The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I received this unrestored Edison Home Suitcase model. It's a nice early and untouched one - SN# 10416. It came with a good side-arm Model C reproducer. The seller packed the machine on its side in a box of Styrofoam popcorn. That's it. There was no bubblewrap anywhere. Absolutely no packing material inside the machine. The carriage was left loose. A wax cylinder was left on the mandrel. Luckily, it only had to go about 200 miles. The result? Absolutely no damage that I can see, aside from the fact that the cylinder cracked. Even the belt arrived intact. Amazing. And of course there is Styrofoam everywhere...

This is now my earliest Edison machine, so I must ask THE QUESTION:

When did Home SN# 10416 leave the factory?

Thanks.

Well, George did the research, so I shouldn't spoil it for him, but what the heck, I've been reaping the fruits of George's work for years. The phonograph left the factory in January, 1899.

-- Grant

George put out a real good article on early home phonographs in the Phonograph magazine we receive as members. I believe it can be still looked up in the advance search. It gives a lot of information on them. Those early ones are almost bullet proof but I had one shipped to me not well packed also and it put a hole in the lid that had to be patched. That is a nice early home. Tom

I'm glad your Home arrived in spite of poor packing. I think we all have the responsibility to make packing suggestions and also be willing to pay for good packing. I have no idea of your particular purchase but hope your good suggestions were ignored. Jerry B.

Glad that your "new" home arrived OK, in the last year 4 shipments to me by the post office arrived here damaged, part of the problem was poor packing on the shippers' part, no padding or very little inside, improper boxes and tape used. It seems like anything marked "fragile" gets run over by the postal truck. Insurance claims have been made by the shippers and money refunded to me by the seller but this doesn't replace an unreplaceable item I wanted for my collection, soooo if you are shipping something and must use USPS please pack correctly.

Glad your HOME arrived okay. Proper packing takes a lot of time and some money. If it were a Triumph packed that way, it would have been in pieces when you got it.

See the link below for something I posted on proper packing awhile back.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=42987&p=252837&hili ... ng#p252837

I remember my father telling me about a postal worker in the UK who once Joked "This one is labelled Fragile, that means we throw it under-arm" and also also one time where he received a mailer labelled "Photographs, do not bend or fold " and somebody at the PO add ed "Yes they do"" in pen

I think by and large the USPS does a great job, but I am often reminded of these two things

I think too many times people make a good purchase and, oh goody, the shipping is only $XX. The buyer pays the total price, crosses his fingers, and hopes for the best. If the buyer has any clue about the object, he also should have an idea about proper handling and shipping. If a knowledgeable buyer remains quiet about shipping instructions that person must share a good portion of the responsibility for the damage. Perhaps the buyer is not financially responsible but we are ethically responsible to give instructions to preserve the objects we love. I believe this to be 100% true.

I have no desire to step on any toes. One thing I enjoy about the Forum is the fact that it's a great place for new collectors to interact with long time collectors. We are all in different locations in our collecting journey. I am not suggesting the author of this thread did anything wrong. But there is a hobby learning curve. If you have questions it is best to pause for a moment and ask questions.

Respectfully, Jerry Blais

Good advice Jerry. I think I will relay packing requests to my future mail order buys. Here is an example of a recent such purchase. I now regret not telling the seller my packing preferences. This one came packed sitting on its feet, with one inch layer of Styrofoam sheet on the top. The box gave no indication of the damage inside. I should have requested 3" of padding all around.

startgroove wrote:Good advice Jerry. I think I will relay packing requests to my future mail order buys. Here is an example of a recent such purchase. I now regret not telling the seller my packing preferences. This one came packed sitting on its feet, with one inch layer of Styrofoam sheet on the top. The box gave no indication of the damage inside. I should have requested 3" of padding all around.

Actually, you should have requested that the seller remove the mechanism from the cabinet and ship the two separately. Double-boxed. 3" of styrofoam sheets, or even 4", or 5", or 6" would have yielded the same results as a single 1" sheet if the package was upended at some point in transit, which I'm almost certain is what happened.

-- Grant