France Phone Models

[ReneRondeau]

Are the battery jars original?

They are original. This leads to a story. I bought this in Paris in January 2002, less than a week after the Euro became the new norm. There was a lot of confusion. But this was also only four months after 9/11. It dawned on me that there was NO way I would ever get those batteries through security, with their indeterminate thick contents and coiled wires. I'd be lucky if all they did was confiscate it... A friend in Paris offered to ship them, so I brought the phone home and waited for the package. Unfortunately it didn't occur to him to take the heavy Leclanché metal inner parts out of the jars. I'm surprised only one broke.

I was able to epoxy that together but it looked marginal at best. But on a later trip to Paris I found a flawless, exact-size duplicate. I carried it home carefully and replaced the repaired one.

[tubaman]

Here's a couple of mine.
SIT (Societe Industrielle des Telephones) and a Grammont on a wooden pedestal.

[Doug Rose]

I've posted this in the past, but here's my favorite French phone. I bought it at the Paris flea market in 2002.

Rene....that is just a wonderful phone! Belongs in a museum.....Doug

[david@london]

Some really lovely French phones shown there....

and the wall version of the PTT24 here in the Jacques Tati film, 'Mon Oncle' (1958)......a scene featuring the PTT24 commences from approx 26 mins 45 secs  -

https://ok.ru/video/32878692965

[HarrySmith]

Agreed, some very nice French phones here. These are models I never would have had a chance to see. Thanks for posting to all.
Jack: A lot of your pictured phones have what appears to be AE Mercedes dials? Is that correct?

[ReneRondeau]

Here's a photo I found in my files from a trip in 2015. This phone was in an old café in the Marais district of Paris. It was no longer functional but they kept it as part of the original décor. The the right is a framed early menu to give a bit more history.

[Jack Ryan]

Jack: A lot of your pictured phones have what appears to be AE Mercedes dials? Is that correct?

That's correct Harry. The first auto exchange was introduced in 1913 by Thomson Houston (TH) who had the AE patents in France. The standard PTT dial after the Mercedes was a version of the Type 24 and that continued for the life of rotary dials in France - long after the demise of TH.

Most of the dials weren't exactly the same as the US equivalents - for instance the French made them a little bigger.

(I should have mentioned that the dials were made in France - they were not, except perhaps for the very first dials,  imported AE dials).

Jack

[FABphones]

... The standard PTT dial after the Mercedes was a version of the Type 24 and that continued for the life of rotary dials in France - long after the demise of TH....

With just small changes, the 'bolt' in the centre, enamels, fingerplate, and the introduction of plastic parts to the later dials.

I have a box full. I'll start a new topic with photos when I have some free time.

[Jack Ryan]

With just small changes, the 'bolt' in the centre, enamels, fingerplate, and the introduction of plastic parts to the later dials.

Yes, the AE dial went through some similar changes over time - including the plastic parts.

Jack

[FABphones]

Ateliers Centraux des PTT
CGTE
Telic, Strasbourg

[david@london]

Mercevo 2, who has posted on CRPF, here about a SS Normandie cabin phone,
usually has several restored French phones on his site on Ebay....... Link to webpage.

A Grammont and a Dunyach & Leclert -

[FABphones]

Alan's phones are beautifully presented and photographed well.
For me, a tad expensive. I am thankful I can buy directly in France.

As a guide to anyone considering buying French manufactured phones, from any seller;

Ask to see a photo of each plaque on each piece. They should all carry the same manufacturer name.
Ask to see inside each piece. French vendors are usually very helpful.
Look at the dial. If it has a Perspex fingerwheel (Metal/Bakelite phones) it is a later dial.
If the description says it is a Mercedes dial, look closely to check it really is.

*If anyone needs to send a message to a seller in France, if you need to you can message me with what you want to say and I will translate it into French for you.

And if you have purchased, again, you are welcome to message me for 'how to please pack a phone' in French.