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Started by Craig T, August 14, 2011, 07:36:51 PM

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Craig T

Bought a set of lamps yesterday, almost passed on them because one was missing a bulb  ;) I actually walked away from them and came back for them a half hour later. I was not sure if they were real, I don't know anything about candlesticks. These are my first two.

One is marked a 20AL and the other a 20SC.

LarryInMichigan

Craig,

They look real to me, and it looks like whoever made them into lamps spared phones and ran the power cords through brackets which were not part of the phones originally.  With a few minutes of effort, you should be able to restore those back to phones.  You got a great deal!  Why can't I ever find anything like that?

Larry

Craig T

Larry my friend, you too can find phones like this with the Doug and Janet find a phone program delivered straight to your home on DVD for a one time installment of $19.95!

I am relieved to hear they look good, thanks Larry. I took them apart and other than needing rewiring, they are unaffected by the lamping they suffered  :)


LarryInMichigan

There is a web page somewhere which describes how to spot a fake WE candlestick.  It has been mentioned in this forum in the past.  One of the most obvious signs was that fakes generally have tags stuck onto the transmitter face, not riveted like yours.  I think that your sticks are probably worth $60-$70 each.  Now you need to connect them to subsets.

Larry  

P.S. The Doug and Janet program is over my head, so I will have to just resort to trolling the websites for now.


Doug Rose

#4
Craig...Speaking for Janet, at $20 a piece I hope you ran back and dropped two $20s as fast as you could. Then ran to your car because its as close to stealing as you can get! Good thing Janet didn't get there before you went back!! Outstanding find, Janet would approve...me too.....Doug
Kidphone

Craig T

Quote from: LarryInMichigan on August 14, 2011, 08:12:26 PM
There is a web page somewhere which describes how to spot a fake WE candlestick.  It has been mentioned in this forum in the past.  One of the most obvious signs was that fakes generally have tags stuck onto the transmitter face, not riveted like yours.  I think that your sticks are probably worth $60-$70 each.  Now you need to connect them to subsets.

Larry  

P.S. The Doug and Janet program is over my head, so I will have to just resort to trolling the websites for now.

Thanks again Larry, they patina-ed nice and even on both of them too and will be a nice addition to the phone shelf. Do you know what the story is behind the difference in tags; Western Electric and AT&T?

Craig T

#6
Quote from: Doug Rose on August 14, 2011, 08:26:24 PM
Craig...Speaking for Janet, at $20 a piece I hope you ran back and dropped two $20s as fast as you could. Then ran to your car because its as close to stealing as you can get! Good thing Janet didn't get there before you went back!! Outstanding find, Janet would approve...me too.....Doug

I was at a yard sale that was in the adjoining yard, that is where I was the half hour. As soon as I bought the phones a girl came along and wanted them and my buddy offered to buy them 5 minutes after that, lucky they were not gone! Janet would have had these in a minute and I would have been doing the walk of shame back to the car  :)

HarrySmith

Another nice find! Congrats.

I forget who has the page about fake candlesticks, one of the oldtime phone club members. I do remember the giveaway is the date. All are stamped 1910, Oct or Nov as I recall.
Harry Smith
ATCA 4434
TCI

"There is no try,
there is only
do or do not"

LarryInMichigan

Craig,

I do not know much about the labeling, but if I were going to guess, i would say that the one that says "Property of..." was installed by a Bell System company, and the other one was made for a non-Bell phone company to use.

These phones would have originally been black.  The WE phones were apparently all made of brass, so some people like to strip them down to the bare brass.  The AE candlesticks, as I in in the midst of learning the hard way, were made of steel.

Larry

Doug Rose

Craig...it certainly would have been the walk of shame! These are beauties, undisturbed from the lamp conversion. Why did they do that?? I think we should make lamps into phones to get even. You done good my friend, Janet is proud; but a bit envious....Doug
Kidphone

Doug Rose

Quote from: LarryInMichigan on August 14, 2011, 08:42:48 PM
Craig,

I do not know much about the labeling, but if I were going to guess, i would say that the one that says "Property of..." was installed by a Bell System company, and the other one was made for a non-Bell phone company to use.

These phones would have originally been black.  The WE phones were apparently all made of brass, so some people like to strip them down to the bare brass.  The AE candlesticks, as I in in the midst of learning the hard way, were made of steel.

Larry
I know the "theory" is brass was a not considered attractive so all sticks were either nickeled or painted black, surprise...... I disagree. I have come across too many brass sticks that do no have a speck of paint on them. Clean...all brass. Nobody is that good to get all the paint off, inside and out; nooks and crannies. I just disagree with the theory that WE did not sell brass sticks. There are just too many brass sticks out there. Just my humble opinion....Doug
Kidphone

JorgeAmely

Quote from: LarryInMichigan on August 14, 2011, 07:53:28 PM
Craig,

They look real to me, and it looks like whoever made them into lamps spared phones and ran the power cords through brackets which were not part of the phones originally.  With a few minutes of effort, you should be able to restore those back to phones.  You got a great deal!  Why can't I ever find anything like that?

Larry


... because the best phones IN MICHIGAN, are in Craig's neighborhood.  ;D ;)
Jorge

Craig T

Quote from: JorgeAmely on August 14, 2011, 09:14:46 PM
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on August 14, 2011, 07:53:28 PM
Craig,

They look real to me, and it looks like whoever made them into lamps spared phones and ran the power cords through brackets which were not part of the phones originally.  With a few minutes of effort, you should be able to restore those back to phones.  You got a great deal!  Why can't I ever find anything like that?

Larry

;D ;D




... because the best phones IN MICHIGAN, are in Craig's neighborhood.  ;D ;)


Jorge is right, for all your vintage telephone needs please come to the greater Detroit area!  ;D

Dennis Markham



Craig, aren't you about 500 miles north of greater Detroit?!

Sargeguy

These are real.  The receivers don't look WE, maybe Kellogg?  These would have been black, not nickeled.  The AT&T marked transmitter is original.  The 250w is probably not factory.  The catalog says it includes a 229 transmitter.  probably replaced by a 329 eventually.  Transmitters with the "w" designation are commonly found on Bell System phones in 'farm fresh" condition, so they apparently were used on Bell System phones, possibly as repairs.  The AT&T or Bell Telephone marked ones are more sought after.
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409