The Talking Machine Forum — For All Antique Phonographs & Recordings

I just got a Sonora phonograph for FREE off the side of the road a couple days ago and got it in working order. There was nothing wrong with the instrument except that it needed to be taken apart, cleaned of old hard grease, and re-lubricated.
It sounds great (came with Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue)and I LOVE it, but the wood I fear is in bad condition. The varnish or accumulated wax/oil is almost black with age, and very dull.It is not sticky. I have attached a picture of its current condition and its potential.I know if I applied an oil to it it would only show as rough oiled wood. Any thoughts on how I can refinish the wood? Should I use mineral spirits and 0000 wool to take off the coating? Thanks!

It seems like the machine is just dirty. I use GOJO and it is an excellent cleaner. It really gets the dirt and crud off of he finish. There are many threads on this forum on how to use it. That's pretty good finding a machine discarded off the side of the road. Many years ago, that was a common practice. It's rare these days.
Harvey Kravitz

That would be great if it just needed a cleaning. I was just concerned because the surface matter is not thick enough to chip,and hard enough that your fingernail would not do much, and there is crazing throughout. The grill on the front especially - full of alligator cracks and very hard.

if the finish was shellac (im 90%positive its )just re-aplied shellac ,,will melt the old shellac finish and will show the new one ,,,they are a lot of videos on youtube how to aplied shellac ,,,can't belive you found it on the street ,,good that you save it ,,,,

amil wrote:if the finish was shellac (im 90%positive its )just re-aplied shellac ,,will melt the old shellac finish and will show the new one ,,,they are a lot of videos on youtube how to aplied shellac ,,,can't belive you found it on the street ,,good that you save it ,,,,

I will try that out! (At least at first on the back.
I too am still shocked that I found it and that it works. I've also bought a couple of phonograph toys that dance while the music is playing. Awesome.

Just be sure to thoroughly clean the finish, and to let it dry for at least a few days before applying the new shellac, otherwise you'll be sealing any dirt & grime into the finish permanently
If after cleaning with gojo, the finish still looks black & crusty, you may have to remove the finish with denaturaled alcohol & a good supply of rags, and refinish the machine from scratch. If you concentrate on one surface a a time & take your time, you should be able to remove the shellac without removing the original stain that was applied. This helps at least retain the original colour, which will match the interior surfaces that are normally in much better condition than the exterior.
Nice find & nice machine. Congrats!

gramophoneshane wrote:Just be sure to thoroughly clean the finish, and to let it dry for at least a few days before applying the new shellac, otherwise you'll be sealing any dirt & grime into the finish permanently
If after cleaning with gojo, the finish still looks black & crusty, you may have to remove the finish with denaturaled alcohol & a good supply of rags, and refinish the machine from scratch. If you concentrate on one surface a a time & take your time, you should be able to remove the shellac without removing the original stain that was applied. This helps at least retain the original colour, which will match the interior surfaces that are normally in much better condition than the exterior.
Nice find & nice machine. Congrats!

This is great info - I have mineral spirits, which I believe should work for the cleaning. I think I will do that first to take off the original shellack and then put on a new coat - just to be safe. I'm very detail-oriented (or I like to think so), so I won't mind taking my time to get the best results. Thanks for your help!!!

gramophoneshane wrote:Just be sure to thoroughly clean the finish, and to let it dry for at least a few days before applying the new shellac, otherwise you'll be sealing any dirt & grime into the finish permanently
If after cleaning with gojo, the finish still looks black & crusty, you may have to remove the finish with denaturaled alcohol & a good supply of rags, and refinish the machine from scratch. If you concentrate on one surface a a time & take your time, you should be able to remove the shellac without removing the original stain that was applied. This helps at least retain the original colour, which will match the interior surfaces that are normally in much better condition than the exterior.
Nice find & nice machine. Congrats!

I will post some "after" pics.