A very pleasent suprise.

[Dan/Panther]

Awhile back I bought an avocado green 500 dated 1955, well the Number ring was bad, and Dennis graciously sent me a complete dial for it. Well the case and handset and cords were all vintage 70's.
I had another avocado green 500 that had a damgaed case, and a lady had a bunch of avocado 500 case and handset parts and caps cords etc. on ebay. Well I bid on it, and won the lot for $20.50. The package arrived today and when I pulled out the handset I noticed 6 holes in the receiver cap, so I pulled both caps, and found 10-55, then the case it's dated 10-55 soft plastic. everything is dated 55. everything is in excellent shape.
How lucky can a guy get ?
D/P

[Jester]

Those are the things that keep phone collectors & anglers in the hunt-- nice catch, D/P!!

[Dan/Panther]

I have bid on 3, 50's vintage avocado green 500's in the past couple months. I lost them all. Well all I was intending to do, was get the parts to fix up the 64 green 500 and get rid of it. Now not only have got parts to fix the 64, I've got my 50's green 500 also, in one lot. I got 3 line cords with the deal, one heavy cord is dated 59, another is dated 64, and a thin one is dated 70.
D/P

[Dennis Markham]

Good deal Dan!  Every now and then the stars align and luck comes our way.  It was your turn.  But like Jester said, it is the hunt that keeps us coming back for more.  There's another one out there.

[Dan]

Good "marriage" of the original parts Dan. If you have a soft yellow 500 and really want an old soft   moss green 500,  we may need to make a trade.

[NYFED]

Here's what I found when I opened up my recent acquisition, a Kellogg 700:
Both of these small sheets with wiring diagrams were neatly folded and placed inside the phone. Based on their excellent condition I would be willing to bet they have never been touched since being placed there by some dutiful assemblyline worker! I LOVE IT!!!!!!!!!

[JorgeAmely]

NYFED:

You are making very cool discoveries as you go along. I have a Kellogg Redbar (Masterphone 1000) that has also a neatly folded schematic under the ringer. Why a manufacturer would do that, I really don't know.

Perhaps it saved some trips to the truck to the guy that visited customers and had to fix these phones.

Automatic Electric had the same practice. The schematic was glued to the inside of the base on AE34 and AE40 phones (at least). Early AE80s had indentations inside the housing where a card containing the schematic sort of latched in place. Late AE80s lost the schematic most likely due to cost saving measures.

Here are two examples:

[NYFED]

Jorge-
         I have seen them in my AE34, 40's and 50's as well as in my Kelloggs. However, these were so neatly folded and tucked inside that it was like finding a note from mom in your lunch bag.  Now, I will also say, that I have found spiders (dead), extra wires that don't even go to the phone and, of course, an empty case and in one case a poker chip from the Stardust (presumably the one in Vegas).  I'm still holding out for the day when I open one up and find the map to the national treasure or Jimmy Hoffa's phone number.