SOLD: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

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SteveM
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SOLD: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by SteveM »

I was going to "reactivate" my ad here from last year when I listed these, then removed them, as it turned out I didn't need to sell them, but here's a FRESH NEW AD and a fresh new price.

For pickup, and Paypal only though, I'm between Philly and Reading PA.

Restored by Tim Fabrizio (phonophan.com) in December 2016. These nearly identical BIs are a testament to his extraordinary craftsmanship and will give you a lifetime of musical pleasure, with absolutely no issues. They are also a testament to me, and my gentle stewardship of these machines for the past 3 years. They've given ME a lot of pleasure, but also many other people as they (very carefully) traveled around to play at weddings, restaurants, art galleries, swing dances etc. They turned a lot of people on to some really wonderful music and the world of phonographs!

One of the brake knobs is a reproduction. There a couple obvious unoriginal, easily removable decals on the horns (although people really love that they have names). Also, I added the Columbia "horn" decals on the cabinets (over the finish) and they are not perfectly identical to each other, it turns out, but they look nice.

If you read through some of my posts, you'll see me looking for ideas about how to make these machines sound more like orthophonics. To be clear, these are NOT orthophonics (duh!) and they aren't meant to sound as such. They still sound great. I never ended up monkeying with either of the reproducers.

I simply need to be using later machines, that's all there is to it ... I get too many requests for Glenn Miller and Benny Goodman. Thus the sale.

(I know most everyone here knows the size of these machines, but you'll see there are a couple pics with measurements. That's because Paul Teutel Jr. (of American Choppers fame) was thinking of buying these to squeeze into his "room of cool sh!t" but he bailed in the end :cry: )

I know most things are "down" right now, but still, I want these to be a bargain for someone, and I think they really are. (I paid almost $4000 for them in Dec. 2016, invoice in hand))

Let me know if I can answer any questions!

(Double-click the video above or click this link to watch the video on YouTube in HD.)

(Double-click the video above or click this link to watch the video on YouTube in HD.)

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Last edited by SteveM on Sun Apr 12, 2020 5:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
“The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured cosiness.”

P. G. Wodehouse

Garret
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

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Nice machines!

Garret

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Phono-Phan
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by Phono-Phan »

Absolutely gorgeous!!!! I wish you luck with your sale.
Ken

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SteveM
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by SteveM »

Thanks guys!
“The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured cosiness.”

P. G. Wodehouse

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SteveM
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by SteveM »

Sale pending.
“The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured cosiness.”

P. G. Wodehouse

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gramophone-georg
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by gramophone-georg »

SteveM wrote:Sale pending.
Nice. Those are beautiful.
"He who dies with the most shellac wins"- some nutty record geek

I got PTSD from Peter F's avatar

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SteveM
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by SteveM »

gramophone-georg wrote:
SteveM wrote:Sale pending.
Nice. Those are beautiful.
Thanks George, they are probably amongst the prettiest things I’ve ever seen (err, had living in this house, err ... umm).
“The cup of tea on arrival at a country house is a thing which, as a rule, I particularly enjoy. I like the crackling logs, the shaded lights, the scent of buttered toast, the general atmosphere of leisured cosiness.”

P. G. Wodehouse

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gramophone-georg
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by gramophone-georg »

SteveM wrote:
gramophone-georg wrote:
SteveM wrote:Sale pending.
Nice. Those are beautiful.
Thanks George, they are probably amongst the prettiest things I’ve ever seen (err, had living in this house, err ... umm).
Better lock down the frying pans and rolling pins, pally.
"He who dies with the most shellac wins"- some nutty record geek

I got PTSD from Peter F's avatar

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dzavracky
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Re: FOR SALE: The great Columbia BI Sterling two-fer! $1,900

Post by dzavracky »

Those are honestly stunning!!! I cant wait to finish college so I can afford something like this!

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