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Suppose you had a pile of bare cylinders with both two-minute and four-minute cylinder recordings mixed together. Is it possible to separate them with just a simple visual examination? For example, if cylinders are blue, does that mean they are just four-minute blue amberols? Or if black, does that mean they are two-minute recordings? thanks in advance for any response. John

The blue ones are going to be 4 minute cylinders. Black ones could be either. I generally just look at the grooves, after a while you can tell them apart. When in doubt I would try playing a cylinder on a two minute setting and if it skips tracks you have your answer. I would not try this with a 4 minute reproducer as you are going to do some damage to a wax cylinder.

This article shows what most cylinder types look like (scroll about ⅓ down):

http://www.antiquephono.org/basic-antiq ... onal-tips/

Also note that many black celluloid cylinders are marked "2M" or "4M." If not marked either way, it's probably a 2 minute cylinder.

George P.

I would be very, very careful with the four minute black wax Amberol records. These are quite delicate, and using the wrong stylus might damage them. They are fairly easy to identify, however. virtually all of them show the catalogue number on the end plate in the form "4M-NNNNN", where 'N' is the numeric catalogue number. On rare occasions you will find "D" or "Special" in the number as well. Another telltale is that they look similar to two minute wax records, but with flat end plates and have no inner lining such as those you will find on blue Amberols, Indestructibles or US-Everlasting.

After a while you will be able to spot four minute records by the fact that there are twice as many grooves.

Good hunting!

Keith

Like others have said...If it's not blue, or doesn't say "4M" on the title end, it's probably a 2M record.

I'll also mention that the Edison "Royal Purple" series cylinders, which are a sort of mauve color, are all 4 minute.

"Is it possible to separate them with just a simple visual examination?"

Yes sir...You Betcha!

"...If it's not blue, or doesn't say "4M" on the title end, it's probably a 2M record"

I agree. I've never seen a 4-Minute cylinder that wasn't ever marked "4M" other than Royal Purple or Blue Amberols. Lots of 2 Minute cylinders aren't marked, It's pretty safe to assume that they are a 2-minute cylinder if they are not marked.

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Tony K.

http://members.tripod.com/edison_1/id16.html A page I made to help identify normal cylinders. I have a few kinds to add like Concert or intermediate records like Busy Bee and Pathé'.

Great. And the links were just what the doctor ordered. Now, I did take a loupe and examine the threads. I have one (only one) two-minute cylinder, a Columbia recording of a Sousa march. If I look at the beginning of the recording, where the stylus is in a straight groove before the music starts, I can clearly see the thread count is half of what it is for a four-minute cylinder. Beyond that point, my eye can't tell the difference even with the loupe. But still I can go by color and other markings as well. Thanks to everyone. Now my problem is, lots of four-minute recordings and no machine to play them.

jboger wrote:Great. And the links were just what the doctor ordered. Now, I did take a loupe and examine the threads. I have one (only one) two-minute cylinder, a Columbia recording of a Sousa march. If I look at the beginning of the recording, where the stylus is in a straight groove before the music starts, I can clearly see the thread count is half of what it is for a four-minute cylinder. Beyond that point, my eye can't tell the difference even with the loupe. But still I can go by color and other markings as well. Thanks to everyone. Now my problem is, lots of four-minute recordings and no machine to play them.

You may want to consider offering your 4 minute records in the Yankee Trader section, perhaps offering to trade for 2 minute records? Or perhaps you might want to post a wanted ad looking for a 4 minute (or 2 and 4 minute) machine.