My wife and I found this phone while we were in a small antique shop in Eastern Ontario.
Curious for feedback.
It has 151al on the perch but it appears someone has tried to stamp this on twice. It has a 2ab finger stop but I have no idea what type of dial because all I can find on the back of the dial is a red "m" inside a square, no actual stamped dial number.
The transmitter has Northern Electric across the cup on the back and 349 on the front.
The receiver is brown and appears to be bakelite with a "75z" stamped on the inside.
Finally, the ringer box appears to be the bottom 1/2 of a 302.
It sounds GREAT and the receiver is clear as a bell - better than the 202 E1 we have.
I am going to attach some pictures hoping someone can tell me something about this phone. No matter how many phones went into making this thing, we really love it.
Quote from: rbouch on January 01, 2015, 06:52:44 PM
My wife and I found this phone while we were in a small antique shop in Eastern Ontario.
Curious for feedback.
Looks like a gorgeous phone, and the fact that it is working, and crystal clear, makes it the best kind of phone in the world, at least to me. I'm not much of a museum guy. ;)
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It has 151al on the perch but it appears someone has tried to stamp this on twice.
When 151AL's were 'made' from older sets, it was usual to strike through, and/or overstamp the original model designation.
QuoteIt has a 2ab finger stop but I have no idea what type of dial because all I can find on the back of the dial is a red "m" inside a square, no actual stamped dial number.
The transmitter has Northern Electric across the cup on the back and 349 on the front.
The receiver is brown and appears to be bakelite with a "75z" stamped on the inside.
I'm betting that somebody here will pipe up with the information, based on what you've given so far. If it works great, and sounds crystal clear, me? I wouldn't tear it apart to find out, at least not just yet.
Quote
Finally, the ringer box appears to be the bottom 1/2 of a 302.
Yup, yup, 302 base. Works great, huh? They always (mostly) ;D do. Looks like maybe one of Ray Kottke's subset covers on it, though the most skinned-up one I have seen to date. One of the best creations to come down the pike in a long many years!
QuoteIt sounds GREAT and the receiver is clear as a bell - better than the 202 E1 we have.
I am going to attach some pictures hoping someone can tell me something about this phone.
You did great posting pictures, now how about some of your D1 (202)? Maybe we can figure out why it doesn't sound up to snuff...
QuoteNo matter how many phones went into making this thing, we really love it.
That's the most important thing, in my eyes. Love it, enjoy it, use it like, well, er, umm, a telephone. ;)
Best regards!
The wiring harness is original, but the subset and receiver cord are a bit of a mess.
Thanks, I guess cleaning those two items up isn't as bad as some of the issues I could find. I assume you're referring to the swirl of wires and cable ties in the base and the knots, etc in the wiring of the subset?
Any idea at all about the transmitter? I can't find anything on that anywhere.
The transmitter is a Northern Electric. The phone looks like it was complete until someone re-wired it and added a 302 subset. Myself, I'd change out the cords to something that had the correct WE colors and strain reliefs. I'd correct the placement of the wiring harness. I recommend checking the TCI Library, they have diagrams of how the cords should be arranged for a 51-AL. If it is working and there is nothing showing, I would not be too concerned though.
Perfect, thanks.
Much Appreciated.
Without seeing the hookswitch, it does appear to be wired as a 151-AL, but with a 3-conductor harness from a 51-AL. Also, the one (51-AL) or two (151-AL) terminal blocks are missing inside the base, but it's possible that the previous owner terminated the yellow conductor from the subset cord directly on the hookswitch, and the new blue wire we see substitutes for the usual blue harness wire.
In other words, it may be wired correctly, even though the previous owner didn't have a 5-conductor harness or the R-GN and B/Y-RR terminal blocks.
well, I have a 202 from the same previous owner which had been been wired to plug into the wall with no network or subset.
I was glad it frustrated me that the phone didn't ring when I read that not having a mini network or subset could damage the phone.
I have it (the 202) wired up to a 634 subset now but I think I will have a close look at this one when I have the chance (this one rarely gets used, the 202 is how we answer the phone at home).
I respect the work this person seems to have done on these phones, but am still wary in the long run.
The way I know it's from the same person is both phones had a dial card that said "call your mother, she worries", which I must admit I found more than a little funny...
thanks so much for your help
A 151-AL should have 4 contact springs on the hookswitch, that is, two sets of make contacts. The 51-AL and 50-AL have 3 contact springs. I'm not sure if the previous owner left enough slack in the wires in order to allow you to inspect the hookswitch without disconnecting any wires.
When hanging up slowly, you should not hear a loud click in the receiver if the phone is wired correctly. This applies to both the candlestick and the 202.
well I do get a loud click.....
How about on the 202?
nope, only the 151
It's difficult to say for sure without seeing how the hookswitch is wired. But you could try removing the receiver wire from W on the dial -- or the green conductor from GN on the induction coil. If the dial tone goes away without your hearing a loud click, then the problem is either the wiring or the hookswitch contacts are not opening in the right sequence when you hang up.
If you have four contact springs on the hookswitch, the contacts associated with the red wire from the 302 base (connected to a new red wire going to the hookswitch?), and the harness wire going to BB on the dial; must open before the contacts going to the harness wire on Y of the dial and to the (blue) wire connected to the yellow wire from the 302 base.
I will check, thanks!
If you decide to open it up, you'll probably have to cut the white ty-wrap on the harness. And if you can provide pictures of the hookswitch contacts and the wires connected, that would also help. The long black harness wire from BK on the dial probably goes all the way to the transmitter without connecting to anything on the hookswitch.
I personally have no qualms about using 302 bases as subsets, since period-correct, genuine working subsets can be hard to find. Provided that one is not robbing a perfectly good 302 to do that. I have a quantity of them on hand for personal use and to use as gifts for non-collectors who want their antique phone to work properly, along with some of Ray's shells. Some came from busted-up 302s, the rest I bought from another forum member.
I have a similar phone as well. That phone is a Western Electric shaft and dial with a Northern Electric transmitter. Mine came from the Maritimes.
Don't know how they got cobbled together.
I'm getting some time off in a couple of weeks and may actually attempt to check the wiring on this.
Is there a good place for me to go to read up on how to non destructively disassemble and then reassemble a phone like this?
Also
does anyone have any information on a Northern Electric "349" transmitter?
"Is there a good place for me to go to read up on how to non destructively disassemble and then reassemble a phone like this?"
This is the place. Use the search function.
Trans link
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=10927.0
the click was owing to how the wiring of the subset was set up.
no more click now...
thanks to all for the help