Cool "off brand" machine

[travisgreyfox]

Seen this in an antique store and I like it! Talked the guy down to $150, but still haven't pulled the trigger to buy it yet.

How hard are parts to find for these motors? I know it will need some mechanical work. The reproducer looks like it is made out of cheap (pot?) metal and will definitely need work.

Would you guys pay $150 for it?

[Benjamin_L]

I genuinely like Starr machines, but then again I like piano company phonographs. I think $150 isn't that bad, but if it's going to need some work I'd try seeing if he'll come down anymore. (I rarely see Starr machines with gold hardware even though it's tarnishing.) Starr enjoyed a large national distribution so finding parts isn't that hard.

[VanEpsFan1914]

Go for it--George Vollema or a collector might supply you with a new motor.

[Phonofreak]

One warning of Starr phonographs is to check the spring barrels. Sometimes they are made of pot metal. As we know, pot metal deteriorates. If there is a sign of bad pot metal, do not buy it. This will be like a bomb waiting to explode.
Harvey Kraviz

[drh]

I'm not sure I'd call Starr an "off" brand, exactly; maybe more a "smaller maker" or some such. Starr was a Midwestern US piano company that, like Aeolian, got into the phonograph business. It's probably better known as the company that made Gennett records than for its phonographs, but it was more than just a local furniture maker selling to the dealers in its vicinity.

[VanEpsFan1914]

I messed up--thought the motor was gone but didn't pay attention to the spindle clearly visible.

If you know a machinist, you might want some barrels made in steel so you have decent future-proof barrels. It's certainly unusual and interesting.

[zenith82]

I've seen a handful of Starr phonos over the years and most of them were decent machines, minus the possible spring barrel issue.

How much it's worth depends on how much you like it. $150 isn't necessarily out of range for a machine like this, but I personally wouldn't go much higher than $100 since there may be possible pot metal issues and the cabinet has the run-of-the-mill late '10s/early '20s styling to it, except for the gothic arch and lyre-shaped grille cutouts.

Pull the motor and inspect it. If there isn't any pot metal deterioration and you want it, go ahead and get it. Starr machines don't turn up as often as say an Aeolian, but as already pointed out, they had distributors across much of the US.

If there is pot metal deterioration in the motor, I'd pass unless it were dirt cheap (less than $50). Then, I'd have some room to get the parts I need. None of us are in this hobby to make money, but unless it was something that was special to me, I wouldn't put $400 into a machine that is only worth about $200 in top condition.

[drh]

Aside from what I already posted, I'm not terribly familiar with the line. (Other, I suppose, than that when I was in high school, I got the bug to buy a Starr console model whose finish had gone positively black; thankfully, my parents put the kibosh on that dubious notion!) I've heard it said, "New England pianos competed on quality, Midwestern ones on price"; from the use of pot metal in the spring barrels, for crying out loud, may I safely assume that Starr's phonographs were examples of the latter approach?

[Django]

The cabinet appears to be nicely figured American Walnut., so that could increase the value to some.

Regarding the spring barrels and typical examples from other manufacturers, they are often drawn rather than turned, (formed from a thin sheet rather than machined from bar stock), so casting such a simple part seems illogical and it would probably add cost. The only good reason would be that the production numbers were too low to justify a die and that they couldn’t purchase the blanks elsewhere. Machining replacements from solid would be fairly expensive. I suspect that an existing set of spring a competitor’s barrels could be modified and used in place of the pot metal barrels, (if it turns out that they are pot metal).

It’s probably worth taking a look at the motor.

[mattrx]

This one is for sale near me, maybe you could use some of the parts? https://www.facebook.com/marketplace/it ... 234561521/