What Did I Buy?

[LarryInMichigan]

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=120561263838
( dead link 01-23-22 )

This looked interesting, but I do not know what it is.  It is not a WE, AE, Kellogg, SC, or North, nor does it look like any of the European phones that I have seen.  At any rate, the dial alone should be worth much more than I paid.  Adding a network should be easy.

Larry

[Dan/Panther]

Larry;
Is the dial in fact WE like it says ?
The back reminds me of Kellogg.
D/P

[LarryInMichigan]

I just paid for the item today, so I will not have it for a few days at least, but the dial certainly looks like a WE.  Nobody else had the finger stop in that position.  

I am suspecting that this was part of a business phone system, possibly Dukane, particularly since there is "Part No" stamped on the back.  I have seen some Dukane phones on ebay, and they were all made in Austria.  This phone does look a bit European, and it does have a European handset on it.  Also, the lack of lettering on the dial would support the business phone theory.

I hope that the phone itself will provide better clues once I have it in my possession.  I love a mood mystery, at least one which has an eventual solution.


Larry

[Bill Cahill]

Looks Brittish to me...
Bill Cahill

[Russ Kirk]

Could this be the phone?

A Connecticut # 1290-W??

[LarryInMichigan]

Russkirk,

That sure does look like it, and it fits with my theory about it being part of a business phone system.  I will have to get a Connecticut handset for it now.

Thank You

Larry

[LarryInMichigan]

Here it is: http://www.paul-f.com/ctwall.htm.  It was on Paul F's website the whole time.  His appears to have an AE dial.

Mystery solved


Larry

[LarryInMichigan]

The phone arrived today.  The entire shell, including the back plate, is bakelite and mostly in very good condition.  There is no indication anywhere that I can see as to who made it, so I will stick with Connecticut for now.  The dial is a WE #6 dated 3-56, and it turns well, though it is a bit noisy.  The stamp on the back plate appears to read:

"PART NO. 6305"
"60 CYCLES"
"JUL 17 1956"

As can be seen in the picture, the ringer has only one coil, and it appears to have been wired as such.  I have not yet tried to make it ring.  I have no idea where I might be able to fit a network.

The handset does not belong with the phone, but I have no idea who made it.  It does not appear to be Siemens, as the seller suggested.  The transmitter capsule has "H. C. Co SC-4-82" and "M.F.P. -49" printed on it, and the receiver has "H. C. Co SC-4-83" and "M.F.P. -46".  On the inside of the handset, "3 46" is printed.







Larry

[JorgeAmely]

Larry:

You can always try an AE "mini network". They show up often on ebay or Phoneco may have them too.

[Dan/Panther]

Post photos of the dial in the case.
D/P

[LarryInMichigan]

D/P,

The dial is just a WE #6, but the number plate does not appear to be a standard WE plate.  It has no date markings on the front, but has "164B-I-55" stamped on the rear side.

I already did plan on buying several mini networks for other phones,  so I guess I will have to add another to the list.  I may also buy some more cheap 1980s 500s at garage sales, flea markets, etc. for their pc board networks (and other parts).  Those networks are small enough to fit into most of these phones.  I saw one at an estate sale this week, but I foolishly did not bother to ask how much they wanted.  They probably would have given it to me for $5 or so.

If anyone knows what kind of handset I have here and/or where to get a real Connecticut one, please let me know.  I will probably ask Steve Hilsz if he has any along with me upcoming large order.



Larry

[paul-f]

H. C. is probably the initials for Holtzer Cabot, another popular New England equipment provider.  Up to the 1940s there were quite a few small suppliers who bought components from the same factories and private labeled them to make their own products.

Connecticut didn't make all their own components, so it's difficult to tell whether the whole phone is H.C. or if it's a H.C. handset on a Connecticut phone.

Both company's products were often found in full line electrical distributor catalogs in the 1920s-40s.

[LarryInMichigan]

Paul,

I was assuming that the phone was made by Connecticut based on the brochure posted by Russkirk and the phone shown on your website which has almost identical information printed on the back.  I therefore expect that the phone originally had a Connecticut handset.  Also, the handset on this phone is 10 years older than the phone, and the date on one of the restraints on the handset cord is 58.  I suppose that the phone may have been cobbled together and installed in 1958 from whatever parts the vendor had on hand.

BTW, the DC resistance of the ringer is about 600Ω, so I will adder a 1KΩ resistor in series, and the ringer does work.

Larry

[Wallphone]

FWIW, I have eBay auction pics saved of a phone just like it that is identified as a "Couch" telephone.
Dougpav

[LarryInMichigan]

Dougpav,

That is very interesting.  That "Couch" phone appears to have a Connecticut handset.  If the $148.50 was the winning bid, I guess that I got a real bargain at $10.50, even after adding $10 for a network.

Larry