WE 20B - I hope

[wds]

I just picked this up from Ebay.  Poor description, and not enough pictures, but I think I scored a pretty good item.  I sent the usual packing instructions, and hope it comes undamaged.  Wish there was a picture of the back of the phone - hoping it has the knurled nut on the transmitter.  $96 including shipping.

[Sargeguy]

Nice find.  It certainly looks good. 

[wds]

I came home for lunch, and found my package on the front porch.  Obviously going back to work is not a priority anymore.  I took a quick picture but will post more later on, after I've clean it up a bit.  The ringer box is a 315E.  Uninsulated transmitter, knurled nut.  I'm not sure why it has black paint on it, as the 20B was supposed to be nickle.  It's definitely nickel underneath and hopefully will polish up nice.  It even has all 3 screws holding the bottom cover in place.  Also the bakelite cord sleeve on the base and transmitter cup is there.

[wds]

A few more pictures.

[Sargeguy]

These were often painted black at a later date.  20-S was the came as a 20-B only with a black enamel finish.

[wds]

Not a very good picture, but here it is cleaned up.  The black stuff rubbed right off. Not sure if it was paint, or just a 100 years of dirt.  There was black electrical tape the length of the cord from the phone to the ringer, so I peeled that off, and underneath was a perfect cord.  The tape was so old it left no glue residue.  Not sure why they would tape up a cord, but it preserved it quite well.  I'll clean up the box, and put this phone on my shelf, front and center.

[Sargeguy]

Is the nickel all there?  From the original photos it looked like a lot of brass was showing through the paint.  The clean up photos look like a different phone!

[wds]

There was a layer of gold tint over the whole phone.  I'm not sure if maybe someone had coated the phone with a clear coat years ago and it turned yellow, or if the nickel had turned yellow, but I scrubbed it all off with some paint stripper.  That might be why the black came off so easily.  There is almost no brass showing through the nickel.  However, the nickel isn't quite as shiny as I would like, so sometime later on I may have the entire phone re-nickeled.  

[rdelius]

Now you need a WE rec shell to complete the Restoration.The one on the set might be an unmarked Kellogg
Good deal anyway.
Robby

[Doug Rose]

There was a layer of gold tint over the whole phone.  I'm not sure if maybe someone had coated the phone with a clear coat years ago and it turned yellow, or if the nickel had turned yellow, but I scrubbed it all off with some paint stripper.  That might be why the black came off so easily.  There is almost no brass showing through the nickel.  However, the nickel isn't quite as shiny as I would like, so sometime later on I may have the entire phone re-nickeled.  

Dave....don't confuse nickel and chrome. Your stick looks great in the pictures, its the way a nickel plate should look. I'd think twice about having re-nickeled. It would cost you more than the stick and that really nice ringer box with the burned in dates cost you to start with. In my humble opinion, it looks fantastic....Doug

[wds]

I was having trouble identifying the receiver.  Maybe someone can help?  The shell has what looks like a seam down the middle on both sides.  Maybe the old hard rubber shell?  I just don't know enough about receivers to be able to pick out the different brands, unless of course they are labeled.  

[Dennis Markham]

Dave, your phone looks very nice.  You could write on the head of a pin what I know about stick phones in general.  Other than the age, I'd like to know more about your phone.  Maybe you could point out some of the details to those of us that don't specialize or haven't specialized (collected) in the older phones.  What made you look twice at the eBay auction to the point that you bought it?  I agree with Doug Rose, it looks great as it.

[wds]

Well, I just picked up a 20T, and just love it.  But I've been wanting a 20B ever since I saw Doug Rose's 22B.  I think I would sell one of my kids to have a nice 22B.  But anyway, I could tell by the picture it was at least a model 20.  I could see the the neck on the perch.  The description said the phone had a wood bottom, which meant if it was a model 20, it was either one of the first 20's to be produced, or it could have been a 22.  Either way, I decided it was time to take a chance.  Then on the ringer box, as soon as I saw the patent dates engraved on the box, I knew that was a keeper.  Even without the knurled nut and the uninsulated transmitter, it was worth the price I bid.  I actually bid much more than the final price, but I got lucky.  

The WE candlesticks seem harder to identify as they all look alike.  But once you figure out the patent dates, it becomes easier to ID. 

I just recently bought a we candlestick with a subset.  There weren't any pictures, and the candlestick and the subset were not identified by the seller, so I sent a low bid and won.  Usually the older WE candlestick like the 20al or 40 al didn't come with a 634 - it would have been something else like a magneto, or a 534.  I figured even if it was a 40al, and a 634, I got my money's worth.  ($40)  Turned to be a nice 534, and the 40al had a beautiful nickel plated transmitter and cup.  The base had the 40al patent dates, but was brass, not bower barff.  I saw a 534 sell the same day for $102 + shipping, so this one was another great find.  

I like the auctions where the seller doesn't know what he has, and doesn't properly identify it.  I also don't ask questions, for fear that the seller will post the answers in the listing and generate more competition.   I'm figuring out the best way to become smart about a particular phone is to just buy one and take it apart.  Become familiar with the patent dates and read every article you can find on the internet.  

[dencins]

Dave....don't confuse nickel and chrome. Your stick looks great in the pictures, its the way a nickel plate should look. I'd think twice about having re-nickeled. It would cost you more than the stick and that really nice ringer box with the burned in dates cost you to start with. In my humble opinion, it looks fantastic....Doug

I agree this one looks very good but for those less fortunate, I am looking at providing candlestick re-nickel service.  So far

Faceplate $17.50 ($12.50 without tags)
Back Cup  $10.00
Mounting Bolt  $2.50
Perch  $5.00
Hookswitch  $7.50

I am working on a process for the stem and base and am trying to keep the total price under $100 unless I am missing some parts.  From what I understand that will be less than half what plating shops charge and certainly less than the cost of a stick and ringer box - just in case someone is thinking about dressing up a candlestick.  

Dennis

[rdelius]

As I expected, That is a Kellogg receiver. It should not be hard to find a WE one but that set might have used one with the exposed terminals and they are expensive.
Robby