My first AE/GTE phone - a Starlite!!!

[twocvbloke]

twocvbloke,
                 Nice phone !! stub

Thanks, I'm quite pleased with it, I braved dismantling it and cleaning up the shell, couldn't quite figure out the base, so that still needs cleaning out, but it's all clean on the important parts...

[AE_Collector]

Stick on dial cards are the only option with all AE FW's that are screwed on like this one. I don't think AE ever got to full modular before they packed up and went away. They got to half mod with full mod base cords such as this one. These plastic bases were prepped for mod handset cords but they continued to use adapter pieces to clamp non mod handset cords into the base. I think the only conventional styled AE's that made it to full modular were Stylelines. I say conventional styled because AE did make many GTE branded phones of new design that were for sale directly to consumers that would have been full modular.

Terry

[twocvbloke]

Looking inside the dial when I had it apart, it works with a ratchet system, so when it's wound up, the ratchet is disengaged, and when you release it, the ratchet engages (with a bit of a clunk) and off it goes...

Very unusual, but it works, and mine doesn't need any work doing to it really, all it needed was a bit of a wipe and it's fine...

[AE_Collector]

Don't forget......AE invented the dial!

Terry

[twocvbloke]

Don't forget......AE invented the dial!

Terry

It's still unusual though...

I'm used to there being a spring that acts like a clutch, disengaging (or partly at least, resulting in the initial "ziiiiiip" as the governor spins as you dial) when you turn the dial to the fingerstop, and then it engages when you release, a simple bit of physics that works nicely, until it gets dried out and then it gets to be a bit of a PITA...

But still, this is why I like dismantling things, cos I can learn about differences between apparently similar devices, some are quite well thought out and elaborately simple, others are crude and rather questionable yet still work fine...

[poplar1]

See 2.02 through 2.04 about dial silencing on windup:

http://www.strombergcarlsontelephone.com/kellogg/PDF/AUTOMATIC%20ELECTRIC%20DIALS.pdf