Stromberg Carlson 1177 with Sawed-Off Plunger

[LarryInMichigan]

I just received a SC 1177 and was quite disappointed to discover that some genius sawed off the top of the plunger so that the handset only pushes it a tiny amount, nowhere near enough to move the hook switch contacts.  There were also some strange modifications to the bottom. 

Can someone help me find a replacement plunger?  I thought that I might be able to glue part of another plunger onto the end, but the diameter is different than several other plungers I compared.  The diameter appear to be about 5/16".

The seller offered me a refund if I return the phone.  I paid nearly $100 for this phone and shipping.

Larry

[paul-f]

That part may be a challenge to find, as the base is quite rugged, so rarely parted out.

Parts for the later bakelite phones turn up more frequently, as the bases get cracked or broken. I have found several bakelite SC sets that had replacement plungers made from wood dowels, and was able to find replacements.

You could try extending it using JB Weld or a similar product, but a patched version would never be as good as a solid piece.

The shape is simple enough that a replacement could be fabricated if you can find suitable plastic stock.  If you don't want to do the work, perhaps someone like John LaRose or Ray Kotke would do it.

[LarryInMichigan]

I did find some spare short black plastic plungers the same diameter.  Someone skilled could probably cut the plungers and glue them together so that the combined height would be correct and the seam would be hidden below the cradle surface.  I am much to clumsy to do such a thing well.

I don't really want to return the phone because I have been looking for one of these with the proper handset, and the handset on this one is in decent condition with the original working elements.  I think that the price I paid is probably too much though given the bad plunger and repro base plate.  The seller has a number of other phones for sale, most or all of which are outrageously overpriced.  She also charged me a $4 markup on the shipping.

Larry

[TelePlay]

. . . some genius sawed off the top of the plunger so that the handset only pushes it a tiny amount, nowhere near enough to move the hook switch contacts.  There were also some strange modifications to the bottom.

My second thought was in its received condition, it would be off hook all of the time. As part of a fixture in an office, this would be a live mic, or an interesting bug, while looking like a phone. Just a thought on why that might have been done to the plunger for eavesdropping way back when this phone was contemporary to an office setting.

[LarryInMichigan]

Someone did something strange with this phone.  There was Western Electric terminal block, marked "12E" screwed into the plate inside the base with a of a hook spring contact attached to one of its terminals.  The contact was bent downward so that it came in contact with the bottom plate of the base.  There was a short length of station wire attached to some of the contacts.

Larry

[LarryInMichigan]

I just asked the seller for a partial refund for about the amount of round-trip shipping.  I told her that I would expect any other phone collector who might buy the phone to be bothered by the plunger as it renders the phone unusable.  I really don't want to reassemble and repack the phone just now.

Larry

[Doug Rose]

Larry...the handset is a keeper, a nice find in wonderful condition. Hopefully a beater will show up on eBay soon for you to harvest parts....Doug

[LarryInMichigan]

The seller just refused to provide a partial refund and now will no longer allow me to return the phone since I told her that I had to reassemble it.  I would suggest being careful in dealing with this seller: http://www.etsy.com/shop/OldBeaverAntiques.

Larry

[Mr. Bones]

Larry,

     Hope overall, you still came out to the good on this great old phone. Sorry to hear the seller became so inflexible.

Best regards!

[paul-f]

Larry,

I followed the seller link and was surprised to see how many phones she has for sale, including a similar set with a broken AE handset.

One could argue that she is selling enough phones that a buyer would naturally conclude that she has some phone expertise and since she described the phone as being "In excellent condition" and "Can probably be wired for receiving calls" that it should not have the defects you noted.

She may be out of her depth and somehow got suspicious that you're trying to pull a fast one on her to get some repair parts for a phone you already have by swapping parts before returning it.  I've had several buyers try to pull that switch on me in the past, so am cautious when someone reports damage.

Once a buyer or seller gets suspicious, it's difficult to rebuild trust.  I've found that setting up a phone call often helps.  When someone hears your voice and you have a change to interact a bit, it's much easier to build rapport than with emails -- especially after the positions communicated by email start getting polarized.

You might try a low key approach that's non-threatening, focusing on the facts.  Here's what I expected (based on your description) and here's what I got.  I was surprised, as this isn't a common thing to go wrong with a phone.  I can understand that you didn't notice it when you wrote the description.  It was probably an honest mistake, but the fact remains that the phone was not as described.  Even though you have a no returns policy, in this case a  return or partial refund makes sense.

I haven't had a dispute using Etsy rules, but ebay would probably support you using that kind of logic.

Good luck.

[LarryInMichigan]

Can someone tell me what the height of the plunger should be above the lip of the surround on the cradle?

Thank You

Larry

[paul-f]

I measured 3 sets and got 3/8" on each.

I could take one apart and measure the overall length, if that will help.

[LarryInMichigan]

I measured 3 sets and got 3/8" on each.

That is very interesting.  Mine extends just a bit less than 3/8", so apparently, only a small amount was cut off, but enough to prevent the switch contacts from moving.  I might be able to build up the end with glue or something.

Larry

[HarrySmith]

Maybe there is a problem with the contact pileup? A miniscule amount of length on the plunger should not prevent the disconnect.

[paul-f]

If you can't make a "minor mechanical adjustment" to the contacts, you may be able to build up the other end of the plunger.  That repair would be conveniently out of sight.