Very Early Production Edison Amberola 30

[FellowCollector]

I’ve always been interested in very early examples of phonographs that had a lengthy production run as well as very late examples of same. The modifications made during its production life whether for improvement, production cost reduction or whatever, are a source of fascination for me. To me it's fascinating to see the really early ones especially since these models were purchased by the few early customers who "took a chance" and purchased a brand spanking new model that could turn out to be a lemon. Remember the Yugo and Edsel?

Recently I decided to go through some of the phonographs I’ve had in storage that were in need of repair, were missing parts or were simply in too rough condition to include in my collection. One of them I uncovered was an Amberola 30 that I had purchased at auction years ago. The cabinet was rather rough having the typical veneer chipping on the sides and top of lid. On lifting the lid I immediately found a note I had left for myself, “needs spring work...crank missing”.

Recognizing that this was an early model having the pinstriped gear cover with exposed speed control and pin striping on the bedplate I thought it would be good to finally drag it out and decide what to do with it. On one of our backyard tables under the shade of an umbrella (it was a beautiful sunny day) I removed the entire works (but not the horn) and began cleaning the various parts with the thought of looking for a nice condition Amberola 30 cabinet someday to put the works into after doing the spring repairs.

One of the last parts I removed was the horn. I noticed that the horn pivot assembly was definitely an interesting early design that I’d not noticed on other Amberola 30 models in my collection. A sort of bullet projection that slides into a "V" bracket. The final part I removed was the ID Plate tacked inside the cabinet to the right of the horn opening exactly where I expected it on an early model Amberola 30. The plate was pretty dirty and so I grabbed a nearby rag and wiped it off to look at the serial number. I was amazed (actually I was stunned!) to find that this little Amberola 30 was obviously much earlier than I had ever imagined with a serial number “579” stamped on the plate. In fact, I had never seen a 3-digit serial number Amberola 30. Recognizing that Amberola 30’s had a long production run with serial numbers reaching well past 150,000 my appreciation for this rather sad condition little Amberola was immediately heightened on seeing the serial number. I’ve included a couple of pics of the horn pivot and the plate for anyone interested. If you have an early production 3-digit serial number Amberola 30 it would be great to compare notes and pictures. In fact, I would enjoy a topic that invites pictures and supporting text of any very early production phonograph models - particularly those that reached substantial production numbers. I’m now in the process of examining differences relative to some of the other Amberola 30’s in the collection. I do have one other very early Amberola 30 featured on my YouTube channel here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldjhzBJ-Zdc

but it is not nearly as early as this one.

Doug

[earbleeder]

not go too far off topic but how many aMberola a 50's in mahogany did they make? I think I have it early model 3 digit one of those.

[52089]

not go too far off topic but how many aMberola a 50's in mahogany did they make? I think I have it early model 3 digit one of those.

I don't know numbers, but the 50 is far, far more common in mahogany than in oak, probably 10 to 1.

The 30, AFAIK, only ever came in oak.

[NEFaurora]

"I don't know numbers, but the 50 is far, far more common in mahogany than in oak, probably 10 to 1."

About the 50, That is correct.

I have a 50 absolutely MINT in OAK, and the Oak is Rare...especially in good shape. Though, I am searching for a Mahoghany one now, but there are lots out there..

About that Amberola 30 ID plate pictured above.. That is an early one! The earliest 30 that I have ever seen..

I also have a Oak Amberola 75 as well..

)

Tony K.

[earbleeder]

My 50 is #203

[FellowCollector]

My 50 is #203

Would you please post a picture of your Amberola 50 ID plate and the horn pivot assembly if possible? I (we) would enjoy seeing them.

About that Amberola 30 ID plate pictured above.. That is an early one! The earliest 30 that I have ever seen..

Me too! I would have truly appreciated a bit of provenance about it but with an auction it's almost impossible to know from whom and where it came from and many auctioneers don't like to share information about how or where they obtained their items. It's a shame that it was not well cared for but at least it wasn't tossed out!

Doug

[Phonolair]

If you have an early production 3-digit serial number Amberola 30 it would be great to compare notes and pictures.

Doug here is a 3 digit Amberola 30 #888. It has the same horn set up as yours does with the stripes on the bed plate and governor cover also. I don't know when Edison stopped decorating the bed plates. But it make's them a little different being a common machine.

Best Regards, Larry

[FellowCollector]

Quote:
If you have an early production 3-digit serial number Amberola 30 it would be great to compare notes and pictures.

Doug here is a 3 digit Amberola 30 #888. It has the same horn set up as yours does with the stripes on the bed plate and governor cover also. I don't know when Edison stopped decorating the bed plates. But it make's them a little different being a common machine.

Best Regards, Larry

Thanks for sharing this, Larry. That is one beautiful early Amberola 30! The rounded "V" in the early horn pivot assembly is exactly like mine. Since I removed mine for cleaning I didn't include it in my pics so I'm pleased that you did. I will presume that yours also has the clicking ratchet "dog and pawl" sound as you wind it up (found only on the earliest "post-1914 fire" Amberolas)?

Doug