The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I've never seen a table-top version of an acoustic Panatrope, and wondered if this is for real, or if the guts from a portable were simply installed in a custom built case:

http://www.rubylane.com/item/293185-R26 ... Phonograph

(I was going to post a photo, but they are all copyrighted.)

I noticed that the Panatrope decal looks authentic. If I lived in PA, I'd check it out.

OF,

I don't know for sure, but I would be suspect:
-The case does not look acoustically sufficient for Brunswick to claim performance.
-The crank appears (to me) to stick a little to far out suggesting it is not the correct crank for the case.
-The underside of the fretwork does not match the finish of the remainder of the case
-I did not see a builders tag, which I believe all Brunswicks have.

Still, it is somewhat of an attractive, albeit simple, case.

I claim no expertise on Brunswick Panatropes but it looks very good to me. I think it's all correct and original and best of all, very interesting. Jerry

I get the feeling it's original too, but it's never easy to be 100% sure going by photos alone.
The metal motor board looks manufactured, rather than "made up" to me
Did Warner Bros sell any acoustic machines after they purchased the company?
If it is genuine, it must be one of the last portables they produced, judging from the more deco design.
I quite like it.

I think it's legit. Didn't the Michigan Antique Phono Society have an ad ,,,or a catalogue listing or something...for this on the cover of one of their newsletters in the past year or two? I'll dig later.

Jim

Many thanks.

I've only seen a couple of the Panatrope suitcase portables, and if I remember right John (Neophone) has or had one. (David, you might want to call John's attention to this post string.)

There are a few on youtube --

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hSwMG2MI0_A[/youtube]

-- but nothing in a wood table-top model case.

I understand these are very good performers, rivaling the Orthophonic/HMV/Viva-tonal portables of the period.

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Brad Wrote: The underside of the fretwork does not match the finish of the remainder of the case

Hi Brad, after clicking in the center of the photos to make them larger, I see what appears to be grill cloth attached to the underside of the fretwork opening in the lid. (In the smaller photos, it appears to be a lighter color wood.)
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To me it makes sense that Brunswick would have used the mechanics from their suitcase portables and installed them into a table-top version. Victor essentially did the same thing with the guts from their 2-55 portable, which they used in the upper portion of their Victrola/Radiola model 7-11

http://www.victor-victrola.com/7-11.htm

Also -- http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/v ... e-bedplate


Nonetheless, I'd love to know if there's a mfg. name plate somewhere on or inside the cabinet. (Perhaps hiding under the turntable?)

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I think it's legit. Didn't the Michigan Antique Phono Society have an ad ,,,or a catalogue listing or something...for this on the cover of one of their newsletters in the past year or two? I'll dig later.

Hi Jim:

That would be great!

I was all excited to get my hands on a Brunswick Panatrope portable, but when I did (a model 106) and fixed it up as much as I could, I was somewhat disappointed. The motor was nothing like the robust ones found in the cabinet models, and was noisier, despite my efforts adjusting it. The spindle worm gear is metal, not fiber like in the uprights.
The tonearm pivot is nothing more than the end shaft, stuck into the base on the motorboard, with no ball bearings, etc. The drag is noticeable, and although the reproducer was nicely rebuilt by Walt Sommers, it is a machine I don't really use much. It makes me wonder if these portables were made for Brunswick by another manufacturer, much like the Edison portables.

I have a Hampton floor model Panatrope, however, that runs quiet as the grave, built like a tank, and is a daily player.

Bob

This looks to me---based on the photos---to be a legit Brunswick product, not some homebrew cabinet.

I seem to recall another instance of Brunswick using the inner parts of (what appeared to be) a Panatrope portable. Back on the old board, there was discussion of an eBay auction for a Radiola/Panatrope combination in an upright cabinet that looked like any late-1920s radio. Except---under the lid was the phonograph much like this one. There was a scooped side well next to the phono, semi-circular in profile, that allowed access to the crank INSIDE the cabinet. It looked like the act of winding the phono motor was sure to result in more than a few dinged knuckles. The Radiola had an individual cone speaker that was near the bottom, so the 2 instruments did not share a speaker chamber. The whole instrument had that manufactured certainty about it, like it was a true product of the Brunswick factory.

So---maybe Brunswick was in need of funds after the 1929 stock market crash and was testing the market with a few oddball instruments. Rather than commit more expensive motors and components to such an enterprise, they burned off some excess stock of inexpensive Panatrope portables. Given that so few of these have turned up, I guess the public was less than captivated by the product. Or---maybe we're just starting to see them hit the market. Who knows?? I don't.

Meanwhile, here's this nifty table model that would be another entry for that Brunswick Phonograph book that I hope somebody is going to publish someday.

Cute little machine, and interesting enough to make me inquire about shipping costs. Ack. $62 plus the $185 makes it less interesting to me - almost cheaper for me to drive down & pick it up.

Well Ortho_Fan , I came:I dug: I conquered! I found it, and indeed it's a real machine. The is taken from the Sears catalogue of 1933 and it was reproduced on the cover of the January 2007 In the Groove. The little guy probably sounded quite acceptable. The closed lid would add resonance to the bass and make it sound more impressive even though it was just resonance rather than response.

Jim