The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

It seems wise to get my most valuable machine in shape. I have cleaned up the cabinet and discovered a few things appear to be MIA. If anyone has any of the following let me know:

Screws to mount the motor to the motor board and the board to the cabinet
A crank or someone who will replate mine. The gold is all off
Crank escutcheon
Someone to come to my house and show me how to refresh the motor

I think that is all for now.
Thanks
Andrea

*A few great members have convinced me to salvage my shelf so I got that covered. Thanks to downsouth for having the lid support and mattrx for the leather.

Are you sure your crank escutcheon is missing? They look an awful lot like the one found on Edison cylinder machines.

Yup. It is missing. Just a hole. I don't remember seeing it so I think the previous owner took it off. I am going to recheck all my bits but figured I would but it out there. Thankd for the picture. That does help. Also my bullet break leather is all rotted if someone would take a picture of how it should look.

Not a problem. I also uploaded photos of the record trays for a VTLA and VV-XVI (L door). The knob looks like the one on the VV-XVI, but the board is built differently. The VTLA is on the left and is a little shorter (21.25 inches) than the one for the XVI (22 inches). While I'm at it there is a photo of the screw holding the motor. The silver one on the left is from my VTLA, and the gold ones came out of an early VV-XIV someone cut in half. I have 4 of the shorter ones and 1 long one. They're the wrong colour, but will hold the motor in if you can't find the correct ones. Maybe a good polishing will "restore" the "correct" colour. If you want them send me an address and I'll pop them in the mail.

Thank you so much. The shelf I have is a VTLA shelf then but it cracked right at the screw hole so the pull doesn't work. I could almost just have flipped it around but the back is stamped with a product number.

Also,

I think I have the wrong turntable. Would that have been gold plated too? Mine isn't which seems odd.

Your nickel plated turntable is correct. Gold plating was too fragile to allow the brake to rub against so the turntable edge was nickel plated. Jerry

Thanks Jerry I didn't think of the brake. I have a gold plated Columbia turntable but it has a later style break. Good then my machine is really shaping up.

Andrea, Jerry gave me the same info a while back. I had a local plater plate my turntable for the VTLA and it looks beautiful with the new plating and the new turntable felt. There was NO plating left on mine, nor was there any felt. The turntable does look like a new turntable on an otherwise old phono, but I still like the look every time I open the machine.

My 2 cents,

Matt

My nickel turntable polished up great. My felt is dirty so I will replace it. I cleaned all the gold plating with amonia and was amazed at the outcome. I will need to replate the crank because all the plating is off it.