HMV 101....identification

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nostalgia
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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by nostalgia »

I agree Andreas, I think I will leave it as it is now, and yes..it looks very different from the first photo. Adding some wax will be good, to protect the old lady from getting more wrinkles than necessary.

I was able to clean it carefully with Swarfega, Steve, but after cleaning many early 101 models, I also know one has to be extremely careful, and not leave the Swarfega on for a long time. I have now cleaned the whole case, and only the interior around the motor is left, which is a no brainer to clean, of course.

This is the first 101 I have that have all previous services written down. It is interesting reading, and we can see that it has been VERY regularly checked for a longer period when it must have been in close to daily use, we can also see it has been entertaining during the WW2 years, where radios were prohibited in Norway during the German occupation. There are also some stamps on the horn, that I have not seen on any other of my 101 machines.

For translation:
Just = Adjustments
Rep= Repair ( it says repaird "hel" (complete)..something.,,hard to read..
Fjær = Main spring
After 1970, the machine has been stored permanently in an old shed, where they kept the wood for the fireside etc. ( Most probably by the next generation of the family)

PS. It by the way has a 410 motor, I think this is the first 101 I service that have this motor installed...Using the HMG book again as a reference, I believe this tells that the machine is from 1927 or 1928.
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Inigo
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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Inigo »

That's a marvelous heritage!
It has a great color. I also bet on only adding protective wax, shine it and nothing more. Just to show its age and only a bit of care. It will maybe darken a bit with the wax, although neutral in color. But it will be beneficial to close the pores and get it shiny and protected. You'll be satisfied with the results. This machine is very attractive. I prefer it to my later black hmv101 with the allegedly better motor no59. This motor 410 works just fine. Take good care of the soundbox and you'll get a machine with a beautiful warm and full sound. You can also try a Meltrope with the correct rubber insert and you'll see still a fuller and more vivid sound. These machines sound great with bamboo needles, either with the no4 or the Meltrope soundbox. The added advantage of the Meltrope is the adjustable zenith angle with which you can get an almost perfect tracking. You'll see that you can play several sides without repointing the bamboo, especially with soft chamber music and the like. And if you play the machine on the floor in the corner of a room, and you listen from the axis of the corner... so the floor and walls act as an extension of the horn... you'll ask yourself if you'd ever need an emg!! ! :D
Inigo

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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Phono48 »

I recently bought a grey crocodile 101, which arrived in a filthy condition. As Steve has said, cleaning the case removed the dark incised lines in the pattern. I bought a fine waterproof dark grey ink marker, and spent many, many hours filling in the lines. The time spent was well worth the effort, as can be seen (hopefully!). I also made a new carrying handle, but will eventually replace the brass rivets with nickel ones.
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Steve
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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Steve »

Fantastic job, Barry. You must have the patience of a Saint to do that! I don't know how you made such a convincing carrying handle but it looks incredible. Well done.

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poodling around
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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by poodling around »

Inigo wrote: Fri Aug 27, 2021 10:15 am That's a marvelous heritage!
It has a great color. I also bet on only adding protective wax, shine it and nothing more. Just to show its age and only a bit of care. It will maybe darken a bit with the wax, although neutral in color. But it will be beneficial to close the pores and get it shiny and protected. You'll be satisfied with the results. This machine is very attractive. I prefer it to my later black hmv101 with the allegedly better motor no59. This motor 410 works just fine. Take good care of the soundbox and you'll get a machine with a beautiful warm and full sound. You can also try a Meltrope with the correct rubber insert and you'll see still a fuller and more vivid sound. These machines sound great with bamboo needles, either with the no4 or the Meltrope soundbox. The added advantage of the Meltrope is the adjustable zenith angle with which you can get an almost perfect tracking. You'll see that you can play several sides without repointing the bamboo, especially with soft chamber music and the like. And if you play the machine on the floor in the corner of a room, and you listen from the axis of the corner... so the floor and walls act as an extension of the horn... you'll ask yourself if you'd ever need an emg!! ! :D
I certainly agree with this.

I regularly use a Meltrope ii with bamboo needles with my HMV 101 front wind and the sound quality is excellent. I must try playing it on the floor in a corner of the room as you recommend. In fact, I will later today !

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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Steve »

nostalgia wrote: Fri Aug 27, 2021 9:12 am There are also some stamps on the horn, that I have not seen on any other of my 101 machines.

For translation:
Just = Adjustments
Rep= Repair ( it says repaird "hel" (complete)..something.,,hard to read..
Fjær = Main spring
After 1970, the machine has been stored permanently in an old shed, where they kept the wood for the fireside etc. ( Most probably by the next generation of the family)

PS. It by the way has a 410 motor, I think this is the first 101 I service that have this motor installed...Using the HMG book again as a reference, I believe this tells that the machine is from 1927 or 1928.
Can you please clarify what you are referring to when you say "stamps on the horn"?
Thanks.

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nostalgia
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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by nostalgia »

Thank you everyone, for inputs.
Inigo, thanks for a long response. Regarding the soundbox, I don't own a Meltrope soundbox yet, and I think they are hard to find in my area. I have a small truckload of no 4 soundboxes though, but have yet not spent any time adjusting these. I must admit, that I am still more into servicing and restoring, than playing my 78 records, but during the upcoming winter that may change.
Barry, your excellent work on that crocodile 101 is admiring, and like Steve said, you must have..."the patience of a Saint", and the carrying handle is marvelous, I really would have loved to know how you managed to create such a fantastic carrying handle.

Regarding the cleaning, I had no other option than to clean this case, as we can see from the first photo uploaded, it looked like..well..close to garbage.
Using Swarfega is possibly better than using soap and water, even if there also is some water in Swarfega it is very jelly. I am quite happy with the result, and even if I may not do the pencil work as you did ( at least not now), Barry, I can live with the result.

For Steve,,,stamps on the horn..engravings would probably be a better word, I can't remember having seen these marks also in Italian language ( I presume)...on the horns on my other 101 machines as shown on the uploaded photo, but maybe my memory...again,..is playing tricks with me.

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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Steve »

nostalgia wrote: Sat Aug 28, 2021 4:17 am Thank you everyone, for inputs.
Inigo, thanks for a long response. Regarding the soundbox, I don't own a Meltrope soundbox yet, and I think they are hard to find in my area. I have a small truckload of no 4 soundboxes though, but have yet not spent any time adjusting these. I must admit, that I am still more into servicing and restoring, than playing my 78 records, but during the upcoming winter that may change.
Barry, your excellent work on that crocodile 101 is admiring, and like Steve said, you must have..."the patience of a Saint", and the carrying handle is marvelous, I really would have loved to know how you managed to create such a fantastic carrying handle.

Regarding the cleaning, I had no other option than to clean this case, as we can see from the first photo uploaded, it looked like..well..close to garbage.
Using Swarfega is possibly better than using soap and water, even if there also is some water in Swarfega it is very jelly. I am quite happy with the result, and even if I may not do the pencil work as you did ( at least not now), Barry, I can live with the result.

For Steve,,,stamps on the horn..engravings would probably be a better word, I can't remember having seen these marks also in Italian language ( I presume)...on the horns on my other 101 machines as shown on the uploaded photo, but maybe my memory...again,..is playing tricks with me.
Yes, if you're referring to the registration numbers embossed into the horn, these are fairly standard. Every 101 I own or have ever seen has had them. That's why I asked; I assumed you must be referring to something else hidden away on the horn.

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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by Inigo »

And Jesus the last patent stamp is written in pure Spanish. They must have sold many machines herein. If only for the myriads of 101s you see for sale in Spain... some with Spanish decal, aand others imported from UK.
Inigo

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Re: HMV 101....identification

Post by nostalgia »

I add another grey crocodile HMV 101 to the thread, rather scarce HMV portables seems to be dug out of different closets lately, also taking into considerations different finds posted here on the forum lately, and also in this thread. I bought it today, and it is in good condition, and in general seems to not having been used that much. I put it on the work bench for comparison, side by side the brown crocodile 101 that landed in my lap a few weeks ago.
As we can see they both have this unordinary carrying handle fittings... I don't know why both these machinese have the same fittings. I initially thought the brown one had its fittings and carrying handle exchanged, now I am not so sure about this anymore....
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