Ebony M3

[Silken Path]

Wow, Bob - That white one is pretty adorable.

[muckelroy]

Bob, I didn't even need coffee this morning. Seeing those finishes on your work got the adrenaline flowing. Nice work!

[Bobmann]

At least one satin black M111 here in Vancouver. Was owned by the organ dealer's wife. Hammond would finish your order to your liking for extra money.
Blonde limed oak M3 I passed on a few years back,was owned by a friend.
I've seen gloss and satin in black on consoles as well. Have yet to encounter an eggshell white.

I have done one in Pearlescent White



I have done many in black. The process is not as simple as whipping out a rattle can and spraying.
The cabinet must be empty. The original finish must be stripped, then the wood sealed and pores filled, then coats of primer, then color, then many coats of clear lacquer. All with lots of sanding and cure time between coats.



I have also heard that Hammond would finish in something other than natural wood as a special order so I would assume there are specimins around with a factory black finish.

Bob

[theseacowexists]

I just came across this thread a few days ago and was intrigued by the idea of an ebony Hammond. A couple days later, what did I come across on CL but an ebony M3. It was located 2 hours east of here, and yesterday my fiancee needed me to take her to a last minute family thing 1 1/2 hours east of here. Needless to say, the M3 is now living at my house. Funny how these things come together, huh?



Anyway, it's a pretty amazing instrument. The code on the speaker indicates an early 1960 manufacture. Fires right up, sounds great, no missing or warbling tones at all. Only problem was that the swell pedal linkage was cracked in half. Fortunately it was a clean break, so I'm resetting it with some Gorilla Glue, that should hold it.

Cosmetically, there are some small issues, like some white scratches on the legs (probably from wall/doorway paint), a gouge in the wood near the back of the top, and the finish being worn off along some of the edges and corners. The latter isn't really that noticeable. Hopefully I can figure out how to get rid of those white marks and the gouge without messing with the finish.

Oh yeh, super dull and rough keys. Any suggestions on how to restore it to a more "glass-like" finish?

Anyway, I'm super thrilled to have found this thing! Now we know of one more ebony M3 out there...

[snacks]

My Steinway was refinished in satin black. It had some kind of rattlecan black job when I got it. While it's in the "art case," there were also art case ones that were finished rosewood. That can add thousands to the value, too...

[Roger Memphis]

Roger, this black beauty put just the right offset to all of our walnut and mahogany furniture. Everybody was amazed at how well it kept it's shine over the years. It was black inside and out, so don't think anyone besides the factory painted it

Jim C

Good point, Jim.
I've seen some black Steinway grand pianos amongst all sorts of other furniture. They still advance my pulse rate ! :)
Roger Memphis

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Hammond would finish your order to your liking for extra money.

Aah Ha ! I did not know this. Great Hammond lore, Pete !
Thanks.
Roger Memphis

[Sweet Pete]

At least one satin black M111 here in Vancouver. Was owned by the organ dealer's wife. Hammond would finish your order to your liking for extra money.
Blonde limed oak M3 I passed on a few years back,was owned by a friend.
I've seen gloss and satin in black on consoles as well. Have yet to encounter an eggshell white.

[Crewser]

Roger, this black beauty put just the right offset to all of our walnut and mahogany furniture. Everybody was amazed at how well it kept it's shine over the years. It was black inside and out, so don't think anyone besides the factory painted it

Jim C

[Roger Memphis]

When I bought my new M-3 in the late fifties, there was one of those black beauties on the showroom floor of the Hammond Organ Studio of Memphis. I agonized over it. I finally bought the walnut model because all of our living room and connecting dining room furniture was walnut, mahogany and other brown-toned finishes. After graduating and moving out, I somewhat wished I had chosen the black one. But it wasn't too long until I landed a mint-looking walnut CV and never looked back. Did Hammond ever actually make any A, B or C consoles in off-white lacquer (egg shell), or are all of those after-market refinished? I have only seen three or four of them over the many years. They, too, are beautiful in the right setting.
Roger Memphis

[Crewser]

Definitely a different organ, then. I'm confident after reading so many enthusiast posts on this forum that our old M3 surely found its way into a new gig 8)

Wow, 2 of them in Tulsa, Ok is unreal. This one was actually bought in Texas before migrating here. I will keep my eyes open for the other one.

Jim C

[tpappano]

Definitely a different organ, then. I'm confident after reading so many enthusiast posts on this forum that our old M3 surely found its way into a new gig 8)

[Crewser]

Haha, the organ world is so small... so it's not a rattle-can job? Is there a way to confirm it came from Hammond like this? My mentor has a black A100 but I'm not sure what the story on it is.

There is not a spot anywhere on it that isn't black. Even inside

- - - Updated - - -

Original registration and warranty papers showed it to belong to a Lloyd and Peggy Stephens

- - - Updated - - -

Ours came off an Akron Ohio Hammond showroom floor that way, with a gleaming black "piano finish". We moved it (and us) to Tulsa in 1962.
Due to the apparent scarcity of black Hammonds, I would bet a dollar to a doughnut that Crewser has our old M3 8)
I like the idea that it may have found its way from an auction house to someone who will appreciate and enjoy it!

edit: One long shot clue might be if the bench still held any of the music books that were in it...

If this is the same organ it sure sounds great now. Tone wheel was a little tight but got it up and running. Just sold it to a musician in Arkansas.

[tpappano]

Ours came off an Akron Ohio Hammond showroom floor that way, with a gleaming black "piano finish". We moved it (and us) to Tulsa in 1962.
Due to the apparent scarcity of black Hammonds, I would bet a dollar to a doughnut that Crewser has our old M3 8)
I like the idea that it may have found its way from an auction house to someone who will appreciate and enjoy it!

edit: One long shot clue might be if the bench still held any of the music books that were in it...

[snacks]

Haha, the organ world is so small... so it's not a rattle-can job? Is there a way to confirm it came from Hammond like this? My mentor has a black A100 but I'm not sure what the story on it is.

[tpappano]

It actually could be the same one. Unfortunately, I can't recall any identifying marks, the thing didn't have a scratch on it when I had to let it go. The TG was fairly well stuck, though, if I recall correctly.