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Chrome plungers on AE 80 ?

Started by LoveOldPhones, February 03, 2017, 12:35:47 PM

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LoveOldPhones

I have no idea how to date AE80 phones.... Can someone tell me what years they had the chrome plungers ?  and Also.....  when did they go to the extra hole in the middle of the ear piece ?

Thanks

AE_Collector

Most 80's (but not all) have a date code on the base. Chrome plungers went with the early "odd shaped" feet and with colored sets the chrome ring number card holder with clear plastic finger wheel. Some time in the early 60's they changed to plastic plungers. Not certain of the exact date. I am not certain about the centre hole in the receiver caps and whether it always indicates soft versus hard plastic.

Terry

LoveOldPhones

Quote from: AE_Collector on February 03, 2017, 01:10:01 PM
Most 80's (but not all) have a date code on the base. Chrome plungers went with the early "odd shaped" feet and with colored sets the chrome ring number card holder with clear plastic finger wheel. Some time in the early 60's they changed to plastic plungers. Not certain of the exact date. I am not certain about the centre hole in the receiver caps and whether it always indicates soft versus hard plastic.

Terry

thanks Terry... that gives me some idea about how to date them.  Is that what the early sets looked like  then ?

AE_Collector

I will check my data base when I get home to see if I can narrow the date down a bit.

Terry

unbeldi

Quote from: LoveOldPhones on February 03, 2017, 12:35:47 PM
I have no idea how to date AE80 phones....

Open doors, bring flowers, and pay the bill.

unbeldi

#5
I believe date stamps were applied to Type 80 set starting about the same time as to type 40s, about the time of the move to Northlake in 1957.

Here is a set before with the 'traditional' marking (black set, ca. 1955-157), and blue set of 1961, showing the date October 1961. Both have chrome plungers.

However, I have seen many sets that do not have a date stamp at all, IIRC, especially those that were manufactured by Leich.

unbeldi

Here is a set from Northlake dated June 1958.

AE_Collector

#7
Here are a couple more examples.

The first picture shows the old feet versus the new feet.  Also the old code format versus the new format. For a brief period of time they were stamping the month-year in the indent where the dial mount bracket hooks into the metal baseplate as well. On the new code format, after the CSA is 10717(smudge) where 10 is the month, 71 is the year and the last digit (or two) is still undetermined but not a part of the date.

The second picture shows the bases of a 12-1965 and a 2-1966 phone. The 1966 phone has plastic plungers where as the 1965 has Chrome plungers. No guarantee that this was when the change happened as the phone could have been refurbished. I thought the change to plastic pluggers as well as odd shaped feet to round feet happened earlier than 1966 but apparently not.

Terry

LoveOldPhones

WOW !  GREAT !  Thanks for all the pics and examples !  This should help me alot just trying to figure out whats early and whats not.
I know the feet mean an earlier set...  but thats good to know about the rest of it.

thanks so much.

AE_Collector

#9
Also the first two letters of the code. Note the ones I posted are NB and the newer one with round feet is NC.

The ones Unbeldi posted are mostly earlier N sets and one that is either NA or NB.

They started with N, then NA, NB, NC, ND.

Terry

LoveOldPhones

Thanks !  Thats great information.... that will really help.


andre_janew

I have a black AE80 made by Leich.  Even though it is black, it does have the chrome plungers.  It also has a date on it, but the date is in a different spot.  I think there is a thread about it somewhere on this forum.