Where do you buy your Capacitors

[WesternElectricBen]

Then it would be a .5 mF 250 volt replacement.  Ben:  You say you have (2) 500 phones with bad ringer caps?  They don't often go out.  How did you test them?

Well. I checked the wiring, and everything else works well so I suspected that be the issue.

Though what is suspicious is they are both on 1950's ringers..

Ben

[WesternElectricBen]

So.. Your saying this is the right one?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/390687835528

Thank you!!

[HarrySmith]

Try swapping the ringers with ones from a known working phone, see if they work in the other phone and vice versa.

[WesternElectricBen]

Try swapping the ringers with ones from a known working phone, see if they work in the other phone and vice versa.

Alright, so if it rings, what would I do to the old one?

And if it doesn't, would it be the capacitor at fault?

Ben 

[Phonesrfun]

So.. Your saying this is the right one?

http://www.ebay.com/itm/390687835528

Thank you!!

Yes, that is a correct cap.

[Phonesrfun]

Try swapping the ringers with ones from a known working phone, see if they work in the other phone and vice versa.

Alright, so if it rings, what would I do to the old one?

And if it doesn't, would it be the capacitor at fault?

Ben 

The biggest reason for a ringer not working is due to wiring.  If you have already checked to make sure the ringer is connected correctly, then it could also be the ringer coils.  Just seems odd that you would have two phones both with bad capacitors.  What I did not hear you say is whether you have done a definitive check of the capacitors with a capacitor checker.  Many digital ohm meters these days have capacitor checkers.  If you don't have one, I am not suggesting you go out and buy one, but I also would check the wiring and the ringer coils before assuming the problem was automatically the fault of the capacitors.

You have probably been through the wiring before, but here is what a 500 should be wired like:

Line cord red to L2
Line cord green to L1

Ringer Red to L2
Ringer Black to L1
Ringer Slate/Red to A
Ringer Slate to K

Often you will see a phone with the black ringer wire connected to G along with a yellow line cord wire.  If that is the case, you can do one of two things:

1.  Either move the black wire from G to L1 as indicated above; -or-
2.  Connect the green and yellow wires together at the wall.

[WesternElectricBen]

Try swapping the ringers with ones from a known working phone, see if they work in the other phone and vice versa.

Alright, so if it rings, what would I do to the old one?

And if it doesn't, would it be the capacitor at fault?

Ben  

The biggest reason for a ringer not working is due to wiring.  If you have already checked to make sure the ringer is connected correctly, then it could also be the ringer coils.  Just seems odd that you would have two phones both with bad capacitors.  What I did not hear you say is whether you have done a definitive check of the capacitors with a capacitor checker.  Many digital ohm meters these days have capacitor checkers.  If you don't have one, I am not suggesting you go out and buy one, but I also would check the wiring and the ringer coils before assuming the problem was automatically the fault of the capacitors.

You have probably been through the wiring before, but here is what a 500 should be wired like:

Line cord red to L2
Line cord green to L1

Ringer Red to L2
Ringer Black to L1
Ringer Slate/Red to A
Ringer Slate to K

Often you will see a phone with the black ringer wire connected to G along with a yellow line cord wire.  If that is the case, you can do one of two things:

1.  Either move the black wire from G to L1 as indicated above; -or-
2.  Connect the green and yellow wires together at the wall.

AHHHH!! I am sorry for the confusion, you are right.. I just moved the wire.. I guess I missed that, maybe I should have taken a closer look.

Though, the other phone that I was talking about, the one I also thought had a bad cap. Well, it was very temperamental when it rang. It rang and I picked up and used it. Then the next day it didn't. Then after that it did.. And now it won't at all, so I believe that needs a new cap.

Ben

[Phonesrfun]

On that intermittent ringer, check the bias spring setting too.

[WesternElectricBen]

On that intermittent ringer, check the bias spring setting too.

Ah, I will.

Even though it completely stopped working?

Ben

[poplar1]

What everyone is saying is that you need to isolate the problem:

(1) Test a previously known good 500 to make sure it rings OK.
                           
(2) If so, remove the ringer from this working phone and install it in the phone with a suspected bad capacitor.

(3) If the transplanted ringer rings, then the problem is  probably not an open capacitor in the network.

[WesternElectricBen]

OKAY!!

I will do that, and the troubleshooting all makes sense to me.

But I must do it later in the week when I have more time.

Ben

[TelePlay]

Though, the other phone that I was talking about, the one I also thought had a bad cap. Well, it was very temperamental when it rang. It rang and I picked up and used it. Then the next day it didn't. Then after that it did.. And now it won't at all, so I believe that needs a new cap.

While its not ringing could be anything, what you said sure sounds like a loose wire or a broken wire.

[unbeldi]

In case you're wondering what these capacitors look like inside the 425 network...
here is a view of the four stacked on top of each other. The bottom package is the ringing condenser with its leads going to the A and K terminals. This network was made in 1955.

Then next two up are the capacitors in the balancing circuit of the network, first the 0.4 μF, about the same size as #1, and then the large 2 μF capacitor.   The tiny one on the top is the 0.1 μF unit in the RF interference filter across the dial pulse contacts.

The odds that you have two phones with bad capacitors are really not very good. Being "temperamental" when ringing can have multiple sources. What are you using to ring them? Low voltages combined with poor, dirty contacts may be culprits, assuming your basic wiring is correct. If in doubt remove the  black and red ringer wires from their posts and connect them directly to your line with test clips without the telephone (audio) itself connected. Try releasing the bias spring on the ringers.

The second image is the circuit of just the ringer in the 500 set. You can see the ringer coil is split into two parts, but both are wound together on the same core of the ringer. The capacitor is between them on terminals A and K.
This alone is sufficient to test your ringers.

[rp2813]

My 9/54 500 won't ring.  I noticed the S/R and S wires from the coil were transposed on terminals A and K.  My 11/56 500 is wired that way and rings fine.  I switched these two leads on the 9/54 and it made no difference.

I have a question about switching the ringers as has been recommended previously in this discussion.  Should the entire ringer assembly be switched out, or just the coil?

I'm poised to purchase a lot of 10 capacitors on eBay if switching the ringer doesn't resolve the problem.  Would these be soldered onto A & K since they don't have spades, or is there another preferred method?

[G-Man]

My 9/54 500 won't ring.  I noticed the S/R and S wires from the coil were transposed on terminals A and K.  My 11/56 500 is wired that way and rings fine.  I switched these two leads on the 9/54 and it made no difference.

I have a question about switching the ringers as has been recommended previously in this discussion.  Should the entire ringer assembly be switched out, or just the coil?

I'm poised to purchase a lot of 10 capacitors on eBay if switching the ringer doesn't resolve the problem.  Would these be soldered onto A & K since they don't have spades, or is there another preferred method?

It makes no difference as to which terminals (A-K) the slate and slate/red wires are connected to and the wires of the capacitor can easily be formed around the terminal screws.