Fixing a Rotary Phone

It just goes to show you can't rely on others to do things for you. I couldn't find any antique refurbish shops in my area, and I really wanted my rotary phones fixed. When I want something done, and there is no one around to do it, it means it is time to work on it myself. Plus, I learn a little something every time I do a project. My project this time was on a Western Electric 554 rotary phone (Seen above).

Here is the breakdown. The phone I had had all the parts in tact and the wire running out of it was cut. So this leaves me one option: rewire. This phone is on an older system and uses RJ11/RJ14 cables. These cables are composed of Red, Yellow, Green, and Black wires. To get the system working again, I simply had to connect the wires together by twisting them around each other. It took a little while because the newer wire that I bought from RadioShack was very thin so it was hard to grip it. If you needed to crimp the wire with a new head, which luckily I didn't, it would be easy to just google the proper wiring alignment. Now I only have one rotary phone left to rewire and get it working, that one is 20 years older, so it may be a bit more challenging.

~Dave

PS: Due to my life getting very busy I will be doing updates less frequently until things calm down.

Small Summer Project

I was rummaging through some stuff in my basement yesterday, and I came across an old 1940s telephone. The wood was in good condition, and the phone was all wired. The thing is, the wire itself is broken. This summer I have decided to try and find someone to fix this aging phone, and see if I can actually use it. I don't know what it is about older technology, but I absolutely love using it. Being that this is an antique, I have to find a way to properly reconnect the aging wood. Some of it has bent up, so I need to find a way to attach it without damaging it, or the phone. If I can get this refurbished I would be truly happy. However, I still have to find some place to put it. Unlike modern phones, this phone is pretty large, and it must be hung on the wall.  What is nice about the phone is that it has a panel of wood which is positioned so that you can take notes on it while you are on the phone. For this reason, I would have to put this somewhere that is waste level, so that it would be easy to write on if necessary. Sometimes I believe the thought process of the previous generation was much greater then that of the current. Honestly, who would have thought of a note pad area on a home telephone? Ingenious!

~Dave