The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Here is a little Brunswick 104 portable with clean up and servicing now done. Peter Wall worked his magic once more, turning a pigs-ear pot metal reproducer into a silk purse that sounds great again. One of the more pleasant surprises is that now that I have oiled its bearings and applied white lithium grease to the gears, it runs as smooth as silk and the running motor is almost completely silent.

Clay

Nice machine. Looks like new. The motors on the Brunswick machines I have also run very quiet and that's a real plus.

Nice machine. I'm always amazed at the volume and quality of sound that comes from such a small package. Jerry Blais

Yes, you have a nice machine. Have you noticed any differences when Brunswick Records are played on it? I am looking for one similar to it.

EdiBrunsVic wrote:Yes, you have a nice machine. Have you noticed any differences when Brunswick Records are played on it? I am looking for one similar to it.

I wouldn't say there are any differences with Brunswick records. They all sound good. So far the only issue I have noticed is that some Victor VEs that are worn drag to a halt. Softer compound I guess. Victor bat wings play great.

I watched eBay for quite a long time looking for a good suitcase portable before this one came along. So often they have had a rough life and are quite battered. This one just needed some clean up and reproducer work.

The 104s sound amazingly good considering that there is no real horn, just a trough down the side.

Clay

FloridaClay wrote: The 104s sound amazingly good considering that there is no real horn, just a trough down the side.

Clay

Very cool machine!

I have a couple Brunswicks with this same reproducer and they both provide great sound with booming volume. Brunswick's version of Ortho-Phonic/Viva-Tonal technology...?

CDB

CDBPDX wrote:

FloridaClay wrote: The 104s sound amazingly good considering that there is no real horn, just a trough down the side.

Clay

Very cool machine!

I have a couple Brunswicks with this same reproducer and they both provide great sound with booming volume. Brunswick's version of Ortho-Phonic/Viva-Tonal technology...?

CDB

Yes, I think so. The metal diaphragms look very much like the Orthophonic diaphragms, except lacking the spider attachment.

Clay

FloridaClay wrote:Here is a little Brunswick 104 portable with clean up and servicing now done. Peter Wall worked his magic once more, turning a pigs-ear pot metal reproducer into a silk purse that sounds great again. One of the more pleasant surprises is that now that I have oiled its bearings and applied white lithium grease to the gears, it runs as smooth as silk and the running motor is almost completely silent.

Clay

Soundbox faces the "wrong" way ? On purpose ?

soundgen wrote:Soundbox faces the "wrong" way ? On purpose ?

That is the way it was set up when I found it. This arrangement seems to be fairly common on Brunswick portables.

Clay

FloridaClay wrote:

soundgen wrote:Soundbox faces the "wrong" way ? On purpose ?

That is the way it was set up when I found it. This arrangement seems to be fairly common on Brunswick portables.

Clay

Both the portable and console Brunswick Panatropes of the "Orthophonic era" all seem to have the soundbox facing "the wrong way". The Panatrope 104 must be an early c.1925-1927 model. Here is my Panatrope 106, which I date as a 1928 model having seen it in an ad of that year. I found this at the bottom of a pile of 1940s table radios in December, 2005 at a flea market in Shannondale, Indiana. It was in the unheated side of the building, so my fingers were a little numb as I excitedly hauled it up from the floor after spotting the crank on the side of it. The case looks tattered on the outside, and I haven't addressed that yet. Just a slight turn of the crank when I got it into the car told me to hold off til it warmed up. So after setting on a table in my vintage room overnight I wound it up to see how much work it needed. The motor(single spring)ran fine, quiet. The reproducer functioned, but was harsh on loud passages so I knew it needed a rebuild. I sent it to Victrola Repair Service in St. Johnsbury, Vermont and it has played well ever since. Nice "Orthophonic" sound to it, but not a huge amount of volume-fills an average room, though. I tend not to use loud tone needles in any of my machines, using medium tone and soft tone(especially for band records). In fact my 1926 Credenza will hurt your ears if you play a loud orchestral or band(Paul Whiteman, Arthur Pryor, etc.) with anything but a soft tone needle

Dennis