The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

It also appears to have a square patch to the left of the drawer. This could be necessary because it was drilled to start the drawer cut and then the hole was patched. Edisons don't have a patch, in fact I wonder exactly how they cut out the drawers with no starting hole...

On North American Class M phonographs the knob was porcelain and was not recessed like on the Spring Motor. But in the auctioned machine the knob is apparently wood, with no screw going through the front. The drawer itself is more square than the original, which should be slightly narrower than it is tall. Everything about the cabinet says repro and the carriage is definitely wrong, as is the mandrel (as near as I can see). The top casting is correct, and from what I can tell from one measly picture it would seem like the upper motor parts are correct. Except for one detail: the casting supporting the upright governor is smooth. That's typical of later Class M phonographs but in the North American era there was a rib as seen below.

Looking in my Compendium, I find the early Class Ms used an attached ceramic (or milk glass) knob on the drawer, without the recess.

Those finger joints, however, look far too large to me....

Bill

With the features that Rene has pointed out, it looks like both the upper and lower bed plates are consistent with the newer style Class M. Here is what I believe to be a period pic of the later Class M showing the drawer knob style to be metallic with a solid core and not the ceramic style with the screw through it.

Curt A wrote:It also appears to have a square patch to the left of the drawer. This could be necessary because it was drilled to start the drawer cut and then the hole was patched. Edisons don't have a patch, in fact I wonder exactly how they cut out the drawers with no starting hole...

I should think they would have drilled the starting hole inside the drawer area, and worked outwards.

That way, you wouldn't have to make a patch. (Of course, I haven't made any survey of Edison Class M or Spring Motor cabinets with drawers; but does the grain on the drawer front ever match the cabinet?)

Bill

Two thin circular blades with a diameter equal to the heighth/width of a drawer mounted the proper distance the respective heighth/width apart on a rotating shaft can be plunged into the front panel board to cut pairs of horizontal and vertical slots. Then the corners can be easily freed by hand cutting. No need for drilling holes.