A Tale of Two Edison A-100's

[Zenger]

Over the years I've picked up two unrestored Edison A-100 phonographs. The older one (SN 12798) has a diamond-shaped decal on the lower-left corner of the bedplate, but the newer one (SN 44158) had a strange-looking clip instead, and I can't figure out what it was supposed to be used for. I'm not even sure if it's original to the machine, or if someone added it later. Can anyone tell me?

I was considering combining the two into one machine, using the best components from each. Is disassembling/re-assembling the motor/horn assembly terribly complicated?

Another thing: The newer machine was missing its original reproducer (it had a lateral adapter instead) while the older machine came with the gold-plated reproducer you see in the pictures. I was under the impression that these came with nickel-plated hardware. Was this reproducer a later replacement, or did some go out with gold-plated reproducers?

Also: Was Edison pretty uniform with their platter felt, or did they modify the shade and even color at different times?

Finally, is there any way to date these two machines based on the serial numbers? I can't find any information on this in the Frow book.

Thanks!

[pallophotophone]

Hi,
The answer to one of those questions is an easy one. The clip thing is what's left from a relatively modern tonearm -probably from the 1940's. It's the rear bearing made up of the 2 cone shaped bits. See if it will just break off with a little persuasion. The cast iron is tougher than it is, unless someone welded it on. It's anything but original.

[pallophotophone]

Hi,
The answer to one of those questions is an easy one. The clip thing is what's left from a relatively modern tonearm -probably from the 1940's. It's the rear bearing made up of the 2 cone shaped bits. See if it will just break off with a little persuasion. The cast iron is tougher than it is, unless someone welded it on. It's anything but original.

On second look I'd say it's epoxy.

[52089]

The reproducer finish should match the finish on the horn ferrule, which is nickel. If it were me, I would find a good nickel reproducer for the older machine and then just do the usual cleanup and maintenance on it.

IIRC, the bedplate decals were phased out around 1915-1917.