Hi All:
I have just purchased a farm fresh AE 34. It if FILTHY! Think I can smell the meadow muffins from here! I am wondering if any of you have cleaned up bakelite as dirty as this one is? I am thinking of using oxy-clean or similar. With luck, it will turn out to be more dust than grunge. Any suggestions which might help? I do have a correct monophone tool for dissassembly.
I have cleaned lots of phones, but this is by far the dirtiest!
Yes, the dial will need cleaning too of course, but I am not worried about that - I have cleaned up many AE dials and re-lubricated them. My major worry is cleaning the case without discolouring it...
It likely will no doubt need some serious buffing after cleaning.
Insofar as its condition inside, only time will tell once it arrives! Hopefully it will arrive with no further damage. For some reason, I have had trouble finding an AE 34 for the museum - hopefully, this one will clean up as well as I am hoping.
The phone isn't here yet, but will be hopefully in the next week of so.
Dave
If you don't want to take it apart completely to clean it, just use a sponge and some Windex, and rinse the sponge a lot (and squeeze it dry) while you wipe the grime off. After you get that dirt off, just polish it up like you would a "normal" phone.
If you think that's bad, try cleaning out used vacuum cleaners...... :o
Quote from: kleenax on March 14, 2013, 11:03:23 PM
If you don't want to take it apart completely to clean it, just use a sponge and some Windex, and rinse the sponge a lot (and squeeze it dry) while you wipe the grime off. After you get that dirt off, just polish it up like you would a "normal" phone.
Hi Ray:
Well considering how bad the outside is, I will likely need to open it, but if it otherwise appears to be in good shape. But I will almost definitely have to take it apart at least to clean and lubricate the dial (note it is stuck half-way). Come to think of it, the cords will need replacing, so it will have to come apart. Would be nice if I could avoid that! Thankfully, I do have the correct monophone tool to get it apart.
In the photo, but for the dirt, it appears to be in good shape - at least no noticeable cracks, etc. - I just don't want to crack it, or discolour the case cleaning it. I have seen them get a white film on the bakelite if you clean them too rigorously. So I may, as you say stick with just a windex cleaning as much as possible. And, hopefully, I won''t find any cracks hiding under the dirt :'(
It is going to be a fun little project, and I am looking forward to its arrival. I have been searching so long for a decent, affordable 34 for the museum!
Dave
Just brush off the loose dirt first. Then gently wipe it down with plain soap and water. Windex tends to kill the glossy finish of bakelite.
Quote from: HowardPgh on March 15, 2013, 10:38:24 AM
Just brush off the loose dirt first. Then gently wipe it down with plain soap and water. Windex tends to kill the glossy finish of bakelite.
The reason that Windex "kills" the glossy finish is because it has a small amount of Ammonia in it. The ammonia serves to better break down the grease n' grime and simply cleans deeper. You do have a point though, but I prefer to put that gloss back on there after I clean them up!
Quote from: kleenax on March 15, 2013, 05:36:16 PM
Quote from: HowardPgh on March 15, 2013, 10:38:24 AM
Just brush off the loose dirt first. Then gently wipe it down with plain soap and water. Windex tends to kill the glossy finish of bakelite.
The reason that Windex "kills" the glossy finish is because it has a small amount of Ammonia in it. The ammonia serves to better break down the grease n' grime and simply cleans deeper. You do have a point though, but I prefer to put that gloss back on there after I clean them up!
Yes, I am not too worried about buffing the finish back. I just can't wait for it to arrive so I can get started! Hopefully, the dial won't be a huge problem - I had had great luck in the past on AE dials dropping them into watch cleaning solution in the Ultrasonic Cleaner, then re-lubing them. It will also need new cords, which I also have coming. Hopefully it won't get damaged in shipping - if it was packed the way I asked, it shouldn't be. Aw, heck, the dirt will hold it together :D
It will be a great little project, and I am looking forward to it. It had been a while since I had a complete refurbishing job to do, and I will finally have an AE34 on display!
While most of the phones in the museum are NE, I have a special love for AEs, as I grew up in Brockville, Ont. where both the old Phillips Electrical works plant then the new GTE/AE were located. My first collection when I was young was all AE. I had that collection until I went to college and Mom and Dad threw them all out, thinking they had no value! It wasn't their decision to make, and it will always be a bone of contention for me.
So, it is a matter of catching up and trying to bring back at least part of that collection. Terry has been a wonderful help with newer AE models for the museum, and I have been able to pick up AE 40s and 50s, and other earlier AE phones.
I have an original Phillips Electrical Works subset I found last year, and am still looking for one of them with the handset mounted atop the subset. They were a dime a dozen when I was young in Brockville!
So, that is why I love the AEs so much, and it is so nice being able to share them with others through the museum!
Dave
Dave...is this one of the Recycle Company Phones? Looks like it from the pictures with the yellow handset cord. Are you able to discuss the price?...Doug
Quote from: Doug Rose on March 15, 2013, 08:38:13 PM
Dave...is this one of the Recycle Company Phones? Looks like it from the pictures with the yellow handset cord. Are you able to discuss the price?...Doug
See my P.M.
Dave
Hi Pholks:
I received my AE 34 in the mail this morning, and after a wee bit of cleaning, and posting photos. Lots more cleaning to go, and replacement of the dial surround, cleaning of the dial, replacement of cords, an extensicord on the receiver, etc.
There are two pieces broken out of the grille on the left hand side - one of them is still there, so I should be able to glue that one, as least back in, and with luck, when I examine the packing materials, I will discover the other one with it. It appears as though, even though the handset was separately bubble wrapped, it knocked into it during shipping. It isn't serious, but it would have been nice if it hadn't happened, but won't show, as it is on the side.
Lots of cleaning and polishing to go....
Dave
The inside shot is pretty impressive, that uniform layer of dust is like it was kept in a very dusty environment when it was stored... :D
Reminds me of the motor in my Electrolux C12 (a Sanitaire in disguise), it was about as dusty as that phone's innards... :D
Quote from: twocvbloke on March 21, 2013, 12:08:19 PM
The inside shot is pretty impressive, that uniform layer of dust is like it was kept in a very dusty environment when it was stored... :D
Reminds me of the motor in my Electrolux C12 (a Sanitaire in disguise), it was about as dusty as that phone's innards... :D
Yes, it was pretty dusty overall, but I now have the inside also mostly cleaned, and it looks a lot better. Can't wait to finish it and put the extensicord on it!
Dave
I am sure that it will look great once you're done. It's good that yours has a SL ringer. Mine is missing the ringer. The damage on the side is a shame. Was the shell bumped by the handset during shipment?
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 21, 2013, 12:12:59 PM
I am sure that it will look great once you're done. It's good that yours has a SL ringer. Mine is missing the ringer. The damage on the side is a shame. Was the shell bumped by the handset during shipment?
Larry
Yes, that is what I figure. Although the phone and the handset were individually bubble wrapped as I asked, the broken area and the handset were adjacent to each other, so it must have gotten a pretty good jolt during shipping. The good news? I found both broken pieces, so should be able to make a pretty good repair using crazy glue!
Have you got the ringer mount in yours? If so, I have a spare ringer? No correct mount for an AE 34, though.
Dave
I think that I am missing the whole ringer assembly.
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 21, 2013, 12:30:06 PM
I think that I am missing the whole ringer assembly.
Larry
Hi Larry:
Too bad - that AE 34 mount is hard to find. It is about a 45 degree mount that the ringer mounts on and installs on the base. Well, keep it in mind - if my ringer tests ok, I would be happy to pass it along to you. But I would want to have time to be sure mine is good.
Dave
Now, I have to get the handset apart to install the new extensicord. It is pretty well stuck. Will have to find my strap wrench! No problem with the mouthpiece end - I have a monophone tool. But, I will likely finish cleaning up the dial and case first.
Sure looks a lot better than when it first arrived!
The dial is now cleaned and re-lubricated, and working great. I use an ultrasonic cleaner in L&R non foaming watch cleaner, then re-lubricate with teflon based lube. Smooth and quiet as new now, though at first, it could hardly be turned manually! I have done a number of AE dials with great success that way.
Photo: Still in progress, extensicord and new line cord cord installed on base, dial repaired, more cleaning... Connection of the extensicord to the handset, and lots of polishing left to do.
There is no wiring diagram in the base, but it has the coil mounted in the base, and the dial is a US dial. I am used to AEs having a small schematic located inside the base. The ringer is a straight line ringer, thankfully.
Dave
Dave....I know what I was quoted for these, seems like an awful lot for a damaged phone. This is such a shame. I always tell the seller to pack it so tight in newspaper that nothing moves, obviously something moved. Sorry to see this....Doug
Quote from: Doug Rose on March 21, 2013, 06:24:45 PM
Dave....I know what I was quoted for these, seems like an awful lot for a damaged phone. This is such a shame. I always tell the seller to pack it so tight in newspaper that nothing moves, obviously something moved. Sorry to see this....Doug
Hi Doug:
It was packed well - the handset was separately bubble wrapped from the body of the phone, but then they were side by side in the box, and it seems it received quite a hit during shipping. Sadly, it still got damaged. It was well packed, but it just proves that the best packing can't be bullet proof. I am fortunate, though the broken pieces would up inside the phone body, so I should be able to repair it...
Now, the remaining problems are simple buffing, and getting the transmitter ring on the handset off so I can attach the new cords. It is really firmly in place! I have tried heat, cold, and am now dousing it in WD 40 trying to loosen it off. I have never had a more difficult transmitter cap to remove!
Dave
Ok, I have come to a standstill. I have removed many transmitter caps, but this one is beating me. I need to get it off to change the cord, but I have never had one which is so ignorant!
I have tried heat, cold, WD-40 and can't get it to budge at all. Any suggestions?
Dave
Since the ring holding the transmitter cap is brass, heating it should cause it to expand. I would suggest trying more heat.
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 21, 2013, 08:10:28 PM
Since the ring holding the transmitter cap is brass, heating it should cause it to expand. I would suggest trying more heat.
Larry
Hi Larry:
I have had a high temperature hair drier on it for ten minutes several times - still won't budge! SO hot that you can't leave your fingers on the ring.
Dave
Then try letting it sit overnight with WD-40 or something in the threads. I have opened a whole bunch of these. many were difficult, but they all came off. Be careful if the handset has the type 41 transmitter mounted on an angle. Twisting the bakelite part will break off the contacts in the handset.
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 21, 2013, 08:46:37 PM
Then try letting it sit overnight with WD-40 or something in the threads. I have opened a whole bunch of these. many were difficult, but they all came off. Be careful if the handset has the type 41 transmitter mounted on an angle. Twisting the bakelite part will break off the contacts in the handset.
Larry
I will keep on with it - leave it soaking again with WD-40 sprayed on. Hope it will come off tomorrow. Don't want to destroy it since I have the phone all fixed up now... Other than replacing the handset end of the extensicord...
Dave
Those type 38 handsets are not entirely difficult to replace, if it comes to that. I have a few spares.
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 21, 2013, 09:00:12 PM
Those type 38 handsets are not entirely difficult to replace, if it comes to that. I have a few spares.
Larry
Hopefully, I will get the transmitter off tomorrow. Guess its been there since 1938 or so and pretty well corroded in place. I wish that I hadn't needed to replace the cord - it would have been so much easier!
Otherwise the phone is coming on great. I found the missing pieces from the grille, and will be able to re-glue them without showing, and the dial is as smooth as any now, though it was completely seized when the phone came. So, overall, I am pretty pleased, once I get past this problem!
In the morning following, I did more polishing, and cleaned the paint off the rubber gasket on the base. Looking good! Still working on the handset.
Dave
Hi All:
Success this morning getting the transmitter off to change the cord to the Extensicord. In the process of getting it off, it took half a can of WD-40, repeated applications of hot and cold, cost me a broken strap wrench, but finally it yielded this morning!
Here is a final photo of it - some buffing still to go, but 90% done. I am very pleased with it!
Dave
Congratulations. The phone is looking much happier now. I expect that you would rather break a strap wrench than the handset. Does the handset have the older type of transmitter which sits flat on the handset or the type 41 with the goofy angular spring mount?
Larry
Quote from: LarryInMichigan on March 22, 2013, 09:35:26 AM
Congratulations. The phone is looking much happier now. I expect that you would rather break a strap wrench than the handset. Does the handset have the older type of transmitter which sits flat on the handset or the type 41 with the goofy angular spring mount?
Larry
Hi Larry:
Yes, I'd certainly rather break a strap wrench than the handset!
It had the older flat transmitter in it...
Now, I can take my time buffing it - it will look great when I am done!
Dave
One tip about removing and replacing the transmitter in the handset.
Hold the spit cup part down to the handset to take tension off the ring and keep the transmitter from turning.
The transmitter and spitcup are keyed together with small bakelite bumps on the flat part of the cup and the transmitter is keyed into the handset so it fits one way.
Those rings are hard to remove and replace if there is the slightest dent in them.
Hi All:
Down to the final step before buffing. Remember the broken vent I showed on the first page? Well thankfully, the two vent pieces broken out were still inside the phone, and here is the result of gluing them back in with cyanoacrylate glue. They still need some minor filing, sanding and of course subsequent buffing, but I believe when done, it will be hard to tell they were ever broken.
It was tricky holding the broken pieces in place for gluing, so there are fingerprints, but they will sand off later. If it were possible to find replacement shells, that would have been a better option than all the time this has taken, but it will look pretty good for a 70 year old phone, considering the previous damage to the grille.
The phone itself works like a charm!
Dave
Quote from: DavePEI on March 22, 2013, 01:33:47 PM
Hi All:
Down to the final step before buffing. Remember the broken vent I showed on the first page? Well thankfully, the two vent pieces broken out were still inside the phone, and here is the result of gluing them back in. They still need some minor filing, sanding and of course subsequent buffing, but I believe when done, it will be hard to tell they were ever broken.
It was tricky holding the broken pieces in place for gluing, so there are fingerprints, but they will sand off later. If it were possible to find replacement shells, that would have been a better option than all the time this has taken, but it will look pretty good for a 70 year old phone, considering the previous damage to the grille.
The phone itself works like a charm!
Dave
hi dave pei,looks like your phone is coming along, i am in the middle of refurbishing a 500 that is my full service phone,i will be updating it in a little while, but i look foward to seeing the final results of yours take care.
As much as I hate to say it, a busted phone finds a good home at DavePEI's place. Nice job Dave, your first AE 34 comes with a story that you will always remember.
Terry
Quote from: AE_Collector on March 22, 2013, 11:19:52 PM
As much as I hate to say it, a busted phone finds a good home at DavePEI's place. Nice job Dave, your first AE 34 comes with a story tat you will always remember.
Hi Terry:
Well, you know how long I have wanted an AE 34! So, it is worth every second spent on it to have for the museum.
Now, the only thing that will keep me from getting it over there is Punxsutawney Phil! Snow has drifted up around the museum again badly after the last two storms. We need some springtime warmth! Lynch that ground hog for inaccurate forecasting! Polsters or Politicians could do a better job of predicting Spring!
Dave
See Punxsutawney Phil's excuse for the late spring:Just before the Pennsylvania paper Headline which read: "Groundhog sentenced to become pulled pork sandwich!"
I think I'd rather put my weather prediction faith in humans with big supercomputers that can vaguely get the weather right, rather than rely on some giant rat-looking thing seeing it's own shadow... :D
Not if you live in NEW England. The colonies have bee rocked and the forecasters have had no clue.......Doug
And that's what happens when you rely on an animal that doesn't even know what the humans bugging him after he woke up are going on about... :D
Science over superstition, the former always wins... ;D
Here is a page out of the AE 4055 catalog showing the AE34!
Dave
Quote from: twocvbloke on March 23, 2013, 09:16:42 AM
I think I'd rather put my weather prediction faith in humans with big supercomputers that can vaguely get the weather right, rather than rely on some giant rat-looking thing seeing it's own shadow... :D
Even the computers can't figure it out. Look what happened to my computer on the first day of Spring! Still snowing :'(
Dave
:) We have all seen that windows clock moving in both directions, just wait and see ;)
Picture taken just now from home: Hakadal about 35km north of Oslo City
dsk
Spring?? Weather change?? All I notice is the days getting longer. It is always hot and always green here.
The BBC did a comparison of temperatures a year ago and temperatures this year, I remember that small heatwave, it was right after a solar flare struck the planet.. :D
It's up to 34F here now :)
Ahhh, the TRUTH always outs!