If you remember awhile back, I was in the process of restoring a Northern Electric 717 that had some wood damage and the varnish was peeling off. Instead of just taking the parts out and tossing to the side, we wanted to see how the phone would look in white. We have around 50 717's in various states from almost new to cracked and chipped. I chose one that I knew would sand up well, and tried it out. After sanding and filling in a small crack, we spray painted it with a couple coats of Krylon gloss white and clear coat. The finish turned our exceptional! We stripped the parts of any black paint and buffed what we could back to a shiny brass finish. We had to send out a couple parts for plating (Hook, hinges) and then reassembled it. All the parts are present inside, but still need to be hooked up to get it working.
Overall, for a phone that had little to no life left, I think it turned out great!
Thoughts?
-MM
That does look pretty sharp! It should sell quickly.
Very nice indeed, congrats
That is a great result! Especially considering the silly things that happen to some of these old phones.
:'(
That's a sharp looking phone. I'm in the process of doing one in gloss black, but now you have me thinking outside the box. :)
Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words!
For reference, this is how they looked originally looked before the refurb. Really a beautiful telephone. Notice the Northern Electric burned into the wood, sharp looking. Made in 1957, one of my favorite phones!!..Doug
Quote from: Doug Rose on November 12, 2017, 08:52:33 AM
For reference, this is how they looked originally looked before the refurb. Really a beautiful telephone. Notice the Northern Electric burned into the wood, sharp looking. Made in 1957, one of my favorite phones!!..Doug
I have the same phone Doug, but 1958. :) Plus 5 more of the same model with one of them in black.
Very nice phones, gentlemen! Why was NE still building magneto, manual, wood phones well into the '50s???
Quote from: RotarDad on November 12, 2017, 10:42:38 AM
Very nice phones, gentlemen! Why was NE still building magneto, manual, wood phones well into the '50s???
Good question.....
Quote from: RotarDad on November 12, 2017, 10:42:38 AM
Very nice phones, gentlemen! Why was NE still building magneto, manual, wood phones well into the '50s???
I'm not sure of the exact reason, but one observation is that NE was pretty far behind WE in terms of telephone technology and trends. The 302 was still being built well into the '60s, and the darker WE 500 colors that were phased out in '57 were still being made a few years later by NE.
Quote from: RotarDad on November 12, 2017, 10:42:38 AM
Very nice phones, gentlemen! Why was NE still building magneto, manual, wood phones well into the '50s???
Quote from: WEBellSystemChristian on November 12, 2017, 10:45:53 AM
I'm not sure of the exact reason, but one observation is that NE was pretty far behind WE in terms of telephone technology and trends. The 302 was still being built well into the '60s, and the darker WE 500 colors that were phased out in '57 were still being made a few years later by NE.
RE: http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=18458.msg190377#msg190377
Very interesting....I learn so much on this forum!
Thanks John for the link!
Benny
Quote from: Duffy on November 12, 2017, 09:46:19 AM
I have the same phone Doug, but 1958. :) Plus 5 more of the same model with one of them in black.
They are such cool looking phones, especially with the mottled brown F1. These are one of my favorite designs, I like the way the door drops down instead of swings open. ...other Doug
Quote from: Doug Rose on November 12, 2017, 08:52:33 AM
For reference, this is how they looked originally looked before the refurb. Really a beautiful telephone. Notice the Northern Electric burned into the wood, sharp looking. Made in 1957, one of my favorite phones!!..Doug
Doug, did you strip the paint off the hook and keyhole cover? I've only ever seen them painted black. Its too bad they used bronze in the hook or else they would buff up real nice.
-MM
Matt....Just the way it was found, maybe a little cleaner....Doug
Quote from: Doug Rose on November 13, 2017, 12:26:59 PM
Matt....Just the way it was found, maybe a little cleaner....Doug
Looks good!
-MM
The white/brass combo looks AWESOME! I have 2. One in great condition, but the other needs work. Would you mind sharing your process?
The white/brass combo looks AWESOME! I have 2. One in great condition, but I think I might try painting it
Did the 717 come in any other colors?
They left the factory finished as yours are, a sort of combination stain and varnish over the maple case. If they were ever refurbished for any reason, they were quite often painted "black". No other colors were ever used that I'm aware of, except perhaps by telephone hobbyists or collectors.
Jeff Lamb
Thank you, Jeff. I'm gonna try Black. The ringer gongs are currently black, should i leave them black or remove the paint so the brass could give some CONTRAST? Or, were they usually black?
Quote from: Kjmcmurdo on November 14, 2017, 01:37:48 PM
The white/brass combo looks AWESOME! I have 2. One in great condition, but the other needs work. Would you mind sharing your process?
Just sand down using a 400 grit paper, making sure to get any scratches out. Then just hit it with couple coats of primer and a few coats of gloss white. Finish it off with a few more coats of clear.
-MM
Quote from: Kjmcmurdo on November 14, 2017, 02:49:05 PM
Thank you, Jeff. I'm gonna try Black. The ringer gongs are currently black, should i leave them black or remove the paint so the brass could give some CONTRAST? Or, were they usually black?
Personally, if painting it black, getting the bells and other pieces finished in nickel would look best.
-MM
Ill try to post when finished.
I love that you took an old unit and restored it to working order, adding the dial makes it really usable. did you keep all the guts as they were? based on what I could see, they mimick a WE/NE 307C... the 104 coil and all... hows the audio on them? do they sound ok when talked on?
Quote from: Babybearjs on November 14, 2017, 03:49:37 PM
I love that you took an old unit and restored it to working order, adding the dial makes it really usable. did you keep all the guts as they were? based on what I could see, they mimick a WE/NE 307C... the 104 coil and all... hows the audio on them? do they sound ok when talked on?
We had to swap out the network for a 101b and the switch pile (original only had 3 terminal and we needed 4). Stock ringer and condenser. I haven't had time to finish the wiring yet, but it will be comparable to a 302 when complete.
-MM