Grey crocodile HMV 101 restoration

[Phono48]

I've had several Grey "crocodile " 101 portables over the years and they were all GREY DEFINITELY GREY not light brown

In Dave Coopers book "The Perfect Portable Gramophone", he writes that "there are two brown crocodile 101s, but the one sold as "grey" is a lighter brown, with the mouth of the horn sprayed grey", and the illustration bears this out. That's good enough for me!

Barry

[Steve]

Is brown the new grey?

We'd better inform all those "upcyclers" out there with their grey chalk paint!

[soundgen]

I've had several Grey "crocodile " 101 portables over the years and they were all GREY DEFINITELY GREY not light brown

In Dave Coopers book "The Perfect Portable Gramophone", he writes that "there are two brown crocodile 101s, but the one sold as "grey" is a lighter brown, with the mouth of the horn sprayed grey", and the illustration bears this out. That's good enough for me!

Barry

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ?

[Phono48]

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ?

This argument could go on for ever, so I give up.

Barry

[Inigo]

But crocodiles are green, so no sense about brown or grey crocodiles...

depositphotos_36262435-stock-photo-cartoon-alligator-illustration-for-the.jpg

((me myself is the proud owner of a brown crocodile 101, so... Guilty!))
Here it is, in my record room

001 002.png

[soundgen]

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ?

This argument could go on for ever, so I give up.

Barry

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ? NOTHING I ASSUME SO THE BOOK IS WRONG ! but hey , you're the expert !

[Steve]

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ?

This argument could go on for ever, so I give up.

Barry

So what doers the book say about GREY GREY ones ? NOTHING I ASSUME SO THE BOOK IS WRONG ! but hey , you're the expert !

The book is wrong on a few accounts, clearly, but I think the main problem here is that the grey crocodile cloth tends to turn brown with age unlike the other colours which tend to stay a constant colour. I'm not sure whether it was the pigment but UV light, oxidation, smoke and age ruins the light grey colour. I've never seen a grey crocodile cloth 101 which hasn't gone a more taupe colour over time. Of course, the book is wrong where it states there were two brown crocodile cloth versions. It's quite evident from the grey painted horn and grey turntable felt which one was, at least originally, the grey one.

[Steve]

There is a grey crocodile cloth 101 currently for sale on Ebay (previously described as "brown" until I pointed out to the seller it was in fact "grey"!) at £150 Buy It Now. The lady has struggled to sell it whilst it's had quite a number of page views and watchers. Is this because it's a grey croc turned brown?

[Steve]

But crocodiles are green, so no sense about brown or grey crocodiles...
depositphotos_36262435-stock-photo-cartoon-alligator-illustration-for-the.jpg
((me myself is the proud owner of a brown crocodile 101, so... Guilty!))
Here it is, in my record room
001 002.png

I have the blue and brown croc but my favourite is the brown by far! Just for clarity's sake when I say "blue and brown", I mean a blue 101 and brown 101 and not a blue and brown 101!

[epigramophone]

But crocodiles are green, so no sense about brown or grey crocodiles...
depositphotos_36262435-stock-photo-cartoon-alligator-illustration-for-the.jpg
((me myself is the proud owner of a brown crocodile 101, so... Guilty!))
Here it is, in my record room
001 002.png

Columbia produced a green crocodile 112a portable, but only blue brown and red crocodile were catalogued.
Green must be rare, as mine is one of only three that I have seen in a lifetime's collecting.