$50 Victrola find

[ejackett]

and I'll chime in and say that Howards restore-a-finish does a great job
on the finish after you clean it with the GO-JO
Gene

[Henry]

I'm puzzled by one thing I see in the winding key photo: that ferrule thingy (near the angle bend) is not part of the key, and I'm thinking that it might be the center hole insert from the crank escutcheon that has come loose and "wound up" (pun intended!) on the winding key shaft. Any ideas?

[epigramophone]

The reproducer is worth $50. When moving it I remove the reproducer. Remove the crank and the turntable. You can unscrew the tonearm or pack something like a couple old shirts around the tone arm so it doesn't flip around. Remove the needle cups of anything else inside the machine. I tie up the machine with nylon, soft rope. And move it on its back. Tie the lid down. Also tie the doors down.
For $50 you can't go wrong. It will be worth the learning experience

Just one tip to add to Mike's advice on moving the machine.

Before loading, spread a thick travelling rug or blanket over the floor of the vehicle, then when unloading pull the rug not the machine. This will minimise any risk of the machine snagging against the interior of the vehicle.

[Henry]

I'd secure the taper tube with a cord to either the spindle (the projecting key will hold the cord from slipping off the spindle) or to the motor board knob (even better?). This is way Victor shipped it from Camden, according to the instruction manual. The nylon rope is a good idea, and I'd further ensure against abrasion by padding between the rope and the cabinet. HTH.

[johnny899]

So I finally got it!!!! and I can't tell you how happy I am! This is my first record player of any type and I'm so glad to have finally acquired one. One question is that it had a no. 2 soundbox installed which didn't seem right. I thought VV-XI Victrolas had an exhibition soundbox but I could be wrong. The serial number is VV-XI 458081A which means it was manufactured 1919. Any thoughts?

[barnettrp21122]

Great! Glad it worked out so well for you! The Victor No 2 soundbox is correct for this machine. The change from the Exhibition happened in 1919. Good luck with your new machine!
Bob

[ejackett]

Congrats on getting your VV-XI they are a great machine, I've had two of them and
my brother took the older one and I sold the newer one. They cleanup nice and
sound very good. I'm new to this hobby also and one of the first things I did to
help me out was get a copy of "Look for the Dog" and "The Victor Data Book", these
two books are my victrola Bibles. Good luck with your restoration and have FUN,
this is a great hobby
Gene

[Henry]

So I finally got it!!!! and I can't tell you how happy I am! This is my first record player of any type and I'm so glad to have finally acquired one. One question is that it had a no. 2 soundbox installed which didn't seem right. I thought VV-XI Victrolas had an exhibition soundbox but I could be wrong. The serial number is VV-XI 458081A which means it was manufactured 1919. Any thoughts?

The no. 2 is correct for that vintage of XI. It was introduced simultaneously with the "fat" taper tube (a/k/a tone arm), for acoustic reasons (what else? ).

Pardon my redundancy. I posted this without noticing barnettrp's post above.