Recent posts

#1

Telephone Restoration Projects and Techniques / Re: What is this phone? And th...

Last post by countryman - Today at 02:17:55 AM

This is a Belgian ATEA model 51: https://www.matilo.eu/the-phones/1926-1945-bakelite-ww2/atea-model-50-51/
The button is an earthing button. It connects one of the line wires to a third, earthed wire. This system was often used in European private branch exchanges, e.g. as a signal to toggle between inside and outside lines.
The Belgian telephone industry, located in the Antwerp ("Anvers" in French, as seen on the label) stayed with this pre-war design for a while. A very similar type was also used by the Belgian state phone co. RTT. The quality of the instruments was good, while the look was quite conventional. When they were eventually decommissioned in the 1970ies, they were bought up by trading firms to be sold as "antique phones" in North America as well as parts of Europe. Often the black paint was stripped and the metal shell was copper plated for an even more "antique" look. This, and the neat metal handle of the RTT models brought them the nickname "Belgian Kettle" 
Others were decorated with ornamental stickers reading "Bell mfg. co.", even if the were made by a competitor.
Your phone still has its original look what makes it somewhat rare on the international market.

#2

Vendors, Vendor Services: Offerings, Experiences and Feedback / Im new here help with a full r...

Last post by Elcjn4 - Today at 02:02:59 AM

I don't collect phones..but I find them oh so much fun. My dad gifted me an old rotary phone and I'd like to have it restored.. any suggestions? I don't want to ruin the phone by having it repaired by the wrong co. I don't even know what kind of phone it is, I posted pics on a different topic..  Any info is greatly appreciated... Thanks and boy some of you have some REALLY cool phones... Maybe I DO collect them now HA

#3

Telephone Restoration Projects and Techniques / What is this phone? And that b...

Last post by Elcjn4 - Today at 12:57:23 AM

Hi I'm EJ from ABQ NM

Hello everyone!
I received a phone from my dad. Other than its a black rotary, (with a cute lil button in front for who knows what?! Party line?) That's all the info I know! I've tried Google lens.. but nada!  If anyone has any info about it, I'd love to know/ learn more. Also, can this phone still be used? I have a landline in my home but the phone has a cut off cord.  Thanks
Anyone know full restorers? I'm brand new so I'm looking through posts.. THANKS AGAIN

#4

New Member Introductions / New member

Last post by Elcjn4 - Today at 12:08:42 AM

Hi I'm EJ from ABQ NM

Hello everyone!
I received a phone from my dad. Other than its a black rotary, that's all the info I have! I've tried Google lens.. but nada!  If anyone has any info about it, I'd love to know/ learn more. I don't know if it's anything special... but it's special to me! 
Also,  can I still use this phone? I have a landline in my home but the phone has a cut off cord.  Thanks guys! Um now to figure out how to post a picture.. ?
 

#5

Telephone Restoration Projects and Techniques / Re: Questions About Using Rota...

Last post by ka1axy - Today at 12:02:31 AM

Also...the Telo, to my knowledge does not do pulse dialling. At least, it didn't when I got mine...possibly the firmware has been upgraded since then. The ringing generator has a fairly weak output current, could only ring one or two of my "genuine Bell" phones.

#6

Telephone Troubleshooting and Repair / Re: 3554 ISSUE

Last post by poplar1 - Yesterday at 11:04:32 PM

I connected the ringer to the same terminals I removed the original from. I did not even look at the terminals. I just checked and it is on L1 & L2.
The line is connected red & black to L1 & E2 and 2 white wires to GN & R, what are they for?
Network A has a gray wire from the hookswitch and K is empty? Should I move the ringer to A & K?
I never even looked at the wiring since it worked on my Panasonic.
It appears this is a different animal than I am used to working on. I count 7 wires off the hookswitch.

If there is no wire on K, then the capacitor is not in the circuit. Apparently, you have the ringer connected directly to Tip and Ring. Thus,the phone may busy out the line -- called "Ring trip" -- even if it appears to work sometimes.

The reason for the slate ( or gray) hook switch conductor on A is that this wire has continuity to the yellow hookswitch wire (L2 for example)  when the phone is on-hook., So with a 2-wire ringer, one ringer wire connects to K and the other to the other side of the line (L1, for example).

Didn't you say the other 2 C4A ringer wires are connected together, but not on a terminal? If so, at least for a WE C4A, that is equivalent to a 2-wire C4B ringer

The confusion may be the poor choice of colors (Red, Slate-Red, Slate, and Black) for both a WE C4A ringer and a WE M1A (Princess) ringer or P1A Trimline ringer -- because they aren't internally the same.  In a WE 500,the 2 ringer coils are wired independent of each other, and one wire from each coil connects to A and K. Since the other wire from each coil connects to L1 and L2, this completes the ringer path in series with the capacitor.

The slate and Slate-Red leads on a M1A or P1A ringer are merely taps, and are not used on non-party lines.

#7

Technical "Stuff" / Re: The end of POTS?

Last post by TelePlay - Yesterday at 08:45:11 PM

You'll hopefully get a decent speed boost on your internet.

The hassle was no internet for 24 hours, but they did respond to the outage quickly.

Yes, looking for a speed increase, to be followed by a monthly price increase in a year or so.

Guess that's why I keep finding the busted up pedestals along a major city street near my house. The copper pedestals will all be gone some day.

#8

Decorator, Reproduction & Novelty Phones / Re: Novelty Franklin Mint Phon...

Last post by Spikepaga - Yesterday at 08:19:58 PM

A likely culprit is a dirty hook switch, though it could be a bad wire in one of the cords, a bad solder connection on a PC board, or something else.  This is a modern Chinese product, much different than the vintage phones we like to fix here.

Thanks for your response! Yes, I do know this is not a substantial phone , but it has sentimental value to me, so I would like to make it work properly, if I can .

I will try cleaning the hook switch and opening up the telephone this weekend. Thank you

#9

Technical "Stuff" / Re: The end of POTS?

Last post by 5415551212 - Yesterday at 08:16:41 PM

Someone could write a book: "101 Ways to Loose a POTS Line"

Here's one, how it happened to me.

AT&T is putting FO in everywhere in my city. AT&T marked their desired path through my back yard utility easement to horizontal bore in a FO conduit.

Underground marking company marked all underground phone, gas and power lines.

Marking was not perfect.

The underground directional boring bit ran into a 50 pair phone cable and as the cable was wrapped around the bit, it pulled the cable out of the pedestal about 4 feet from the bit.

That cable was running to another pedestal about 50 feet away. That pedestal provided copper grid phone service to some 20 homes, including mine.

Service guy came out and ran 8 fifty foot long patch cables to reconnect the pedestals, restored service.

Talked to the technician. He told me they will most likely give buried FO to every home affected at no charge (they are not going to replace the now dead 50 pair cable).

They will install a new FO pedestal, bury a FO cable to my house, install whatever is needed in my basement including a new WiFi/internet/phone modem.

After all is done, POTS won't even be an option for me. The copper grid will be gone from my homes point of view. Will no longer even have a choice to keep copper or switch to FO service.

Have had copper VOIP for 5 years now and my 616 continues to give me rotary dial out abilities. Just no more copper coming into my house since this horizontal boring incident.

Wow what a hassle.
You'll hopefully get a decent speed boost on your internet.

#10

Decorator, Reproduction & Novelty Phones / Re: Novelty Franklin Mint Phon...

Last post by TelePlay - Yesterday at 05:51:50 PM

Does the crackling stop when you set the receiver down on a flat surface?

When the receiver is sitting on a flat surface, does the crackling appear when moving the coiled handset cord?

That's one way
to see if the cord or the handset is the issue.