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Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Wed Jun 03, 2020 10:16 pm
by SydneyAde
What a wonderful find Martin, congratulations!!
As they say, a picture tells a thousand words.
Your find is directly relevant to my post below requesting information on the support and travelling arms
I have a similar machine, although I suspect there are a few differences as mine was probably one of the last fancy cased
machines as informed by the forum, to use up excess cases.
Interesting to me that it has:
1. The horn support is not the cast fancy type.
2. The support arm is solid cast type with arabesque design, without the word Columbia.
3. The travelling arm is the filigree non solid type with the word Columbia.
4. The turntable has holes.
Would you have a picture of the motor, if it’s not too much to ask, or could you describe it.
Again, I appreciate your post and well done on the find
Ade (Adrian)
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Wed Jun 03, 2020 11:36 pm
by Mormon S
Thank you guys! I'm really happy to have found it.
SydneyAde wrote:What a wonderful find Martin, congratulations!!
As they say, a picture tells a thousand words.
Your find is directly relevant to my post below requesting information on the support and travelling arms
I have a similar machine, although I suspect there are a few differences as mine was probably one of the last fancy cased
machines as informed by the forum, to use up excess cases.
Interesting to me that it has:
1. The horn support is not the cast fancy type.
2. The support arm is solid cast type with arabesque design, without the word Columbia.
3. The travelling arm is the filigree non solid type with the word Columbia.
4. The turntable has holes.
Would you have a picture of the motor, if it’s not too much to ask, or could you describe it.
Again, I appreciate your post and well done on the find
Ade (Adrian)
I had wondered about the horn support as well. It came with the machine so I assumed they originally belonged together, however there seems to be no dedicated hole for it, rather you have to bold it into the filigree design. The hole for the cast type horn support is even present. I remember seeing one on ebay recently, although I cant seem to find it.
Here is a picture of the motor (from before I worked on it)
Martin
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Wed Jun 03, 2020 11:48 pm
by edisonphonoworks
Very nice looking machine and nice transformation.
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 1:15 am
by SydneyAde
[/quote]
I had wondered about the horn support as well. It came with the machine so I assumed they originally belonged together, however there seems to be no dedicated hole for it, rather you have to bold it into the filigree design. The hole for the cast type horn support is even present. I remember seeing one on ebay recently, although I cant seem to find it.
Here is a picture of the motor (from before I worked on it)
Martin[/quote]
Thanks for the pic Martin
According to the Columbia Companion, Volume 2, it looks as if you have a 1903 second type
version of the fancy case. Also I may be wrong, but the horn cradle on the one featured in the
Companion, looks to be the same as yours, although that may not mean anything conclusively.
I have the same case as yours, although it has a cast iron bedplate and two weight horizontal
governor (that I purchased separately) and have seen featured on many AH machines both fancy
and not so fancy cases.
The Columbia Companion also features the not so fancy case AH, with solid support and travelling arms,
both with Columbia embossed with a little arabesque design, and fancier cradle, again, we might not be
able to draw conclusions.
I've been informed by the forum that my machine is most probably an end of line amalgam.
Anyways, whichever way, you've done a fab job and have beautiful machine.
Ade
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 3:05 am
by nostalgia
Congratulations with a great find

, and excellent restoration work
Greetings from across the pond.
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 7:20 am
by Phonotom
Martin, Here is a picture with the top arm like yours. I reproduced about 100 sets of these arms. Mine had an aluminum cradle that stuck into the hole. Mine also had the bottom arm that said Columbia though. I also included a picture of the Columbia AJ arms that I use to reproduce. Yours look good the way it is. I would leave it that way. GOOD FIND!!! Tom
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 10:45 am
by Zwebie
Beautiful Job!
How in the world did you ever remove the paint splatters from the decal without damaging it?
Bob S.
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 2:52 pm
by clevelander
Excellent clean-up!
That machine would grace anyone's collection!
I would also like to know how you cleaned of the splatter. Was it oil or water based paint?
I cleaned a Columbia BS some years ago that had been covered in a kind of distemper/emulsion. The decal took hours of work using very fine wire wool soaked in linseed oil. Fiddly but worth the effort.
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Thu Jun 04, 2020 7:16 pm
by Fonotone
Great work, Martin! It's beautiful!
-- Grant
Re: Columbia AH barn find + great transformation
Posted: Fri Jun 05, 2020 8:06 am
by cheryla
very nice work great job