My first AE34....

AE40FAN · December 07, 2012, 06:54:51 PM

Maybe not my ideal AE34 but, a possibility it can be converted to rotary? Thank you LarryinMichigan for the lead! I bought it off Etsy and the seller originally wanted 65 and I talked her down to 55. Apparently, it was used in a hotel to buzz people? I have an AE40 dial numerals only with a painted brass finger wheel I'd like to swap out and my question is will it fit on a 34? Also, I'll probably need to locate a brass finger stop and even though the vinyl cords are AE originals I'd prefer cloth replacements. I'll probably also need to contact Gary Geoff for a replacement gasket unless I have the option of pulling one off of an AE40...Please, chyme in with your opinions!

AE_Collector · December 07, 2012, 07:29:26 PM

Uh Oh.....you have ringer problems too. AE 34 ringers on the correct bracket are hard to find.

The good news is pretty much any 3 inch AE dial will fit right in. Your dial is missing the finger stop?

A gasket from a 40 will fit but the corners will be "set" in it if it is on a 40 base which is a different shape. A new gasket from Gary GOFF would be best.

Terry

AE40FAN · December 07, 2012, 08:00:06 PM

Yes, I have ringer problems. What the heck is that big brass bell for? I'm looking for a brass finger stop to match my brass fingerwheel...Heck maybe I'll just leave it as a hotel phone clean it up and strip the paint off of the brass(suggestions are welcome). I do want to replace those vinyl cords with cloth though...

rdelius · December 07, 2012, 08:35:56 PM

Induction coil gone also

AE_Collector · December 07, 2012, 08:44:29 PM

You have options depending on what you want to accomplish. You can display it as is and/or add a dial and maybe cloth cords to display it. If you want it to work but don't care if it is correct inside you could add a modern network and you could probably get a smaller ringer in there without any problems. If you want it it to e correct inside and outside, you have some parts to find. A smashed 34 would be your best bet assuming that your cas and handset are good.

It has been turned into a simple intercom I would say. There were probably two phones and when you pushed this one's button the bell in the other phone would ring at the same time. Talk batter would have eben supplied by a power supply or a battery to allow the two people to talk with one another.

Terry

AE40FAN · December 08, 2012, 01:59:50 AM

More than likely I may just clean it up so it presents well...maybe some new cords...definitely a new gasket. A display to tide me over until the right one comes along...

HowardPgh · December 08, 2012, 12:50:22 PM

If you get a broken one, you can use this one to replace the case.

AE40FAN · December 08, 2012, 01:24:09 PM

Quote from: HowardPgh on December 08, 2012, 12:50:22 PM
If you get a broken one, you can use this one to replace the case.

That's my plan....

AE40FAN · December 21, 2012, 06:01:44 PM

Well I started to take apart the phone and my plan now is to leave it as an intercom phone. In addition to needing new cords and gasket I have a few other questions:

1) The condenser is fried! Are these difficult and expensive to replace?
2) The corroded baseplate..what type of metal is it and what can I soak it in?
3) Wasn't there a certain forum member who nickle plates brass bands for a reasonable price?
4) I discovered these interesting schematics under the phone...they can't be original?

HowardPgh · December 22, 2012, 05:58:46 PM

The condenser may be OK, just dirty on the outside. Check it with an ohm meter set at R x 1000, it should show a 0 then go toward infinity.
Howard

LarryInMichigan · December 22, 2012, 07:18:02 PM

I am glad to see that you got it. I didn't think that it had normal phone parts inside, but I think that you got a fantastic deal on it given the outrageous prices that AE34s bring and the difficulty of getting one with an unbroken shell.

As for the gasket, there is a really cheap alternative for those of us who are not perfectionists. Several layers of black vinyl electrical tape (about 5-10 cents worth) wrapped carefully around the edges of the base plate will look good and almost the same as the proper rubber part.

As for the missing parts, as AE_collector stated, any standard North American 3" dial will fit. An AE dial would certainly be the most appropriate. There is alot of room inside these phones, so even a WE 425B network would probably fit, and almost any smaller ringer would fit. We won't tell anyone what's inside if you don't

Congratulations on your AE34!

Larry

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My first AE34....