The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Several questions:

1. I found this Columbia Graphophone BC at a local antique shop. They are asking $360; is that a good price?
2. It is missing a speed control knob, a belt, and a horn. Where might I find these?
3. The motor winds and appears complete. Are there any obvious issues other than the missing pieces?

Thanks, Roy

Great price, rare item, grab it NOW.

Wear a kidney belt; they weigh a ton.

This has the Higham reproducer, which is a great weird mechanically-amplified system that is seldom found still working properly. That and the missing speed control might make you hesitate, but don’t let them do so. These are amazing machines and if it’s too much for you to handle, there will be others on here who will be willing.

That's the one that uses a friction pad on a diaphragm to amplify it, isn't it?

https://www.intertique.com/The%20uses%20of%20amber.htm

“How did the 5" reproducer work? In the words of a contemporary ad, this new departure used ‘a wheel of pure amber which turns simultaneously with the rotary motion of the cylinder. Over this amber wheel passes a vulcanite 'shoe' connecting at a mica diaphragm nearly four times larger than on any other talking machine.’ “

Too cool. Thanks.

Mechanical amplifier, works by transferring the pressure from the record groove to the hard rubber shoe that rests against the amber drum. The shoe also connects to the diaphragm through linkage, and as the "hill" of the record groove relaxes the grip of the shoe against the amber, that reduces the friction of the shoe against the amber wheel. The shoe linkage simultaneously releases the pull against the diaphragm. As the "valley" in the record groove passes the needle, the shoe is tightened and the increased friction causes the linkage attached to the shoe to "pull" on the diaphragm. The actual amplification factor is about 4 to 10 times, depending on the conditions of the amber drum, the vulcanized rubber shoe and other components of the system.

The throat of the reproducer is abnormally large at 1" ID, so adapting a standard cylinder phonograph horn is not easy without some serious modifications to the horn. Normal sized horns will work, but for optimum loading of the horn's air column, a very large bell/long horn is necessary. In other words, to reproduce the full spectrum of the available tonal range of an Indestructible record, a horn of about 48" will do.

OMG JUMP ON IT!

When properly adjusted these are Fantastic Loud Cylinder players!

Here is a video of one that I formerly owned:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QdwgmXEWrE[/youtube]

Cheers, Bob S.

BUY IT!!!!!!

Zwebie wrote:OMG JUMP ON IT!

When properly adjusted these are Fantastic Loud Cylinder players!

Here is a video of one that I formerly owned:

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-QdwgmXEWrE[/youtube]

Cheers, Bob S.

Bob, I supplied that BC to you. It came from the Ernie Bennett collection and the reproducer was restored by his partner, Reid Welch. There are YouTube postings by Reid about the rebuilding. He is considered to be the #1 Higham restorer but I think he doesn’t take in outside work any longer. I believe Paul Baker is doing so, however.

Raphael

Harold Braker, in Canada, reproduces some of the amplifier parts.