Pathéphone crank needed

[drh]

I have two Concert Models, also an A, D and E, no. 8 and a Jour Et Nuit. The A, D and E are all from 1906-1908 so basically similar with a handle like the one shown above. The No. 8 and Jour Et Nuit are later models and have a different handle. Projections are different too so it might be an idea to post a photo of your machine with handle fitted for us to evaluate. Maybe give a measurement?...

Your wish is my command. Here are a couple of photos. The crank's shaft sticks out from the case side about 2.75 inches (that's ca. 7 cm), although it clears the machine's overhanging top by only about .75" (ca. 2 cm). It would need around 1.75" (ca. 4.5 cm) more to clear the edge of a 20" disc.

[CarlosV]

[ The crank's shaft sticks out from the case side about 2.75 inches (that's ca. 7 cm), although it clears the machine's overhanging top by only about .75" (ca. 2 cm). It would need around 1.75" (ca. 4.5 cm) more to clear the edge of a 20" disc.

I am not familiar with particular Concert model you have, but I presume it is the same as the models I have: the Concert A crank is identical to that of the models 12 and 18, and all protrude about 12 cm (14 cm to the end of the crank tip, as it is not straight, see photo) from the respective cases to allow cranking when a 50 cm disc is sitting on the turntable. The photo shows some 50 cm discs on the turntable, so you can have an idea of the clearance.

[drh]

[ The crank's shaft sticks out from the case side about 2.75 inches (that's ca. 7 cm), although it clears the machine's overhanging top by only about .75" (ca. 2 cm). It would need around 1.75" (ca. 4.5 cm) more to clear the edge of a 20" disc.

I am not familiar with particular Concert model you have, but I presume it is the same as the models I have: the Concert A crank is identical to that of the models 12 and 18, and all protrude about 12 cm (14 cm to the end of the crank tip, as it is not straight, see photo) from the respective cases to allow cranking when a 50 cm disc is sitting on the turntable. The photo shows some 50 cm discs on the turntable, so you can have an idea of the clearance.

Thank you! I suspected as much. Not that it's a matter of urgency, but I guess I'll need to keep an eye on French eBay in hopes of finding one. By the way, congratulations on having so many of the big discs; I have only two, and those only because I paid a pretty penny to import them from across the Atlantic. I've never seen one "in the wild," as they say, over here.

I'm attaching a couple of additional photos; one is a full view (not, unfortunately, from the side with the crank) and one of the motor. The latter shows the end of the crank where it engage the motor winding shaft.

[Steve]

[ The crank's shaft sticks out from the case side about 2.75 inches (that's ca. 7 cm), although it clears the machine's overhanging top by only about .75" (ca. 2 cm). It would need around 1.75" (ca. 4.5 cm) more to clear the edge of a 20" disc.

I am not familiar with particular Concert model you have, but I presume it is the same as the models I have: the Concert A crank is identical to that of the models 12 and 18, and all protrude about 12 cm (14 cm to the end of the crank tip, as it is not straight, see photo) from the respective cases to allow cranking when a 50 cm disc is sitting on the turntable. The photo shows some 50 cm discs on the turntable, so you can have an idea of the clearance.

Thank you! I suspected as much. Not that it's a matter of urgency, but I guess I'll need to keep an eye on French eBay in hopes of finding one. By the way, congratulations on having so many of the big discs; I have only two, and those only because I paid a pretty penny to import them from across the Atlantic. I've never seen one "in the wild," as they say, over here.

I'm attaching a couple of additional photos; one is a full view (not, unfortunately, from the side with the crank) and one of the motor. The latter shows the end of the crank where it engage the motor winding shaft.

What a stunning machine. Congratulations, I've never seen that particular version before!

[drh]

What a stunning machine. Congratulations, I've never seen that particular version before!

Thanks! Ever since I bought it two or three years ago, I've given it more play than any of my others (although my Amberola 75 has been catching up a bit now that Wyatt Markus has worked his magic on its reproducer ). I count myself very lucky to have landed it.

I wish there were a Pathé analogue to the Frow and Baumbach books for Edison, Victor, and Columbia. The "Pathé in America" guide is helpful as far as it goes, but not for machines like this that were never on regular sale here. I don't know nearly as much about the machine as I'd like to!

[CarlosV]

I'm attaching a couple of additional photos; one is a full view (not, unfortunately, from the side with the crank) and one of the motor. The latter shows the end of the crank where it engage the motor winding shaft.

I second Steve: a wonderful machine! And I had never seen such model neither. The motor is identical to the ones used in the Concert A and the 18, it is the most powerful motor that Pathé manufactured, with a huge single spring. As to the 50 cm discs, I have about 15 of them, but as I could never find a proper place to store them, I keep them piled on the respective machines with a cloth on top to keep the dust away. And yes, they are expensive, I have paid an average of about $ 100 each over the years, there is no bargain to be had there, they are too big and weird and therefore stand in the crowd as curiosities even for dealers who cannot distinguish an LP from a 78 rpm, and people buy them as decorative items. The later 40 cm Pathés that play at 80 rpm and start from the outside are rarer than these 50 cm beasts, but do not command such high prices.

The crank for this and for the original machine shown in this post every now and then show up on the French eBay, the long version being rarer, but still can be found with some patience and luck, mainly because several different models shared them.

[drh]

I'm attaching a couple of additional photos; one is a full view (not, unfortunately, from the side with the crank) and one of the motor. The latter shows the end of the crank where it engage the motor winding shaft.

I second Steve: a wonderful machine! And I had never seen such model neither. The motor is identical to the ones used in the Concert A and the 18, it is the most powerful motor that Pathé manufactured, with a huge single spring. As to the 50 cm discs, I have about 15 of them, but as I could never find a proper place to store them, I keep them piled on the respective machines with a cloth on top to keep the dust away. And yes, they are expensive, I have paid an average of about $ 100 each over the years, there is no bargain to be had there, they are too big and weird and therefore stand in the crowd as curiosities even for dealers who cannot distinguish an LP from a 78 rpm, and people buy them as decorative items. The later 40 cm Pathés that play at 80 rpm and start from the outside are rarer than these 50 cm beasts, but do not command such high prices.

The crank for this and for the original machine shown in this post every now and then show up on the French eBay, the long version being rarer, but still can be found with some patience and luck, mainly because several different models shared them.

I'll say again, thanks! Yes, very awkward to store, those big records. I bought mine from Raymond Glaspole in Oxford, and you can imagine the Transatlantic shipping cost. Luckily, they survived the trip safely. When I started to play one, I discovered the reason for the curious Pathé lever start mechanism: the record was so heavy, the turntable wouldn't start turning without a helpful push! To be honest, the sight of that big, heavy record wirling around at 120 RPM, shaking the machine a little as it went, was more than a little frightening.

Oh, as to the "I've never seen one" remarks: one reason I love Pathé is the seemingly infinite variety of designs the company put out. Sometimes, once you get beyond the most basic models, it seems almost as if each machine was a one-off. That's the European machines, I mean; here in the States, the Pathé cabinet uprights nearly all seem to follow the same rather plain design, what Frow calls a "half cabinet upright" with straight sides. Even the most common (if you can use that word to describe them) Actuelle models aren't that dissimilar, just wider and with an extra door or two. My own very first spring phonograph was a Pathé 100, one of those nearly indistinguishable uprights. Blessings on my mom, who picked it out for me when I expressed a desire to have a "Victrola"; it and the Pathé records in the cabinet were the seed that eventually sprouted into my decision to focus on vertical cut records.