9-56 Black WE 500C/D with issues

[19and41]

The phone arrived today.  I had never seen an item packed in such a manner.  It came in a 1.5ft square box with a priority box inside of it.  beneath the inner box, on a thin bed of crumpled newspaper was the phone.  It looks better than the picture in ways.  It is filthy and has scum over most of it.  There is no coating on any of it.  it is filthy inside.  The handset has plenty of surface roughness as is the case with old bakelite.  I suspect the handset is not original as the dated components are from 1958.  The biggest problem it has is a split open foot.  I've not tested it yet.

[Southernphoneman]

The jumper wire that is connected between g and L1 isn't necessary, to have the phone to ring, just take out that jumper and then move the black ringer wire to L1

[TelePlay]

That too bad but it is a 9-56. So, the shell will polish up well?

As you probably already know, the base and feet can be restored by dencins (Dennis H) at

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=4033.0

I've had luck making rough Bakelite handsets shiny without topical coatings, if that's what you want to do . . .

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=12264.msg129509#msg129509





but there are many other ways presented on the Bakelite board

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?board=21.0

[19and41]

The shell looks pretty nice if a bit flat. it looks like a good cleaning will do a lot for it.    the handset has heavy cradle and plunger wear.  It's wiring and switches look undamaged and the handset cord suffers from nastiness.  It looks like it spent a lot of time in a short order kitchen and had a bit of a wipe off.  The dial moves freely and smoothly.  I'll do the wiring change also. 

[19and41]

When opening the phone to air dust inside, I see the shell is stamped with 52 among other numbers.  52 being the only one that would approximate a date.  I hope to give the shell and handset a cleaning.  The handset is in such worn condition I may seek a replacement in better shape to work with.

[WEBellSystemChristian]

When opening the phone to air dust inside, I see the shell is stamped with 52 among other numbers.  52 being the only one that would approximate a date.  I hope to give the shell and handset a cleaning.  The handset is in such worn condition I may seek a replacement in better shape to work with.

I think you would be surprised how easy it is to restore a really worn/grainy handset. I wetsand a really rough one with 2000 grit, followed by polish with a buffing wheel on a stationary grinder.

[podor]

I agree with Christian. I picked up 3 phones with G1 handsets recently that all shined up with my buffer with very little effort. They aren't a mirror finish like an ABS G3, but what I would consider the right finish. Great find!

[19and41]

It is hard for me to get the contrast to show it, but the ruts in the handset are as deep as the brand cartouche and I would have to further damage it to level it out.  That and the fact that the handset's components date it 2 years later than the base date is what has influenced my decision to try for another handset.  If it were just a matter of the surface roughness, I could go that route, as bakelite is a material I have had good luck with putting a good finish on.  There are a few vintage handsets on Ebay nominally priced.

[TelePlay]

It is hard for me to get the contrast to show it, but the ruts in the handset are as deep as the brand cartouche and I would have to further damage it to level it out.

You're talking about the cradle, for lack of a better term, marks, right? I've never considered removing them on a handset but have never seen them that deep, as far as I can remember this morning, and it ain't that far these day it seems

But if the dates are wrong, it's your call to replace or not. Either way, nice phone when done.

[19and41]

It surprises me that there isn't corresponding damage to the cradle itself, though that may account for it's also not being original to hte phone.  The AE 40 I have had a handset with a 1/8" indentation for one plunger and a similar depth rut across the handset for the other.  I can't figure how such wear occurs.  I guess it comes with a good price or date on a phone.

[19and41]

Took off the shell and mic and earpiece covers to give them a scrubbing.  Some of the spots on the shell are apparently places where a solvent of some sort had been splattered on it causing raised impressions on the plastic.  after a light polishing of the shell with Mother's mag and wheel polish.  I put a little brasso on some card stock strips I used them with my rubber faced sanding block and smoothed the spots right out. I put things back together and put a new termination on the line cord and ran a test using my cell.  It wouldn't ring in, so I opened the phone again and tried it with the shell off.  while it was "ringing" i moved the clapper toward the coil and it began to pulse.  I found the straight spring attached to it on the wrong side of the retainer.  It rings quite nicely now.  the dial operates the first order dialgizmo functions, but none of the second (#* and the stored numbers).

[19and41]

I left the phone on line with the ringer at 1/3 and While I was watching my mysteries last night the old phones in them were ringing too much for effect.  It was my phone.  It does sound nice, though.

[19and41]

Are there any sources for the bezel, window and insert for the dial center that doesn't cost a fortune (relatively, that is).