Which is the better (more original/collectible) phone?

[allnumbedup]

I don't know much about payphones except that they seem a bit of a world of there own.  I would like to ask for help if any paystation collections are willing. I have had the black LPC-82-55 (the "8" is struck over from another number and is labled as GTE-last picture)-- payphone for about ten years. I got it on ebay for $100 and local pickup, then added a vault door and a chrome fingerwheel, made some reproduction cards from scans on this site. The chrome LPB-86-55 (the "B" is struck over from another letter and has an is labeled as AE) I got  as a $125 FBmarketplace local pick up recently.  The seller mailed me two 29S keys for the top lock and is still looking for the bottom key (he sent me two that do not fit the lock). I was able to drill/back out the two bolts for the backplate and open it up. I sent the seller the key # to look for (he has a whole box of them). No vault box in either.  Both have Teltronics parts. The black one works like a normal phone and rings using the added ringer. The chrome one doesn't ring but works like a residential phone otherwise.  The seller swears the chrome one used to ring 20 years ago. I do not plan to make either work with all original parts but plan is to keep the chrome one because it is chrome, seems more original inside, and has a older looking tag, add a chrome finger wheel, switch locks and move the top sign to it from the black one (it is not riveted on-last picture).   The black one I plan to sell to fund my phone collecting habit.  Here are my questions:

Are Teltronic parts always field upgrades to older phones that were partially gutted of analog parts as these seem to be?
Does the chrome one's Teltronics board that was mounted above the base have something to do with the semipostpay coin function of the phone?
Any chance of me getting the original ringer working on a residential line on the chrome one or will it need a new compact ringer on tip and ring like the black one has?
Anything inside that makes the black one especially desirable to a collector of payphones that I should not part with?

[Key2871]

There are several here who know payphones, hang in there this time of year folks go on vacation and don't check in often.

You could shoot payphoneinstaller a pm and ask for his input. He's a busy guy from my understanding.
But he knows this stuff inside out.

[rdelius]

When the set was rebuilt, the blue board was installed in place  of the AE guts. The semi postpay board with the coin switch was easier to use and not as finiky as the old coil. You can use it to require coins

[allnumbedup]

I  wound up restoring both phones. I have the black AE payphone posted on ebay ( https://www.ebay.com/itm/284569378355 ) after moving the top flag and a few parts to the chrome AE which is now on my wall.  Both phones worked  off an installed modular plug when I acquired them and I did not attempt to modify any wiring that existed but found keeping track of all the connections a challenge making a few errors til I got it correct. The chrome payphone is stamp dated 5-17-63 on the internal edge of the base and there was a wiring schematic in the vault.  I installed a double gong ringer in the vault and preserved all existing parts as recommended on this site (I used a smaller late model ringer from a 2500--the kind with the  ball bearing and no clapper arm.). The instruction card and dial card are originals.  The top flag insert is a reproduction I made using an image from a member's post on this site.  I have also just purchased a vintage ink blotter that is an advertisement for the yellow pages.  I intend to use it in place of this graphiic as a top flag.  (The instructions on the top flag as shown are not correct for this model phone).  I really like the 100% analog way that each denomination of coin makes a different noise when inserted---I either rediscovered this fact while testing these phones or maybe never put anything but a quarter in a payphone.

[Doug Rose]

JC....Nice work on these two beauties...Doug

[FABphones]

I really like these in chrome, looks good.

I have an AE 3 slot in black (bell also added into the vault at some point in it's history). I bought a coin box alongside some other items it needed and popped it together with a few quarters etc for display next to the phone.

[allnumbedup]

Below is how the top flag turned out for my finished chrome AE pay phone.  I purchased an ink blotter, scanned it, and expanded the image to fit well in the frame on top of my phone. I sold the black AE on ebay and I thought I packaged it very well. I used a thick cardboard framed box inside a large box then built a foam case around the hookswitch. Still it got shattered. It must have been dropped right on the hook. The bell and cord restraint were knocked loose inside as well and you can see what became of the hook.  I talked to the very reasonable buyer and refunded him the cost of a new hookswitch which was less than paying for him to send the phone back and what he wanted so I left it up to him.

[MMikeJBenN27]

Sad.  You have to ship phones as "Fragile", meaning you pay extra, $12.00, and they put "fragile" stickers on the box.  They put it in its own bin, and it is handled with care.  Shipping "regular" is inviting destruction, as you found out.

Mike

[allnumbedup]

This sad tale had a good ending as the buyer was interested and able to install a replacement arm and reattach the bell which is best case scenario for all--- next to not being broken of course. jc

[TelePlay]

As an FYI, I always ship any phones with a hook arm by placing a 3" diameter cardboard tube, cut 1" longer than the arm, over the arm pre-wrapped with small bubble wrap and then wrap the phone with bubble wrap to hold the protective tube in place during shipping.

Never had a problem doing that and that includes several shipments of pay phones internationally.

No need to pay a "fragile" surcharge if packed well.

[MMikeJBenN27]

...No need to pay a "fragile" surcharge if packed well.

I had a temporary job at the Post Office, and trust me, you do need to pay extra for "Fragile".

Mike

[FABphones]

I had a temporary job at the Post Office, and trust me, you do need to pay extra for "Fragile".

Stories abound about Fragile packages being targeted. Out of sight and all that. The footage below shows just a few examples, the drivers in the clips don't seem to take much notice of what they are handling; scan and throw, or just throw.

Insurance essential but not sure about 'Fragile'. Good packing is everything.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qaqb5TRXPh4

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LcrKPMsKec

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7p497WsUEqA

[TelePlay]

I had a temporary job at the Post Office, and trust me, you do need to pay extra for "Fragile".

I disagree.

Trusting someone I don't know, several someone's, handling a package "better" over a multi-transfer route because it has a "fragile" sticker on it is folly. And, yes, disenchanted aggrieved employees with bad attitudes having a bad day are prone to taking out their hostility on packages market "fragile." And should be fired for cause on the spot if spotted doing that intentionality.

I prefer to pack any phone expecting it to be severely abused by anyone at any point in its journey, even if it costs me an extra $5 in packing  materials (and double boxing if the item is prone to being broken due to its material) so the item inside arrives unbroken.

It's incumbent on me, not a sticker, to honor the sales contract to get the item as sold to the buyer.

Nothing I have ever shipped has been broken in transit and I never put a target on my boxes by labeling them "Fragile."

Many of us have received broken stuff and have seen firsthand what poor packing practices were used in those cases.

It's insanity to think an unprotected hook, the most vulnerable part, are on the side of a 15 to 20 pound pay phone will arrive unbent or unbroken if not protected in some way from impact, even if the package is handled with kid gloves at every transfer.

I've seen my local postal carrier drop a heavy box walking up to my front door, a box with "Fragile" AND a "Heavy" stickers on it. I expect that to happen accidentally so pack to protect from those circumstances.

Stickers are never a solution to poor packing. It's the shipper's responsibility, and duty, to prevent breakage, not the carrier.

[kleenax]

Below is how the top flag turned out for my finished chrome AE pay phone.  I purchased an ink blotter, scanned it, and expanded the image to fit well in the frame on top of my phone. I sold the black AE on ebay and I thought I packaged it very well. I used a thick cardboard framed box inside a large box then built a foam case around the hookswitch. Still it got shattered. It must have been dropped right on the hook. The bell and cord restraint were knocked loose inside as well and you can see what became of the hook.  I talked to the very reasonable buyer and refunded him the cost of a new hookswitch which was less than paying for him to send the phone back and what he wanted so I left it up to him.

Have shipped a LOT of 3-slots, and the best thing to do (if your buyer is willing to re-install) is to just "pull the pin" and remove the switch hook entirely and ship it that way. If not, I buy 10" x 12" boxes and orient the hook that 12" way, and put 3" blocks of styrofoam on both sides of the hook. I have never had a broken hook in 20 yrs of shipping them using this practice.

[TelePlay]

. . . I buy 10" x 12" boxes and orient the hook that 12" way, and put 3" blocks of styrofoam on both sides of the hook. I have never had a broken hook in 20 yrs of shipping them using this practice.

Yes, that is a good alternative to the sturdy cardboard tube method. Anything that keeps the hook from external pressure would work.