The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Is there any risk with stacking phonographs on top of one another? I'm slowly running out of room as my collection grows and am debating placing an Edison Standard on top of my Edison C200, but I don't want to risk damaging the lid of the C200. The lid seems fairly sturdy, but the standard is also a relatively heavy machine. Thanks in advanced, Nick

Hi PhonoCrazy, welcome to the Talking Machine Forum!

The biggest risk to stacking phonographs is that 1) you won't be able to use the C-200 without moving the Standard, and 2) when you go to play the Standard, cranking it will make it move around & the bottom of the machine (and the crane feet if so equipped) could scratch the top of the C-200. I'd suggest finding a doily or something to put up there, and if you haven't replaced the tack bumpers on the bottom of the Edison Standard, go ahead & do it when you can get a chance.

Now the $64 question here is, how big is the collection and can we see pictures?


Charles

Charles,

I have little rubber feet on the bottom of the Standard, so I don't think scratching will be an issue. It just makes me nervous putting all that weight on the lid of the diamond disc!

And I only have one photo handy and it's of the standard. I have another standard and a home that normally go where the standard is sitting in the photo, but they were temporarily relocated to the floor to make room for the photograph!

Nick

Two risks of "large collection stacking":

1. Even with rubber feet, time & pressure can leave marks on a finish. Even without movement. Since moving to a larger home, I'm trying to avoid stacking and as a result, have begun to enjoy my collection much more by having easy access to floor models once buried by stacking.

2. Loss of habitat if you don't have an understanding "significant other".

That's a nice looking Standard and the horn is exceptional... That particular horn is hard to find, especially in that kind of condition.

If you are worried about the weight on the lid of your other Edison, I wouldn't be particularly concerned, since Edison cabinets were generally overbuilt and very sturdy. You could always find a piece of ¼" to ⅜" tempered glass to fit the lid and place your Standard on that... or ¼" plywood, which wouldn't look as good, covered with something.

Beautiful machine!

I see a nice H&S horn, extra reproducers, a great-looking Edison cabinet machine in the background, and old lamps, still "in oil."

Seriously, what is the deal with phonograph collectors and lamps?

Good luck on getting it all together in there; I am impressed with it all. Not sure how the floor crane will work when the Standard is on top of the C-200 unless you jack it up a pretty good ways.

Pro tip: find old table pads at garage sales or thrift stores. The rectangular ones, especially those designed for table leaves, work great. Felt on one side and thick padding to protect your base cabinet. You can cover them with piano/radio scarves for a nicer appearance. You can also hide thinner protection under the scarf: thick non-corrugated cardboard, crap diamond discs in cardboard sleeves (not kidding), etc.

The lids won’t break, so don’t worry about that. But it’s important to check yourself on usage patterns, and put the lighter and less bulky items on top of machines you want to use most frequently.

Thank you very much for all the input! I like the idea of getting a piece of glass or a table pad to help protect the lid, so I will probably go that route. I don't play the diamond disc too often because, and I apologize if I offend anyone, I don't care for the music Edison allowed to be recorded on the diamond discs very much... I'd rather listen to the hot jazz of the late 20s!

And thank you for the compliments on the machine/horn. I was very excited to find that horn with the Edison Home I have at an auction a few years ago, both in very nice original condition, and the lamps just add to the whole experience.

Nick

PhonoCrazy wrote:...thank you for the compliments on the machine/horn. I was very excited to find that horn with the Edison Home I have at an auction a few years ago, both in very nice original condition, and the lamps just add to the whole experience.

Nick

I have the same horn, but with roses (the paint being in not nearly as nice condition as yours). Just as a point of possible interest, the outside should also be silvery shiny. Mine was positively olive drab with tarnish; I cleaned all but about three of the panels with Brasso and a LOT of elbow grease before I got a Triumph with wooden cygnet and retired the Standard to a closet. Looks like yours is a lot closer to clean than mine was.

Part of the problem with those nickeled horns is not just accumulated grunge, but the fact that they were coated with something that turns kind of greenish after a century and is very hard to remove...