The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Indiana collector : August 14, 1983

Another collector claiming to have a machine 15 years older than the actual manufacture date. 1889? More like 1905-1906 home banner B. The world needed Roland Gelatt’s and Reed and Welch’s writing in 1959 to settle some misconceptions.

December 28, 1958

AmberolaAndy wrote:Another collector claiming to have a machine 15 years older than the actual manufacture date. 1889? More like 1905-1906 home banner B. The world needed Roland Gelatt’s and Reed and Welch’s writing in 1959 to settle some misconceptions.

December 28, 1958

Gelatt's book had been published 4 years previously, and Read & Welch's book came out the same year. Sadly, many people are just too lazy and/or disinterested to search out the facts. If the data plate carries a patent date of 1888, that's good enough for them (even if there's also a 1903 date!).

George P.

I've always been amused that when many people look at a patent plate, they assume the earliest date to be the manufacture date. What do they think all the following dates are? I see this constantly on eBay.

TinfoilPhono wrote:I've always been amused that when many people look at a patent plate, they assume the earliest date to be the manufacture date. What do they think all the following dates are? I see this constantly on eBay.

I mean if your machine’s latest date says something like Nov 17,1903 for example, at least say it’s a 1903 Edison home or whatever. At least in 1958 they had an excuse because info wasn’t out there like it is today. But now in 2020 where you carry all the information about anything and everything around wherever you go? No excuses.

Well guys, I might be getting my first new to me machine of 2020 and here’s a period ad for one.

April 4, 1913

In this ad, the owners of this store trying to be cute decided to add little captions about what part of the “Victrola family” these models are.

November 8, 1913

Hopefully I can revive my “Lucy Anna Lou” from the dead.

EDIT: It looks like they got the VV-X and XI flip flopped!

Dating back to 1883? Does he have tinfoil machines?
Missouri Collector: May 26, 1966

Thanks for locating all these newspaper articles Andy - it sure makes you realise how lucky we are today having the world at our fingertips in terms of information. As a result what we know today is far more accurate than what is in a lot of these articles. But an interesting read nevertheless.

phonosandradios wrote:Thanks for locating all these newspaper articles Andy - it sure makes you realise how lucky we are today having the world at our fingertips in terms of information. As a result what we know today is far more accurate than what is in a lot of these articles. But an interesting read nevertheless.

I wonder how many machines seen in these old photos might be unknowingly owned by some of the members here? I even found articles of members from here.

Connecticut Collector: February 1st 1956