DIALTONE, DC AND RINGING: TELEPHONY

I have dialtone and DC on the hotel phone! Not only that, it rings, too, with a nice, distinctive note.

UPDATE: Wired the dial Thursday night. It works but has a little "dial tapping," meaning the bell jangles when the dial is in motion. I suspect this can be solved. It's a telephone!

Started out tonight (Wednesday) polishing the Bakelite front part of transmitter with Flitz (they didn't pay me, I'm just a happy customer) and proceeded to reassemble the entire transmitter: the "cup" or back is held to a nifty pivoting section by two screws through a washer, the "bulldog" style element is held to the cup by four tiny screws around its circumference; that subassembly is fastened to a socket on the front of the telephone with a hollow bolt, flat spring, bendy lockwasher and nut and at each step, you've got to thread the two wires from the element though the next part. It takes about as long to do as to describe and I had time left. H'mm, it's almost a (non-dial) telephone at this point. All it needs is the receiver.
(Note the fine old genuine Spintite nutdriver at the right. They don't make them like that any more, though a nice Klein set comes close*). The inside-the-phone part of the transmitter is at the left side of the upper section. The large silvery thing is the flat spring.

I wired up the receiver (tinsel cord, soft as a shoelace, very nice), connected Tip and Ring of the phone line cord to L1 and L2 terminals in the phone, plugged it in and there was dialtone, loud as life. Clicked the switchook (same as dialing "1") and I was left with DC talk voltage. Reached over to close the phone and it was obvious the transmitter worked, too. Wow! What's next?Talking to yourself, of course. I called my landline number from my celphone and the bell rang! The delay in a modern digital cell connection meant I could get a pretty good idea how the hotel phone sounds, too. It sounds just fine.

Next step is installing and connecting the dial. I have it in place now but I need to get the card in the center properly aligned. The dial is the tricky bit -- I can likely get it to dial but making it properly silence the receiver when it's off the rest position could be interesting.

So, for everyone who was wondering: yes. It definitely is a working telephone.
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* My Spintites are the best from a couple of sets. They used thinner steel than modern ones, which is nice for tight spots but wears out more quickly. Can't buy that kind new so you've got to find them used and evaluate them ruthlessly. This is an absolute affection; Xcelite, Vaco, Craftsman and Klein all make excellent nutdrivers and if the end result is what counts, you should buy a set by one of them. Worn drivers are nothing but trouble.

TELEPHONY, CONTINUED

Disassembled, cleaned, painted (lacquer!) and have begun, slowly, to reassemble the hotel phone. First, a collection of chassis parts -- the things in the center are the back of the transmitter (microphone) and the receiver (earpiece) hook: Basic assembly -- the front of the case is hinged to the back and I have test-fit the network, bell and hookswitch (less hook; it goes in later). Shown with a few of the tools used, including pen-type oiler at far left, used to put one drop of light oil on the hookswitch pivot (funny shading is the lighting, mild orange-peel texture is deliberate):No dial, receiver or transmitter yet. The latter is a whole collection of small parts, most of which I still have to clean and polish. Dial, hookswitch and receiver will be the very last parts fitted.

I did manage to remove and photocopy the schematic. Here's a black & white scan: Click for larger -- I have it larger still and in color for more detail, if anyone else is working on a Kellogg 1155-A or 1157-A telephone.

TELEPHONY IN THE HOME: A BEGINNING

It starts with this: I have new cloth-covered cordage for the incoming line and the receiver, a new receiver and a nicely-rebuilt dial. There's a network, bell, hookswitch and condenser inside the phone, condition unknown. Dirt appears to be the biggest issue. (That's a genuine Bell System screwdriver next to it, which fits the front panel screw that holds the phone closed like it was...made for it? Hey, how about that!) Step One, careful removal of the Inner Workings (with photos), followed by a little paint & body work.

Does anyone out there have any tips for removing the old schematic intact? Still glued in two spots. Distilled water on a cotton swab didn't help.

THIS MACHINE STOPS EVIL

A sticker for your "beater" typewriter?
The pen: mightier than the sword. The typewriter: more powerful than the pen. Q.E.D.
(Image links to a larger version which you may use it at will).

CABLE LACING

Another old skill, a good one: cable lacing. Before there were Velcro strips, before there was split-loom tubing or even zip-ties, 'way, 'way back -- and on fiber-optic bundles, even now -- there was cable lacing, the art of turning a jumble of wire into a neat bundle* using flat, waxed string or similar, in the proper knots.

There's an art to it and a learning curve; you can still learn it, thanks to a tip from a clever lurker, who pointed out Make: Lost Knowledge: Cable Lacing! And now I've linked it for you. Enjoy!

Older ARRL Handbooks also cover this skill.

If you can't find lacing twine, look for waxed saddler's (or leatherworking) thread, a heavy thread (almost string) which will work as well. Might as well pick up a cake of beeswax at the same time, it's handy stuff.
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* It kinda has to be neat to start with. This holds true for any other cable-bundling method, too. If you start with a rat's nest and mash it together with whatever, it'll just be a worse mess. Neatness counts when you're trying to figure it out later!

TUBE REBUILDERS

Ever see a power tube getting rebuilt? Didja know it could be done? One of my favorite tube rebuilders, Kennetron, has a bit of a virtual tour of their plant!

Sure, there are other rebuilders; many years ago, I used Econco for big Class C power tubes in FM service (now a wholly-owned division of CPI, which also owns Eimac, it looks like they have dropped their old, irreverent "use a transistor, go to jail" tagline) and I've always heard good things about Freeland Products. Still, I have a soft spot for Kennetron, who have so far been the only outfit willing to take on rebuilding small (1000 Watt!) ceramic external-anode power tetrodes used at ultra high frequencies in Class AB1 -- and their rebuilds work! This is a fussy task, combining the skills of jeweler, machinist, welder and more for devices that operate in about the same power range as chainsaws.

It's a heck of a thing to send in old, worn-out, even shorted "empties" and get 'em back at half the price or less of new tubes, ready to go.

Power tube rebuilders are a scarce breed. The collection of skills and equipment to do the job, from vacuum engineering to glass building to fabricating the intricate internal assemblies, is rare and unlikely -- we're lucky there are at least three left!

DELIBERATE RETRO

The Edison, an amazing-looking bar in Los Angeles, has a website. It's in what was an early private electrical generating plant. (And it has a dress code requiring customers to, at least, dress up a bit -- T-shirts, sandals and athletic shoes being Right Out). It's something of a steampunk speakeasy.