Decca Dulcephone "Trench" Model 1 - Restoration Questions

[Sherazhyder]

Hi ! If yours is a Decca 44, here are the pictures that may help you in your restoration work.
Regards
Sheraz

[mbhdesign]

And here I am again with even more detail.

The Motor Board
Please rest assured that I will never — under any circumstances — put another hole into this original motor board.
Someone else in the past has already put in a few to modify this to accept a Garrard (my apologies for my earlier misspelling — too many Paillard searches, my fingers wanted to keep pressing a double-l) Model 14.

Here is a photo of the top and bottom of the motor board, with all hardware removed.

Top view of motor board - all hardware removed

Bottom view of motor board

The bottom view is a little better at revealing where I believe the original motor attachment points were.
The board is also slightly warped (damp storage, time, and weight of the motor has taken its toll) so

Oedipus again made an excellent observation that during the war any and all available parts were likely used to complete these machines as well as possible. While the original motor would likely be a Paillard or Thorens (or a similar Swiss type) the best method would be to measure the original attachment holes and find an appropriate motor to fit.

Here's my diagram showing the original attachment holes and the distance from the center pinion to the center of the original speed control adjustment hole.

Rough diagram showing original motor attachment points

Fortunately, the excellent Swiss website Graphonogram (https://www.graphonogram.com/4-documentation.html) has an excellent collection of Paillard and Thorens Catalogs from 1910 and circa 1920. Some even have dimensions that might help. So, the search begins!

[mbhdesign]

Thank you, Sheraz for those excellent photos of your Decca 44!

Mine is a Model 1 or 1A and much earlier, I'm afraid.
But I appreciate your help. Yours is a beautiful machine.

Thank you!
Michael

[Sherazhyder]

Thank you, Shiraz for those excellent photos of your Decca 44!

Mine is a Model 1 or 1A and much earlier, I'm afraid.
But I appreciate your help. Yours is a beautiful machine.

Thank you!
Michael

Given your description of the machine, yours may be one of the two models in the attached pictures. There must be marks of tiny screw holes for handles and locks in the front of the case, which may help you identify your model.
Sheraz

[mbhdesign]

Thank you, Sheraz.

My model machine has the handle in the back where the hinge is. There are no holes in the front for clasps.

The photos you posted are of 1920s era machines, I believe. Mine has characteristics of the earliest 1915-1918 types.

Michael

[poodling around]

Thanks poodling around! I would be very grateful for any visual description of those components that you may have access to. Thank you!

And, yes, I also read that particular thread and post from Oedipus in the forum.

I also prefer to bring this Decca back to its 1918 state — though I also believe in the Hippocratic Oath of Restoration Work, namely "First, do no harm."
Someone once altered this machine from its original 1918 state to its current modified post-1930 state. It would be hard to return it to 1918 perfection without completely replacing original 1918 components — like the baseboard — with I am reluctant to do.

So, I think I will settle for "original as found" in my efforts. That means sourcing a motor, crank, and speed control that correct for this machine. But I won't replace the original backboard or make any other "cosmetic" changes in order to keep this as originally intact as possible. There's a distinction between "restoration" (cleaning, correcting, reconditioning existing parts) and "reproduction" (new cloth, replacement backboard, new leatherette, etc.). I incline to the former.

If you (or anyone) can give me some insight into the original motor, brake, and speed control I would be very grateful. Christopher Proudfoot's CLPGS publication RS#35 on Decca Portables (as referred to earlier) is an excellent resource and contains a good overall review of all the Decca portable machines — but it's only 24 pages long (describing all models) and lacks some of the more precise details I'm looking for.

Thanks so much!
Michael (mbhdesign)

I have two of the early Decca models with the 'copper' colour reflectors.

I managed to find one of my machines but sadly I removed the brake to clean it some time ago and (of course) I can't remember where it is now. I will find it in a few days though. It will not be lost for-ever. I think it is circular incidentally.

Anyway, the one I found still seems to have it's original motor and speed control. The motor just has 'Swiss Made' and a number on it.

I don't know how useful they are to you but photographs are 'below':

[mbhdesign]

Ah! Thank you poodling around!

These are very helpful indeed. Thank you for taking the trouble to send them.

I’m certain I need to find a motor that is similar to the one you showed. Single spring, probably one play per wind.

Thanks so much!
Michael

[Sherazhyder]

Thank you, Sheraz.

My model machine has the handle in the back where the hinge is. There are no holes in the front for clasps.

The photos you posted are of 1920s era machines, I believe. Mine has characteristics of the earliest 1915-1918 types.

Michael

Hi Michael
See if these adverts from1915-17 could give you clue.
Cheers
Sheraz

[mbhdesign]

Here’s a recent auction showing an early Decca.
It’s a leather model, but has the same Dulciflex bowl and labels mine does. And the handle at the hinge back.

https://live.millerandmillerauctions.co ... phonograph

[poodling around]

Here’s a recent auction showing an early Decca.
It’s a leather model, but has the same Dulciflex bowl and labels mine does. And the handle at the hinge back.

https://live.millerandmillerauctions.co ... phonograph

A very good find !

It does indeed seem to show how yours would have looked in all probability.

However, something puzzles me. In the photograph below there are three items attached to the motor board. One would be the brake, one the speed control and the other ? (eludes me).

Maybe the one I labelled '1' at the back is a new addition and an additional brake ?

Maybe I am missing something obvious ?