I.D.-ing your 300 series phone...

[Phonesrfun]

So, it's progress to turn a reasonably scarce original 300-series variation phone, perhaps with its original subset, into the most common configuration, the 302?

I hope that would not be considered as progress.

[trainman]

The 302s are so plentiful that if you want one, go get one. Leave the oddball variants alone.  The 307s are doubly useful in their original state. Keep a battery in the talking circuit and you can use it on common battery, or make a local battery system and use magneto for signal. 307s are local battery talking, common battery signaling.

[MagicMo]

Hello,
I am assuming the following phone is a 251, not a 302 as originally thought. It is metal. Please see pics. Anything I need to know about 251's?

Thanks!
Mo

[G-Man]

At a quick glance it looks like a standard manual 302. The 251 does not have an induction coil or other components since it was typically used as a replacement for desk stands. Depending on the subset, it could be in either common battery or magneto service.

[MagicMo]

At a quick glance it looks like a standard manual 302. The 251 does not have an induction coil or other components since it was typically used as a replacement for desk stands. Depending on the subset, it could be in either common battery or magneto service.

Thanks G-Man,
Ok, That's what I thought originally, but I was reading paul-f's website and then I thought it was a 251.
251AW: 82A-3 apparatus blank.
Thanks,
Mo

[G-Man]

At a quick glance it looks like a standard manual 302. The 251 does not have an induction coil or other components since it was typically used as a replacement for desk stands. Depending on the subset, it could be in either common battery or magneto service.

Correction, I was thinking of the 250 telephone. The 251 is a 302 that was intended for sale to the independent telephone companies. If it is a 251, the original handset should be a F1W and there should not be Bell System markings on it.

[MagicMo]

Yep, no markings on it.
What's with the 251's? I don't know anything about them and I have a few.
Thanks,
Mo

[paul-f]

That's what I thought originally, but I was reading paul-f's website and then I thought it was a 251. 251AW: 82A-3 apparatus blank.

Check out the text at the top of the page and look for the mounting code at the back of the set.  That will tell you what it was when it left the factory.

Of course, 300-series sets were out there long enough that many special purpose sets were converted to standard 302 (H-1) sets during refurb.  In the years after WWII, everything got used to help satisfy the pent up demand for telephones until production caught up with demand -- in the early 1950s.

So, in addition to the mounting code, it's necessary to check the internal components to verify the model number.

[Phonesrfun]

251's are a 302 housing with only the handset,  base, cover, hookswitch and dial blank.  No ringer, induction coil, condenser or dial.  They were made to connect to a subset as a direct replacement for the candlestick desk stand, or as an upgrade replacement for a "B" or "D" style mount.  

[G-Man]

A 251 is a 302 however since the Bell System wanted a way of making sure that their own telephones were not being pilfered they had their Western Electric division mark them with Bell System markings.

Instruments sold to independent telcos, railroads, pipeline companies, the federal government, etc., had different codes and were often unmarked.

This way, they could tell at a glance if a Western Electric telephone was legally processed by one of these entities.

If it had Bell System markings, their Chief Special Agent would contact the appropriate law enforcement agency and make sure they were prosecuted for theft. They would follow-up to determine if a telephone company employee was involved and he would likewise face charges.

The telephone company was very aggressive about pursuing transgressions against Ma Bell and there are legions of stories regarding their pursuits against assaults on their bottom-line!

[Phonesrfun]

251's are a 302 housing with only the handset,  base, cover, hookswitch and dial blank.  No ringer, induction coil, condenser or dial.  They were made to connect to a subset as a direct replacement for the candlestick desk stand, or as an upgrade replacement for a "B" or "D" style mount.  

I was confusing the 251 with the 250, which are similar.  The 250 has no guts, and the 251 has no ringer.  "My bad", as they say.

[twocvbloke]

If it had Bell System markings, their Chief Special Agent would contact the appropriate law enforcement agency and make sure they were prosecuted for theft. They would follow-up to determine if a telephone company employee was involved and he would likewise face charges.

The telephone company was very aggressive about pursuing transgressions against Ma Bell and there are legions of stories regarding their pursuits against assaults on their bottom-line!

Although the legalities of the rental of the phone was petty much legally explicit, it makes you wonder why they were so adamant that nobody else had their phones, after all, if someone got a phone that was Bell System and they liked the design and or quality, wouldn't that encourage people to move over to the Bell system if they were in the right area?

Today isn't much different, with people using pirated software, if they find they like it, often they'll buy it in order to get rid of the lack of proper maintenance on said software, aswell as getting rid of any unwanted extra features that are included (I.E. viruses, spyware and other nasties)...

(btw, I've had a bit of Jura whisky, and I have no idea if any of that makes sense!! )

[paul-f]

...wouldn't that encourage people to move over to the Bell system if they were in the right area?

In those days providing phone service was a monopoly.  The user did not have a choice, so could not change to or from the Bell System. Your service provider was determined by your address.

The difference in marking was simply to identify phones used within the Bell System as Bell System property.  The Bell System retained ownership of all components needed to provide the phone service, including the sets.

Phones sold to independents were provided with no Bell System markings so there was no question of whether they somehow migrated out of the Bell System. Also, phones with no Bell System markings that were found at a Bell System subscriber were immediately suspect.  Subscribers were not allowed to connect their own telephones.

[twocvbloke]

True, but I think I was thinking about if they happened to move house, and whether they wanted to move to a Bell or Non-bell area if they were impressed by the Bell-only area phones....

At least over there you guys sort-of had a choice, over here it was the GPO or nothing, or if you were on Kingston-Upon-Thames, Kingston Telecom (or whatever it was called in the old days) or nothing, there weren't many, if any, independents, over here...

And of course, the GPO were never really interested in being up to date with their hardware, seeing as they took their time to come up with push-button phones, and latterly DTMF phones...

[Phonesrfun]

Yes, in many cases we did have a choice.  Even though public utilities are monopolies, there were parts of town that were Bell system, and parts that were not.  That being said, there are many factors that determine where in a particular town one might live.  Upscale versus trashy, how close to work, schools for the kids and so forth.  I moved back and forth between Ma Bell and GTE several times in those days, and while I might have grumbled at it,  The question of who gave me dial tone never seemed to enter into my decision as to where to live.