LOVE Love Love my New H 181 Phone!

[DavePEI]

Thanks so much... I feel a bit dumb but if I can restore my Coke Machines this shouldn't be a very hard learning curve I guess! I feel a bit better knowing my phone is 1940's and seems to be intact without what I have read as Frankinstien phone parts... Ha Ha I thought I was missing the coin bucket but this model didn't come with that I guess.... The coin door is a whole nother issue I assume when taken out of service they trashed the doors and locks CRAZY to think that part alone is over $50.00 unless you get lucky! And I thought Coke machine parts were hard to find at a decent price....

No, there is a bot of a learning curve, but it is fun. I am partial to my afterthought, using your subset only as a ringer, as it will look more authentic than using an aftermarket ringer, then you will leave your phone 100% compatible with an eventual controller...

Now, I forget if the subset has a split ringer winding - it it does, you will have to join the two coils (by connecting the center winding wires together), then put the capacitor in series with the ringer. As mentioned, you can leave the network in the subset case, and that way, it could eventually be returned to normal again.

You should eventually be able to find a coin door for it - in fact, it is possible a member of the Forum will have a spare they can let you have. I am sorry I can't as I don't have a spare. Try putting a want add in the classifieds portion of the Forum - you never know, it may turn one up.

Your phone is a lot more desireable than a 233, so you are very fortunate.

Dave

[GarageParty]

Soooo if its NOT a 233G what is it really? So happy I saw it burried in a pile of crap in that Garage... I feel I got a great price at $45.00... And I will check into the ads here and see what I can turn up on the coin door ya never know... I have taken a pic of This 685A from other pics I have seen mine is wired a bit diff. from the ones I have seen! It is cool I think as we speak more about it I will hook this up to the phone... Can't wait to hear it ring... Guess now I need to run a line to the Garage being I only have 1 jack in my house and it burried behind the fridge... More work! Thanks Dave

[DavePEI]

Soooo if its NOT a 233G what is it really? So happy I saw it burried in a pile of crap in that Garage... I feel I got a great price at $45.00... And I will check into the ads here and see what I can turn up on the coin door ya never know... I have taken a pic of This 685A from other pics I have seen mine is wired a bit diff. from the ones I have seen! It is cool I think as we speak more about it I will hook this up to the phone... Can't wait to hear it ring... Guess now I need to run a line to the Garage being I only have 1 jack in my house and it burried behind the fridge... More work! Thanks Dave

As G-Man said previously it is either a 191H, 193H or 195H. Someone like Stan Schreier could certainly tell you exactly which it is - the differences are pretty subtle. As I am more familiar with the newer 233, I can't be sure which this is for sure, but definitely more desirable than a 233. So you lucked into a pretty nice phone.

[See Correction below - I missed G-Man's earlier post!]

Dave

[GarageParty]

Hummmm very ODD it says H 181 inside in the Orangeish ink... But I assume the Coin door is the same not matter what one this is..

[DavePEI]

Hummmm very ODD it says H 181 inside in the Orangeish ink... But I assume the Coin door is the same not matter what one this is..

I have asked Stan if he can identify it more closely. Stan has more years of experience than most of us combined, so he should know for sure...

Dave

Oops - G-Man already found out what it is and that agrees with your H 181 marking. I didn't notice his post from earlier today. Sorry G-Man! The document he links will give you more info on these. Download the full document from the TCI Library. Thanks, G-Man!

As I first wrote, my list was not comprehensive. I have since found a 181 payphone with a 101 induction coil. Here is a link to the TCI Library with the wiring diagram:

http://www.telephonecollectors.info/index.php/document-repository/doc_details/3485-c64-231-i6-prepayment-coin-collectors-multi-slot

Also, I said you did not need the 685 subset to use it which is true but since you will need an external ringer you can still use it just for that.

Dave

[GarageParty]

Thanks to all... I'm slowly learning and it is starting to sink in! I have no time to hook this up today...I'm in no mood to climb under the house and run a line in this crappy Michigan weather... Have a great weekend all

[Mr. Bones]

Thanks to all... I'm slowly learning and it is starting to sink in! I have no time to hook this up today...I'm in no mood to climb under the house and run a line in this crappy Michigan weather... Have a great weekend all

Welcome to the forum!

     That looks like a really cool payphone, envious here!

     Since you're housebound by the Michigan cold, how's about some pictures of the cool garage? From the periphery of your payphone pictures, it looks like there's much classic eye-candy to be enjoyed by all! Just a thought. We wants pictures!

     The best bet is to start a new topic here:

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?board=47.0

     Best regards!

[DavePEI]

Ok, I did get some input from Stan that you will want to see, and I will present it here in its entirety:

"Good morning.

   I think GarageParty should change her ID to LuckyLady.  That 3-slot is a
perfect unmolested 181. The only original part I see that is missing is the
rubber boot that would go over the induction coil.  Along with being 100%
the payphone is dated 1940.  That was the first year they were manufactured.

   Chances of the controller operating that 3-slot are very slim.  The coin
relay would have to be PERFECTLY adjusted.  That probably isn't the case.
The major problem is that the relay has a flat magnet.  That makes it 'gold'
as a collectible but not great as far as the controller is concerned.  Over
time those magnets lost strength due to changes in temperature and physical
shock.  If the permanent magnet in the coin relay isn't up to strength the
relay won't operate properly.  An almost 75 year old permanent magnet
probably is just a hunk of soft iron.  This article explains the theory
behind those coin relays.  (Some guy with too much free time on his hands
wrote it.)

http://atcaonline.com/coinrelay.html

   This video is the controller operating a similar coin relay in a 50G

http://www.youtube.com/watch?NR=1&feature=endscreen&v=hW2iGZeS1cY

   In order to make that video I had to take the magnet out of the coin
relay and remagnetized it.  It's been a few years since that video was made,
I'll bet that magnet is once again just a hunk of iron.

   I would make no changes to that payphone.   Forget about trying to make
it work with the controller.  It couldn't be more perfect the way it is .
Find an original painted cast Western Electric vault door and a 14B or 14C
lock and use it as an extension phone.  That's one nice payphone!

Stan"

He also said in another email:

"   If she wants one that is historically correct she would have to find a
634 or a 684.  They are also complete subsets.  Both were made as external
ringers only but they are very rare.  It's easy enough hooking just the
ringer to the phone line with any model subset.

   Personally I'd just plug another phone in the same line and forget about
mounting an ugly subset next to that beautiful payphone.

Stan"

So there is some great info. We knew you were fortunate, but not how fortunate! Thank you, Stan, for your advice! Stan is the gentleman who designed the controllers we referred to earlier and has many years of experience with payphones!

By the way, when watching Stan's video, I noticed another video he has posted, that you will ALL enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OljGA68yEsw

You can view all of his payphone videos on:

http://www.youtube.com/user/graywestern/videos

Dave

[poplar1]

This appears to be a 181G (US coins) or 181H (Canadian/US coins).

The 181G was the first model to contain an induction coil. The difference in a 181 and 191 is that the 191 has a device to stop the first nickel until you inserted a second  nickel (=10c). The 181 was made from about 1941 to 1952. Around 1952, the cost of a call went from 5 cents to 10 cents. Most 181s were converted to 191s, with new stainless steel 10-cent coin tracks. But yours escapted that. Yours appears to be all original; you just need a 10-G lock for the upper housing and a vault door and 14- or 30-type lock.

Both 181 and 191 have a 101A or 101B induction coil. I think these phones are up to around $900 with the relay (which you have) that collects or refunds the 5-cent deposit. Usually there is a date stamped in orange (such as IV 41) on the backboard, visible if you look in the square hole where the vault door used to be. Also, dates on the transmitter, receiver, relay, coin track, induction coil, and near the inside top of the upper housing (the part with the dial and coin slots).

[GarageParty]

Whew I knew it was a SWEET phone but glad its a good find also... I did find some #'s for you I hope for my sake it helps! I wanna know everything I can about this phone...H181 IV40 / P 298089 III40 /  P 28529 2 And I have NO clue what a 101-type induction coil is?

I do feel Like the Lucky Lady... Makes me love this gem more and more... Not to mention NOW I have the phone bug! Add another addiction to my workbench... Also no worries guys I wouldn't dream of doing anything to detract from the value of this Phone! Now I am aware it is a RARE find I will keep it as is and only add cosmetic parts to finish her off that are OEM... Thanks To all who have commented on her... 

[poplar1]

If you want to use the 685A, the only two wires you need on the network are the slate and red/slate ringer wires on K and A. Then just connect the telephone line to the red and black ringer wires. (You don't need the red jumper going to RR.)

Here are 3 extension ringers that might have been used with your 181. They are the 534-DF (metal cover), 584-DE (Bakelite cover) and 531-A (plastic cover).

The 531-A would probably not have been available until the late 40s.

[GarageParty]

Thanks for the info. But I have decided to keep her the way she is... I will find a 233g for inside my house and use the 685A for that...

So  here is what I see and have been told I need to complete this phone! If anyone has some leads on these parts PLEASE keep me posted... Or if you see something I have missed on my list.... Thanks In advance

(1) 10G lock (Housing)
(1) 14 Or 30 Type cast coin box door/lock
(1) upper instruction card w/ holder/bracket
(1) rubber boot top of coin chute
(1) Daisy Dial mine has part # 147-B I have a sticker on mine now would like a replacement

[TelePlay]

In order to make room for a ringer in your phone, the coin relay has been removed, making it impossible to ever use it with a controller without a lot of reconstruction and a new coin relay.

Once again, the sharp eyes of the professionals on this site amaze me. I bought that AE 3 slot some time ago and got around to opening it up for the first time Friday. It was purchased as a working phone for use on stage in live plays, not for restoration. The play I bought it for fell through be another just surfaced. I posted those two pictures just as an example of a modular plug and a ringer being added. Looking at the ringer mount again, you were right. Only one screw hole of the ringer chassis was used to mount the ringer to what once was the coin return mechanism mount. The bottom of the ringer is hot glued to the phone chassis. I bought it from a stage prop guy in California who must have made the modifications. It's a dirty, beat up AE that will remain that way as long as it dials and rings. A good working prop. Good eye, Dave.

[DavePEI]

In order to make room for a ringer in your phone, the coin relay has been removed, making it impossible to ever use it with a controller without a lot of reconstruction and a new coin relay.

Once again, the sharp eyes of the professionals on this site amaze me. I bought that AE 3 slot some time ago and got around to opening it up for the first time Friday. It was purchased as a working phone for use on stage in live plays, not for restoration. The play I bought it for fell through be another just surfaced. I posted those two pictures just as an example of a modular plug and a ringer being added. Looking at the ringer mount again, you were right. Only one screw hole of the ringer chassis was used to mount the ringer to what once was the coin return mechanism mount. The bottom of the ringer is hot glued to the phone chassis. I bought it from a stage prop guy in California who must have made the modifications. It's a dirty, beat up AE that will remain that way as long as it dials and rings. A good working prop. Good eye, Dave.

Well, the main thing is it works and does what you want it to. If one wants to use a payphone controller, however, one would have to remove the bell and replace the relay... But it all depends on what one wants. Perhaps your is better for its intended purpose!

Dav e