High Water Phone

[zaphod01]

Seller neglected to mention the 1953 model 500 had been in a flood. Dialer was ruined as were the elements in the handset. However, I got a very nice 11/53 dated case which I REALLY wanted. Also got a dated 11/53 handset. Paid $17.00 plus shipping.

You pays your money and you takes your chance...

[southernphoneman]

Seller neglected to mention the 1953 model 500 had been in a flood. Dialer was ruined as were the elements in the handset. However, I got a very nice 11/53 dated case which I REALLY wanted. Also got a dated 11/53 handset. Paid $17.00 plus shipping.

You pays your money and you takes your chance...

did you purchase your phone off of ebay?

[twocvbloke]

As sad as it may be, I would love to acquire a flood survivor phone, just to see if it can be brought back to life using only tools and knowledge, kind of like how Top Gear challenges work (minus the knowledge!!!) so they avoid getting stuck with the backup cars...

[southernphoneman]

As sad as it may be, I would love to acquire a flood survivor phone, just to see if it can be brought back to life using only tools and knowledge, kind of like how Top Gear challenges work (minus the knowledge!!!) so they avoid getting stuck with the backup cars...

I live in eastern north Carolina and having fallen victim if hurricane Irene, I know what major flooding can do to something, in this case a phone, but remember we are talking about a tough hard to die vintage phone. with the right parts it probably can be brought back to life.

[twocvbloke]

We've always lived on the sides or ontop of hills, not in valleys or plains, so never suffered from natural flooding (had the odd man-made issue over the years though), so haven't had to deal with rescuing anything damaged by floodwater...

Last year the UK suffered a lot of flooding though, because it was so wet (and yet they announced areas were in drought, which then got flooded!!), a lot of areas that have never suffered from flooding were flooded out, so, yeah, I think I'll stick to being on the side of a hill, so long as it's not steep enough to landslide...

[wds]

I'm not sure if this is a flood victim phone or not, but this one came in the mail today.  Seller said the phone was broken and had some rust.  I thought at the very least I would get a good dial out of the phone.  The only good part on the entire phone was the fingerwheel.  The inside was destroyed - the dial was completely frozen, and the main shaft broke in half when I tried to dismantle the dial.

So the only surviving part from this phone was the fingerwheel, which is now on my AE 40.

[AE_Collector]

It is a good thing that you didn't buy it for the handset!

Terry

[southernphoneman]

that phone looks like it spent some time in more than a flood.

[Greg G.]

However, I got a very nice 11/53 dated case which I REALLY wanted. Also got a dated 11/53 handset.

Birthday phone?

[zaphod01]

Birthday phone for the wife. Mine would be a '49. I have a 5302 with all '49 internals and I guess that will have to do for now. Looking for a dates matching '49 302. Hard to find with a decent case!

Flood left residue on the entire underside of the case but that washed right off.  Nice black plunger case dated 11 4 53. Ringer was a total loss, later date code, and it went straight to the trash.

Dialer was full of what appeared to be the same red clay that was in the base. I thought it was rust and started to discard. However, I hated to lose a 11/53 7D dialer so I opened it up. I soaked the cover overnight and all the clay wiped out. I hosed down the dialer with WD40 and let it sit for several hours. Wiped off the excess, blasted it again with WD40, and let it sit overnight. I carefully wiped off the excess and the dial truned free and looks great except for some mild discoloration. I'll test in my test mule later today.

I got my $17 worth...

[twocvbloke]

Don't forget to apply some oil to the dial before it's put into service, WD40 is only a Water Dispersant, so would wear off quickly....

[zaphod01]

Do you have any guidance about oiling? To be honest, I usually just send these 7-series dialers to Steve Hilsz.

I guess it's time I figure out how to lubricate them myself.

[G-Man]

I'm not sure if this is a flood victim phone or not, but this one came in the mail today.  Seller said the phone was broken and had some rust.  I thought at the very least I would get a good dial out of the phone.  The only good part on the entire phone was the fingerwheel.  The inside was destroyed - the dial was completely frozen, and the main shaft broke in half when I tried to dismantle the dial.

So the only surviving part from this phone was the fingerwheel, which is now on my AE 40.

WDS-

What brand of telephone is it?

It has a 425-style network, G-type handset and a C-type frequency ringer but beyond that it certainly not a regular 500-set. The dial is A.E. style with an adaptor ring and the switchook is certainly different.

Even though it almost looks like either a Kellogg banjo telephone, or a North Electric version of a 500-set equipped with an A.E. dial. I will have to dig out a couple of mine and open them up.

[poplar1]

WD-40 will cause more dirt and grime to accumulate, so it is counter-productive.

[wds]

It's a leich phone that's convertable from a desk phone to a wall phone.  I don't collect that style phone, so it's all going in the trash.  The shell is actually ok, some scratches.  If anyone wants the shell or anything else on the phone, let me know before trash day.