Hello and thank you for admitting me to the group. I have been collecting telephones for a few years and one of the most interesting is my wooden wall phone made by Sumter Telephone in South Carolina, where I live. I have not been able to find much information on these phones on the internet. I picked it up about 15 years ago for about $75 I think at a flea market. It languished in a closet for years until I decided to hang it in our storage shed and tried to see if it would work. I found a couple broken wires and used some alligator clips to bypass the breaks and used a wall wart to give it power. I have another W.E. candlestick magneto set that I hung upstairs and ran wires between the two. Amazingly they worked! My 10 and 7 year olds love to crank the phones and talk to each other. Does anyone have any info on this phone or the possible age or value? Thanks
I will add other pics of my small collection.
more photos
more pics
Love the MIdway9 dial card, I think that style of card really takes the 302 to the next level.
Also, how do you mount your payphones? Just bolted to a back board? I dont own one yet but planning ahead.
Nice collection, shadow67.
The single slot pay phone I had a mounting plate for that I mounted to a board. The 3 slot pay phone came with a wire attached to the top of the mounting plate so it is just hung on a large bolt.
Just as added info, I have the 3 slot and one of the 302s plugged into ATAs and connected to an asterisk system residing on a raspberry pi. They have their own extension numbers and can call between them. The candlestick sitting on top of the magneto box is wired to the wooden magneto Sumter phone and they can ring each other and talk to each other. Thanks for the compliments! I love playing with old telephones. I work for the phone company and have worked in central offices so have had the opportunity to see the switching side of how the phone system operates. Very interesting.
Some newer additions
I recently acquired this B1 deskset. It came without a subset and only the handset cord, but thanks to this forum I was able to wire it to a 534A I was not using. It seems to misdial at times. Perhaps a dial calibration issue.
Quote from: shadow67 on December 29, 2018, 10:09:51 PM
I recently acquired this B1 deskset. It came without a subset and only the handset cord, but thanks to this forum I was able to wire it to a 534A I was not using. It seems to misdial at times. Perhaps a dial calibration issue.
I think it would be a constant problem if it was a calibration issue.
I think it just needs to be lubed. The TCI library has the dial bsp's. They show the lube points and specify the oil.
Jim
Nice collection, I had a very nice B1 and hated selling it, your looks nice too. Yea, I think a little lube and your dial will be as good as new.
Thanks I will give it a try
It's amazing what a little oil can do for a dial.
Nice collections
be sure to replace any missing dial centers... it just makes the phone more complete.
My newest acquisition is a 295A subset. What drew me to this was the patent dates engraved in the wood. Last date is 1906. Most I see have dates on a label inside the set with a 1907 date. So am guessing this set is from 1906 or so. It also does not have the usual disclaimer about only to be used with American Bell telephones. It has a broken connection on the induction coil that needs to be resoldered but I tested it with a 20S candlestick and it is functional when the broken wire is held in place.
Here is my latest project. When I bought it it came with a black 323 transmitter. Over time I obtained new cords, an OST receiver, and finally a *229* transmitter. Polished everything up and put it all together this evening. Now I need a thumb screw and a new bottom covering. Hopefully when I attach it to a subset it will work.
Quote from: shadow67 on December 18, 2020, 12:07:27 AM
Now I need a thumb screw and a new bottom covering.
You have the hard to find stuff,
I have seen really nice repro thumbscrews offered over the years.
There is nice replacement cloth in the collector community.
It is like I said, You have found the hard parts.
JMO,
Jim
I guess I have acquired a taste for nickel and picked up another 20-B. What drew me to this one was the patent dates on the perch and none on the base. Almost every WE candlestick I see for sale has dates on the base. It does not have the side screw on the shaft but I believe this is an older one nonetheless. This one came with a nickel *329* transmitter and American Bell markings on the cup. Inside the transmitter it has the wire strap to make the insulated transmitter work on the uninsulated phone. The felt is gone on the bottom but there is a trace of green felt inside the base. The cords are old with paper tags dated 1914. It cleaned up pretty good. All I did was polish this one with some simichrome.
Stunning! Phone Art!....Doug
Thanks Doug. I am considering whether to swap the 229 transmitter and OST receiver from my other 20B to this one. Then again I may just enjoy them as they are.
That is one sharp phone. Congrats!
Nice phones
Beautiful phones.