The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Greetings -- I'm in the process of cleaning a Credenza in preparation for restoration, and I'm curious about some holes in the bottom of the cabinet. There are two mirror-image sets of three holes, each located in the bottom record storage sections. Two holes, about a quarter-inch in diameter, are aligned about an inch and a half from the inner wall of the storage area. Each of these is circled by a mark about an inch in diameter that could be interpreted as the mark of a large washer, or maybe just a placement guide. A third hole, about a half-inch in diameter, is a little left of center and about seven inches from the front edge of the storage area. All of the holes go clean through the base of the cabinet.

I'm wondering what these holes are for. This Credenza dates from mid-1926, after the turntable was shifted to the right, but it doesn't have record lifts. Apart from the finish, which has apparently had a few "colorful" iterations (see last pic), the machine seems to be entirely original, and apart from these holes, there's no indication that it's ever been used as anything other than a phonograph.

My admittedly sometimes feverish imagination makes me wonder if perhaps Victor had had an intention, at the time when the turntable was moved from the center, to begin to offer the Credenza with a radio option? It might explain the deck redesign, which would have made room on the left for radio controls. If I'm not mistaken, we do know that Victor had some hard times in 1924 and 1925, when people bought more radios than phonographs, and by 1926 had introduced some nice purpose-built radio-phonograph combinations, with and without electric motors.

There may be some simple explanation for these holes that I'm not aware of, but is it possible that, for a moment, Victor planned a radio option for the 8-30? To stretch it even further, might it be possible that they planned to use the Orthophonic horn for the radio feature as well as for records?

(Note: the two darker pictures are taken from the back of the cabinet, the others from the front.)

There the attachment points for bolting the machine to the shipping crate.

And there it is...the simple explanation that eluded me. I think you're probably right. It would also explain the washer-marks. Are these holes common in a Credenza, then? It seems like kind of a brutal thing to do to such a nice piece of furniture, even in a place where the holes wouldn't be seen, but...it makes sense. Doggone feverish imagination...

Same holes with washer dents in my Credenza X and 8-30E ...

Those holes were for bolting it to the shipping crates and the Credenza is not the only phonograph by Victor to have them. Holes for bolting to the crate can be found in many floor models by Victor, not only on the bottom, but also on the rear of some machines.

Matt

On my VV-XI there are holes with threaded metal inserts (¼"-20) intended to receive the bolts securing the turntable to the underside of the cabinet, for shipping. I'm not guessing; it says so in the set-up section Owner's Manual.

Huh. I got so involved in my radio-option fantasy that it completely slipped my mind that these things weren't shipped in cardboard boxes with five inches of foam padding! And the timely shift of the turntable to the right was fuel for my conjecturing fire...

It's not worth a thread of its own, but regarding that change of turntable position, is it known what prompted the design change? The record lifts didn't show up until a few months after the change, so they can't have been the purpose behind it. Was it really just to make room for a stack of records on the deck?

The Credenza looks more...I dunno, regal, with the centered turntable, and there's more elbow room that way when playing the machine. It seems like a case of fixing what ain't broke.