The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I have been working on this RCA special for about nine months. This is the portable record player that John Vasso designed for RCA to be shown at the 1939 Worlds Fair. RCA made four models. There was a red vinyl model J, a aluminum outside suitcase model K accented in red , a green vinyl model M ( this one ) and a model M again polished aluminum case accented in green. I had the small amplifier rebuilt 9which has 1.5 volt filament voltage and 90 volts plate voltage ) I finally found a battery replica that has ten nine volt batteries and a 1.5 volt battery in it. They do not make the old battery. I also had the crystal cartridge rebuilt and this thing sounds nice. It is wound-up like a regular record player then the amp is turned on when the record starts. Tom

That's sweet -great job at redoing the unit!

I saw it (and heard it) in person yesterday! Great restoration job!

Mike Sorter

Lovely job. Where did you get the battery box?. Mine looks so ugly all wrapped in duct tape with loads of wires.

Any chance of getting a video of it playing?

chunnybh wrote:Lovely job. Where did you get the battery box?. Mine looks so ugly all wrapped in duct tape with loads of wires.

I got the battery box from eds antique radio web site . He is out of town right now. You will have to use your connector from your battery. I originally brought an transoceanic battery but I had to do a lot of modifications. This was built for this phonograph and looks original.
Dan I will do a recording and post it. I will have to try my IPhone . I have never posted a video but it may be time. Tom

Very nice. I rarely see these for sale. How
Much are they going for?

I have always liked the chrome one.

melvind wrote:Any chance of getting a video of it playing?

^ This guy has the right idea ^

I paid $ 450.00 for mine. It took a cartridge rebuild at $70.00, amplifier rebuild $ 65.00, a diamond styles at $ 25.00 and a battery at $ 80.00. That does not include the first battery I brought and did not like. The sought after ones are the ones in the aluminum cases. they go for the big bucks. There was a red vinyl a while back for $ 500.00 Tom

How long do the batteries last? Is there a way to recharge them?