atcomsystems.ca/forum Forums Other TDM Phone Systems Antique Telephones My latest 500 resto

Hi again!

This is about my latest phone restoration that I completed last night. It is a red C/D 500, date 2/72. The dates match, and it is not a "franken phone". The shell was a real PIA to bring back to life. I have never had such trouble polishing a phone. I suspect that the color might have something to do with it, but am not sure. It took forever to pop a shine on it. About twenty hours of polishing was required. I must say that it was in horrid shape when I got it. (It was an e-pay phone.)

I 'reverse wound' the handset cord, which tightened it up completely, however after many times in the dish washer and paitent hand cleaning, the cord still has a slight musty odor, but it is not noticible unless you take a big dog like sniff. The handset, on the other hand, was in excellent shape, and only took an hour or so with plastic polish and a terry cloth rag. Looks good as new. The last step was two applications of Turtle wax and hand polishing. A wheel never touched this shell, and I took great care with protecting the Western Electric / Bell System Property embossments.

Here are some photos:



This is the completed phone. I love the shade of red! (The Kotobuki phone cat was sitting on the back of the sofa as I photographed these. She wanted the attention on the phone... well, I guess the real reason that she did not feel like posing was she told me that she was having a "bad fur day"!)

Here is another shot:



And another...:





This last photo shows the cord that someone had thoughtfully cut the end off of. Shame, really...



I would love some suggestions as to what type of end would be appropriate for this cord!

Speaking of cords, this phone came with a four conductor, "fat" cord, so I am excited about the possiblity of incorporating it into my 1A2 system, someday.

Best,

Joe