The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

"This is why we can't have nice things, darling!" - Taylor Swift

Wow, this thread has exploded within the past 24 hours! Looks like I'm not even going to be able to post my Day One restoration work since I will need to first respond to the other posters...

In order:

1. After pulling all the hardware off of the machine and looking at the finish with a fine-tooth comb, the cabinet is indeed a mahogany finish, not a mahogany build. I have verified this by ever-so-gently removing the oiling instructions paper tag glued to the inside of the cabinet...when I peeled up the edge corner of the instructions, I saw a beautifully aged oak finish looking right at me! I have sent the seller an email stating that, while it has a lovely dark aftermarket finish and I intend to keep it that way, it is technically an Item Not as Described. To avoid me filing a corresponding claim and/or leaving him poor feedback over this, I have asked him to contact me as soon as possible and let me know his thoughts on some appropriate recompense.

2. I was hoping not to divulge what I paid for this, but since someone linked the listing to this thread, yes, I did pay $2,500 for it. However, keep in mind that does include the horn and sales tax included (plus the costs and my time associated with rebuilding the reproducer are already taken care of), so I consider it a fair price. (The incorrect finish advertised is a different matter, and I'll keep everyone updated on what the seller responds with.)

3. The turntable does indeed have a yielding system, and I will be uploading proof of this in the form of pics once I get my Day One restoration work pics posted.

Thanks again to all who posted yesterday! The restoration of this phonograph is off to a WAY rockier start than I expected, but it's still definitely something worth fixing up imo, and I do really like the dark stained cabinet even though it isn't something finished by the Victor Talking Machine Company.

jmad7474 wrote:"This is why we can't have nice things, darling!" - Taylor Swift

Wow, this thread has exploded within the past 24 hours! Looks like I'm not even going to be able to post my Day One restoration work since I will need to first respond to the other posters...

In order:

1. After pulling all the hardware off of the machine and looking at the finish with a fine-tooth comb, the cabinet is indeed a mahogany finish, not a mahogany build. I have verified this by ever-so-gently removing the oiling instructions paper tag glued to the inside of the cabinet...when I peeled up the edge corner of the instructions, I saw a beautifully aged oak finish looking right at me! I have sent the seller an email stating that, while it has a lovely dark aftermarket finish and I intend to keep it that way, it is technically an Item Not as Described. To avoid me filing a corresponding claim and/or leaving him poor feedback over this, I have asked him to contact me as soon as possible and let me know his thoughts on some appropriate recompense.

2. I was hoping not to divulge what I paid for this, but since someone linked the listing to this thread, yes, I did pay $2,500 for it. However, keep in mind that does include the horn and sales tax included (plus the costs and my time associated with rebuilding the reproducer are already taken care of), so I consider it a fair price. (The incorrect finish advertised is a different matter, and I'll keep everyone updated on what the seller responds with.)

3. The turntable does indeed have a yielding system, and I will be uploading proof of this in the form of pics once I get my Day One restoration work pics posted.

Thanks again to all who posted yesterday! The restoration of this phonograph is off to a WAY rockier start than I expected, but it's still definitely something worth fixing up imo, and I do really like the dark stained cabinet even though it isn't something finished by the Victor Talking Machine Company.

ALL that matters is that you are pleased with your purchase. These are wonderful machines. Congrats and looking forward to seeing the progress.

Hello again,

Upon review, this will be my last post to this thread. The amount of negative messages I have received regarding the seller apparently being a shyster and my supposed "foolish inexperience" buying this machine is NOT something I am willing to tolerate when I was simply trying to point out a unique buy and detail what it will take to make it a fully functioning and aesthetically-appealing machine once again.

As a concession to those readers who messaged me with encouraging words and helpful suggestions about what they would do if they were in my situation, I will post photos of the fully-refurbished machine here in a new thread, and at that time will detail what I did to it to refurbish it. However, I am not going to take up my valuable time over the course of several weeks highlighting an ongoing machine restoration if most of the messages I receive about it would continue to be negative.

Thank you for your understanding and patience.

Sorry to hear that happened to you. Thought this was supposed to be held to a pretty high standard round here.

jmad7474 wrote:
most of the messages I receive about it would continue to be negative.

What a pity. As if none of these members of the Phonograph Police ever made a mistake.

Raphael

Good luck with your restoration. As Jerry pointed out this will be a unique machine with an interesting past.

Hopefully you are able to clean up the decal. I have attached a copy of what I think it originally looked like.

Bruce

C.J. Heppe & Son, 115 Chestnut St. in Philadelphia today: https://tinyurl.com/y4yua86l. It's 4-½ blocks east of Independence Hall. Nice neighborhood, the very heart of historic Philadelphia.

I didn't find any of the comments critical. Just informative.

Skihawx wrote:I didn't find any of the comments critical. Just informative.

The OP said "negative messages" AKA PMs that were negative. We've only seen the posts which as you say, are informative. We have no idea about the contents of the PMs the OP received, but they obviously stung a bit.

AZ* wrote:

Skihawx wrote:I didn't find any of the comments critical. Just informative.

The OP said "negative messages" AKA PMs that were negative. We've only seen the posts which as you say, are informative. We have no idea about the contents of the PMs the OP received, but they obviously stung a bit.

People might have just been salty they didn't get a nice deal on an original Victor V with a unique aftermarket finish.