Removing the back panel from a Victrola

[Henry]

Yeah, I had noticed that Ortho arm and box, too. Wonder how this baby sounds? It still has its original horn, I assume. The VV-100, along with the 90, were successors to the XI, and it shows in the cabinet designs. Acc. to LFTD, 195,283 VV-100 w/springs were produced, and 38 electrics (but evidently not this one). I actually like the reuse of the winding key hole for the electric cord!

[De Soto Frank]

My 1909 VV-XVI L-door has an upper drop-down leaf at the back of the cabinet, that gives access to the rear of the motor.

My 1927 VE- 8-12 has a removable back panel ( I think ) via a number of various obvious screws.

My 1919 VV-XI oak upright's back panel is very much glued in place and is non -removable.


I think varies from machine to machine, but if the panel was designed to be removable, it would be a fairly obvious process. If you don't see any screws or plug-buttons covering screws, then I would not expect the panel to be intended to be removed.

[Henry]

My 1919 VV-XI oak upright's back panel is very much glued in place and is non -removable.

That's interesting, because my 1917 mahogany XI has the removable panel. Guess they figured that the horn would never have to come out of yours, Frank, once they got it in there.

[De Soto Frank]

Henry, you've piqued my interest... I 'll have a real close look at it tonight.


FWIW, I always figured the horn went in through the top, before the motor-board frame was installed...

De S Frank

[chem_jv]

were supposed to be two wooden knobs attached to the back panel, and indeed there are holes for same in the panel, but no knobs.

Victrola was shipped it was bolted to a frame inside the shipping crate. These bolt holes were visible when the Victrola was removed from the crate, so wooden plugs finished to match the cabinet were provided in a separate envelope. The owner or store was supposed to install these in the holes, but they either didn't bother or the plugs fell out. The plugs are a loose fit, so it would be easy for them to fall out.

so since there is some question about what these knobs originally looked like, I thought I would post the knobs that are on the back of my VV-XI. This is a 1916 machine and is remarkably well preserved. While I have the two knobs, mine is missing the license sticker. oh, well, enjoy.

[Henry]

Many thanks, chem_jv!! The knobs I got at the hardware store are similar to yours, but a bit larger and with a somewhat different profile. They were originally unfinished wood, but I stained them ebony and installed them in the empty holes in the panel. The layout of my panel is the same as yours, with the two screws, as shown, holding the panel in place. My XI does have the license sticker where yours used to be, and it's dated, which helps to pinpoint its production date c. June 1917.

BTW, there are additional holes in the base of the cabinet, four of them, with threaded metal inserts which held ¼"-20 bolts. According to the instructions, the turntable was shipped bolted to the bottom of the cabinet, thus the threaded inserts.

[De Soto Frank]

Well, it took about a week longer to get around to it than I originally expected, but today, I finally pulled my 1919 VV XI Oak out of the corner, and had a look at its backside....


Turns-out it has a stile & rail "slat-back", with a removeable panel at the top.

I guess I must have had it confused with "finished backs" on my Diamond Disc, Brunswick, and Pathéphone machines.


Some pics...

[Henry]

Yep, Frank, exactly like my XI, complete with the two empty holes---that's where I installed the wooden knobs from the hdw. store. Now you might want to take that back off and see what's lurking back there in the crevices.