Classic Rotary Phones: Repair, Refurbish, Restore Vintage Telephones

From the archives of the Library of Congress comes this interesting peek into Santa’s Workshop, circa 1906. This image is said to have been one side of a stereo card, but the clear view of the photo studio at the top shows this to be a preliminary image, not a final one. Given the aspect ratio used on vintage stereo cards, and the fact that they were arched across the top, I can definitely seeing how this photo could have worked in that capacity.
I’ve already touched on the popularity of Santa-with-telephone images, and this one features both an oak wall phone and a nice, shiny candlestick. Sure seems like Santa would have a more impressive Christmas tree…
Here’s the phones in a close-up.

Have you ever just stopped and taken stock of the whole collecting phenomenon? I’m particularly talking about collecting “old stuff”, be it early telephones, baseball cards, vintage pottery… whatever. Have you ever questioned the time and effort put into your hobby? Why do you study and collect vintage things, and is it a worthwhile pursuit? These questions must be answered by the individual, but I have a few thoughts on the subject that I’d like to share. (imagine that!)
As I see it, there are two primary motivators for any hobby that’s centered around antiques or vintage collectibles: nostalgia, and historical research. Those two factors can, and usually do, overlap to some degree. Often as not, nostalgia is what ropes you in, but it tends to be a poor foundation for a lasting relationship. If you’re a life-long enthusiast, that initial nostalgia likely morphed into something else: an appreciation for history. Read the rest of this entry »

Wow, now here’s a beauty, an early (1955) Western Electric model 500 in moss green, a fairly popular color in its day. Restored by Jorge Amely, it’s ‘55 all the way, right down to the gray line and handset cords. The model 500 is still growing as a collectible phone, and these date-matching examples are only going to appreciate over time. More photographs of this phone, and many others faithfully restored by Jorge, can be found on Picasa.

Released in 1937, Western Electric’s model 302 was a significant evolutionary step, one that served subscribers loyally for nearly twenty years. They now enjoy a good deal of popularity among old phone enthusiasts, those who can appreciate their sound design, classic styling and historical significance. Now days the 302 is often called the “Lucy phone”, apparently named by those whose pre-1980 knowledge was obtained from TV reruns. Upon completion of the design Henry Dreyfuss and his team began work on a companion wall-mount version, the model 354. Its release was intended to follow closely on the heels of the 302’s introduction, but then World War II came into play. The shift to wartime production had the unfortunate consequence of delaying the 354’s release until 1946, only three years before Western Electric released their revolutionary new desk phone, the model 500.
The 354 used the same electrical/mechanical components as the 302 of the time, including the #6 dial, 101B induction coil, F1 handset, and B2 ringer. The first 302s had zinc alloy housings, but soon switched to thermoplastics for their construction, the material employed on all 354s. The model 554, a wall version of the 500, came out in 1956, so after roughly nine years of production the 354 rode off into the sunset. Read the rest of this entry »

What makes antiquing an adventure is the mystery of it, as I never know what sort of crazy stuff I’ll come home with. Well, I’ve surprised myself again. Having recently acquired a model 1243, I’ve been thinking about Stromberg-Carlson quite a bit lately, hoping to learn more about the company and its products. I discovered that they were the premier manufacturer of phones for the independent (read, non-Bell) companies in the earlier years of the 20th Century, their phones proving well suited for the long distances encountered with rural use. I found one of those early phones this past Saturday at an antique mall in Cleburne, Texas. My knowledge of telephones of this vintage is nil, and I almost certainly paid too much, but I just couldn’t leave it behind. I’ve grown accustomed to messing around with old phones, but compared to the others this one is ancient! To use the vernacular of the antique phone hobby, it is a twin-box fiddleback telephone, the term “fiddleback” seemingly applied to any vintage wood phone whose backboard is anything other than straight-sided. [Note: I have been informed by Tom Adams that this backboard style is actually more of a "Gibson Girl" design] Once I got it home a little research was in order, so I scanned through my books and did some ‘net surfing, hoping to find some particulars regarding this early twin-box Stromberg-Carlson. Read the rest of this entry »

I just love bargains. Not the junk that’s “cheap for a reason”, but genuinely good prices on good stuff. I’ve already carried on in another post about how to find bargains on eBay, but I left out one thing: “Buy It Now”. The best bargains I’ve ever gotten on eBay have come from seeing a Buy It Now just moments after it listed. Such was the case with this dandy Stromberg-Carlson 1243. The Buy It Now was $10 and so was the shipping… sold! So what did my $20 get me? A pretty decent phone, actually. The alloy body is missing paint in the usual places, but the bakelite handset is free from damage (although the receiver cap is pretty pitted), the dial turns and returns as it should, and all the internals are present. I can’t comment on functionality yet, as I’ve yet to replace the well-worn line cord. Read the rest of this entry »

Yesterday I opened up the second of my four North Electric phones, and was happy to see that its internal condition bore little resemblance to the first. You may recall that the inside of the first phone had a certain “rats nest” quality, and I was braced for a similar condition this time around. But in comparison to the dust and grime of the previous phone, this one was the very essence of cleanliness. But as it turned out, Galion #2 had some surprises of its own in store for me. Read the rest of this entry »

I told you I brought a nifty phone home from vacation, didn’t I? Here it is, a Western Electric model 5302, fresh from an antique mall in Reno, Nevada. (on right below) I haven’t gone over it with a fine tooth comb, but for my $20 investment I can’t have done too poorly on the deal. So what makes a model 5302 so special? Here’s some background:

The photo above illustrates the most obvious difference between the 5302 and the 500 it emulates: the footprint. The 5302 has the same diminutive stature as the 302 it’s based on, so the body is chopped-off behind the handset. Several models of phones have acquired nicknames, the “Lucy phone” and “mushroom phone” coming quickly to mind. In fact, I’ve even heard the AE40 called “the Shirley Temple phone”. (stop, you’re killing me.) The 5302, on the other hand, has the dubious honor of being called the “transition phone”. By nature, nicknames tend to be overly simplistic, but in the case of the 5302 it is simply incorrect. Because the set consists of a 302 chassis topped by a model 500 look-alike body, it is mistakenly believed that the 5302 was a stepping stone, a “toe in the water” stage before the 500 was fully implemented. That scenario wouldn’t have made much sense for Western Electric, but the truth also has an air of the illogical, particularly in the light of today’s manufacturing and marketing practices. Read the rest of this entry »

I’m proud to announce that, after a little cleaning and new cords, the first of my North Electric project phones has a dial tone, dials numbers reliably, and rings. Score!!! My paranoia over the possibility of their having frequency ringers was, thankfully, unfounded. A friend made the observation, “It makes me wonder how long it was silent and who heard it ring last.” Indeed. There’s still more work to be done, as the cleaning was mainly superficial and the ringer definitely needs an adjustment. Oh yea, and I’ve got to get that swell light to work. So far this is going entirely too easy… stay tuned!

You know, eBay is a funny place. You search for, say, “bakelite telephone”, with no real intention of bidding. It is, after all, great fun just to see what’s out there, right? That’s how this got started. I spotted an auction for four (four) North Electric “Galion” telephones, and they weren’t seeing much action. Now I didn’t need four Galions, but gosh-darn-it, it would be a shame to let a bargain slip right through my fingers! Read the rest of this entry »

I’m going to share some fundamental “secrets” to finding good buys on eBay. The reason I say fundamental is because these tips can apply to most anything one might purchase at auction, including vintage telephones. Here’s the crux of this whole thing: The more desirable a given auction item appears, the more bidders will participate and the higher the winning bid will be. That is the essence of the auction process in a nutshell. “Well dang, Mark, am I just supposed to bid on the crap that no one else wants?” That is certainly one approach, I’m going to suggest another… find the phones that don’t appear to be as desirable. Read the rest of this entry »

Besides my visit to a favorite local flea market this past weekend I also hit a previously unexplored venue, the Mid-Cities Antique Mall in Hurst, Texas. Antique malls aren’t generally noted for their bargain prices, but every now and then a good deal will surface. I picked up this early non-dial 302 (I believe this to be a model 302EW-3) for $20. Given its condition I don’t believe I would have bid that much for it on eBay, but not having to pay an additional $20 or so for shipping strongly influenced my decision to buy. As you probably know, these early examples have a zinc alloy housing, and this one is in desperate need of paint. I’m also a little nervous about the handset, as it has a bad case of the pitting that is often found on bakelite.
Something I found particularly interesting about the phone are the “instructions.” Over the number card is a sticker (reinforced by yellowed cellophane tape) that says, “Local Calls 25¢ Ea.,” and written on a large sticker below the fingerwheel is, “Local Calls 25¢ Ea., Switchboard Hrs. 8:AM to 10:30PM.” All this is hand-written in ballpoint, you understand. Part of me looks past this rough exterior and sees what could be, but I can’t help but wonder if I should leave it alone. This phone was used for decades, and has a history that is written all over it, however crudely. This is a topic I’ve touched on before: should the years be erased or preserved? My personal view is leaning more often towards repair rather than restoration, but I suspect that what this well-worn 302 might deserve is detailing. Somewhere in that murky area between simple repair work (fixing) and restoration (making as new) lies detailing. Yep, that’s going to be the ticket.

Well, we’ve replaced the cords, gotten the ringer to work, adjusted it to perfection (frighteningly loud), and have used it as a primary phone in the Stevens’ household for the past couple of weeks, a test that it passed with flying colors. It still looks a bit more “rugged” than I’d like, so lets see about cleaning and polishing, shall we? While y’all weren’t looking, I took it upon myself to clean up the inside of the phone just a little. No, I didn’t do the whole “fully disassembled and ultrasonically cleaned” thing… that’s wacky. Now hold on there, Mister Ultrasonic, what I mean is that it’s wacky for me. Lest we forget, I’m still a card-carrying rookie, and where telephones are concerned, have never attempted anything more technical than a couple of prank calls. I’m not after an immaculate restoration. This project is all about functional, reliable and presentable. Functional, reliable and presentable… sort of rolls off the tongue, doesn’t it? By golly, that could be the battle-cry of a new movement… “Down with FR (fully restored), long-live FRP!!!”     Or not.
Read the rest of this entry »

So here it is, my first “project” phone! Many will recognize this as a Western Electric Model 302, the first W/E telephone to have the ringer contained within the body of the phone itself. (The previous designs, the 102 and 202, required a separate ringer box) The 302 was introduced in 1937 and remained in production until… I don’t recall. It might have been through the early ’50s, but it doesn’t matter. I’ll dedicate myself to doing historical research another time, but one should know that 302s were made with both metal bodies (I think a zinc alloy) and with plastic bodies. The metal bodies were phased out following the outbreak of WWII, replaced by the thermoplastic that would be used from that point onward. This particular phone, dated 10-46, is plastic. Fresh from eBay, it seems complete and the condition is pretty good, although the cords are shot and it presumably doesn’t ring. Job one will be to make it work, followed by cosmetic restoration. Can I turn this neglected classic into a functioning thing of beauty? Stay tuned!