The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hi guys, I just picked up a black suitcase style Viva Tonal at the swap meet today. While I'm very familiar with Victor and Edison reproducers, this is the first one of these I've tackled. As it is, it appears the needle bar has ripped out of the center hole of the aluminum diaphragm at some point. The part of the needle bar that connects to the aluminum has a very tiny threaded piece where I believe a tiny nut should thread. My question is... is this a normal setup for this type of reproducer? The reason I ask is that upon close inspection, it seems this threaded portion looks neatly soldered or welded to the rest of the needle bar. I'm not sure if this is a factory weld, or if this is the work of some repairman years ago. Thanks!

This is the Columbia 15A soundbox, one of the best ever made, in my opinion. Originally, the stylus bar is attached to the diaphragm by a tiny screw which goes through the back of the diaphragm, into a threaded hole in the stylus bar. The original diaphragm has obviously been replaced, and it looks as though, in trying to remove the screw, it has snapped off, leaving the thread portion in the bar. Either that, or the screw has been lost, and a new threaded piece soldered in place. Fortunately, replacement stylus bar assemblies are available, as are diaphragms. If you need contacts for these, send me a PM.

Barry

I've been working on my #15 recently. On mine, the needle bar has a threaded part that goes through the diaphragm. There's a TINY nut that goes on from the back.