The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I just returned from looking at this cabinet and it feels like an accessory cabinet to a internal horn machine.

What do you think, is it a record cabinet?
Does its style match an existing internal horn machine?

The owner was stationed in England years ago, bought it, and brought it home. He was told it was a music cabinet. It has had veneer work, refinishing and a resent hole drilled in he back for an electric cord, but I did not see obvious signs of alteration from other possible uses. It is petit and would complement a cylinder or disc machine well. The size is 16" x 17" x 39" and looks to date from 1900 - 1915. There was a patent number on the lid stay and a manufacturer name on the back of the door pulls. However, I could not see to actually read them.

I thought at very least it would be a good source of discussion.

Thanks,
James.

It looks like a record cabinet when closed, but the open picture looks more like an actual phonograph cabinet missing it's guts and made into a bar. The slide out on the right side would be about where a hole should be for a crank... The opening in front below the top looks like it could have held a horn. The thing that doesn't make sense about it being a record cabinet for a tabletop machine, is that if you stored anything in the top area, you would have to move the machine off each time you wanted something out of it...

What puzzles me is the full length doors- to open the horn you'd have to expose the record storage. That WAS done on occasion, but it is still odd.

Was Sonora was the only company that marketed an accessory cabinet to match their product line?
It's only 39" tall, is there a petit internal horn machine that did not offer record storage, similar to this HMV?
James.

I agree with Curt it looks like a phonograph sans guts.

where is the hole for the crank?
Why would a phonograph have a drawer in the side?
How does that drawer work with a motor in the way?


(PS: I've not looked through all the P&F books yet to see if this an accessory cabinet)

As Retrograde questioned:
where is the hole for the crank?
Why would a phonograph have a drawer in the side?
How does that drawer work with a motor in the way?

Answer: The hole for the crank disappeared with an alteration to place a drawer in the side (no big deal) and obviously the motor was removed to make way for the drawer...

Why would a phonograph have a drawer? Who knows... why would a Pooley flat top be made into a table model? That similar question could be asked about many eBay listings...