The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hi All- I recently picked up a Victor flat crank and am wanting to id which machine it would have been on... It is the middle crank in the picture below--- I've included other cranks for comparison-- The bottom crank is from an "M" and has the smaller knob-- The top crank is from my Vic III.. The middle crank's knob is the same size/shape as my III crank -and larger than any other flat cranks I have-- It is a standard Victor female thread and the shaft is 3 ⅞" long.. The overall length of the flat portion is also 3 ⅞"... I'd appreciate help from the Victor experts in TMF-land.

Thanks!!

Brad Abell

Possibly an early VV-VIII. The wear marks look like it reaches quite a ways into the cabinet.
Ken

Ken- You're a genius I have an early VIII project machine on the shelves in the garage that I haven't looked at in years (I know-- I'll get to it!)-- I pulled it off the shelf, opened it up and Shazam! The crank is identical.
Thanks Ken!! I knew someone would identify it.

Brad Abell

I just did a repair for someone with an early VV-VIII and he is missing the crank. I referred him to Ron Sitko for one and Harvey Kravitz offered an original. I never heard which one he went for.
Ken Brekke

The middle one is also for an early VV IV, and a VV VI. These early machines had the crank in the forward position.
Harvey Kravitz

I've got a VV-VIII with the crank in the forward position and I need a crank. I tried a Victor III threaded crank and the opening is too small. I need a Victrola female crank that has a larger opening than the ordinary Victor threaded crank.

Thanks, Jerry Blais

Hey Jerry-- I'll test it tomorrow and see if it's different than the III thread... Just looking at it, it looks the same. Just got in for the night and it's 11:00, so this old man's going to bed

Brad

Hi Jerry-- I tested the flat crank that I pictured in my post-- It is indeed very slightly larger in diameter than the Vic III crank. What is really strange, is that it is also larger than the identical looking crank that I found in my early VIII.. The crank for my VIII is the same thread as my Vic III and also fits on other early motors eg a Vic V motor on my shelf, a Vic II, etc. Victor must have used two different crank shafts over the run of the earlier VIII's with the forward crank placement. My serial # is 2493. I assume the 4-digit # makes it pretty early.

So.... The crank pictured in the middle on my original post may well fit your VIII. I'll try to find my thread gauges and see what else I can determine.

Brad Abell