The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hey there, new to the hobby and didn't realize what I was getting into until it was too late. Now spending a lot of time getting caught up on all the wind up wonders out there.

I've seen a couple of old ads for this machine, I imagine it's one of the hundreds of off brands. Looks like it might have been a midwest manufacturer. This would make sense as I pulled it out of a hotel that was built in 1888. Was wondering if anyone else had run across this model. I'm also going to need to replace the reproducer gaskets and was wondering if there was a more common model that is comparable to the one I have that I can reference to help find parts.

Welcome to the Forum and to the sickn...err...hobby!

Your Silverola is one of the many which modern collectors refer to as "off brands." There's no pejorative intended in the term; it simply means it's not one of the bigger, better-known brands. There's an outstanding article on these off brands at the Antique Phonograph Society website:

http://www.antiquephono.org/brand-talki ... j-wakeman/

Your sound box appears to be labeled "Cecilian," which was a Montgomery-Ward trade name for its talking machines. However, I'm not familiar with "Silverola" having been used by M-W. It's possible that the sound box/tone arm have been replaced, which is a common occurrence.

Your Silverola is a cute little guy, and it's fortunate that the delicate grille seems to have survived with little damage. Do you have the door for the record storage compartment?

Good luck with your restoration!

George P.

All the parts you need can be purchased from Ron Sitko (518) 371-8549 new reproducer gasket tubing is sold by the foot for $1 a foot. If you have anymore questions just send me a Pm.

Unfortunately there were no doors. So I'm deciding if I just want to leave it open or go looking for ( or make ) replacements. By the dust and debris that was inside of it I am thinking it was that way for a long time and I kind of like the open look.

I noticed that when I took the tone arm off there were six holes instead of just the three that this tone arm uses. Which makes me think it might have been replaced with something that had a different alignment pattern to the previous one.

Thanks for the pointer on the gaskets will track that down.

Congrats for your purchase, looks like a very nice machine that truly deserves your cares. The motor looks powerful and well built, and I can easily figure that this gramophone will give you great satisfaction and hours of pleasant listening.