The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Hello all!

In my quest for Granby/Leviola off brands, I have stumbled on to some of the most unique phonographs, lately! My latest acquisition is a Brunswick 127 [the one with the oriental/japanese motif]. I am really excited! I think this will be a great addition to my collection and certainly stand out. My wife already has plans to display some of her ceramic oriental figurines nearby... Hmm.... On a serious note, I do have some Columbia/Victor "Madame Butterfly" memorabilia that will look great with it.

Being an "off brand" guy, I tend to get a little nervous and intimated whenever I acquire something a little rare or slightly high end... [Meaning, I don't want to mess it up.] The finish is pretty severely alligatored. Will the non-pumice hand cleaners be safe to use on this - with all the custom oriental painting?

Also, the machine had all the original factory paperwork, catalog, etc. I do have the original grill but it is severely damaged and in pieces. Are there any fellow collectors that might have a parts/donor machine with a good grille? I will get the exact measurements and post them if anyone has any leads...

The machine has only made it into my central hallway right now and that is where the photo was taken. I plan to clean it and then integrate it into the furnishing scheme soon. I will also take some more pictures!

Take care and Happy Collecting!

I just noticed my original picture appears pretty dark.... here are a few more, in slightly better light.

Very attractive machine.

Looks like it was upgraded to the Orthophonic era with a new tone arm. I know Brunswick upgraded their high end acoustic machines in 1925-26 and turned them into Electrola type machines. Factory upgrade here as well?

Skihawx wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 5:54 pm Looks like it was upgraded to the Orthophonic era with a new tone arm. I know Brunswick upgraded their high end acoustic machines in 1925-26 and turned them into Electrola type machines. Factory upgrade here as well?

Great point... I was scratching my head a little and wondering why my model doesn't have the Ultona tone-arm.

Granby wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 6:33 pm

Skihawx wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 5:54 pm Looks like it was upgraded to the Orthophonic era with a new tone arm. I know Brunswick upgraded their high end acoustic machines in 1925-26 and turned them into Electrola type machines. Factory upgrade here as well?

Great point... I was scratching my head a little and wondering why my model doesn't have the Ultona tone-arm.

Personally, after owning a 1922 YO (York Model) for awhile, and then eventually getting a 1928 Panatrope 15-8, I'd leave the Panatrope arm in place. That is going to be all the difference in the world to playing your 78s, even though Ultonas do sound nice.

Was this upgraded or modified so It could take electric recordings?

I don't think the factory would mix nickel and gold hardware.

The cabinet looks great. I'm sure that non-pumice Gojo would remove the dirt and with some Howards feed and wax it will really help. Don't worry about alligatoring, it's just the way antiques are supposed to look. If it was mine, I would be on the lookout for a ultona tone arm. For playing records, the one you have might sound quite a bit better. Congratulations!

audiophile102 wrote: Mon Sep 05, 2022 9:54 pm The cabinet looks great. I'm sure that non-pumice Gojo would remove the dirt and with some Howards feed and wax it will really help. Don't worry about alligatoring, it's just the way antiques are supposed to look. If it was mine, I would be on the lookout for a ultona tone arm. For playing records, the one you have might sound quite a bit better. Congratulations!

Thank you! And, I agree with your opinion. I am in the process of refinishing another common floor model cabinet right now. I took a break the other day to move some other phonographs around and was looking at future projects. For some reason, the alligatoring doesn't seem to bother me quite as much as it used to. Also, a month or so, a fellow collector told me that one of his "buyers" wanted all the mechanics to be up to par but wanted the cabinet to show its age, basically leave it as is. Maybe a new trend? Interesting...