'Western Elecrtic' 500 series

[BakeliteBear]

Hi,

My first post on the forum - be kind!

I am based in the UK and have bought some 'Western Electric' 500 type telephones from a dealer over here.

Can anyone please help identify the specific models involved? Also, can anyone let me have a copy of the schematics so I can sort out the correct wiring for UK plug and socket?

Thanks
Chris

Loughborough
East Midlands
UK

[AE_Collector]

Welcome to the forum! I don't think that you have to worry about anyone being unkind here...

Your phones were used by the Manitoba Telephone System in Canada, a provincial government owned phone system. I don't know how to spot if they are Northern Electric/Telecom or ITT etc but someone will ID them pretty quick.

I wonder if they more recently came from Turtle Lake Wisconsin. There were 100's of thousands of old phones there from Sask Tel and Manitoba Tel.

Terry

[LarryInMichigan]

Chris,

They are both model 500s.  The one with the circuit board is obviously newer than the other.  They may have been made by ITT and/or Northern Electric, but they are the same as the Western Electric.  There are diagrams for a number of variations of the WE 500s at: http://telephonecollectors.org/library/weco/weco.htm.

The red and green wires in the line cord need to be connected to your phone line.  To make the ringer work, connect the yellow wire with the green.

Larry

[gpo706]

Chris I'm just in the door, gimme a couple of hours to unwind with a smoke and some white wine and I'll get one of mine open and let you what goes where, its incredibly straightforward 4 spade to the terminal.

Got an MTS one same as you, cleaned up real pretty.

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=2064.0

[gpo706]

Didn't need to play hunt the screwdriver - it was in my previous post:

US red = UK red
US Yellow = UK green
US black = UK blue
US green = UK white

On the phone it goes red L2, black and yellow L1, green A.

Now, oh did I forget to mention its hardwired case?

The clever bit is the GPO grommet for a 700, you poke the "tail" out through the U shaped hole at the back and the case sits nice and tight on it making a brilliant cord restraint!

[BakeliteBear]

Thanks for the information Terry and Larry.

Also thank you, and a few questions for GPO 706:

I have two different models (as shown in the photos). Is the wiring good for both?

Does the US use the same system as the UK with a capacitor in the master box, and if not, does this wiring take any ringing capacitor in the telephone out of circuit.

I am also assuming that the UK green/ US yellow is redundant?

Thanks again
Chris

[HarrySmith]

Hi Chris, welcome! The phones will be wired the same, the terminals should have the same markings. I just got done with some 500 clones from ITT and they had the printed circuit but it wired the same as the potted network in the WE phones. The ringing capacitor is in the network. The yellow for the line cord is not needed here but I am not sure about over there!
Enjoy!

[gpo706]

Thank God Harry knew, cos I didn't, I think as he says all my 3 500's and my 554 wire the same way.

BTW if one doesn't ring you need to shift the "tension bias adjuster" (is that correct folks?) under the bellset, its an on-off ringer tweak.

My first 500 wouldn't ring until I was informed of this simple adjustment, not something we ever had on a UK phone.

Also on a GPO "soap-dish" box, the UK white and green are wired to the same terminal in the box, as Harry says.

[Dennis Markham]

Welcome Chris, glad you found your way to the Forum!

gpo706, you were close.  It's the "bias tension spring".  Chris, check out this posting...look about halfway down the page and you'll see a couple photos I attached showing the spring and a suggested setting.  In most cases the ringer works better with the spring on the right side of the loop.

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=3151.0

[BakeliteBear]

On the phone it goes red L2, black and yellow L1, green A.

Are you sure about black/yellow to L1?? I would have thought Green would have been favourite??

Can anyone help me with the specific models I have? There seem to be a number of 500s variants and I have not got my head around which is which! Old UK GPO telephones have a 'paster' stuck inside them with the model number and wiring diagram - much easier!


Is the "bias tension spring" to stop bell tinkle? In the UK system we use the blue as the ringing wire to stop this.

Thanks to all.

[HarrySmith]

The model number is stamped on the bottom of the one phone C/D 500. I have attached a diagram from the TCI library. The other phone will be wired the same as I stated earlier.

[BakeliteBear]

Ok, I am getting closer!

With my test gear, the dial speed is a bit slow 8.2 pps. Other than oiling, is there a method of adjusting the dial speed?

[Dan/Panther]

Chris;
Welcome to our forum.
The one phone looks gray,  or is it off white ?
D/P

[BakeliteBear]

It's a cream .. and the other is a shade of pink, which I think is exactly the colour of an artificial limb!