I picked up a set of Model 18 from this long defunct TN manufacturer. Foam will be here tomorrow along with a couple of caps and new binding posts.

Any members here familiar with this little known company?

Regards,

Ken

I can't say I do, but I tell you it makes me want brine-cured olives and some nice Egri Bikavér...

Good luck with them, my friend. Sounds like they're going to be nice...

Bolivar seems to be a side-company of JBL.

Tom Dailey writes:
Long ago and far away, I was the Service Manager for the DENVER division of the old Burstein-Applebee Company. At one time, somebody decided to get into bed with Bolivar (so to speak). The story I got was that a group of former JBL folks got together and produced the company and line of products. They marketed the hell out of 'em, but only one problem... B-A insisted on selling them as a package with Marantz amps... now, nothing against Marantz, but we called 'em "Clip Boxes", because they'd go into clipping faster than a Vietnamese barber. To add to this, Bolivar stuff was 4 ohms, vs the standard 8 ohms. Now put 4 ohm speakers on an amplifier that will clip already, and you're pulling TWICE THE CURRENT out of the output transistors... joila! They'd blow the final amp transistors AND... tear the cones right out of the speakers. We got real tired of sending them back to Bolivar, and the big "B" never seemed to be able to supply enough replacement elements, so that was the end of our Bolivar adventure. Only one more story... The local Bolivar sales-puke was in the shop, talking with us all, and my wife (assistant to the District Manager at the time) came back and put him on the spot for our replacement parts... he shuffled and made some lame excuse and when she walked out, he flipped her off - (you can see the picture developing here). I grasped him gently but firmly and "suggested" that that whole box of jackets, belt-buckles, and other goodies (intended for the salespeople) was NOW THE PROPERTY OF THE SERVICE DEPARTMENT... when he balked, I informed him as to my relationship with the lady in question - he turned whiter than he was, and we kept the jackets. I still wear the buckle.

Also, they have a -*test*-('") record for putting your phonograph and speakers to the -*test*-('")...

I had their speaker -*test*-('") record. It may still be there in the pile, if anybody's interested. It was cool to me, since I was from Tennessee.