Western Electric TYPE 212F subset

[Sargeguy]

Antique wooden telephone equipment box There are some number on the box

Never heard of a 212F before but from the look of the condenser and coil it is an old Western Electric subscriber set.  It looks like the terminals are on a separate block.  It looks like it is oak.  "There are some number on the box" may refer to patent dates.  The lock indicates that it is an earlier box. Usually you can see the WECO stamp on the front but it can be hard to see on oak, especially with blurry pics.  I will know more when it arrives.

[Sargeguy]

Here are some more pics of the box which arrived today.  It is an early oak subset with patent dates stamped into the side.  It had been painted black.  It has a Bakelite or hard rubber terminal block (added later) but is otherwise similar to a 295A or 334A.  It is designated 212F inside the door but on the back the F is crossed out and A is stamped in its place.  Another missing link in the development of Western Electric subsets?

[Sargeguy]

Although it looks like a hunk of junk the phone is actually in good shape-all the parts are there with no major damage.  Corrosion may be an issue, but those parts can be cleaned or replaced.  It will look great once it is re-glued and re-finished.

[Sargeguy]

Here is a picture of the box.  I have re-done the markers in green.  I am not sure about the top "G" it looks like it may be a "C" on top of an "L" or vise-versa.  The A and B must be terminals for the ringer wires.  It also looks like the coil and condenser have switched position at some point.  Not sure what the three holes above the holes marked "A" and "B" are for.  They do not go all the way through to the back. 

[poplar1]

Greg, the terminals on left are "C" (top) and "G."

"A" and "B" are for soldered connections. Ringer leads are soldered to A and B. Then there are additional wires soldered to A and B which have large spade tips which connect to C and G for grounded ringing. You needed the spade tipped wires in order to rearrange the ringer connections depending on tip party, ring party, or bridged (individual line).

It seems they could have eliminated A and B by using longer wires on the ringer, but since G is on one side of the subset and L1/L2 on the other, this would have required leads long enough to reach both sides.

The 212F I am looking at has a " No. 20-C Rolled Condenser."