CL - Russian HMV 10x Knock-off - Coquitlam, BC

[Lah Ca]

Coquitlam is a suburb of Greater Vancouver. It is on the north side of the Fraser River.

Here is an interesting Russian knock-off of an HMV portable.

Asking price is $299 CDN, about $220 US, 174 GBP, or 203 EUR.

Dating? Late 20s up to 1960s?

A rarity here on the west coast of Canada.

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https://vancouver.craigslist.org/bnc/tl ... 08391.html

[epigramophone]

These turn up regularly in the UK. There is one on eBay as I write this. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/305494265232.
Although a copy of the HMV102, almost every measurement is slightly different.
Here is a period advertisement and a picture of my machine, next to the real thing for comparison.

[Lah Ca]

These turn up regularly in the UK. There is one on eBay as I write this. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/305494265232.

Much better condition than the one listed here. And the current bid is only at 10 GBP.

Although a copy of the HMV102, almost every measurement is slightly different.
Here is mine, next to the real thing for comparison.

Nice. Thank you for sharing.

What are the differences in build and sound quality?

[pallophotophone]

Since it's missing the needle chuck, would a HMV fit it ? And in what condition is the diaphragm?

[epigramophone]

The Russian machine is not of the same build quality as the 102. The tonearm is of thinner gauge tubing, and the small fittings such as the case lock, brake and speed controls are of inferior quality.
The Russian soundbox is made of bakelite rather than pot metal, and has the benefit of a lower tracking weight. It cannot quite match the 5B, but the sound quality is acceptable and better than some cheap British "assembled" gramophones.
The bent wire record holder is more practical than the HMV record tray, which requires the records to be removed from their covers before loading it. The trays frequently get separated from the machines over time, and are now expensive to replace.

[Steve]

These turn up regularly in the UK. There is one on eBay as I write this. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/305494265232.

I wouldn't say they turn up frequently in the UK as most examples for sale are in Russia or Ukraine these days and most are in terrible condition and expensive, prohibitively so.

The auction linked is a "fake" auction as that specific example has been listed with bids and apparently "sold" at least twice before so maybe the seller isn't satisfied with the already high price achieved, taking into account its less than perfect condition.

[Lah Ca]

Since it's missing the needle chuck, would a HMV fit it ? And in what condition is the diaphragm?

Good eyes.

The damage to the reproducer makes the price seem extremely steep despite the rarity of the machine here.

[Steve]

Since it's missing the needle chuck, would a HMV fit it ? And in what condition is the diaphragm?

Good eyes.

The damage to the reproducer makes the price seem extremely steep despite the rarity of the machine here.

Are we sure it's damaged? I'm only seeing 6 blurry low resolution photos and none of them show a closeup of the soundbox. What is everybody looking at? Is it advertised elsewhere?

[pallophotophone]

I'm afraid so. You can see the 2 pivot cones that the needle chuck would be located between if it were there.

[Steve]

I'm afraid so. You can see the 2 pivot cones that the needle chuck would be located between if it were there.

Sorry, we're talking cross purposes, my fault, I thought people were referring to the current Ebay example which epigramophone linked to!