The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Biggest problem with the 2-35 is that the soundbox fitting is specific to that machine. If it's missing you can't replace it with anything else.

My 2-65 is sounding quite nice aside from a bit of buzzing on some loud passages. Time to have the soundbox looked at.

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1926CredenzaOwner wrote:I stand corrected. (Something I’m quite used to, by the way!) I have never seen one of those before. That has got to be a rare portable, seeing as how it was only made for three years AND during the early years of the Depression. Thanks for posting the pictures!

I've been looking for information about the 2-65, especially, what the original selling price might have been. I did a web search of Google's Newspaper Archive for PORTABLE VICTROLA RCA, limiting the search to 1931-1933, and spotted what looks like one ad in the listing, from the Chicago Tribune of July 30, 1931:

"Display Ad 5 -- No Title
RCA VICTOR PORTABLE VICTROLA FINEST VICTROLA EVER MADE...improved sound box... like a big .... 10 ...one "

Unfortunately, the @#$%^%& charge you to view the ad, which I might consider, if I knew for sure it's what I'm looking for.

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BTW, do you have a copy of Dave Cooper's "The Perfect Portable"?




http://www.amazon.com/His-Masters-Voice ... 1872727492

If not, it's a great companion book to go with your HMV 102.

So Far this Telefunken has a very respectable sound for its size. Much larger projection than I would have expected from a Mica Diaphragm. As to the age I am not sure, but the design is similar to some of the others shown here? Any body know much about them?

At first glance I thought it was an HMV 101 knock-off, but it's not.
The soundbox & tonearm look similar, but the horn must be different. The 101 horn is pictured below, so I think your horn must be like that used in the HMV 88 or 97. If you ever have to remove the motor board for some reason, I'd be interested in seeing the horn.
The soundbox is clearly a copy of the HMV/Victor no.4 design, but the no.4 was 2 ⅝" diameter (approx), and yours looks to me like it might be the 2 ⅞" diameter version made by Paillard.

That's very much like the horn in my Parlophone portable:

Yes, the sound chamber on the Portonette looks much closer to the 101. It wouldn't surprize me if the horn is stamped with the same patent numbers. I'm also wonder if it might have had a soundbox similar to the Portuna pictured below, rather than an aluminium diaphragm box. I never have found out what the Portuna belongs to.

Actually, my macine is marked "Fortonette" and I have no idea what it signifies. Parlophone also made a similar "Lindex" machine which must relate to the firm's name, Lindstrom. I suspect that your machine and mine have Swiss materials in them, possibly Thorens- but I haven't taken mine completely apart.

Ah, Fortonette. I wasn't 100% sure from the picture you posted. The patent dates I posted a pic of are found on the HMV 101 horns. I'm not sure why the words are in ?spanish? rather than English, but the HMV 101 tonearms are stamped the same too.
The soundbox I posted is a Paillards product, so I'd expect to find it used with other Paillard parts rather than Thorens.

I came upon this video of a later model RCA Victor portable--obviously carefully restored. In the video, it actually sounds better than the one I had sounded "in person," even with a rebuilt sound box, etc.

[youtubehd]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcnnUpsAVRI[/youtubehd]