The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I was recently given a VV-XI #521783 (1919) with a request from the original owner's family that I try to save it. So far, the motor rebuild and the structural repairs to the case went well and I am now ready to tackle to rest of it. The next step is repair of the cosmetic damage to the case - lots of dents, scratches, loose veneer and gouges.

Some questions

What wood are the corner posts made of? I realize they were stained mahogany, but the wood appears too light to be solid mahogany. There is a sizable chunk missing from one post and and I need to glue in a patch and stain it to match.

I have very little experience working with veneers. The veneer is gone completely from the doors, so I picked up a donor machine (freebie and in even worse shape than my VV-XI) and I am salvaging some veneer to apply to the doors. Warm water seems to work OK to remove the veneer, but it seems like there should be something better. Suggestions?

There are also areas where the veneer is present but loose. I have an old book that says you can use an iron to heat the glue and press the veneer back in place. I tried it for a small area and it worked fine, but when I tried it on a larger area the veneer buckled. The veneer is loose at the bottom of both sides, so I need another approach. Suggestions?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Dale H

dale h, here is how I was able to restore a VV-IX along with the veneer challenges which is not to much different from the VV-XI. Same problems with the doors and the bottom and top veneer that has pulled away from the case. I had to break the case down removing the base plate from the case to get to the loose sides. Also keep in mind that there are many ways to approach veneer restoration.
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=50706

One other thing I failed to mention is that heating with and hot iron or the like only works in most cases with old time hide glue which under heat will soften up to liquid and will dry to pull the veneer back solid. If the veneer has been attached with modern glue at some point this will not naturally happen as modern glue will not liquify under heat.

Thanks for replying. I read the thread and got some good information out of it.

In case you haven't figured it out already, the nut that holds the crank handle on is, in fact, left-handed. At least it is on both of my machines.

Dale H

Water vapor will soften old protein glue (hide glue). Modify a teakettle by adding a flexible non-kinking hose to the spout. Hide glue joints can be loosened by drilling a hole into the joint, installing a basketball pump needle to the end of the hose, and inserting the needle into the hole.
Hide glues cure by cooling, so re-veneering with hide glue requires a veneering hammer, lots of wide clamps and cauls, or a vacuum bag press; and you have to work quickly.
An alternative method is to use yellow carpenter’s glue (aliphatic resin) which may also be clamped/bag pressed, but is also thermosetting (melts when dry). This technique requires the substrate to be scraped clean of old hide glue with a scraper. Then paint the substrate and the back of a sheet of veneer with a thin primer coat of yellow glue mixed with water. Allow to dry separately. You are not putting the veneer on the substrate at this point. When dry, apply a second coat of yellow glue thinned only slightly with enough water to apply smoothly to both surfaces and allow to dry separately. When thoroughly dry, tape the veneer to the substrate with blue tape, and iron the veneer into place with a clothes iron. Yellow glue melts at 200F. Work from the center out. Yellow glue can be purchased with a UV marker added so that squeeze-out may be spotted under a hand-held black light for easier clean up before finishing.