The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I forgot to add that it's not a bad idea to buy a reproducer that has already been restored. Otherwise you are paying someone to restore it anyway. Maybe you had some luck with the one that Jerry B. sent you a message on? The one that is on eBay now that is restored is $85, which is a lot. But you have no money in the machine anyway!!! Here is the link:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Victor-Talking ... Sw6tNdk6de

Good luck!

I sent this guy a pm telling him that I had an original reproducer that I would sell him to complete his machine and he hasn't even read the pm. It's still in my outbox

He is brand new to the Forum, I believe. He may not know about PMs. You may be able to email him?

I finally got back around to this project and found all the great replies a few moments ago.

I'm going to go ahead and order from EBay. I'll update the thread when I get it going again.

What a lovely idea! Best of luck with the restoration.

Now, moving beyond that point...when you have the machine back up and running, you'll be playing records with steel needles. You can get them in packs of maybe 100 or so for a few dollars in various grades ("soft," "medium," "loud," etc.), and you probably will want to pick up some of each. It's important to change the needle with each side; put a new record on the turntable, put a new needle in the reproducer.

Before you play your records, take a quick look to figure out what you have. For example, while the chances are remote, since the machine is a Zonophone it's not impossible you might have a record or records of Enrico Caruso on the Zonophone label. Caruso's Victor records are, for the most part, fairly common, but his few Zonophone records were not on the market for long and can be worth hundreds of dollars each in good condition. Needless to say, if you're lucky enough to have inherited one or more of those, you don't want to play it on a heavy-tracking antique machine with steel needles! More likely, your records will be common issues of the day whose main value is in their enjoyment, and if that's the case you needn't worry about playing them on your beautiful old machine.

Thank you everyone for the great tips.

I received a Victor/Victrola Exhibition "Round Hole" Rebuilt Reproducer from an EBay seller out of Vermont today.
I also ordered a variety of soft, medium and loud needles a few minutes ago. Than you drh for the tips on needles. I had no idea these were changed so often!

I am also in search of a 9" replacement felt but it has been hard to find. I will likely just cut one out of felt from the local hobby store.

I do have a question for the group...

The reproducer flange does not fit into the hole of the tonearm. It is a little too large.
I assume I should remove the flange and use a custom cut gasket as mentioned earlier in the thread?

The next update will be on the actual records that we inherited.
I have a feeling we have some good old stuff as the family has owned the Zono-Phone since 1903.

Thanks again! Great forum.

Hello Dwayne, glad you got a reproducer for the old Zonophone.

But don't get hobby store felt. Seriously, it is cheap--but a horn Zon-O-Phone is insanely rare & classic. It'd be like putting $8.00 wipers on a Stutz-Bearcat.

Hobby store felt is usually an acrylic synthetic, and the original turntable mat was felted wool. What you can do to find that 9" mat is to buy a 10" mat, put it on the turntable with a pencil through the spindle hole, and glue it on. Then turn it upside down on glass or metal and trim the excess away with a razor blade or hobby knife.

Have you gone through the old motor yet? The oil and grease probably haven't been changed since 1903, so you'll want to get that freshened up. Some of them will try to run on old oil, but for the life of the machine (and to make listening parties easier, without getting up so often to crank!) you will want to have that freshened and perhaps replace your mainsprings with new replicas if the old ones have lost their strength. I bought a 1909 Columbia with working but tired springs and replacing them really gave it more potency--it now plays two or three discs on one winding, which is good, because it has a little tiny "knuckle buster" crank on it.

I'm glad you have inherited such a pretty and significant old machine, but it's always better to restore it in the present how you'd want to see it in the future. Carry on, Dwayne! With any luck you'll have a Christmas party your family won't soon forget.

Dwayne wrote:
I am also in search of a 9" replacement felt but it has been hard to find. I will likely just cut one out of felt from the local hobby store.

I do have a question for the group...

The reproducer flange does not fit into the hole of the tonearm. It is a little too large.
I assume I should remove the flange and use a custom cut gasket as mentioned earlier in the thread?

I agree about getting some good wool felt instead of hobby store stuff.

For the Exhibition reproducer, you will have to remove the rubber back flange, because on the Zonophone it is screwed right to the tonearm. The two screw holes on the tonearm should line up with the holes in the back of the reproducer. You will need some thin flat rubber gasket between the tonearm and reproducer. If you are luck you will find ready made round rubber washers of the correct size at a god hardware store. Otherwise just get some flat rubber gasket material and cut it yourself. You will also need some small slotted screws that fit into the holes of the reproducer, since the large screws for the back flange won't work. Keep the screws and the back flange, you may need them in the future, or you can see them.

Andreas