The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I'm looking for origional listening tubes (for ics machine) in good condition.

Still looking/bump

Still looking

It's going to be very hard to get a decent set of tubes if they have to be original Edison stock. Case in point: I collect antique fountain pens and the old lever- and button-fill models use a rubber bladder called the sac to hold the ink. The sac is either decaying into a gummy mess, or it's hardened into a glasslike brittle substance that shatters when the lever is pulled (if it doesn't break the lever!)

A set of listening tube hardware? Now that might be good. Get the vintage hardware such as the connector, the Y, and the earbuds and then get some latex tubing and build a set with some dimensions. Certainly someone on here might help you out with how long the hose needs to be.

Good luck!

I can supply a complete set of exact reproduction listening tubes (with rubber tubing) for $40 + shipping. PM me for details. (Click image twice to enlarge.)

George P.

I have one set of original listening tubes that I bought over 20 years ago. The rubber, as VanEpsFan points out, was so brittle it crumbled into tiny pieces when I picked it up. Obviously I kept the ear pieces and Y tube, and I use them today with new rubber. That said, it is literally impossible for me to tell those apart from the replicas now offered by George Paul. I only know which is which because I used different tubing, but the actual hardware looks 100% identical. If my heirs end up selling that machine, with eartubes, the next owner won't even know they're original.

I used to have two other original sets which were part of a complete US Talking Machine Co. disc phonograph. They had spent 100 years coiled under the turntable. There was just barely enough flexibility to be able to take them out for a photograph but I wouldn't dream of trying to actually use them. Once again, the earpieces and Y tube were absolutely identical to the replicas.

VanEpsFan1914 wrote:It's going to be very hard to get a decent set of tubes if they have to be original Edison stock.

This is what I feared, but I thought I would give it a try. Someone did offer me an original Columbia listening tube, but it wasn't in my best interest. I might get a pair from George, thanks to all for the replies.

Martin