Rainy Sunday

Sunday morning: gray, clammy, with a steady rain falling.

Yesterday was a warm sunny day which was spent working outside. Debbie needed help configuring her privacy fence in the back yard. I was under the impression from talking to her mother Sheri we were going to be adding additional fence sections involving new posts to set, stringers to run and prefab panels fitted. I needed to see the job before making any plan of action. I’m used to doing this type of thing working on my own. I get wigged out doing jobs like this for others. Once I realized what they wanted to accomplish, I explained to them how we could just scab on fence sections to the existing privacy fence.

Greg and I got three sections of the heavy fence and four 2x4’s at Blowes. We had to load up the lumber onto my truck just outside the garden section. It was a beautiful morning. I admonished Greg as we loaded the panels, “Be careful and don’t scratch up the bed of my fine truck!” This lady looked over and saw the beat up bed of my truck and just broke out laughing! We always make somebody’s day!

It was awkward as I had initially had no idea of what I was getting into. There were no tools to speak of except for what I brought over. I was sadly missing my level, square, and other miscellaneous oddball stuff. I’m so used to having the tools I need on hand; I naturally assume all homeowners have at least the basics on hand……. It made for a less than perfect job, but Debbie and Sheri were pleased. That was all that mattered…..

I spent the rest of the afternoon working in the garage. The plants stored there for the winter were moved outside. Sadly, my ancient rubber plants did not survive the prolonged subzero temperatures. I cut all the dead growth off and am taking a chance to see if new growth will appear. The ferns were raggedy but will hopefully fill out. The linage of these ferns can be traced back to Dave D who used to live across the street from me. He bought the original fern from Plant City, located in Buffalo, NY in 1982. God only knows how many times I’ve divided those plants over the years.

There was a bit of life in the surviving spider plant. The original spider baby came from my mom back in 1976 and graced my first apartment. Those plants are pretty much indestructible, so I’m not too worried about it not being “recalled to life”.

Another cold front is behind all the rain. Temperatures are going to fall back into the 30’s. UGH!!!

This past week has been that for projects. My last phonograph acquisition project is finally in the home stretch. In June of 2009 I purchased a phenomenal record cabinet. It was originally made as a base for a Columbia cylinder Graphophone which had a 6” mandrel. This was a configuration that was only in production a few short years. Record cabinets and Graphophones of that style are very collectible.

The Graphophone I had to put on the cabinet was not “correct”. It was a style BKT. The “T” denotes a backmount horn on a common BK Graphophone. It had a gear change to play 2 & 4 minute cylinders, and a “plunger device” that when pressed would pop the record off the mandrel. A two minute cylinder has 100 threads per inch, while a 4 minute record has 200 threads per inch. The reproducer to this machine used a special needle that would play both thread pitches adequately. This was typical Columbia engineering, things done on the cheap. It all sure looked pretty, but performance wise it sucked! It was a happy day when I sold the thing on E-bay and it got shipped over to France!

Here is the listing picture from my E-bay listing. It is a beautiful/rare machine.

The machine to put on this special cabinet was acquired last fall from a collector in Mississippi. It is a Columbia model BF. The base has scallops that match those in the record cabinet. I originally wanted to turn up a backmount assembly to add to this. That would entail drilling into the back panel of the Graphophone. I decided against this course of action and to just use a “front mount” horn instead. I acquired a beautiful flowered horn at the Orlando Phonograph Show in January. I just needed to turn up a crane for the thing.

I had the right style crane for this many years ago. Back in the 1980’s I drastically thinned out my collection. I swore I would never have a front mount machine taking up room in my house again. That crane I sold at the union phonograph show for $50.00 back in the day.

I finally found the right crane on E-bay some 25 years later at nearly four times what I sold my crane for! That crane was delivered Friday. Friday afternoon was spent doing the installation of the crane to the Graphophone cabinet. On this style cabinet, it is real easy to splinter off the flimsy scallop on the base if the weight is not supported and distributed properly.

The worst is now done. All that is needed is to do a cleaning of the motor, a final polishing of the crane and cabinet, and getting the right connector from the reproducer to the horn. I can easily live with the thing as it now stands….

Columbia BF with flower horn, front mount crane, displayed on the serpentine cabinet.