Vintage Phones

[Mr_D.]

I can almost guarantee you that is a frequency ringer by the style of clapper between the gongs.

Yes have already been told that. I am going to get a new ringer over the Easter weekend when I go to my mom's.

That or I may just go to the flea market where I got it and pic up a 2nd phone and use the ringer from it and keep the 2nd phone as an extension.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

They do pop up on eBay now and then. I have a spare one I picked up at the Goodwill, still in the original box. I can see if I can dig it up for you, if you'd like.

Yes have already been told that. I am going to get a new ringer over the Easter weekend when I go to my mom's.

That or I may just go to the flea market where I got it and pic up a 2nd phone and use the ringer from it and keep the 2nd phone as an extension.

 

[Brinybay]

What I lack in technical knowledge, I make up for in forthrightness.

My philosophy is similar. When I can't dazzle them with brilliance, I baffle them with bs!

 

[Brinybay]

I've acquired several phones since I last posted here, but this one is the most unique. My first multi-line phone, a WE 440. A multi-line version of the 302. Fully functions, but only on one line since that's all I have in my humble abode. The original black background behind the "A" was stuck to that metal plate that holds it in, I thought it was the coloring of the plate. I found out otherwise after I took it out of a bath in oxiclean. So I dug through the recycle basket by the mailboxes in my apt. building and found a magazine with an ad that had a lot of black in it and cut out a circle to replicate the original black background behind the A.

The bakelite handset was polished using a method developed by another collector that involves "sanding" it with fine steel wool (0000), then soaking it in Avon Skin So Soft Original Bath Oil overnight. This was my first attempt using that method, so I'm not sure how it compares, but at least my chapped hands are better! The rest of it just needed a touch of Novus. The case was in good shape, shined up real nice. Fully functions with a nice heavy-duty, old-fashioned ring to it. Just need to find the part that goes above the keys.


Before picture:

After:

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Sharp lookin old WE. Love it!

 

[Argee]

Here's an earlier version of the WE-302 I just picked up. It's the 1941 cast Zinc version. It didn't have any paint when I bought it, have to work on that. I bought this specific version because it's identical to the one my grandfather had as a kid in the quarters during WWII at Maxwell Field. In addition to the paint, it needs a straight cloth covered wire.

 

[Mae Croft]

The house I'm living in will, at some point, be a vintage-style bed and breakfast and the first thing the managers did was an antique and repro sweep - so now we've got about two dozen phones, both vintage and some reproductions. The vintage are, by far, more beautiful I think (and less tacky looking - I'm not all too popular on that subect lol ) - one of them is cream colored and we're trying to get it working again. Unfortunately, we're all severely dumb on the subject so I think it's sort of fallen by the wayside for now. If I get a chance, I'll post some pics! I've got one below, but the quality is just awful. I really need better equipment!

 

[LizzieMaine]

Recently picked up a 151AL candlestick -- or "Desk Stand" as Ma Bell officially called them -- and accompanying 634A subset, in completely unmolested/unmonkeyed-with condition. It had been pulled from service in an old house at some point around the mid-sixties, wrapped up in a paper bag, and stuffed in the back of a closet, where it stayed for the next 45 years. When I unwrapped it, it was covered with filth and grime, which came off easily revealing a gently-worn original finish. I attached the box to the side my desk, connected a line cord, and it worked perfectly with no further need of adjustment or service.

It's an interesting phone -- like most candlesticks it was rebuilt several times over the course of its service. The shell is dated 4-29, and started out as a 51-AL, but the bulldog-style transmitter is dated 1943 -- indicating it was a wartime rebuild/update Candlesticks enjoyed a considerable resurgence during the war, when all manufacture of newer phones for civilian use stopped, and the phone company was forced to reuse obsolete stock. Mine is a good example of this.

The ringer box is also a wartime rebuild, with a 101A induction coil. This gives it, basically, the same innards as a 302, and the same high-quality sound. A very nice phone -- for embarassingly little money.

 

[mrbieler]

We've had our 302 for about 12 years. Works great. The portables in the house are on mute so we only hear the old ringer for incoming calls. Love how it makes folks jump. No one thinks it works and it's right next to your head when you sit on the left side of the couch.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Lizzie, I'm jealous as can be. Wonderful find you've got there!

 

[Bingles]

Great find Lizzie!! Please post a picture!!
Candlesticks are my favorite type of phones!

 

[LizzieMaine]

Pix --

The number card is the acetate disc type -- with slots behind a transparent cover where pre-printed exchange and number information are inserted.

Inside the subset --

All the cords and internal wiring are original to the 1940s rebuild -- the mounting cord has rubber-jacketed internal wires rather than cloth, but the rubber is still perfectly supple. Clearly being stored in a paper bag for 45 years is the key to a long and healthy life.

 

[mrbieler]

Beautiful.

 

[Bingles]

Looks great, Lizzie!

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Looks great! A heck of a find, especially with the dial card and subset!

 

[Espee]

I'm reminded of some photos I saw lately, which looked circa 1900 to me, and the imprint on the back gave the name of the studio, its address (on Broadway in N.Y.C.), the cross-streets, and the phrase "TELEPHONE CONNECTION."
Ha! No number... in those days you'd tell the operator the name of the business or resident, and wait to be connected.
There was a story of some noted wit who heard about the impending publication of the first phone directory (with numbers) for his area and said "I refuse to be made an unpaid employee of the telephone company" (or something in that vein.)
I almost said "something along those LINES"!

 

[Bingles]

I just picked up this beauty: LM Ericsson nickel candlestick (from Great Britain). It has a newer network system inside for better reception, but the phone itself is quite old. I loved the aged nickel look so much I decided to "trade in" my Western Electric candlestick for this.

 

[AtomicEraTom]

Seems everyone's finding candlesticks these days. I can't find one for under 150 bucks, and even those aren't dial phones.

 

[Bingles]

Keep in mind that Lizzie seems to be the only one getting good deals on candlesticks.

 

[LizzieMaine]

Look in brown paper bags in the back of elderly folks' closets. They're still out there -- those that avoided The Great Surplus Sales.