K-500 Ringer

[jamayer]

I recovered my grandmother's old rotary phone from around 1950. I think it is a k-500, but I'm not sure. I want to use it in a guest room.
I am able to get a dial tone, dial out and receive calls, but can't make the ringer ring. A retired phone company repairman I know told me to move the black wire to the green terminal, but that did not work. Here's a picture of the inside before I moved anything.
Can anyone help?

[Kenny C]

Hello jamayer,
First of all the ringer is a party line ringer and will not work on todays lines.

Secondly that phone isnt from 1950. sometime after 1965 is a more accurate guess.  The bases of 500 sets were painted flat black, and the network was a 425A with a separate equalizer. This appears to be a 425B. There should be a date on the network. 

[LarryInMichigan]

jamayer,

Kenny is correct.  Your ringer is not going to work on a standard phone line, but replacing it is easy.  Someone here should have a ringer to spare.  Also, your phone looks like a 1960s vintage.


Larry

[jamayer]

Thanks Larry and Kenny. So I need a ringer that will work on a 425B phone? Anyone know where I can get one?

[bingster]

Just a standard ringer for a "500 phone" is what you need.  "425B" is a type of network inside a phone, and is never used to identify the phone itself.  And if it's a K-500, it was made be a company called Kellogg/ITT.

[jamayer]

Thanks for setting me straight....This stuff is all new to me. The phone housing is stamped ITT.

[LarryInMichigan]

ITT was Kellogg.

Larry

[jamayer]

Found a ringer...Mike Brown at "oldphoneworks.com" had what I needed.
Thanks for the technical support and the education!