The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

A winner for the most creative fake description... this seller should be nominated for the scammer of the year award.

Seller's description: As you can see in the pictures, a decorative column is missing, and it was a factory defect. It has only three artistic columns, and one is missing. Columns are perfectly and intensely gouled to the oak case. If you try to remove one of them, it will cause serious and evident damage on the corner. But this phonograph has a perfect and unrestored corner with a missing decorative column, so it was a factory defect (see pictures). Because that, this fonograph has been rejected in the last quality control phase. That is why serial numbers are missing (as you can see on plate, serial number are missing, but not erased). Instead of serial number, it has engraved lines that indicates this particular unit can not be offered in sale (factory rejected code).

I love this one. Let’s start with the obvious, why not just send it back and have the corner pieces put on? Nope let’s just not sell it.
Then if you look closely at the I’d tag you will see it’s a repro. They must have good drugs in Argentina

I’m far from being an expert but that tag is ringing some alarm bells:

Guess the felt was forgotten at the factory as well.

Jerry

It was definitely a "reject", because someone at the Victor factory decided to use a generic portable reproducer on it and no one in the shipping department noticed...

It must have gone to Victor Victrola reject store located in Argentina. They must have had some fantastic buys. Tom

All goofing off aside, isn't the tone arm a bit different? The screw on part at the gooseneck almost looks like a Victrola tonearm from the No. 2 era. Is this possibly one of the very late Vic III's that carried a No. 2 reproducer? I've heard about late horn phonographs having them, but they are very, very hard to find from what little bit I've heard.

Or is it the tonearm from a late VV-IX or something?

The reproducer on this one is a aged cheap reproducer from India. I have a feeling someone has combined phonographs. If you look closely at the magnified ID tag you will see there possible was another tag on it as a nail hole is by the tag and it is only held on with two nails. I do not think they would release something out of the factory with a blank tag like that. They ruined it by self engraving it. The machine has aging on its finish. I am not sure about the horn. I no not know the early ones. Tom