The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

Recently I purchased an early Graphopone Type C (early version per Hazelcorn) I would like to
Know more about the machine, its inner workings and date of mfg.

The machine holds tension, but when engaged it bogs down and binds. Hopefully someone can help me with this issue.

Any help is appreciated, and thank you!

First off it's a nice looking C. The tray is usually missing.

It takes a lot to stop one of those motors so if it runs correctly with the belt off and when you disengage the clutch than either the top works are
incredibly gummed up with dried grease or something is bent or potmetal parts are binding. best thing is to just take the top works apart clean and check
all the moving parts. If you haven't taken one of them apart go slow and take notes where pieces came from, especially the small drive gear on the mandrel
shaft put it in backwards and the pulley won't tighten on the shaft, also the nut on the drive pulley is left hand thread.
The reproducer on the slanted carriage models should be a #2 and the horizontal carriage mount is a #5. I think yours has a #8.

I have 4 of them 3 different versions with the slanted reproducer one with the horizontal.


Chuck

Chuck has given excellent advice on how to eliminate the drag when the feed screw is engaged.

As for when this one was manufactured, it's somewhat helpful that the Type A/AT and Type C shared serial blocks so that known production benchmarks can be compared. I'd date this Type C at 1899.

George P.

Thank you both very much. I am very unfamiliar with early Columbia’s and could only gather so much from the Hazelcorn book.