The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I only have one pic of this. They want $80 for it. I could go in the morning and pick it up (if it hasn't sold yet). What do you guys think?

It's a BA Disc Graphophone. The sound box isn't pictured, so it may not be there. The traveling arm is broken where it meets the sound box. But for $80 I'd certainly buy it. The horn alone is worth that, and the elbow is in place. Maybe the sound box is still in the elbow!

George P.

$80 - very worth it!

I agree with the other responses that $80 is a good price. However, the answer to the the second question isn't as simple. If you are buying it to flip, it might work out. Maybe someone else will pay you more than you paid. If you are buying it to keep as a member of your growing collection, you will probably need to spend additional money for parts or repairs. This would be a machine that would primarily be for display purposes only and rarely, if ever, played. I almost never play my travelling arm machines - poor sound, record wear issues, etc. But they certainly belong in a collection that represents progress in sound reproduction.

Great responses. Thanks everyone! I will go try to purchase it in the morning. After I get it home and cleaned up I will decide if I want to try to get it up and running myself. If not, I will pass it on to someone else that can fix it up.

BTW: If I get it, watch out for the many questions I will be asking in the "Tips, Tricks, & Tutorials" section.

The BA is an interesting machine. That was my first outside horned machine. I still have it in my collection. The motor is smooth and quiet, and the rebuilt reproducer sounds loud and clear. The reproducer is a Columbia long throat analyzing reproducer. It is unmarked. These are common if you don't have one. The traveling arm may be a problem for repair. If the broken piece is present, it can be fixed. Epoxy and the super glues will not work. It will have to be soldered or brazed, by a specialist who works with either pot metal or aluminum. There has to be perfect alignment. Originals come up on ebay, shows or the Forum occasionally. Also, Justin Schaub may have a reproduction on ebay. To me, these are very nice attractive machines. This machine came out after Columbia sued Talk-O-Phone. As part of the settlement, Columbia acquired Talk-O-Phone cabinets and parts, and such. This was a Client machine sold through mail order houses like Montgomery Ward, Sears, and Spiegel. This has a very interesting history. Despite the broken arm, and possibly missing the reproduce, I would say BUY IT.
Harvey Kravitz

I would have to agree with all the advice. Good Luck!!!

http://jasantiques.com/ might be able to help with the broken arm..

blizz

Somebody beat me to it this morning. They said someone got it right when they opened (I was there like 10 mins later). Hopefully somebody here got it so we can see it fixed up and running again.

At the same sale I did buy a Sonora to fix up and got about 100 records. So still a win, nonetheless.


-Travis

What model Sonora?