Hi, everybody. Yesterday I picked up (literally, though I needed some help, since it weighs about 300 lbs.) a very unusual machine: A Victrola (or Electrola) model VE 15-1, also known as the "Hyperion." (The latter is, in fact, what appears on the ID tag.) It's in really nice shape except for two of the six feet, which have lost some (or in one case, all) of the wooden pieces that make them round instead of square. Fortunately, they're in the back. The piece itself is a Victor electric phonograph coupled with an RCA radio (a Radiola 28, their top-of-the-line in 1926) and an RCA electric speaker, built-in antenna, gold-plated hardware, Victor electric pickup, etc. The cabinet itself is almost five feet tall and just about four feet wide, walnut veneer with maple inlay, decent shape. Everything is there (including 8 of the 10 record albums) except for the needle cup and the line cord, which plugs in to a regular two-pronged AC plug in the botton of the cabinet. It seems to work, too, though one of the tubes -- a UX-210 -- needs to be replaced, I believe.
Questions: 1. Does anyone know anything about this unit other than what's in the Baumbach books? Anyone out there actually have one? Anywhere I might find more information? I'd never even heard of the Hyperion until I found this one. 2. Does anyone know where I can get a nice repro cloth-covered line cord with a female two-prong adapter at one end (presumably bakelite) and a male plug at the other? Does Antique Electronic Supply sell these? If not, does anyone else? Did it even come with a line cord, or did folks just use extension cords (as did the people from whom I bought it)? 3. Can anyone recommend a good carpenter who could recreate the wood pieces that could round out the feet? I have a couple to work from. 4. The Victor albums that came with this piece are of a kind I've never seen before -- they are made of a a brown leatherette-type material, and letters. Can anyone tell me anything about these? Do they have a name or type number? Do they ever come up on Ebay? As I said, I know very little about this machine other than what I've read in the Baumbach books, so I would appreciate any information anyone can share, no matter how small or seemingly irrelevant. Thanks!
