The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Inigo wrote: Sun Feb 13, 2022 12:40 pm The thin end of the tonearm where the z elbow of the soundbox enters is delicate and thin. It's made of pot metal and prone to cracks. Mine is completely fallen apart, so I made an emergency repair to be able to play it. Always move the soundbox delicately and never force it! A replacement tonearm is impossible to get. I've been for years after one without success...

Bit of a veer ...

Have you thought about taking it off, carefully, then having it scanned and 3D printed in metal?

I've thought about it, learning herein about several fruitful experiments with 3d parts made for gramophones, but I've not yet known where to do this here (metal? I only knew of pieces printed in plastic)
And I'm afraid the cost would be out of my budget! It sounds very expensive!
Anyway, thanks for the idea... Maybe it could be done in plastic, painting in gold later.

Inigo wrote: Mon Feb 14, 2022 6:59 pm I've thought about it, learning herein about several fruitful experiments with 3d parts made for gramophones, but I've not yet known where to do this here (metal? I only knew of pieces printed in plastic)
And I'm afraid the cost would be out of my budget! It sounds very expensive!
Anyway, thanks for the idea... Maybe it could be done in plastic, painting in gold later.

3D Metal printing is probably still very expensive for the home-user/hobbyist yet.

But there is a very old technique for casting jewellery, lost wax. People have adapted this technique to "lost plastic" casting. An object is printed in a plastic. The object is set in cast material with an inflow and an outflow vent. Molten metal (brass, bronze, aluminium, iron, pot metal?) is poured into the cast and the plastic is displaced.

https://youtu.be/w3i8i-9bjqI

Very interesting, thanks a lot!

4.

Grill cloth.

The disintegrating original grill cloth of my A-V machine is silk, probably tussar silk. I had this confirmed today by an older Indian woman in the textiles section of a Indian shop shop - well .... it is her informed opinion that the fabric scrap I showed her is tussar silk, anyway.

I also found in the same shop a 2.5-yard remnant of a coppery-pinky-brownish tussar silk that is an excellent match for the 100-year-old-plus aged grill cloth colour if not quite the somewhat pinkier original colour as shown in vintage A-V advertising. The new silk is of the same weight as the original and is of only a slightly lighter colour than the aged original, and in some light conditions no difference can be seen with the old cloth laid on top of the new.

Good score!

I only need a 12.5" by 8.5" rectangle of this silk to restore the grill to a vintage-looking (as opposed to new-looking) condition.

You can attach it temporarily to see the effect when assembled...

4.

Grill Cloth - Continued

Picture showing colour match - a fragment of old original silk grill cloth on top of the new silk.

Guy, it's a bit lighter than the 110 year old one, but... I'd bet you've nailed it to the original!

4.

Grille cloth continued.

The lighting conditions are a little different. If I don't like it, I have another 2.5 yards (minus the piece used) to try again.

It looks very nice and authentic!