Trolling Rigs For Fishing Made From Victrolas

[Damfino59]

never heard about this before this post - here's another one on Craigslist

https://syracuse.craigslist.org/spo/d/s ... 62366.html

Ingenuity for adapting a 400 ft 16mm film reel. Nowadays people usually make those into a clock and sell them on Etsy!

[edisonclassm]

60 years ago, I was a beginner collector in search of the rare phonograph treasures, so I put a want ad in the local pennysaver looking to buy old wind-up phonographs. I got a call from a guy who made these retrievers and sold them to the local fisherman. (I live just a couple of miles from Lake Erie) He said he had hundreds of motors and was getting too old to build them, so I went and took a look at what he had out of curiosity. When I got there and saw what he had I was overwhelmed to say the least. As it was, he wanted too much for what he had claiming he would do better by selling them to the local fishermen. I think of that incident periodically and wonder if there had been some rare motors in amongst the bunch. In any event, a lot of phonographs were destroyed as a result. My thoughts were that he went around on junk day and extracted the motors out of the phonographs that were parked out at the curb. I'm sure there was a time when people were throwing these things out to the garbage just like the old BW cabinet TV's. I used to see those being thrown out as a kid but never saw an old wind-up phonograph being thrown out.

[JerryVan]

I'm sure there was a time when people were throwing these things out to the garbage just like the old BW cabinet TV's. I used to see those being thrown out as a kid but never saw an old wind-up phonograph being thrown out.

My dad, who was born in 1922, commented many times that he never recalled seeing an outside horn phonograph in the trash. It was not for want of looking either. He was always going up and down alleys in search of treasure. He may have seen some inside horn floor models, however. In fact, he never actually laid eyes on an outside horn phonograph until I began collecting them.

Personally, I have found a few floor models in the trash. Many years ago, a Victrola, and a couple months ago, a Brunswick phono/radio combo. I pulled the tubes, (UV-99's), and reproducer. Not much else was worth grabbing. I would have taken the motor, but the motor board screws were too rusted in place to budge.

[Inigo]

I've only found 78s on a bench in the street, together with LP's, carefully laid down for anyone to pick them. I guess they were emptying and old college hall or something and they felt sick to throw them in the trash bin. This was January 2019.
Another time my son found the gooseneck end and hmv no4 soundbox from a hmv101, demi-buried in the park gardens. No more parts were around.