this keeps floating around on Ebay....

[Babybearjs]

  its sad.... someone is trying so hard to sell this phone on ebay but we know better....  basically, its just good for parts.... someone yanked the key assembly out of this and plugged the holes.... would you buy this for $30.00?  cause thats whats its going for.... as for me, I have a 440 series unit with the key assembly missing.... hoping to be able to find the guts to it some day.... looks like this is in the same situation.... does anyone even still have the parts to these anymore?

[MMikeJBenN27]

If the internal parts for the keys are still there, it can be saved, as I have seen buttons and number strips on E-Bay.   She won't open it up and show the inside though.  If she would, I would buy it and restore it to a working key telephone.

[rdelius]

I have seen several of these sets. All had the line selector switch removed and were wired as a 302 set. They had the same plastic plugs where the lamps were.It must have been a refurbisher that built these.I do not think the price is bad if the housing is perfect and you have a damaged one.

[MMikeJBenN27]

I just sold a working 464 with a bad shell.   I wonder if the buyer will see this one.

[poplar1]

I have seen several of these sets. All had the line selector switch removed and were wired as a 302 set. They had the same plastic plugs where the lamps were.It must have been a refurbisher that built these.

BECO (Bohnsack Equipment Co. in Germantown, NY) did these. Sold to Radio Shack.

It didn't matter that the plugs were orange, because they painted the housings and handsets black. This paint would still come off on your hands 20 years later. One of the techs there told me they even painted color 302s the same black.

When I worked for Black Panther Trading Co. (Hallmark House) in Springfield, MA, we would send Warren Bohnsack all our color phones, multi-line phones, magneto phones and pay phones.

[MMikeJBenN27]

Wow, what a shame.  Why didn't they keep them factory stock?  They will still work as single-line phones if you wire a single-line line cord to them as you would a 302.

[Doug Rose]

I was under the understanding that during the War these were converted by WE to 302s to meet the demand of phones needed for the public. I have seen many with the orange buttons that filled the holes...Doug

[poplar1]

Wow, what a shame.  Why didn't they keep them factory stock?  They will still work as single-line phones if you wire a single-line line cord to them as you would a 302.

I was under the understanding that during the War these were converted by WE to 302s to meet the demand of phones needed for the public. I have seen many with the orange buttons that filled the holes...Doug

WE Repair Shops did leave the selector in place, but changed the mounting cord (line cord). Note the Ebay pictures: you can still see the BECO black paint flaking off the handset. The number card on the dial is also typical BECO.

BSP WR-C63.411 Issue 1 4-23-43  (TCI library -- telephonecollectors.info) explains the conversion of various type phones to 302 equivalent:


       2.01 (c)    440,  441,  460,  461 Type Sets:  Mounting  cord  is  re-
                       placed  with  a  3-conductor  cord.  The  red  and  green
               leads  from  L1  and  L2Y  of  induction  coil  are  connected  to
               1R  and  1T  of  the  key  respectively.  The  A  designation  of  the 
               key  has  been  replaced  with  designation  GND.

[Babybearjs]

The only time I had to do something like this was when the key assembly was ruined beyond repair. (rust)  I still have the 440 series phone, but its missing the main part, the assembly.... if I could find one, I'd be able to restore it....