The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I have had the opportunity to fly antiques (phonographs, radios, telephones, etc) from Texas, Nevada, New York, Florida, and Michigan. I'm just returning from the big antique shows in central Florida and it's back to work tomorrow morning. In tow I have telephones, radios, depression glass, celluloid, and other things. I put a bunch of stuff in a big FedEX box to send back, but have to hand-carry my best things and most fragile things. Last year I hauled an 1880s electric battery kit through Orlando International Airport and was taken aside by a 22-year-old TSA agent. A few years before that I had parts from and Edison Standard. It's always an interesting history lesson and show-and-tell!

What experiences / items have you had through airport security?

Damon
St Louis, M0

"Excuse me sir.....just step over here for us.....we would like to have a word with you".... .

A few years back I went to a Harley rally in Oklahoma (I live in England).I took the opportunity to buy some harley parts online and get them sent to my friend and I'd pick them up at the rally.
What I forgot was that 2 exhaust tips and a Sony/harley stereo adaptor would show up on the scanner as 2 finned steel tubes and a box with wires coming out of it.....

Steve

My son just took a stack of 78s (about 40) to Germany for a friend of mine. It seems that the security X-ray machines can't identify records, so he had to unpack them all. I had packed them very well, so I was a bit concerned how he re-packed them. But no breakage. At least they were friendly...

Andreas

I was going through security at LAX and the TSA officer was concerned about a cased Q I was carrying on board. I took the lid off and explained what the machine was. She clearly was NOT an admirer of antiques. At one point she wanted me to open up the mandrel! Fortunately, it didn't come to that...

George P.

Not a phonograph story, but I was once pulled over and asked about the "liquid in a long tube" in my suitcase. I knew I didn't have any liquid. They said it looked like a water balloon. Nope, no idea. Well, after they swabbed my bag for explosives and unpacked about ¾ of it, they found - a summer sausage. I had packed it away in one of my boots. Why that showed up as liquid is still beyond me...

"...they found - a summer sausage. I had packed it away in one of my boots."

Sorry, but this conjured up a strange thought... I have to ask - how did it taste afterwards?

Curt A wrote:"...they found - a summer sausage. I had packed it away in one of my boots."

Sorry, but this conjured up a strange thought... I have to ask - how did it taste afterwards?

Since it was sealed in shrink wrap it tasted just fine, but thanks for asking...?

Having transported many phonographs on planes trips, two specific incidents come to mind.

Living in Florida, I had secured the purchase of a phonograph out "West." I travelled to get the phonograph and was able to purchase it without incident as previously planned. I then headed back to the airport. Based on previous experience, I always allowed at least one additional hour of boarding time to get through security. When travelling with a phonograph as checked-luggage, there is the inevitable call for a “back-check” once the phonograph travels through the x-ray machine. True to previous experience, I was invited for a bag-check at a table at the end of the security of line. Depending on the voracity of the security personnel, one is either able to assist with the inspection of the phonograph during the back-check, or left helplessly to watch as security personnel fumble to unpack the obviously unfamiliar item. In this incident, I was not only cautioned to stand back and not touch anything in or around the bag, I was informed that a drug check would be performed on the contents of the bag. This obviously surprised me. It was pre-9/11 and such security measures were not common at all. Only casually knowing the individual from whom I purchased the phonograph, all sorts of crazy scenarios started flashing through my mind. All of them seemed to end with me stranded in a local jail due to a cocaine laced phonograph. My surprise, and inability to hide it, caught the attention of the security personnel. This resulted in a barrage of questions. Fortunately, after a negative (no drugs found) result from the drug test, and satisfactory answers to all questions posed, I was able to proceed on my way back to Florida with my machine.

The second incident was in San Francisco. I was living where I currently reside in Michigan and agreed to transport a phonograph for a friend back from a business trip to San Francisco. Having pre-planned the travel, I had a bag of the correct size for the machine to transport it on the plane. The machine was an unusual and early front mount machine, but I had a bag that the horn and all would fit in, and sit under the seat on the plane. During the trip I was able to successfully collect the machine and have a really nice visit with a fellow collector and friend to boot. At the end of my trip, I headed to the airport (with an extra hour to spare) and proceeded to security. This was post-9/11 so I knew there would be a good amount of inspection from bringing such an unusual item through security. When I sat the bag with the phonograph in it on the conveyer that headed to the x-ray machine, I casually mentioned to the security guard standing there that “they’ll want to inspect that bag.” I thought it smart to let them know that it was something special/ unusual, and I expected to have it inspected. However, my casual pre-emptive comment resulted in an absolute grilling of questions: “Why would you say that?” “What’s in the bag?” “Are you trying to transport something illegal?” etc. etc. etc. etc. This lasted what seemed like an eternity. In the mean-time, the bag and the phonograph within passed through the x-ray machine, and the attention of the monitoring security personnel, unquestioned! The phonograph, in the bag, was sitting at the end of the security conveyer line, cleared to go, while I stood outside answering questions. Eventually, I was allowed to pass, pick up the bag with the phonograph and proceed home without incident.

I’ve got a few more, but these two are the best.

Shawn O’Rourke.

Airport security checks are nothing new, back in the early '70s they were looking for handguns due to airplane hijackings. I recall several memorable searches, but only one was phonograph related.

1. Back in '72 I found an antique store in San Francisco that had several hundred Edison 2M Gold Molded cylinders in the common cartons, but nearly all the cylinders were hopelessly moldy. I remember a number of the cartons carried a dealer sticker from a local phonograph store, Peter Bachigalupi. The name meant nothing to me back then. I bought about 20 cylinders and had to open every one of them at the airport for inspection.

2. Another time, I flew back to college after the holidays. I had bought a little white mouse for a dorm pet and was transporting him in a glass jar with a perforated lid. The jar was inside my handbag. I cautioned the security woman to be careful handling my handbag because of my pet mouse. She obviously thought I was joking, but who was I to question her authority? I'll never forget the shocked expression on her face when she withdrew the jar and discovered there was indeed a mouse. She nearly dropped the jar! "I told you so!"