Classic Rotary Phones Forum

Telephone Talk => General Discussion => Topic started by: ..... on March 08, 2018, 09:58:53 AM

Title: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: ..... on March 08, 2018, 09:58:53 AM
I got a call from the service department at car dealership where I take my truck to. I know a lot of the people at the dealership as my good friend is a mechanic there. The girl in the service department knew that I worked on old phones. She asked if I would be interested in looking at an older gentleman's phone. He is 78 years old and he loves his phone. She said it had quit on him. I told her to get it from him and I would have look at it. When I did pick it up, it was a 1955 Northern Electric black 500 and it showed it's age. I had a quick look and it had a few different dates on it. I took it apart, checked everything. I found the tip wire had came off, I gave all the plastic parts a good cleaning and buffing. I put it back together, it looks good as new and works great. I did get a call from the gentleman before I started working on the phone and he was quite concerned about his phone. He said when he went to the Bell store, to see if you could get it fixed, the girl looked at him funny when he showed her his black rotary 500 phone. She told him they don't use those anymore and couldn't be fixed.  She said that he would have to buy a new one, he told her he wanted a real bell phone not the stuff they make in China. Needless to say he told me he never bought one. He asked me if I had another one because he liked these phones so much that he would like to have two of them. I did set him up with another and I even made up new dial disks with his home number on them. I told him that he now had twins from Ma Bell. We have another happy senior. LOL
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: twocvbloke on March 08, 2018, 10:54:52 AM
Just goes to show, build it right and it'll last a lifetime... :)
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: LarryInMichigan on March 08, 2018, 10:55:35 AM
That is a nice story.  Few people value the good old things from the past.  I am sure that the owner of the phone will be thrilled with the repair.

I just recently bought and restored a c.1940 Telechron wall clock for my friend's 30-something y/o daughter.  She saw a picture I had sent to her father of one of my clocks
and wanted one like it.  Most people I know though don't want anything that wasn't recently made in Asia (or perhaps Mexico).


Larry

Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: AE_Collector on March 08, 2018, 11:41:03 AM
The Bell Store employee didn't sell him an iPhone X on an unlimited data plan to replace it?

Nice going Doug....that's what makes it fun being a Phone Enthusiast!

Terry
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: Haf on March 08, 2018, 12:28:53 PM
Quote from: AE_Collector on March 08, 2018, 11:41:03 AM
The Bell Store employee didn't sell him an iPhone X on an unlimited data plan to replace it?

...as you don't even have animojis with a 500. Something we never knew how we did survive without so far :)

Haf
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: tubaman on March 08, 2018, 12:31:21 PM
What a nice story - well done Duffy.
:)
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: HarrySmith on March 08, 2018, 12:57:41 PM
Very Cool! I love it! Great story.
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: Partyline4 on March 08, 2018, 08:34:46 PM
Such a heart warming story. I much enjoyed reading it. Would make a great advertisement for the comparison of today's junk against yesterdays workhorses. The crap today can't even light their candle, let alone hold one next to old Ma Bell product.
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: twocvbloke on March 08, 2018, 08:36:45 PM
Quote from: Partyline4 on March 08, 2018, 08:34:46 PMThe crap today can't even light their candle, let alone hold one next to old Ma Bell product.

Unless it comes from the dodgier parts of china, where they self-combust and light by themselves...  ;D
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: AE_Collector on March 08, 2018, 08:45:06 PM
On airplanes!

Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: RotarDad on March 09, 2018, 01:11:00 AM
Great story, Doug!  I'm sure you made that gentleman's day!  It isn't the phones, or any other stuff, that really matters anyway....  It's having a positive impact on people, and making friends along the way!   And you were able to put an extra black 500 (I'm sure we all have a few of those) in someone else's collection too - nice move!
Title: Re: 78 year old gentleman's phone.
Post by: Doug Rose on March 09, 2018, 07:26:41 AM
Doug...very nice story. You are the Gentleman and you sure made his day.  That is just a wonderful act of kindness.....other Doug