The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I was looking over some different machines this morning and when I looked at my Edison Diamond Disc, it sparked my memory on what I recall to be a screw feed disc phonograph aside from the Edison? I can't remember for the life of me what the name of this machine is (or if it even exists! - I might just me making this up?) Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks - Nick

At least one Zonophone was manufactured with a feedscrew in 1900. Aretino briefly offered a machine with a fixed front-mount horn and a laterally-driven turntable in 1908. In 1910 Sonora produced a small number of machines with a feed-driven reproducer. Keenophone marketed laterally-driven turntable machines from 1911-1913. Was it one of these?

George P.

And very early Sonoras with a laterally-tracking feedscrew-driven arm sourced from Paillard and imported to the US.

Ha! I was just adding Sonora and you beat me to it, John!

George P.

phonogfp wrote:Ha! I was just adding Sonora and you beat me to it, John!

George P.

Great minds! Lol!

The early fancy Keen-O-Phones had a turntable that moved under a fixed position reproducer. Do they qualify as a feed screw disc machine? Jerry Blais

I would say yes. As I understand it, the Edison Amberola 1a, 1b, III and Opera are considered to be feedscrew driven. The concept is the same. The major difference is that the Edisons move the mandrel under the fixed reproducer while the disc machines mentioned move the complete motor and turntable under the relatively fixed reproducer. Simply an expensive way to attempt to circumvent the basic Berliner patents. An attempt which was ultimately not upheld by the courts.

Jim

VTM company brought a patent infringement action against The Automatic Machine Tool Company, which produced the Gabel Automatic Entertainer in 1906. The claim concerned the record groove propelling the tone arm across the record. The Automatic Entertainer had a feed screw that more or less kept the back end of the tone arm moving at the same rate as the reproducer. In a dramatic court room demonstration, the attorney for The Automatic Machine Tool Company disconnected the drive to the feed screw and within a few revolutions of the record, the needle began to repeat in the same groove. This was sufficient to convince the patent review board that the tone arm of the Automatic Entertainer was not propelled by the record. Victor Talking Machine Company lost that one.