Heemaf Type 1955 Telephone

[unbeldi]

I came across a Type 1955 telephone set from the Dutch electronics and machine maker Heemaf last week and could not resist acquiring it as it appeared in very good condition.

As I received the phone later in the week, I discovered that it was essentially mint and I hope the pictures below are good enough to show the exquisite condition. The Bakelite is still factory fresh and shiny, which made it very difficult to photograph the instrument as everything surrounding reflected off it. The vast majority of these sets appear to have chips and cracks in the Bakelite, as surely dropping the phone a single time would likely have disastrous consequence.

The bottom of this set has the silver-gray-ink stamping 10-70 and a sticker "Made in Holland". I was surprised that this model was still made this late, as manufacturing commenced in 1955 for the Dutch telephone operator PTT.

In the first few years this telephone model featured a Bakelite black finger wheel without any facility to insert a dial card in the center as it had a hexagonal screw head that secured the finger wheel on the dial axle. Instead the telephone number card is mounted in a little window between the cradle posts.  Later, the design was modified, as in this variant, so that an insert could be placed underneath the dial center plastic cover which snaps in place with two plastic retainers lugs. My previous example of the Type 1955 had the old-style finger wheel and I had been wanting to find this newer type as well.

The finger wheel is very nicely accented by the choice of a yellowish, but clear plastic material, The passage of time has accented the clear plastic finger wheel with a yellowish hue, while the center cover is still colorless clear, covering a black, stiff card stock insert. I suppose some instruction card or advertising could be placed here.

The dial in this newer issue is an altogether new design. It is interesting that it makes a 'strange' sound even after the finger wheel comes to a stop after dialing a digit.  Something is still rewinding or coming to a stop for about one half of a second.  I suspect it's the governor coming to a stop, but I have not opened the dial to investigate.

I wondered if my phone is one of those that reportedly where sold in the US by Tandy/R.S., which could explain the pristine condition, but the card in the number card window shows a handwritten number that does not conform to the US numbering system, so I suspect this set was actually installed in Holland or elsewhere.  The number is 761396 without any punctuation or spacing, very similar to a telephone I have from Belgium.  Perhaps our Dutch collector friends here can help decipher or confirm the origin.

[unbeldi]

Here are some additional pictures of the inside.

As noted in other discussions on the forum, the internal wiring is very neat and orderly. The wiring diagram of the set has been glued inside between the cradle plungers. It is hard to read without magnification. See pics.

The metal latch located at the edge of the diagram is the retainer for the number card window. It simply pushes a chunk of Bakelite against the rectangular card and celluloid window.

Clearly visible on the interior of the housing is a provision for the 'earthing button' for signaling, but it is not installed in this set.

[TelePlay]

That is one cool looking phone, the lines, the shine. Reminds me of a vintage Jaguar. Very nice. How much did it set you back?

[Matilo Telephones]

Congratulations. A very nice specimen indeed. In very good state.

As it is marked with the PTT-logo, it must have first been issued to the Dutch PTT.

It had indeed a later type dial. It is the same type of dial that was on the Heemaf made T65. (Ericsson made t65, NSEM, Krone, the all used their own dial mechanisms on their versions of the T65).

The sound you hear is a kind of flywheel, which acts as a gouvernor. It is a very unusual mechanism. The pulse contacts are operated by 2 small balls, agitated by a cogwheel.

As the telephone already has a number window, the dial label issued by Heemaf was a black blanc matt cardboard one. The t65 had a white one with a printed rectangle for writing the number in.

Please note that this dial was designed for the t65 and used on the Heemaf 55 out of economic and pratical purposes. (Certainly not for estethic reasons, IMHO).

I also think it was sold by Tandy/RS. It has the made in Holland sticker, so it was officially imported tot the US. I do not know of any other seller than Tandy/RS. These were phones first used by subscribers of the PTT. They were returned to the PTT after the end of the subscription or after the were exchanged for a T65. The PTT sold shipments of these used telephones mainly to Tandy/RS. Some were sold other countries. I even found such an exported used Phone in the Soukh of Damascus, before the so called spring of course.

The yellow fingerwheel was once colorless. It has yellowed with age. They do not all do that. It depends on the chemical composition, I guess. The covering apparantly hasnīt. Maybe a replacement?

There is something strange with this Phone. It has a black blank where on others there is a white earthing button. Usually these are found on early models. Has this Phone ever been refurbished by the PTT? Are there any remains of a pasted paper label on the underside? Can you post a pic of the underside?

The telephone number is long for a Dutch subscriber number. It probably is from one of the bigger cities, Amsterdam, Rotterdam, Utrecht, Den Haag. The had 6 digit numbers.

[unbeldi]

That is one cool looking phone, the lines, the shine. Reminds me of a vintage Jaguar. Very nice. How much did it set you back?

Thanks.
The 'set back' was astonishing as well.  I got it for $47 DELIVERED from Pennsylvania.

The only phones of this model that I have seen in comparable condition, were listed around the $200 space, which is not realistic of course, and I have not seen one sell at those prices.

Jaguar?  Ok that's not a bad comparison either.   Most people think of it as the Bat-Mobile.

[Matilo Telephones]

Ah, more pictures. No, never refurbished. All Original. Any date on the capacitor?

All Original cords too. Very nice.

10-70 is the youngest one I have ever seen. And without an earthing button too.

[unbeldi]

Ah, more pictures. No, never refurbished. All Original. Any date on the capacitor?

All Original cords too. Very nice.

10-70 is the youngest one I have ever seen. And without an earthing button too.

I also believe it to be un-refurbished, the date on the capacitor matches the bottom stamp.

Yes, the cords look brand new.

The only indication of age, perhaps other than the finger wheel coloration that you explained, is in two of the rubber feet.

[Matilo Telephones]

It gets nicer by the minute. Nice price too. That is about an average price for them here. But one this nice maybe more expensive.

Any dates on the microphone and speaker?

[unbeldi]

It gets nicer by the minute. Nice price too. That is about an average price for them here. But one this nice maybe more expensive.

Any dates on the microphone and speaker?

The receiver and transmitter elements were sticking to the Bakelite screw caps a little at first. There seems to be some kind of rubber gasket between the elements and the Bakelite, which have caused the stickiness.

The transmitter is labeled 15074-100Ω-PTT-12-69 and the logo is the Ericsson name engraved on top of "RUEN", very difficult to read.

The receiver reads:  PHILIPS-88931-350-11-63-PTT.

I did test the set for audio and ringing.  It has very nice audio quality.  The ringer has REN value of 2.2 as measured with a 3M Dynatel 965 set. This is rather high for US standards, of course.

[Matilo Telephones]

The sticking is typical. Sometimes there is a blueish or greenish residue, especially on the receiver.

The dates nicely match up with the phone. These things could be in stock for years before they were actually used.

Ruen is Rijen (or Ryen). It is a town where Ericsson had a factory. Still do I think.

Adjustment of the loudness is not easy. You'll have to take half the phone apaort apart to get to the adjusting screws.

[unbeldi]

The Type 1955 came in desk set as well as wall-mounted versions.

Let me round out this post and show my modest collection of the Type 1955 all together.
My eventual goal is to find a specimen actually made in 1955.

(top) Heemaf 1955 wall telephone made in December 1962 for Philips Telecommunications Industry (PTI) with a special Philips push-button dial (GDK) for use on the UB-49 PABX system. This is NOT a touch-tone (DTMF) system, but a DC signaling method. Perhaps I will post about this interesting dial some other time.

(left) Type 1955 desk set made in 1964 (?).

(right) Type 1955 desk set made in 1970.

The difference in gloss between the two desk models is striking.

[unbeldi]

These were phones first used by subscribers of the PTT. They were returned to the PTT after the end of the subscription or after the were exchanged for a T65. The PTT sold shipments of these used telephones mainly to Tandy/RS. Some were sold other countries. I even found such an exported used Phone in the Soukh of Damascus, before the so called spring of course.

Thanks for your input. Interesting that they would have left the original number card in place on my set. It appears then that these were just crated up as returned from service and shipped to the foreign buyers for finishing work to be done there.

What you are telling us is that the sets in the Netherlands did not originally have the "Made in Holland" sticker?

The yellow fingerwheel was once colorless. It has yellowed with age. They do not all do that. It depends on the chemical composition, I guess. The covering apparantly hasnīt. Maybe a replacement?

The coloring of the finger wheel seems very homogenous, therefore I first assumed it was the original color, as it really also looks very nice.  But it did occur to me that the tone of yellow is very much like the redish-brownish-yellow that is characteristic of thin elemental bromine vapor. In the liquid form bromine looks very dark red brown, almost black. Many plastics contain additives of bromides for flame retardation. Many plastics become quite yellow after years of exposure to light which causes decomposition of the additive, resulting in bromine accumulation.  Normally in opaque plastic telephones this can be fairly easily reversed with bleaching, since the light cannot penetrate the plastic very deep. But since this is a transparent plastic it stands to reason that the discoloration has occurred throughout the bulk of the finger wheel. The dial center cover is probably made from an untreated type of plastic. However, I am surprised that a small finger wheel on a Bakelite telephone would have been made from flame-resistant plastic at all.  But perhaps this indeed accounts for the variation in observation, as you mentioned that not all show this aging. They may just have used different types of plastic over the years.

[unbeldi]

As the telephone already has a number window, the dial label issued by Heemaf was a black blanc matt cardboard one. The t65 had a white one with a printed rectangle for writing the number in.

Please note that this dial was designed for the t65 and used on the Heemaf 55 out of economic and pratical purposes. (Certainly not for estethic reasons, IMHO).

I have noticed the similarity of the style of this finger wheel with those of other Dutch and German telephones from Siemens and Krone, I believe, in the early 1960s. And I do seem to recall that the T65 dial also made that extra noise of the "flywheel", as you say, but I don't have any myself.

This type of dial operates very well, very smoothly and dialing appears very fast. It is a very easily and effortlessly operated dial. I measured the pulsing speed and it is very constant at 9.4 +/- 0.1 pulses per second for all digits, with a break ratio of around 61%.

[Matilo Telephones]

Wow, your wall model is a GDK-version. I have never seen that as a wall version. I have a desk version (new!).

I see it has a black black button, where normally the earthing button would be. Is there anything on that button?

That is also new to me, a non-PTT specimen with a black insert for the earthing button. I have never seen that accept on a PTT-version.

GDK means Gelijkstroom Druk Kiezen/Direct current push dialing. I have opened such a unit, out of curiosity. Also I wanted to see if it would be possible to convert it to dialing DTMF. (Sadly, not possible. Not easy, anyway).

The matt desk phone, have you cleaned and polished it?

These ex-ptt phones were shipped as is. They only checked if they worked.

The made in Holland sticker was put there for export purposes. It is a legel requirement in the US to state the country of manufactury on a product. The ones that stayed in Holland never have such a sticker.

Why the fingerwheel is yellow I think is doubtfull. "Everybody" says it is because of sunlight. But why is it the same shade of yellow under the black paper label then?

[Matilo Telephones]

The T65 had 4 different rotary dials, depending on the manufacterer. The Heemaf version had the flywheel mechanism. It is the smoothest of the 4 mechanism. Feels the nicest. It is the same as the plastic dial on the Heemaf 55.