Columbia BN lives again: commissioned horn paint from artist

[VanEpsFan1914]

Long, long ago, in a forum post far away, I bought a Graphophone from Jerry B. http://forum.talkingmachine.info/viewto ... t=Columbia

It was a very expensive job to ship it from Oregon to South Carolina, and when I opened it up I found it was in rough shape indeed, but, as Jerry B. said, it was a nice project! I like projects. They're unapologetically terrible--and you can fix them up and enjoy them without fear of risking a very rare survivor machine. He did an amazing job packing it for shipment.

Here's a shoutout to Harvey Kravitz (Phonofreak) for his information on Columbia graphophones. I don't usually know how to fix them--they're not as simple as Edisons or Victrolas. But they can sound quite good, even simple ones like the BN! My Columbia Records don't play well on the Victor, but the bass-heavy honk of the old acoustics does quite well with the pinched, tinny sound of the Analyzing Reproducer so guess what, it's a perfect match that makes a realistic and pleasant sound.

But here it is now:

Horn was painted by a South Carolina artist named Pamela J----. If you want her contact info, PM me. She has a little business called The Teacher's Crafts and is a skillful painter in the old single-brush techniques--on this horn, though, she went a little more "still life" than "historic replica," and I ended up with an enchanting little scene painted in the bore of the horn. With the trailing vines and the very detailed flowers, it makes me think it belongs in a hobbit's hole instead of a normal bedroom (Tolkien's hobbits preferred a life of quiet ease when not adventuring, and a gramophone is absolutely essential for such. Especially one decorated with such a nice painting.)

The machine required:

An awesome lady who paints flowers on stuff
Harvey's info to keep me from messing it up
Blood, sweat, tears & lots of kerosene
Jerry B to pack it
The FedEx guy who didn't smash it like they usually do
2 new springs
crank & plunger from Sitko
gaskets, rebuild kit
veneer on top board (which had cracked & warped when the previous repairer sanded off the original veneer, causing it to buckle. I couldn't even close the lid.)
New spring on governor yoke to work with stop plunger
Unclog, clean, reinstall the oil tubes on motor (you can oil it by removing the platter & dripping your oil into metal tubes.)
New finish throughout
Rubber feet on bottom
Gregg Cline decals.
Paint on back bracket & spray shellac topcoat
Nickel plating on horn elbow, made with DIY nickel-acetate solution
Birchwood Casey gun bluing for needle bar & screws
A good polishing on all brightwork
Shellac finish w. oil stains. Wish I had lacquer & aniline powders.
Clean, lube, adjust
Strip 3 coats paint off horn
Repaint horn with spray paint, cherry red
Repair end of old horn with wire, JB Weld epoxy, and aluminum foil to build up threads, thereby saving its original horn & keeping it with the machine.
Lots of determination because I really didn't like how it seemed more & more broken the more I worked on it.

Here you go--my most ridiculous restoration to date. I love how it turned out, and spent this afternoon after Mass working on a novel on my old typewriter, drinking coffee from the old vacuum pot, and listening to the Graphophone. Now that's relaxation!

[barnettrp21122]

I really like the floral paint job on the horn! It's the best modern example I've seen! Thanks for the info and pictures.
Bob

[Jerry B.]

Congratulations on a wonderful finished project. I really like the effort you made to rescue the original horn. And in the end the horn is the focus of the whole effort. I admire the effort to "think outside the box" not only for the repair of the small threaded end but the floral arrangement on the horn. I applaud your determination and creativity from beginning to end.

Jerry Blais

[alang]

That is now a great looking machine and an impressive horn. Congratulations to a job well done!

Andreas

[phonogal]

The horn is really nice. She did a great job on it.

[gramophone-georg]

I really, really like it!

[Phonofreak]

Thanks for the kind words giving credit to those who helped. In the Navy, this was an all hands effort. The machine looks fantastic. Great job restoring it. This is a real keeper. You should be proud of you accomplishments. I agree with the others. The horn looks fantastic.
Harvey Kravitz

[VanEpsFan1914]

Thanks, guys!

It still has a few issues. The drive-train sputters like a motor boat when it runs, because the brass gear is bent from the previous repairman's efforts. Also, I want to change the governor springs, because they are old.

I didn't do a great job filling the grain, so it's an obvious refinish--but it's not too bad. Sanding the shellac down layer by layer was passable but not slick-smooth like the finish on a Victor. As the Columbia was pretty hacked around I have no idea what its original finish would have looked like.

The reproducer occasionally will work up a buzz or a blast but most of the time it's smooth and strong.

On the whole? It was a fun project--even if it took almost a whole year to fix it up. And that horn paint is my favorite part. We left most of the dents, a few chips in the new paint--it was intentionally left a little tattered, with the nickel plating done rather thin to give the appearance of well-aged metal instead of over-restored modern parts.

And I enjoy it! Even if the tone arm is basically a bathtub spout with a needle, it hasn't eaten up any records, so I'll probably keep playing 78s on it.