HMV 102

Hi, have been admiring the teak HMV101 posted earlier, I have a 102C which although not teak is of hard wood construction. Top & bottom boards of veneered ply & the whole polished with the laquer usually only used on the motorboard. External fittings are chrome with a brown leather carrying handle. Inside it lacks the usual pad in the lid with the transfer being applied directly to the polished inside of the lid. I have not been able to find this finish listed anywhere. Has anyone any information on what must be one of the best recorded models.

Interesting. I've seen a couple, over the years, where the cloth was stripped from the cabinet, and the bare wood, refinished. But it sounds like the one you have is all original.

Would it be possible to post a few photos?

Hello

I would suggest that it might well be teak?

Why do you say it isn't?

It sounds original too as Joe_DS has already said. I would also like to see the pictures!

Regards

Steve

Hi, will try to borrow a camera asap. I may be mistaken about the wood, having just followed the link at the bottom of this page through Gram Co. - 101- ebay it looks similar to the one which sold recently. Mine however does not have the black banding, but does have bullet shaped record tray pegs & chrome not black needle tray. I did not expect plywood on a teak machine as I thought the timber choice was for insect resistance. I wish mine was in as good condition the finish is somewhat flaky.

It definitely is teak!

The "flakey finish" was the giveaway comment!

The lacquer they used on these has a tendency to flake off if the machine has not been kept in the best of conditions.

Not all the 102's had black bandings, so don't let that confuse you, some had 2, others 4, some none.

The base and lids were not solid, they were veneered ply but the rest of the case is solid with mortice and tenon joints on the corners (which are actually rounded off). I thought you were referring to the Ebay 101, but it seems you were referring to the 102 just sold on there for £415?

I have the 112,113 and 114 HMV models amongst others - the latter is a bigger version of the 102 in teak with double-spring motor.

They also made the "Colonial models" in brown leathercloth finish, but it appears, not standard black.

I'm not sure about the cases being solid to prevent attack? The Indian models were made in teak because it was a cost effective option to make a luxury model of the standard machine. They would have been too expensive to make and sell in Britain or Europe, presumably.

Also remember who the customers were: wealthy British Civil Servants and next to nobody else!

Steve

Much obliged for your assistance Joe, I really have no idea how to work this thing.
Hopefully the pics will allow a positive identification.

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It took me awhile to get the hang of all this html stuff too.
In any event, here ya' go:

Yep, exactly what I said.

Thanks for that, mystery solved. Amazing what turns up in junk shops. Any idea whether it
would have had a record tray, I'm guessing the motorboard was a stock part pre-drilled so the pegs were fitted, but would a tray stay in place or the records stay in it without the pad in the lid?

I'm not sure if this is caused by the camera, itself, but looking carefully at the photo of the lid's interior, I see a (dull) semicircle impression.



It could not have been caused by contact with the rim of the turntable, since the tone arm, as well as the turntable spindle, protrudes well above the rim. This leads me to believe that a record carriage may been sold with this machine.

As far as I'm aware record trays were never sold with these particular 102's. Not all British 102's had the tray and the Indian models were even more unpredictable.

Is that semi-circular white line not just a reflection of the edge of the chrome turntable in the lid?

If you look at the whole of the lid internally, you can also see the tone-arm reflection in it.

STEVE wrote:As far as I'm aware record trays were never sold with these particular 102's. Not all British 102's had the tray and the Indian models were even more unpredictable.

Is that semi-circular white line not just a reflection of the edge of the chrome turntable in the lid?

If you look at the whole of the lid internally, you can also see the tone-arm reflection in it.

Hi Steve:

On second glance, I think you're right. I can actually see a double reflection of the turntable now--a smaller one in the center, and then a larger one.

The white line is a reflection,no tell tale marks in the lid.

If you see the two nickel pegs at the 4 and 8 o'clock position, these machines generally had a record tray and the pegs were to prevent the tray from revolving during transport.

Bill