a smaller budget version of the 102. Priced at £3.10s in black and £3.15s in colours, it was competing with makes such as Decca.

[VanEpsFan1914]

This is a neat phonograph; I hope you can get it together again with a minimum of effort. Colorful cases really set off some of the British portables--

[Phono48]

I attach three photos of the soundbox, as we can see it is also numbered. But what I see now is that this is actually not a HMV soundbox, anyone recognizing it? Not strange it does not fit the tonearm, and has caused the tonearm end to bend.
I was now able to detect a small logo on the side of the soundbox. Photo uploaded. Odeon?

The soundbox is a Parlophone, and has a "Continental" fitting, which means the collar on the back goes inside the end of the arm. Someone has tried to force it in, and bent the end of the arm. I have a Parlophone portable with an identical soundbox.

Barry

[nostalgia]

Thank you everyone, for suggestions, advices, recommendations and corrections on how to amend the tonearm etc. Now I also know the carrying handle is similar to the one found on the 102, and that the gramophone most probably have lived a quiet life indoors. Also the soundbox has been pinpointed now. And yes, I agree that the feeling of the gramophone is "money saving", but I still like it, even if I not yet have been able to try it, and it also still will take some weeks for that to happen. Quite scary really, that reputable companies as far back in 1938 started to think about ways to save money when manufacturing gramophones, instead of making them solid.
Marco, if you read this, can I ask what brand of shoe polish you use? I have some days ago ordered a small arsenal of different "Cherry Blossom" shoe cream, and hope it will work fine, but if you use a different brand and are happy with it, I would still like to take note of it.
About rust on nickel plated areas, like the case lock, do you use a rust remover, or do you ever nickel plate the nickel parts all over? When looking at my portables now, there is a job to be done in this area, a job that I so far have mostly postponed.