Santa came late this year, with a HMV 163

[Steve]

The escutcheon and winding handle was described as "oxidised brass" in the catalogues. In reality it was more of a lacquered bronze colour over the nickel. Most HMVs tend to survive with the finish intact. It was fairly durable as finishes go.

[Marco Gilardetti]

Fully agree with the above: for whatever reason (perhaps alloy degradation?) the spider washer seems never to have enough elasticity for its task. It needs to be carefully reshaped, and then put back into service without stressing it too much.

Back to the handle - a side note for future passers by: just as intuition suggests if you consider the way in which the handle revolves, the screw of the handle is left-threaded, that is it has to be turned clockwise in order to unscrew it.

I've found a metal paint which is somewhat close to that weird original colour of the handle - I really wonder what they had in mind, it doesn't match any other colour of the cabinet. Again as a side note: it was not a shellac-based paint, as it didn't dissolve in alcohol at all. What about the handle hole mask (metal window)? It looks nearly black on my unit. Does it have any specific colour in yours?

[nostalgia]

I took a few photos for you Marco from different angles and in different light, so you can decide about the colors. I don't trust my eyes completely here, but to me, there seems to be a small difference, the winding handle looks more brown...

[Marco Gilardetti]

Yes, thanks, same here. Mine looks darker than yours (nearly black), but as there is no evidence that its colour once matched that of the handle, I will leave it as is.

[the padre304]

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Maybe you don't need to replace it, but carefully reshape it if you notice it's a bit tired, or clearly out of shape... Its three legs must lie flat on their feet on the lever they are supposed to press.
And these upper parts must be cleaned free of any oil! The spring washer and the lever must move at any slight movement of the tonearm to the right. Oil must be avoided in the parts working by friction!


Thanks so much!! that helped do the trick.

[Inigo]

Glad to hear that!

[Oedipus]

Although, as Steve says, the finish on the external fittings of most HMV cabinet and table grand models in the 1920s was described as 'oxidised brass', I believe the generic name for it is 'Florentine bronze'. It was intended to make the parts inconspicuous rather than an exact match for the wood -- it is was the same colour for oak and mahogany cabinets. Some later models (158, 152 and the Automatic 1, for example had the same finish on the internal fittings.

The three-legged washer on automatic brakes was referred to (in HMV literature) as an 'Isle o' Man' washer. It is indeed capable of adjustment by bending the legs, although this is very seldom necessary with the No. 3 brakes under discussion. On the No 6 brakes (as found on most 102s), which are quite different in action, I find this same washer quite often needs adjusting.

[Marco Gilardetti]

I believe the generic name for it is 'Florentine bronze'.

Is there any commercially available enamel/varnish/lacquer that would emulate this finish?

[nostalgia]

Another 163 came my way, and I am starting on the motor and cabinet this week.
Has someone among you successfully implanted new (old HMV dark oak) veneer to a top of a HMV cabinet. I remember the graham-ophones website showed this in detail, but unfortunately, as we know, this website is no longer in existence...
"To do or not to do, that's the question..."

[Marco Gilardetti]

I must understand how is it possible that you seem to find under the cabbages gramophones that I have hunted for decades...

I see the point of your question, as the chipped parts don't look so horrible, and they also look as having been treated / repainted to some degree, so the finish might be considered acceptable "as it is" under some aspects. But as you happen to own some spare veneer, it is also worth trying to repair these parts.

Recently I repaired a chipped wooden panel of an amplifier (one of those with side wooden panels) and, although I couldn't even really used the same type of wood (I only hade one barely similar) the final look resulted to be such a huge improvement that I tend to incourage you to do the work.