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Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 12:02 am
by zipcord
https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/it ... 3123ae9d45
pretty cool, but something looks fishy with the lid $600
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 6:05 am
by FellowCollector
At $600 I would buy this very quickly if it was within driving distance of me. Sadly, it is not. Looks like they taped off the nice original lid decal and applied denatured alcohol or acetone or whatever to "clean" the cabinet finish (gulp) including the inside of the lid...
The original finish on the inside of the lid in most instances has survived just fine through the decades for Victrola models. What a shame. But at least they preserved the original lid decal which, in my opinion, was the most attractive of all of the "Victor Victrola" decals. Still, this is a great deal for this very scarce model.
Doug
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:02 am
by JeffR1
It's odd looking.
It looks like someone removed the lid and attached a Symphonium on top.
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:44 am
by OrthoFan
JeffR1 wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:02 am
It's odd looking.
It looks like someone removed the lid and attached a Symphonium on top.
That was the first style Victrola --
http://www.victor-victrola.com/XVI.htm
Produced during 1906-1907.
OF
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:53 am
by JeffR1
Sorry, I never doubted that it wasn't original, I'm just criticizing the way it looks.
I would not have paid money for it if I was alive back then, but who knows, maybe if I was alive at that time, my tastes may have been different.
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 11:10 am
by OrthoFan
JeffR1 wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 10:53 am
Sorry, I never doubted that it wasn't original, I'm just criticizing the way it looks.
I would not have paid money for it if I was alive back then, but who knows, maybe if I was alive at that time, my tastes may have been different.
I agree with you about how it looks. When Victor switched to the domed lid (or what I call the "casket style" lid), it transformed the whole appearance of the cabinet.
OF
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Sun Jun 26, 2022 5:05 pm
by EarlH
That is one cabinet style that does not look good with a shabby finish, that's for sure. The later style Victrolas wear a bad finish much better. It seems like somewhere I read where Victor wanted people to think of that machine as a sort of "musical box" and when I read that, then the cabinet makes sense as it does kind of look like a music box sitting on top of the storage cabinet. Too bad that Victor didn't keep that lid decal a few more years as it really is handsome. It also has much more in common with the later L-door machines than you'd think at first glance. The second style is almost identical in dimensions and that frieze under the lid mates up almost exactly with the wide molding on the early style. The machine on facebook wouldn't be too hard to restore. I'm glad it's a long way from me as I have enough to do. Haha!
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Mon Jun 27, 2022 7:05 am
by JohnM
EarlH wrote: ↑Sun Jun 26, 2022 5:05 pm
That is one cabinet style that does not look good with a shabby finish, that's for sure. The later style Victrolas wear a bad finish much better. It seems like somewhere I read where Victor wanted people to think of that machine as a sort of "musical box" and when I read that, then the cabinet makes sense as it does kind of look like a music box sitting on top of the storage cabinet. Too bad that Victor didn't keep that lid decal a few more years as it really is handsome. It also has much more in common with the later L-door machines than you'd think at first glance. The second style is almost identical in dimensions and that frieze under the lid mates up almost exactly with the wide molding on the early style. The machine on facebook wouldn't be too hard to restore. I'm glad it's a long way from me as I have enough to do. Haha!
“wide molding” is called an ‘ogee bezel’, likely inspired by Empire/Directory-styled furniture of the Napoleonic Era. The less-than-graceful style of these machines is much of their appeal to me . . . and the awkward gaffe of having to reach down into the turntable compartment. Who wouldn’t want a little wooden four-door monitor-top refrigerator in their parlor? After all, it is a cabinetized Victor VI!
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Mon Jun 27, 2022 6:17 pm
by Zeppy
If I were anywhere near the same coast as that, I would snap it up...even with the buggered up finish. $600???? I've seen much worse for much more. And it's been on Facebook for 2 weeks?
Re: Pooley VTLA on Facebook in Chula Vista CA
Posted: Mon Jun 27, 2022 10:53 pm
by Jerry B.
Sorry, I never doubted that it wasn't original, I'm just criticizing the way it looks.
The "flat top" VTLA was put into production with some basic design flaws. It's quite a reach for a smaller adult to place a record on the turntable. The multiple position lid support probably seemed like a good idea but it must have been frustrating for owners. The domed lid of the second style VTLA greatly improved appearance and solved the difficultly of placing a record on the turntable. I personally don't think the record boxes were practical. But I prefer to have them in my earliest Victrolas all empty of records. With all its faults any flat top VTLA is a prize for any collection and its quirks make it even more interesting.
Jerry B.