Remanufactured L-door?

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GregVTLA
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by GregVTLA »

I didn’t know that the person was on the forum. I did not intend to criticize his work in any way, but I must admit I do not agree with the finishing material used. It is also entirely possible that the lighting does indeed misrepresent the finish. Oh well, at the end of the day all I hope is that someone ends up enjoying this thing.

Greg

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OrthoSean
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by OrthoSean »

Personally I find it amusing to no end that some people who were criticizing the methods he uses in other threads are now defending him here. Whatever, as I said, I'm glad it wasn't trashed either, but I still think there are better methods. That's only my opinion, the machine is pictured before anything was done in the thread I linked and it didn't look like it needed anything more than a good cleaning, but what do I know, I've only done that with hundreds of them :lol: :roll:

Sean

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Valecnik
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by Valecnik »

OrthoSean wrote:Personally I find it amusing to no end that some people who were criticizing the methods he uses in other threads are now defending him here. Whatever, as I said, I'm glad it wasn't trashed either, but I still think there are better methods. That's only my opinion, the machine is pictured before anything was done in the thread I linked and it didn't look like it needed anything more than a good cleaning, but what do I know, I've only done that with hundreds of them :lol: :roll:

Sean
I was going to make the same comment about before/after pics. Having seen the before pic, I wouldn't have done anything more than cleaned it. I would have bought it in "before" condition. I would not be a potential buyer in "after" condition.

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Mormon S
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by Mormon S »

OrthoSean wrote:Personally I find it amusing to no end that some people who were criticizing the methods he uses in other threads are now defending him here. Whatever, as I said, I'm glad it wasn't trashed either, but I still think there are better methods. That's only my opinion, the machine is pictured before anything was done in the thread I linked and it didn't look like it needed anything more than a good cleaning, but what do I know, I've only done that with hundreds of them :lol: :roll:

Sean
Well to clarify "my thoughts exactly", I wouldn't have done anything to it other than clean it and wax it. I think the same effect could have been accomplished while preserving the original finish. I'm not saying it was a good choice, I just thing the job was well done.

Martin

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OrthoSean
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by OrthoSean »

Martin,

No worries, I wasn't singling anyone out! Everyone is entitled to an opinion. When I was a teenager I refinished a few common Victor floor models in poly and crappy minwax stain. It was simply because I didn't know any better.

Sean

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Django
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by Django »

OrthoSean wrote:Personally I find it amusing to no end that some people who were criticizing the methods he uses in other threads are now defending him here. Whatever, as I said, I'm glad it wasn't trashed either, but I still think there are better methods. That's only my opinion, the machine is pictured before anything was done in the thread I linked and it didn't look like it needed anything more than a good cleaning, but what do I know, I've only done that with hundreds of them :lol: :roll:

Sean
I criticized the glossy and overdone machine that had been shown in the earlier post. But I see a different machine here. One that may not be a perfect match in materials and color, but one that is still a very nice looking L-Door Victrola that will probably make the new owner very happy and may excite others about antique pnonographs. I also appreciate that the restorer was so willing to listen to comments that were probably not too easy to hear. He seemed open to the ideas shared, so when I see this machine, I will not attack it and I hope that like with so many of us, his restorations become more historically correct. If we only want to appeal to purists, then I do believe that our beloved hobby will fade away along with us.

JohnM
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Re: Remanufactured L-door?

Post by JohnM »

EarlH wrote:You also cannot get the color that Victor used on their cabinets using oil based stains. Victor dyed those cabinets with almost boiling hot water stain, but it was really a dye. And most people now really don't like the colors used on the furniture 100-120 years ago. Collectors are a different animal though. But if your whole house is full of "Ethan Allen Cherry" furniture, than this is a much closer match. Victorians for the most part really didn't get wrapped around the axle about everything in the house being exactly the same color. That really got to be a big deal after WWII. L-door Victrolas are nice, but they really aren't all that rare.

I refinished a mahogany C-19 40 years ago and got some lacquer based "mahogany" stain. It was made by "Blonde-it" for those of us old enough to remember that brand name. Anyway, it came out looking like a 1957 hollow core door and I thought it looked awful. It really was beyond awful. I had no idea what to do and they guy at the paint store said it would darken up when I put the finish on. Well, he was wrong and it still looked like a hollow core door. This was in 1981, so I just decided to take my lumps and put it on an auction to get rid of it. So I put a bunch of diamond disks in it and hauled it off, and that dumb ugly thing sold for $650.00! The most I have ever gotten out of a diamond disk machine. When the check came in the mail, I called the auctioneer because I thought he wrote the check out for the wrong amount. He said the people that got it were tickled to death with that thing. Oh well....
Actually, mahogany machines are dyed yellow before application of the mahogany oil-based stain.
"All of us have a place in history. Mine is clouds." Richard Brautigan

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