Introduction and New Bogen Lathe

[VenzDrumz]

Hello. My name is Dave. I’m a musician who has always been interested in cutting my own record in one way or another. I came across an ad for a “Bogen Recording System” and couldn’t resist for a couple hundred dollars. I’m attaching just a couple of pics. From what I can tell, it turns out this thing is pretty rare. Anyone know anything about it? I’m having trouble finding anything. I’m looking forward to try to get this thing up and running. It’s a substantial piece of equipment...guessing around 80-100 lb. I’d appreciate any info. Also looking forward to being a part of this group.

[basplin]

Welcome! And wow, that's a really cool looking lathe! I'd say that was a steal for a few hundred bucks. I did not know that Bogen made lathes, but interestingly enough they were owned by the Unitronics Corp who also owned Presto, a major manufacturer of "disc recording" equipment in the 30's through the 50's, and those two companies were merged together (Bogen-Presto). What sort of cutting head does this thing have? Any model numbers? Also, is that a 16" platter?

[VenzDrumz]

Thanks for the reply and info! ...and yes, good eye. 16” platter. The cutting head does not have any kind of markings on it. I have all kinds of pictures of it taken apart that I cannot figure out how to post on this reply (newbies...). What specifics are you looking for when you ask what sort of cutting head? The model number for the overall unit is “212RO” with a serial # 100013. I plugged it in, and most things on it work (platter spins, screw feeder works and moves the cutting head, VU meter works, vintage tubes in good working condition, phono input gives sound through speaker...a perfectly condition Jensen PM10C, btw). Turns out plugging it in was a very dangerous move, given all the old wires and capacitors. I have an electronics guy helping me get that going before I plug it in again. I’m documenting everything and will probably make a YouTube video.

[basplin]

16" turntables are rare! I also just think that they are super super cool. I'd venture a guess that the cutting head is mono (almost all old heads on these types of machines are), but I'm just curious who made it. That's great that everything works - yeah, I'd be careful powering the amp up after all these years. I always bring that stuff up slowly on a variac. It's the electrolytic capacitors that tend to go bad over time, the film and mica ones are just fine (general rule of thumb - there's a good chance anything over 1uf is electrolytic. Not a hard and fast rule, of course). Luckily they are easy to replace and new ones are cheap. Nice speaker too!

We would love to see more pictures of this thing if you ever find a way to post them, particularly of the cutting head and overhead mechanism!