I'm getting a new old phone and wonder what you think

[ntophones]

The deal is, I can see from the picture some paint problems.
When you get a phone, how do you decide if you want to leave it alone or repaint?
Do you guys try to make the phones as pretty as possible? I was thinking of trying to strip the paint and repaint, but, according to many, that is maybe not the best thing to do.
Also, if you decide to paint, do you just go for glossy, or "powder finish?" The phone I'm getting will be a D1 with an E1 handset.
I'll post pictures here, but, am interested in your opinions on refurbishing phones totally--I've read the thread about changing parts out....

[Dennis Markham]

Nto, personally I have never done anything to the metal phones when I get them except clean and polish them.  Almost all of them have paint loss at the cradle ears for obvious reasons.  I think it adds character to the phone.  Clean it up the way you like it and there it is.  If you paint it, with whatever method you use it will only be a matter of time before there are nicks and paint loss on the new paint.  That original Western Electric paint really shines up nicely.  I use Novus 2 on the painted surfaces.  You will get some black residue come off on your rag but not to worry, the phone will polish up to a very nice shine.  I have picked up a few that were painted somewhere along the line by a non-professional and they are dull and won't shine no matter what.  I guess it all depends on what you want and what you're happy with as far as the condition.  My vote on the D1 is just clean it up to get old dirt off of it, put some polish on it and you will be surprised how nice it will look.

[ntophones]

I was wondering--so, do you ever paint? Even on the phones you think have been repainted?

Of course this is a bad picture, but, that fingerwheel looks pretty bubbly--what do you think about that?

[Dennis Markham]

I don't paint because I don't have any experience with painting.  Other than some little stuff I did recently (dial housing, modular back plate).  Unless it's done right I thinking painting can be a mistake.  The paint on those finger wheels is pretty tough in that they get so much use.  Replacement wheels are available.  Sometimes just polishing them up nice works OK.  But there are good replacements out there.  On eBay there is one seller that often sells finger wheels. They're used and some are better than others.  Her name is Adele Vaverchak.  Her ebay handle is adele0283.  She often has nice phone parts for sale.

I have bought metal finger wheels from Phoneco for a Model 500.  But theirs are only painted on one side (aluminum) and smooth silver on the back side.  Kind of like getting half a wheel.  Also if you search for one on eBay, make note of the opening in the center.  Vertical openings are for the #2, 4, 5 dials.  Horizontal openings fit the #6 and #7 dials.

[foots]

Painting is not at all hard, its all in the prep work, and of course quality paint. If you're phone looks bad to you - repaint it. I'm currently experimenting on a spare Stromberg-Carlson housing.

[bingster]

I think you'll be surprised by that fingerwheel when it arrives, NTO.  It's got some sort of Pledge or lemon oil on it that the seller used to clean the phone, and that combined with some crud and a bright flash makes it look much worse than what it probably is.  With a proper clean and polish, I think you'll find it needs nothing else.

Personaly, when it comes to "paint vs. not paint" my opinion is that cradle ear wear is perfectly normal and nearly universal, and so doesn't need to be corrected.  I just leave it as it is.  Only if there were some sort of catastrophic paint problem, would I consider painting the whole phone.   In general, I do what Dennis does:  Polish the paint, and leave it at that.

[ntophones]

Cool!
Say, foots, will you post your progress on your painting? I'm very interested, even though, hopefully, this little gem won't need paint.
Thank you, Dennis for the info on the fingerwheels!

[foots]

Cool!
Say, foots, will you post your progress on your painting? I'm very interested, even though, hopefully, this little gem won't need paint.
Thank you, Dennis for the info on the fingerwheels!

I plan on getting a digital camera this coming payday, as I need to take pictures of a bunch of stuff, phones included. I screwed up my first attempt, but I'm going to strip it and do some better prep work. I'm using a new to me paint - its called Specialty Lacquer by Rustoleum. I really like this paint, it is really glossy much like the factory paint, and with a little better prep work, the phone should come out really nice. I'm going to eventually paint my good Stromberg-Carlson 1243 with it and my 2 Connecticut Telephone and Electric phones with it.

[ntophones]

I hope you get your camera soon, to take photos of your progress.
That should be very interesting and informative to those who might want to paint in the future!

[Phonesrfun]

To me, painting a phone is kind of a personal choice, and it has a lot to do with the finish that it comes with.  I recently painted a bakelite Kellogg 900 because, frankly, the bakelite was beyond any decent cleaning up.  Some might say that painting is like parts swapping, but for me, I just use my judgement and act accordingly.

Most metal phones like a D mount are well enough painted that by the time you use a little polishing compound or Novus #3 and #2, it will display nicely as is.  Believe me, taking a phone all the way apart and painting it so you don't have to mask is a lot of work, and can come with some risk of breaking old parts during the disassembly and reassembly process.

Some people want an old phone that looks just the way it did when it came in the original box, way back when.  There is nothing wrong with that either.  For me, I like working with the electronics more than I like the work of restoration, so for me it is an easy choice.  I do have a couple of nice favorites, however.

Powder coating can be a very expensive and time consuming proposition too, but you wind up with a phone that has a finish that is almost indestructable.  I have not done this, but I have seen them on e-Bay.  In that case, the phone has to be absolutely torn down and sand-blasted and the process can be destructive to dates that are stamped on the inside.

The dial finger wheel is one part that you can more easily refinish by yourself, and even if you were to just polish out the finish on the phone, I don't think a newly painted finger wheel would look out of place.

So, the decision is yours.  Many of us have repainted phones, and even on the platstics, many of us have sanded, bleached, cleaned and done just about everything else to them.  Sometimes with good results, and sometimes disasterous results.

Cheers,

-Bill

[ntophones]

Thanks--I hope the phone just polishes nicely, I think. 
I'll have to see. Thanks for the advice.
I don't think I'll sandblast, that's for sure.
What I was thinking was that the picture looks like someone may have done a bad paint job on it. But, I've been reading where that might come off and just leave the original coat (I hope).
I appreciate your thoughts, everyone.

[rp2813]

I've used India ink to touch up cradle ears.  It's not as durable or glossy as original paint but it provides the same effect.  You'll find it can scuff off the ears again if you're not careful, but should last a while.

Ralph

[ntophones]

Oh, that's great! I might do that!

My new phone came in the mail today!
Here are some pictures:

[ntophones]

Hello,
Here is a picture of my new D1.
I've been looking at the wiring diagrams in the Technical Stuff portion, and admit I really can't tell what my phone is.
The diagrams are great, but, I'm such a new thing to this, I'm sorry, I still don't know what I have.
Could someone look at this picture and tell me?
Thanks.
nto

[bingster]

Nice job!  It looks like the dial plate is celluloid, which is a very nice touch.  They're not all that common.  Be VERY careful cleaning it, because they can be very fragile.

It's not perfect, but almost none of them are.  All in all, I think you did really well with this one!