First floor model Victrola XI from 1912 in Machines

[edisonplayer]

Has anyone seen an early Victrola XI? There's one in a shop in my town.This has a rack for the records and storage underneath for a 10 inch and a 12 inch album.I've been fascinated by it,but really,I don't have room for it.The man who has it let me have a couple records,both 12 inch black Patent label Victors;"The Bully"/When You Ain't Got Money,You Needn't Come 'Round"by May Irwin.i also got another one,a couple speeches by Woodrow Wilson.Yesterday I found the key that the owner couldn't find behind the rack and the 10 inch records that slipped behind.For my good deed I got Elsie Janis on 10 inch purple Patents label singing "Fascinating Base-Ball Slide" edisonplayer

[Kirkwood]

I bought one of these when I was about 12 years old, a friend sold it to me for $2.00 because one spring was broken and the crank was missing (this was back in the 1960s). I was able to fix all of that, and enjoyed it for a number of years. Still have it in storage up in NY. Yes indeed, things have away of falling behind those record slats.

I never understood why Victor made the motor board the way it is with this model. The motor is mounted onto a round steel plate, which in turn is mounted onto a square open-center wooden frame. It gets the job done, but seems like a lot of extra work to do it. Maybe Victor figured this out shortly after the 1912-1913 production run.

And another thing----it always seemed to me that open space under the record slats would have been an ideal spot to put a drawer, much as you'd see in the L-door Victrolas. One of these days, I might just do that to mine----it's a reversible modification and provides a nice parking spot for the stash of accessories I've been piling up.

[phonogfp]

Just last month I relinquished a very nice example of the early upright XI to a young collector who happens to be a member of this forum. The machine was untouched (except for the 2 new mainsprings I put in), and in very nice unrestored condition. Perhaps he will post a few photos of it here!

George P.

[NateO]

Just last month I relinquished a very nice example of the early upright XI to a young collector who happens to be a member of this forum. The machine was untouched (except for the 2 new mainsprings I put in), and in very nice unrestored condition. Perhaps he will post a few photos of it here!

George P.

I'm more than happy to share a few photos! I meant to do this a bit earlier, but I only just got a chance to snap some pictures.

My VV-XI is serial number 35175 B, so it dates to 1913. As George pointed out to me, according to the Victor Data Book, the B suffix model should not have been equipped with an automatic brake. However, this example was.

As Kirkwood has mentioned, the motor board on this model is rather odd, and seems like a lot of wasted effort on Victor's part.

The feature on this early XI that seems to be most odd to me is the horn design. To fit the motor and horn into the cabinet, Victor actually had to shape the horn to allow enough clearance for the motor. It works, but the result is a small block that juts into the horn. All things considered, the early XI produces a very good sound quality.

I am very happy to own this machine!

Nate

Edit: I don't know why the photos appear sideways. They were correct when I posted them, and appear correct when you click on them.

[emerson]

Well, You made me go look in the basement, one of the easier to get to ---mine is #49569c, in fair shape but needing work. What is the taking price on one of these?

[Victrolacollector]

Very nice machine. Btw that is the same motorboard and motor in my tabletop VV-XI.

[phonogfp]

Thanks for posting those photos, Nate. What a sweetheart that Victrola is! Just look at the width of the board upon which the lock is mounted. The dark mossy green turntable felt. The numbered record slats. The smallish horn with the goofy casting robbing what little space there is. And of course that big circular motor plate. And no collector has taken out that motor to complete a Victor!

George P.

[Phonofreak]

I believe the earliest ones did not have the automatic brake. Mine does not have the automatic, but the tab brake. I read in Look For the Dog, the automatic brake came out in 1913. Were these retrofitted at the factory for the early ones?
Harvey Kravitz

[EarlH]

Thanks for posting those photos, Nate. What a sweetheart that Victrola is! Just look at the width of the board upon which the lock is mounted. The dark mossy green turntable felt. The numbered record slats. The smallish horn with the goofy casting robbing what little space there is. And of course that big circular motor plate. And no collector has taken out that motor to complete a Victor!

George P.

Those motors might look like they will work in a Victor III or the like, but they won't. The turntable shaft is different, and trying to swap one from a outside horn motor won't solve the problem either. It really doesn't make much sense how Victor did things in those years with all the motor variations, and horn configurations too for that matter. I don't know if there is a turntable shaft that you can put in that motor to get it to work on a machine with a regular motor-board, maybe some other have had luck with that. I gave one of those to a friend of mine a long time ago for a Victor III he had with a broken motor casting, and he couldn't figure anything out with it. The distance between the bottom of the casting and where the turntable shaft rests must be different.

[phonogfp]

Back in the 70s and early 80s I had a few of these early Victrolas (various models) in admittedly rough cabinets. A phonograph dealer (who is still in business) would make me strong offers on these machines, and I sold some of them to him over the years. At some point, I was visiting his place and asked where these Victrolas were. That's when he told me he was completing Victors with the Victrola motors. He was always on the lookout for 10" turntables too.

I've never attempted this, but I've heard stories from others (including Jerry Blais) regarding this activity, so I must surmise that it's true.

George P.