The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Well, my hobby has taken me to a few places. I saw this machine in an antique shop in the tourist hub of Mutrah, Oman. I dont know what it is, it looks like a Columbia machine but my limited knowledge doesnt make me sure. I asked the shop owner for the soundbox since it was the only thing I wanted and he refused to sell. I have to buy the entire machine to get just the soundbox. The brake doesn't work, the needle pot is rusty, the horn is partially detached, the outer case is bare wood in a few places, the thing winds but the platter does not move, the speed control is missing and depressing the inside doesn't do anything. Putting my hand under the motorboat gave me pieces of wood and rust. The shopkeeper did not allow me to inspect the motor, or the horn, or underneath the platter. I asked him for a price and he said 50 OMR (slightly over 100 GBP) down from 85 OMR (170 GBP). I searched for weeks now, and this is what I find. No amount of bargaining would convince the guy to lower the price, or let me inspect it at all. I walked out of the store a very bitter person.
What do you guys think?

Personally I would walk away.

If you can't inspect it, you have to assume there is a reason - it's a non-working piece of junk not worth what he's asking.

pumpkin wrote: Fri Jun 07, 2024 6:40 pm Personally I would walk away.

When you search your entire city (which is really spread out due to car monopolies) for a descent antiques shop and you finally find something, I pretty much had no choice. Though it seems that if I want anything I would have to get it online.

Curt A wrote: Fri Jun 07, 2024 6:49 pm If you can't inspect it, you have to assume there is a reason - it's a non-working piece of junk not worth what he's asking.

The platter doesn't move on its own. If I move it in the reverse direction I do feel tension, and there is force. Probably that incredibly rusty break that always screeches against the metal underside is the problem. Anyways, I concluded that it is just a piece of junk in the end and not worth the one part I needed. I actually feel grateful most of you here don't have to deal with Arab antique storeowners, if they don't know anything about the object that's the best thing. If they do know, then they will up the price in front of you, happened with an ultra rare Omani record (Bahrain-made) that I found once.

Curt A wrote: Fri Jun 07, 2024 6:49 pm If you can't inspect it, you have to assume there is a reason - it's a non-working piece of junk not worth what he's asking.

Can you identify the machine by any chance?

[/quote]
Can you identify the machine by any chance?
[/quote]

I think the machine may have started life as a Columbia 112a, but if so it has been much modified. The original pot metal connection between the tonearm and the narrow internal horn is a known 112a weak point, and a previous "repairer" has substituted a totally different tonearm. I would not walk away from it. I would run!
Here is an original 112a for comparison :

epigramophone wrote: Sat Jun 08, 2024 3:57 am
I think the machine started life as a Columbia 112a, but has been much modified. The original pot metal connection between the tonearm and the narrow internal horn is a known weak point, and a previous "repairer" has substituted a totally different tonearm.
Here is an original 112a for comparison :

The machine did not have a place to swing the winding handle into. I actually didn't know the winding handle existed until I pushed my hand under the motorboard.

I think the most interesting thing is the ‘Viva tonal AsiaGo Grafonola’ trademark with the cat. Worth seeing just to get that picture. I wonder if this was a Columbia product or a copy trying to suggest Columbia? I think perhaps the later.

jamiegramo wrote: Sat Jun 08, 2024 6:15 am I think the most interesting thing is the ‘Viva tonal AsiaGo Grafonola’ trademark with the cat. Worth seeing just to get that picture. I wonder if this was a Columbia product or a copy trying to suggest Columbia? I think perhaps the later.

Probably, though to be honest, a gramophone finding its way to a place like this is astonishing, since the populace here takes using cassettes as already the oldest thing you can do. Especially considering where I am we lived in medieval conditions until the 1970 coup. If they guy allowed me to inspect under the platter, there might be some identification and some information I could hunt for. I do like puzzles sometimes. Would you want me to go back and see if I can get a few more photos?