Reviving a Victrola 90: Exterior finish?

[Mold-a-RamaGuy]

Hi everyone --

I recently acquired my great-grandfather's Victrola 90, and one of my summer projects is to get it back into fighting shape. Only one problem: I don't know what I'm doing. I've been reading posts in this forum all week and decided it's time to seek the help of the experts!

I'll post some photos below. At the moment my checklist of issues is as follows:

(a) Repair broken hinge on left door (status: ordered. Fortunately I have the door)

(b) Replace missing felt pads under lid (status: ordered)

(c) Replace missing screws on right door hinges (status: ordered)

(d) Lubricate (status: done, tested, everything seems to be working as it should). Question on this, though: I used a product called Soy Lube, made by Soy Blends, which I use on everything squeaky because it doesn't make a mess (it's clear). Is there any reason this would be a bad product for this application?

(e) Clean interior wood + metal + crank (status: need to order Kotton Klenser)

(f) Fix automatic brake. I can't figure out if I'm missing a piece or just missing something obvious, but it doesn't seem like there's any way the trip can hit anything to trigger the "Victor Automatic Break" that the manual talks about. Can someone glance at the photo below and let me know if I'm missing a component? Or just missing some brain cells?

(g) Exterior finish. I can't find any instances of Victrola 90s that were this heavily black (other than the image on the manual cover, of course). The Flemish Oak is the closest I've seen, but the Flemish Oak has more visible wood grain and was also dark on the underside of the lid. So I assume the entire cabinet was originally the finish from the underside of the lid and that this was painted black sometime long ago by my grandfather or great-grandfather, though it's odd that it's black underneath where the felt pads should be. It's also striking how perfect the paint line is just under the lid, which looks more professional than I think my relatives could've pulled off (close-up pic below).

Either way I'm not sure how to proceed and would love some guidance. Should I be trying to strip it? Paint it a fresh black? If it was an after-market paint job one has to wonder WHY they painted it--I would hate to go to the trouble of stripping it only to find damaged wood underneath. Then again I suppose worst case scenario is just painting it black again. Anyone have any thoughts? Or is there a product I'm not aware of that would help even out and restore the black that I should try first?

Your feedback is appreciated! Pics below:

Victrola 90, proudly standing in my basement


Victrola, opened up


Victor tag


Overhead


Lid close-up


Automatic brake?


Close-up of surface (top)


Detail showing painted edge just inside lid:

[Henry]

This may be one of those machines that one could strip, in good conscience, and refinish. Not a trivial task, to be sure. But if that alligatoring shows through the paint, it's in bad shape anyway underneath, at least on the lid. OTOH, it's not a particularly rare machine. OTOH, it has sentimental meaning for you, so that's an intangible that only you can value. It may be that the black can't be removed without also taking the underlying finish with it. Black paint is really messy to strip, so if you go this route, go all the way and best of luck!

Of course, you could always leave it as is, give it a cleaning, and maybe apply paste wax over the paint. You'll need to equip it with the proper sound box for this model, a Victrola no. 2.

[alang]

Welcome to the forum and congratulations to your Victrola. Many here will tell you that it is something special to own a machine that was inherited down within the own family. I don't have any such machine and envy you for that. I also congratulate you to your decision to first learn and ask questions before starting something you might later regret.

So you are correct in your assumption that the whole machine was originally mahogany, like under the lid. When it was painted black is anyone's guess, only your ancestors could answer that. Like Henry already stated, this machine is not rare or has high monetary value and restoring it to the original finish will not result in a big increase in value. Also, a complete refinish will be a big and messy job and the result will not necessarily increase the sentimental value either. With all that in mind I would probably just clean and fix it and leave it black. This is how your grand-grandparents had it and maybe that's worth more than a refinished machine. Especially for more common machines the history and the story are more worth than originality. And regardless what you do, it will never be original again. Just my 2 cents.

Regarding the automatic brake question, a picture with the turntable off would help to understand if your brake is correct and complete.

Good luck
Andreas

[Curt A]

Maybe they saw one of those fancy black Chinese design Victrolas and liked the look, so replicated it without the Chinese paintings...

[estott]

It might be worth finding someone artistic with a steady hand who could give it some gold striping and highlights,or maybe some chinese decoration. If you are going to strip the paint you might as well experiment a bit.

[Phonofreak]

I agree with the others to leave the black paint on. Whoever did it, did a great job. There are no streaks or brush marks. It was done by a professional. Back in the 20s & 30s, Sears and Montgomery Ward marketed enamel paint to paint your furniture. Their slogans were get new furniture by using our enamel to that effect. I think your ancestors painted this to make their Victrola look "new", and updated.
Harvey Kravitz

[rizbone]

It looks like you're missing the part of the brake that sticks out from the back of the turntable (or it's pushed underneath and is not rubbing against the top for some reason. I found a good picture of one on e-bay

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Victor-Victrola ... 540a2e5b51

[Mold-a-RamaGuy]

EXCELLENT feedback. Thanks everyone.

Regarding the brake: I should've thought to include a photo without the turntable in the first place, but I attached one below. I think rizbone nailed it--you can even see where the missing "wishbone" part should be connected. I've got a replacement "Y lever" on the way!

Regarding the finish: Keeping it black is certainly easier than stripping it, plus more nostalgic for me, so no complaints there. But it still shows lots of wear and tear on the surface, and I can't find a tutorial in the forum on cleaning up PAINTED cabinets (excluding the posting on "wrinkle paint," which I assume this is not). Anyone have experience with this? I can Google any number of articles on restoring painted furniture, but this has paint on top of the standard Victrola finish--no idea if that affects anything. How do we feel about Kotton Klenser followed by a black touch-up marker and Minwax dark paste finishing wax?

And then there's the mismatched sound box, which I had not noticed. I'm torn on this one; if I'm not restoring it to build value (I'd never sell it anyway), is it worth the expense? The current one sounds fine to me, though admittedly I'm judging the output based on the sound of Victrolas in old movies so my expectations are probably unfairly low. The Victrola No. 2 model is also MUCH more visually appealing, but apparently not the sound box that my ancestors were using. I need a nice door-to-door sound box salesman to pay me a visit and give me a side-by-side demonstration.

Thank you again for the help, gang. As promised a few pics of the brake situation and a few showing the beat-up surface below.

Overhead, with turntable removed


Side view of brake


Left side


Right side


Top

[OrthoSean]

I've used non-pumice GoJo (basically KK only MUCH cheaper) on painted items and had fine results, just go slowly. Work on a small area for a bit and see what you get before tackling the entire thing. A black touch up marker and dark paste wax would probably really help, too. I think you're on the right track!

Good luck!
Sean

[FloridaClay]

You may really be surprised at how much things improve after cleaning with Kotton Klenser or GoJO and then waxing if you want to stick with the black finish.

As far as the reproducer, nickel Victor No. 2s are common and easily come by and you won't have done anything that isn't reversible by installing one. As you may know, these reproducers are made to be able to easily removed and reinstalled. If it were mine, I'd get a No. 2 and keep the aftermarket reproducer on it now with the machine. Whether you use the one on it now or get a No. 2, replace the gaskets, or get your No. 2 from somebody like George Vollema already rebuilt.

Clay