The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

For the kid that had everything: a phonograph with "Circassian Walnut" finish.


http://losangeles.craigslist.org/lgb/at ... 45132.html

That sure looks like a Carola with an added tone arm. The wood grain looks quite good in the photos! Could that be contact paper? If it's grain-painted, someone did an extraordinary job.

The Carolas I've seen have all been mahogany grained metal, but with the same interior color as that pictured.

George P.

The classic 45 degree angle of the needle. The old kiddie records never had a chance...

phonogfp wrote:That sure looks like a Carola with an added tone arm. The wood grain looks quite good in the photos! Could that be contact paper? If it's grain-painted, someone did an extraordinary job.

The Carolas I've seen have all been mahogany grained metal, but with the same interior color as that pictured.

George P.

George,
According to the seller it was painted on. Yes it does look convincing I must agree.
The seller has none of the miniature records with the machine and I imagine they are
not easy to find.

antique1973 wrote:
George,
According to the seller it was painted on. Yes it does look convincing I must agree.
The seller has none of the miniature records with the machine and I imagine they are
not easy to find.

Actually early 20th C. children's records aren't all that rare though you don't find them every day. Most of what you DO find is adult singers like Henry Burr or Ernest Hare seriously and painstakingly singing things like "There was a little girl who had a little curl..."

I'm certain this was a Carola machine- they used a reflector principle: the "tone arm" was a short cardboard cone which bounced the sound from the reproducer off the inside of the lid. What I see in these pictures is a Frankenphone.