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Hello from the UK!

Started by mickash, June 26, 2017, 08:34:09 PM

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mickash

Hello and thanks to Dennis for accepting me.

I've been suffering from Phoneitis since 1972 when my Dad brought home a pair of ATE T3903s (see my Avatar)
Over the years I've built up a collection of around 50 phones, mainly UK GPO/BT models or variants of them.

I have been dipping into this Forum for a while and now I've officially joined I hope to learn some more and hopefully help out other members.

Cheers.
Michael Ashley.

Alex G. Bell

Quote from: mickash on June 26, 2017, 08:34:09 PM
Hello and thanks to Dennis for accepting me.

I've been suffering from Phoneitis since 1972 when my Dad brought home a pair of ATE T3903s (see my Avatar)
Over the years I've built up a collection of around 50 phones, mainly UK GPO/BT models or variants of them.

I have been dipping into this Forum for a while and now I've officially joined I hope to learn some more and hopefully help out other members.

Cheers.
Welcome!  Neat avatar!  Yes, most all of us have had early "addicting" experiences of one sort or another.  No regrets!

Victor Laszlo

Welcome, indeed.  While Mr. Bell has admired your avatar, I will go further and say that I want one (or two, or...) of those phones.

oldguy

welcome Victor. You should have fun here. Great group of guys & gals. how do you beat a phone like your avatar. We will need to see more pictures of your phones.
Gary

Alex G. Bell

Quote from: oldguy on June 26, 2017, 10:58:26 PM
welcome Victor. You should have fun here. Great group of guys & gals. how do you beat a phone like your avatar. We will need to see more pictures of your phones.
Didn't you mean Mickash rather than Old Vic?

mickash

Thanks for the welcome.

Quote from: Victor Laszlo on June 26, 2017, 08:42:08 PM
Welcome, indeed.  While Mr. Bell has admired your avatar, I will go further and say that I want one (or two, or...) of those phones.

These phones sometimes appear on ebay over here but they are usually bought and "converted" to Type 200 lookalikes by having the central magneto section removed and then reassembled without it. Adding a dial then makes a useable and more valuable phone for resale. A shame really to lose a piece of our mining history. These phones were used in surface locations at coal mines well into the 1970s.

Quote from: oldguy on June 26, 2017, 10:58:26 PM
You should have fun here. Great group of guys & gals. how do you beat a phone like your avatar. We will need to see more pictures of your phones.

I'll add some pictures when I can. Sadly most of my phones are in storage in the attic and rarely see the light of day due to lack of space in the house and unsympathetic family! Apparrently most of it is old junk and deserves to go in a skip!! :'(
Michael Ashley.

Alex G. Bell

Quote from: mickash on June 27, 2017, 08:37:41 PM
Thanks for the welcome.

These phones sometimes appear on ebay over here but they are usually bought and "converted" to Type 200 lookalikes by having the central magneto section removed and then reassembled without it. Adding a dial then makes a useable and more valuable phone for resale. A shame really to lose a piece of our mining history. These phones were used in surface locations at coal mines well into the 1970s.

I'll add some pictures when I can. Sadly most of my phones are in storage in the attic and rarely see the light of day due to lack of space in the house and unsympathetic family! Apparrently most of it is old junk and deserves to go in a skip!! :'(
Like your 200 set, the U.S. Stromberg-Carlson 1243 and Kellogg 1000 type desk sets also were made in local battery versions with a magneto base and slightly different model #s.  These days I doubt many of them get "reduced" to ordinary dial instruments.  They were used for ordinary "modern" public exchange service in communities which still had magneto exchanges until late. 

Considerably more unusual were magneto sets with dials, which were used in some very sparsely populated places.  The Ericsson Bros. of UK N2907 is an example of this.  A thread on CRPF here:
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=16442.0

There were also versions by some North American mfrs.  These sets used the magneto for calling other parties on the same line and the dial to call the rest of the world through the connected dial exchange.

Special "explosion proof" phones were generally used in mines here.  These sets are sealed so that sparks created by operation of the phone are contained inside and cannot cause ignition of combustible gas in the surrounding environment.

Too bad your family does not appreciate your collection.  That's something many of us face, though I think less so today than in years past.


twocvbloke

Quote from: mickash on June 27, 2017, 08:37:41 PMApparrently most of it is old junk and deserves to go in a skip!! :'(


Ah, family, the reason we can't have nice things...  :-\



(I'm up north in Co. Durham, BTW...)

Jack Ryan

Quote from: Alex G. Bell on June 27, 2017, 09:05:47 PM
Considerably more unusual were magneto sets with dials, which were used in some very sparsely populated places.  The Ericsson Bros. of UK N2907 is an example of this.

I like those - generally they use simplex dialling. A lot were used in Canada but they were also used in Australia and New Zealand. British Ericsson made many of them but Northern Electric and Automatic Electric also made them.

Jack

Alex G. Bell

Quote from: Jack Ryan on June 27, 2017, 10:44:41 PM
I like those - generally they use simplex dialling. A lot were used in Canada but they were also used in Australia and New Zealand. British Ericsson made many of them but Northern Electric and Automatic Electric also made them.

Jack
Right.  I believe they all use SX dialing.  Otherwise alerting other phones on the same line would seem problematic.  AFAIK they were not used in the US.

The only example I have is a NECo 317-style wood magneto wall set with a factory installed NE #1 dial.

Jack Ryan

Quote from: Alex G. Bell on June 27, 2017, 11:04:51 PM
Right.  I believe they all use SX dialing.  Otherwise alerting other phones on the same line would seem problematic.  AFAIK they were not used in the US.

Loop dialling won't necessarily stop revertive magneto signalling - it depends how the party line is isolated from the auto exchange for revertive calls. Most did use simplex dialling though to maximise the signalling range. In the US they were sold (by AE) as utility phones (eg railways). I can't say it did not happen but I am not aware of any PSTN applications in the US.

Quote
The only example I have is a NECo 317-style wood magneto wall set with a factory installed NE #1 dial.

Nice dials those - very close to a standard 1911 style Mercedes dial. I have a few of this type of phone - some NE, some British Ericsson and some AE.

Jack

mickash

Quote from: Alex G. Bell on June 27, 2017, 09:05:47 PM
Special "explosion proof" phones were generally used in mines here.  These sets are sealed so that sparks created by operation of the phone are contained inside and cannot cause ignition of combustible gas in the surrounding environment.

Too bad your family does not appreciate your collection.  That's something many of us face, though I think less so today than in years past.



Phones used underground here also had to be spark proof and were very robustly built. The phones in my avatar were only used above ground and were certified for surface use only. I guess they could be connected on the same circuits as the phones down the pit.

Quote from: twocvbloke on June 27, 2017, 09:07:02 PM
Ah, family, the reason we can't have nice things...  :-\



(I'm up north in Co. Durham, BTW...)

Hi twocv. I recognise your name from the UK Vintage Radio Forum.

I suppose most of us are misunderstood about our collections and what WE consider to be nice things. I guess it would be acceptable for me to fit a GPO 741 on the kitchen wall but a Panasonic PBX and it's wiring on view anywhere in the house would be a no no. Surprisingly my wife quite likes a recent arrival, an early black GPO 706! 
Michael Ashley.

twocvbloke

Quote from: mickash on June 28, 2017, 08:27:34 PMHi twocv. I recognise your name from the UK Vintage Radio Forum.

I suppose most of us are misunderstood about our collections and what WE consider to be nice things. I guess it would be acceptable for me to fit a GPO 741 on the kitchen wall but a Panasonic PBX and it's wiring on view anywhere in the house would be a no no. Surprisingly my wife quite likes a recent arrival, an early black GPO 706! 

That was quite a long time ago since I used that forum (disagreement with the management siding with a moderator over them claiming my asking for any ideas on what an electronic "thing" I'd acquired was pointless and ridiculous!!), too uptight there, this place here's far more relaxed and they don't mind things sliding off-topic (most of the time!!)...  ;D

Yeah, collections are definitely misunderstood, I often get the "Well you have all those things, why don't you give me one of them?" from multiple people, and they don't understand "It's not a stockpile it's a collection!!!" for an answer...  ???

ThePillenwerfer

That's a co-incidence.  I was just finishing doing up an ATM T3903 before I read this.

I fear I've made it into a 232.  On mine the magneto unit had been stripped of its paint and the Certification plate removed.  As it was it was neither nice-looking nor useful.  It is now both.

mickash

Quote from: twocvbloke on June 28, 2017, 08:51:18 PM
That was quite a long time ago since I used that forum (disagreement with the management siding with a moderator over them claiming my asking for any ideas on what an electronic "thing" I'd acquired was pointless and ridiculous!!), too uptight there, this place here's far more relaxed and they don't mind things sliding off-topic (most of the time!!)

It was a long time ago. Your distinctive name has stuck in my mind.
It's certainly very relaxed here and without the abuse, bad language and ridicule found on some forums.

Quote from: ThePillenwerfer on June 29, 2017, 09:39:12 AM
That's a co-incidence.  I was just finishing doing up an ATM T3903 before I read this.

I fear I've made it into a 232.  On mine the magneto unit had been stripped of its paint and the Certification plate removed.  As it was it was neither nice-looking nor useful.  It is now both.

Hi Pillenwerfer. Looks like we are pretty close. I'm just down the M1, half my family live in Sheffield!
I agree, if an item is too far gone you have to make the best of it. I've got a soft spot for these phones as mine were the first phones I had and started my obsession!! I must admit they aren't exactly beautiful, more functional in appearance.
I've just been looking at your before and after pics and you have made a great job of repairing the bakelite bell cover. A great result all round.
Michael Ashley.