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2AB Dial; did I do this correctly?

Started by Come in Nighthawk, July 21, 2010, 04:55:48 PM

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Come in Nighthawk

I have a B1 mount that I acquired on eBay pretty cheap as it had no base plate.  It came with a 5H dial.  Subsequently, I managed to acquire a 2AB dial.  I loaded this dial into place ILO the 5H.  But as I went to hook it up, I found that the back-side of the dial was not like the 4- and 5-series dials illustrated in various BSPs.

Pointedly, there are only four (not five) contact points on the back of the dial.  They are marked from left to right as you look at the back of it:

Y -- BK -- BB -- W

No "R" on the dial.



So, I took a gamble and hooked up my E1 and four-contact subset lines IAW the BSP diagrams as far as I could for side-tone service, with these exceptions:

1) I hooked the white handset line to the W on the right of the dial.

2) Hooked both red lines to the R contact on the "pile" of contacts on the right side of the interior of the mount, the "R" that is always noted in the BSPs as "not used" -- like here:



In a simple "field test," I tied the mount to a "cheater" side-tone subset I made, and hooked it to the wall w/ an RJ-11 running off the "cheater" side-tone subset.  It works -- thus far.  I was able to "call in" from my cell phone, and take the call.  I was also able to dial out successfully to my cell phone.

So did I do OK?  Or is my phone now waiting to self-destruct???  :o

Thanks in advance!!!!   :D

paul-f

2A dials were for upright desk stands and other pre-handset telephones.

2H dials added an extra terminal to isolate the shunt contacts for handset use.

You can find brief a write-up on page 46 of Old Time Telephones (by Ralph Meyer).
Visit: paul-f.com         WE  500  Design_Line

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Come in Nighthawk

Quote from: paul-f on July 21, 2010, 05:42:42 PM
2A dials were for upright desk stands and other pre-handset telephones.

2H dials added an extra terminal to isolate the shunt contacts for handset use.

You can find brief a write-up on page 46 of Old Time Telephones (by Ralph Meyer).

Oh?  Umm, OK, thanks Paul.  So, does that shunt-business mean my phone will soon self-destruct for using a 2AB dial in a handset mount?  Or can I get away with this... at least until such time as I can find some 2H-series dials?   ???

paul-f

You probably won't smell smoke.  It will most likely be a slow death.  ;)

All these parts are on borrowed time, as they are decades beyond their original design lifetime.  Any of then can go at any time.  You can help the survival rate by wiring it properly.

Now is a good time to stock up on spare parts, so you can keep it running for years to come.
Visit: paul-f.com         WE  500  Design_Line

.

Come in Nighthawk

Quote from: paul-f on July 21, 2010, 07:22:37 PM
You probably won't smell smoke.  It will most likely be a slow death.  ;)

All these parts are on borrowed time, as they are decades beyond their original design lifetime.  Any of then can go at any time.  You can help the survival rate by wiring it properly.

Now is a good time to stock up on spare parts, so you can keep it running for years to come.

"...stock up on spare parts..."   :D  The Frau has already asked me once if I am planning on opening a museum!!!!

I'll try to get a clear photo posted of the guts so you-all can SEE how I've wired this instead of relying on my written description, and if I've done something wrong, maybe you-all can alert me as to how to fix it soz to keep this one running???  Pretty please??   ;D

Come in Nighthawk

So, here's the guts of my B1 w/ the wrong (2AB) dial that I ave jury-rigged.



Hopefully the photo is clear enough (in focus) and distinct enough.  If not, JLMK, and I can try to get closer to the sections.

You should be able to see the left-hand "pile" (as I like to call it) showing the thin vinyl yellow and green wires from the subset cord I made attached to the GN and Y terminals.  The two black M1e cords that came in the phone are attached to the W and BK terminals of the pile IAW a 102-service cording diagram, and attached to the BB and Y terminals on the dial, respectively.  The thick black line from the handset cord and the thin vinyl black wire from the subset cord are attached to the BK terminal of the dial (the black vinyl wire terminates in my "cheater" subset at an unused terminal as my "cheater" is only side-tone).  The thick discolored-white (off-white!?  :D) line from the handset is attached to the W terminal of the dial (which is where an R terminal is located on all later 4- and 5-series dials).  There being no R terminal on the dial, and I having no cording diagrams for candle-stick phones, I took a risk/hunch/guess that it would be alright to hook the thin vinyl red and thick red wires from the subset and handset cords to the R terminal of the right-hand pile.  I'm fast running out of terminals!!!   ::)

My subset cord runs to a "cheater" subset I made with inexpensive Radio Shack parts following guidance given me elsewhere in the forum.  The "cheater" block hooks to the wall with an RJ-11 cord.  As already noted, I got a dial tone, and was able to call in from, and dial out to, my cell phone -- no problems.

My concern is, what experience does anyone have doing the same thing?  Is anything I have done KNOWN to lead to "premature" failure of the dial or other parts of the phone.  I fully understand that we're dealing with 70 to 80 year old parts that have long-since reached their "sell by date."  That's not what I am asking.  Have I JUST for example, now hooked 1000 volts through that dial, or something equally dumb?    :o

Or if, by good fortune and/or dumb luck, I got a dial made on a Tuesday, Wednesday, or Thursday, well-crafted, and which had not seen "hard use" before this (the proverbial "only one previous owner, a little old lady from Albuquerque"), then should I, or at least COULD I, reasonably expect this arrangement to last for a while?  I.E., just 'cause it wasn't DESIGNED to work this way, doesn't mean it can not?  :o

I mean seriously after all, what was the real difference aside from the replacement of the speaker tube and ear tube with a handset, between the candle-stick and the A1 or B1 phones?  IYGMD?
???