Northern Electric '62 510 "A/B"

[finkmac]

Got this NE 510 set the other day, needs some cleaning up but should turn out quite nice.
Not bakelite like I initially thought, but it has a nice metal fingerwheel.

It's missing the clear piece of plastic that goes on the key though, any idea where I could score one of those?

Oddly enough it has a four-prong plug on it. Never seen one of those on a Canadian phone. Could it be aftermarket? I did get a four prong jack too, so I should be set for that.

[TelePlay]

Wouldn't the phone need a 4 prong plug for two lines?

[WEBellSystemChristian]

Nice phone!

How did the "plug system' work in Canada? Was there a plug type used in place of the 4-prong? Were phones hardwired to the wall until the RJ11 modular plugs were introduced (mid '70s in the US)?

If 4-progs were used in Canada, that one looks aftermarket. For US square plugs, the model (such as 283B) was stamped onto the back, dead-center between the prongs. An aftermarket plug usually has hollow sections between the prongs, or is stamped "China", "Japan", Hong Kong", etc. Most of the otherwise-original WE 500s I find have aftermarket plugs, when the owner decided to upgrade from a hardwired line cord after Bell split up.

[Ktownphoneco]

Christian  ....     Bell Canada used that style of 4 round pins arranged in such a manner as to only plug into the female portion of it's mating jack in one position, creating polarity protection if required, for sets being moved from one jack to another.       They remained in service until the advent of the RJ-11 jack system.     I moved residences in 1971, and Bell installed one of these jack systems in my new home.     There were hard wired systems still in use, but they were in customer locations where the telephone had been installed years earlier, and before the 4 pin jack system was adopted by Bell.
There may have been more colors available, but I only recall seeing ivory and beige plastics used.

Jeff Lamb

[finkmac]

Wouldn't the phone need a 4 prong plug for two lines?

Not if it was hardwire. My understanding was that most Bell Canada phones were hardwired anyway.

I've only ever seen hardwired coloured or silver modular line cords.

An aftermarket plug usually has hollow sections between the prongs, or is stamped "China", "Japan", Hong Kong", etc.

Yup, this one says "Japan" on it, definitely some aftermarket job.




Still would like one of those clear plastic knobs for the key. Are those difficult to come by?

[RotarDad]

I've never seen a source for the plastic knob.  I have seen the complete switch assembly for sale on Ebay a few times over the years.  Or a junker 510 you could part-out.... 

[TelePlay]

Not if it was hardwire. My understanding was that most Bell Canada phones were hardwired anyway.

Yes, if hard wired the connections would constant. My point was if the new feature of a 4 prong plug were used for convenience (moving a phone from room to room, a 4 prong plug would be needed for two lines and the polarization of the plug would insure the connections would always be the same as being hard wired.

I took your questions of why a 4 prong plug as being related to the two lines and not the use of such plugs on phones in Canada. My error in understanding your point.

[Ktownphoneco]

Here are 2 pages from the Northern Electric T-9 Telephone Catalog printed in 1962, illustrating the 4 prong jacks, and the colors they were available in.   Click twice on the images to enlarge.

Jeff Lamb

[.....]

Here are a few pictures of the different brand plugs NE, WE, SE

[CanadianGuy]

I saw this unused phone jack in a customers basement in 2014. I hadn't seen anything like it before that, but I was "only" born in '79 This is in Manitoba, Canada.

[AE_Collector]

 Canada was Hardwired until the RJ plugs and jacks. However 4 prong jacks existed for portable phones here in BC at least. They had a tariff price IE: monthly rental and I think I recall 60 cents per month. All I really ever saw were the Ivory "Made in Japan" type 4 prong plugs and jacks here, never colour coordinated to the phone unless the phone was Ivory!

Terry