Lifetime Ribbon (unidentified)

The Lifetime ribbon microphone is suspected to have been produced by the Lifetime Corporation, a little-known company registered at 1302 Dorr Street, Toledo, Ohio, which advertised a carbon button microphone in a few 1933 editions of QST Magazine (e.g. October 1933, Page 83) This was noted by the Boatanchor Pix blog. A similar promotion appeared in the Walter Ash catalogue in 1935:

Another Lifetime ribbon microphone appears in the Jim Webb Sound collection of microphones.

This is a relatively small bodied ribbon microphone, similar in size to an EV-V1, for example. The ribbon motor itself is similar in design to some Amperite models, with two cylindrical magnets fitted behind folded steel pole pieces. Like the EV ribbons, the connection to the transfomer is made via screws that push through the ribbon itself, which can be a source of noise or point of failure. Our example arrived covered in pale sticky gunk, which appears to be decomposed latex rubber. This microphone is currently undergoing restoration.

Cole Suddarth has shared photos and recordings of a Lifetime ribbon microphone, although his example has a chrome plated grill and a more gently rounded body - it appears to be a later model than the one in the MoMics collection:

"Today we have another microphone I had never seen before! This “Lifetime” ribbon microphone looks to have been made around the 1960’s, though I’ve never seen another like it. This one has a strong ribbon motor and after adding in a new ribbon, Cinemag transformer, and a new balanced XLR cable, it’s a nice sounding microphone with a colorful top end due to the shape of the grills. With it also having a respectable low end, I wish there were more of these ribbons out there!.