Hello all Add me to your club, Loran. A couple of weeks ago, a friend emailed me to ask if a VTLA was worth buying. Not sure if it was a flat top or an early Victrola XVI L-door, I told him it was a scarce machine depending on which type it was. He is located in Nevada and found the ad on Craigslist, located in Millbrae, which is just south of San Francisco. I checked out the ad, which had just been placed 13 hours before. It was indeed a flat top Pooley VTLA! Being the fair minded person I try to be, i asked if he was going to buy it, and he said he decided not to. I emailed the seller on the spot and asked if it was still available. They emailed back and said it was. In their photos on the ad, it showed large aluminum turntable (??), no bullet brake and no tonearm. I asked if those parts were there, and she said yes, except the brake. She sent a separate photo showing the parts, including a very cool wooden needle box and an extra back portion of an Exhibition reproducer. In the photos online, the record boxes were not shown so assum they were absent. I asked about it, and she said she did have them! I told her she could consider it sold and I would arrange for pickup within the next day or so. I couldn't get off work because three of my staff were out sick, so I paid a friend of mine to take my truck and go get it before it could be sold out from under me. He and a buddy team drove up there (it is a 12-14 hour round trip) and brought it back to me. I received it last Friday night at 1:00 a.m. What a thrill! I took pics and will upload them to Photo Bucket so you can see them.By the way...it has a very cool label inside it, unlike any other Victrola label. It says the machine is not to be sold for less than $200.00. Which is good. Because that is what it cost me!! John Robles
