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First post- 1963 US army "unclassified" Western Electric phone

Started by Btee, October 05, 2010, 09:52:29 PM

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Btee

Hmm... Took some interior shots. And now Im confused!

The receiver is stamped '63. The front logo say 4? April 64.

And on the inside it says IV 66..... What does that mean?

On the housing cover it has stamped - 7D...... What does that mean?


And I found out that switch is so definitely NOT original. haha. Might take it out. Now you can see what wires go where, and maybe someone can interpret what it is for....

rp2813

OK:

7D doesn't really mean anything as far as dates are concerned.  There should be tiny numbers in a hatchmarked circle stamped inside the case.  I will take a wild guess and say you'll find two 6's there (1966), or maybe a 6 and a 7 (1967).

IV 66 means 4th quarter of 1966.

The network block also appears to be 1966, so from the pictures it's safe to say your chassis was made in 1966, which also explains why it's not painted black.  As a rule, you can't date a phone by looking only at its handset or just the transmitter or receiver elements.

It's not unusual to have a handset and related elements with different dates than the chassis components.  These phones would either remain in place for the next customer that moved in, or Ma Bell would take them back, test them out, replace anything if it was necessary, and then re-deploy the phone.  So if the dates don't match, that's very typical.

I'm thinking your handset is made of bakelite.  If it is, you will see "G1" in small characters below "Made in USA" on the underside of the handset.  By 1966, all black handsets were being made out of plastic (those have "G3" on them), so having a 1966 chassis and (I presume) case paired with a bakelite handset could be a slight anomaly.  A G1 handset is significantly heavier than a G3.  I am not a fan of G3's at all.  The G1's feel much more substantial and sound better when replaced in their cradle. 

That switch definitely needs to go.  It appears it was for the ringer.

What date(s) are you finding in orange on the back of the dial?  If there are more than one, let us know all of them.
Ralph

Sargeguy

What does it say on the handset?  A miliyary phone would not have Bell System markings.
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

rp2813

Here's a picture of the handset.  It appears to have standard Western Electric markings.
Ralph

HarrySmith

There appears to be a "W" on the handset indicating it was supplied to an independent.
Harry Smith
ATCA 4434
TCI

"There is no try,
there is only
do or do not"

Dennis Markham

I never heard about the "W" applying to a G1 handset, only the F1.  Anyone else?

Kenny C

all i see is
Western Electric
   made in U.S.A.
          G1
In memory of
  Marie B.
1926-2010

Btee

Quote from: Kennyc1955 on October 07, 2010, 03:47:58 PM
all i see is
Western Electric
   made in U.S.A.
          G1

Nope

its-
Western Electric
  Made in USA
         63


How would the date on the insert fit though? Its april something of 1964? This phones confusing me!

rp2813

Brandon, what you think is "63" is actually "G3," which means it's a plastic handset.  There should be a date embossed inside the handset.  It's usually visible if you lift out the receiver element.  I thought it was unusual for your handset to be a G1, and apparently it isn't.  The G3 makes more sense for a vintage 1966 phone.

Both the transmitter and receiver elements are the most common items to have been replaced somewhere along the line, particularly the transmitters.  It's a rare thing to find a phone that's entirely matching dates, including those two elements.

Remember, Ma Bell was the world's foremost recycler.  If a part was still good, it went back into service.  So there was a lot of mixing and matching going on with components back when Ma Bell owned all the phones and subscribers could only rent them. 

The classic "case" of Ma Bell recycling old parts would be the model 5302 phone.  But if you're currently having trouble with mismatched handset elements, you might want to wait before you read up on that one.  ;-)
Ralph

Btee

Well my adaptor is on order! Cant wait to get it so I can listen to the great ringer of this phone, and of course use it!

Jim Stettler

Quote from: Brandon Tuomikoski on October 09, 2010, 01:05:49 PM
Well my adaptor is on order! Cant wait to get it so I can listen to the great ringer of this phone, and of course use it!
Brandon,
If you adaptor is a mod adaptor for the line cord, I wouldn't use it if it is the style that damages the cord.

The cheapest mod adaptor around is a surface jack.
You wire it to your line cord. then you can use a modular cord between your "adaptor" and the wall.
JMO,
Jim
You live, You learn,
You die, you forget it all.

deedubya3800

I'm considering doing this same thing to a couple phones I have that have line cords ending in spades. That way I don't have to damage the cord or deal with four-prong connectors, which are costly.


Btee

Well I got the jack today. Connected it up, and it worked! The ringer did not. Made several calls.

When talking on the phone there was a fuzzy sound in the background.


So wired the yellow and black wires into the wall end socket, and connected the yellow end onto one of the two terminals entitled G. Immediately someone called the house and scared the begebeze out of me as I was still working on the phone! (mistakingly left it plugged in of course!)

However after the ringing stopped, I realized that I must have disconnected something. Tried to fix it. And bam... NOTHING is working. :P

All I can get is a quiet hum when connected.


Sooo..... would anyone be so kind as to please in detail describe what cord (red yellow, green, black) goes to which spot in the phone? (using the diagram on the side of the little box's letters)

Thank you! Im by far no electrician, so I dont know what each terminal or certain wire is called.

I know it works! Cant wait to get the issues resolved. Hopefully if I wire it correctly now, the static sound during calls will be less.

Kenny C

In memory of
  Marie B.
1926-2010