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need help with some phones

Started by wrangler64, April 14, 2013, 01:33:42 PM

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wrangler64

OK its official I too have become a phone junkie. I was up til 2 am last night looking at phones. I came across these three phones and I need some help identifying them and maybe what they could be worth as I am interested in them. One is a WE 2 box phone I think, one is a AE 35 or 50 maybe and the third one I have no clue. Just wanting to know if I should run and buy them or run the other way. I figure all the experts on here can help me one way or the other.  I know the wooden one has no receiver and the AE needs a different cord and lots of polish. Thanks guys for any help you can provide me.

WesternElectricBen

#1
Looks like we got another one!!

Ben

Moderator's note: Please if you make a joke such as this, please explain it so people don't take it the wrong way. It is too easy for a new user to take it as a comment about them personally... Dave

AE_Collector

#2
Second one is an AE 50 in it's natural habitat, a recess in the wall with a curve on the top that matches the phone! I had one just like that in my first house that was built in 1954. There is a slight chance that it could actually be an AE 35 with the newer handset that would be on an AE50. The only way to tell is to see if there are vents up and down each side which confirms that it is a 50. The AE 35 didn't have the vents and in most cases had an older style handset than the one pictured.

Everyone runs out and buys an AE 40 and/or an AE 50 and then discovers that they were also available with chrome rings on the handset. The rings are not easy to get on their own so it is quite often better to wait for a phone to come along that already has them. That said, the ideal arrangement would be to have an AE 40 and an AE 50 and it would be nice to have one decked out with all the chrome and another one the more common non chromed version so that your collection shows both variations.

The 50 in your picture does have the chrome fingerwheel (dial) and it has the number card retainer ring which is very often missing so it has some "extra's". Make certain there are no cracks in the bakelite, that seriously reduces the value.

Terry

gpo706

#3
The 3rd one looks like a GPO 311 body, but the handset isn't correct.
"now this should take five minutes, where's me screwdriver went now..?"

Dan/Panther

#4
Quote from: WesternElectricBen on April 14, 2013, 02:35:18 PM
Looks like we got another one!!

Ben

Hook, Line, And Sinker.
D/P

Moderator's note: Please if you make a joke such as this, please explain it so people don't take it the wrong way. It is too easy for a new user to take it as a comment about them personally... Dave

The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

WesternElectricBen


wrangler64

Glad you found my posts amusing. I can see why most people come on as guests.

Doug Rose

Quote from: wrangler64 on April 14, 2013, 06:54:21 PM
Glad you found my posts amusing. I can see why most people come on as guests.
Wrangler....no one finds your posts amusing. You were looking for information and everyone was trying to help. The "we got another one" is just saying you are now one of us, hopelessly addicted to collecting telephones. This is a great group of guys and gals. Welcome to the Forum ...Doug
Kidphone

DavePEI

Quote from: Doug Rose on April 14, 2013, 07:16:30 PM
Quote from: wrangler64 on April 14, 2013, 06:54:21 PM
Glad you found my posts amusing. I can see why most people come on as guests.
Wrangler....no one finds your posts amusing. You were looking for information and everyone was trying to help. The "we got another one" is just saying you are now one of us, hopelessly addicted to collecting telephones. This is a great group of guys and gals. Welcome to the Forum ...Doug

Just seconding Doug's post.  It is a bit of an in joke, and too easy for a new user to misunderstand. Welcome to the Forum, and we all hope you will enjoy the time you spend here. Never be afraid to ask any question!

Dave
The Telephone Museum of Prince Edward Island:
http://www.islandregister.com/phones/museum.html
Free Admission - Call (902) 651-2762 to arrange a visit!
C*NET 1-651-0001

poplar1

#9
Quote from: wrangler64 on April 14, 2013, 01:33:42 PM
OK its official I too have become a phone junkie. I was up til 2 am last night looking at phones. I came across these three phones and I need some help identifying them and maybe what they could be worth as I am interested in them. One is a WE 2 box phone I think, one is a AE 35 or 50 maybe and the third one I have no clue. Just wanting to know if I should run and buy them or run the other way. I figure all the experts on here can help me one way or the other.  I know the wooden one has no receiver and the AE needs a different cord and lots of polish. Thanks guys for any help you can provide me.

You have to be careful when buying a 2-box phone. Many of them have a wood subset (with generator, ringer and induction coil) that is old, but the rest of the wood is all new. The top box here looks like a WE 300K subset to me, with a hookswitch and receiver added. WE did make a 305 wall phone with the same footprint as the subset, but I don't see any marks on the front of the top box where an 8A transmitter mount would have been if it had been a 305.

It appears that at one time, there was a transmitter mounted on this phone. It would have been fastened to the backboard between the two boxes.

Always look at the back of any 2-box phone. If the top box doesn't have exposed terminals along the bottom, then the wires to the lower box (which contained the batteries) and to the transmitter have to be on the back of the phone. The wires would be in slots cut into the wood. Often the mostly fake 2-box phones have no wires at all going from the top box to the lower box! That's what some techs would call an "air gap."
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

poplar1

Also, the battery box/writing shelf are not as wide as the backboard. This looks suspicious.
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

DavePEI

#11
Quote from: poplar1 on April 14, 2013, 08:00:09 PM
You have to be careful when buying a 2-box phone. Many of them have a wood subset (with generator, ringer and induction coil) that is old, but the rest of the wood is all new. The top box here looks like a WE 300K subset to me, with a hookswitch and receiver added. WE did make a 305 wall phone with the same footprint as the subset, but I don't see any marks on the front of the top box where an 8A transmitter mount would have been if it had been a 305.

It appears that at one time, there was a transmitter mounted on this phone. It would have been fastened to the backboard between the two boxes.

Always look at the back of the phone. If the top box doesn't have exposed terminals along the bottom, then the wires to the lower box (which contained the batteries) and to the transmitter have to be on the back of the phone. The wires would be in slots cut into the wood. Often the mostly fake 2-box phones have no wires at all going from the top box to the lower box! That's what some techs would call an "air gap."
Often the case, but not always. When I bought my 1889 Bell Canada Blake phone, it had been kept for years on a cellar floor, and the backboard had dry rotted. So, I had a local cabinet maker duplicate the backboard exactly (even down to the same wood), and replaced it, but kept the rotted backboard as well so people would know it was genuine. Every other part is original, as are the wires routed on the back of the backboard.

The backboard on her phone is the same width as it the battery box as on my Bell Canada phone, so it may be NE used the same profile backboard and box on hers as well.

I would love to see a higher res photo of her phone.... Actually, note there is no transmitter - I can't see the transmitter mounting holes well enough to tell what transmitter SHOULD be on it, and could tell for sure if it were higher res.  A better photo would tell for sure (even better with a back photo).

The third phone shown I believe to be European, perhaps Ericcson or Siemens. I have seen them before, and just can't put my finger on who was the maker, and many European phones were imported and used out West. Anyone more familiar with European phones able to give a better ID for it?

Dave
The Telephone Museum of Prince Edward Island:
http://www.islandregister.com/phones/museum.html
Free Admission - Call (902) 651-2762 to arrange a visit!
C*NET 1-651-0001

poplar1

I need to check in some old WE catalogs, but the only 2-box phone I recall from post-1907 (when the way of opening the cabinet went from a key to a screwdriver) is the 1240. The backboard on a 1240 has a uniform width from top to bottom.
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

DavePEI

Quote from: poplar1 on April 14, 2013, 08:23:47 PM
I need to check in some old WE catalogs, but the only 2-box phone I recall from post-1907 (when the way of opening the cabinet went from a key to a screwdriver) is the 1240. The backboard on a 1240 has a uniform width from top to bottom.
That is another reason I want to see better photos. I suspect rather than WE it is NE, and I can tell if I can see it in higher res. The top box should also have markings on the side...

Alas, the photo is too small to tell with any accuracy. Wrangler is in Western Canada.

It could still be an "assembled phone". Hopefully she can post better photos of it.

Dave
The Telephone Museum of Prince Edward Island:
http://www.islandregister.com/phones/museum.html
Free Admission - Call (902) 651-2762 to arrange a visit!
C*NET 1-651-0001

southernphoneman

hi wrangler 64,welcome to the forum and I want to welcome you by saying that you are on a forum with a good bunch of people.beleive me, from my own experience if you need help with something and post it people will always go out of there way to help and you probably get more than one point of view for any given question.my belief is that any question is a good question, remember don t be afraid to ask, sometimes the response can be overwhelming. again welcome to this forum.... take good care.... southernphoneman.