3-slot payphone, what to look for?

[Greg G.]

So I know locks w/o keys can be a real problem, tell me what to look for on this one.  My eyes are gravitating to those 2 silver knobs on the right.  Are those locks?  The upper one looks like it's a coin return button, not sure what the lower one is.  

[Phonesrfun]

The upper one is a bent coin release.

THe lower one is a secondary security lock, over and above the original design of the upper housing lock in the lower center of the upper housing in the belly button position.

Things to look for:

First and foremost is having keys so you can get into the upper housing and the coin vault.  If the secondary lock is permanently opened and no key available, that is OK.  You do want to be able to lock and unlock the upper housing's primary lock , what I call the navel lock.  The coin vault needs to be able to be unlocked so you can get to the coins that are in the vault, and empty it from time to time.

You also want to have the complete coin track in the back of the upper housing, and the coin chute below that in the lower housing.

If you want to connect the phone to the line and don't care about collecting or returning coins, the coin relay is optional, and is often absent.  If you want to buy or build a coin collecting simulator, the coin relay is a must.

If you can get a complete set of photos, I and others can point out what these things are.

A backboard mounting board is helpful for mounting, but not entirely essential.  A 685A subset (or equivalent) needs to be used outside the phone to make it work.  A 500 phone can  be sacrificed for the subset.  I can help you with the wiring if you need that.

[Phonesrfun]

On closer examination of the pictures, the lower "lock" seems to be a blank space-holder, which is good.  One less lock to worry about.  Beige is probably the most common color after black, but by far black are more plentiful than colored.  It should clean up nicely.

[Greg G.]

Would a T-key fit the coin vault door?  Looks like some other kind of key is needed for the navel lock.  Asking price is $200 plus shipping, not sure it's really worth it, or if it is, would rather spend it on something else.  I was mostly wanting to educate myself on what to look for on payphones.

[G-Man]

3-Slots do not use a T-key!

[G-Man]

It is also configured for semi-postpay and not prepay operation.

(I don't know how the photo was included twice)

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EDIT:  One photo removed for you

[poplar1]

The redesigned number plate, which looks more like one from a 500 than the "daisy" design, indicates that it is a Northern Electric, not WE. Beige definitely detracts from the value.

The lack of keys is less of a problem with NE/WE than with AE: You can easily remove the back of the phone by removing 7 screws. If there is no coin box, you can then back out the AE vault door lock. Since the 10-L vault locks are all different, you would have to send it to someone like Jody to have a key made. The top locks are generic: 21B if it has the original NE lock, 29-S AE or 10-G/10-H WE.

If a complete WE black set would go for $225, then subtracting for NE -25, beige -50, no vault key -25, I'd say $125 max for this one---if the inside parts are complete.

[Contempra]

Anyway you've a very nice pink payphone ... This is not my kind of phone but yours is beautiful...and it is diferent from the pay phone black...This is why I find it super cool with its dial also different from other phones.