Chuck's Antique Telephone Blog

 

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Removing the fingerwheel from a 500 type phone

February 26. There is another snowstorm occurring here in the Northeast with about 20 inches now on the ground and it is still snowing. It is too cold to work in the shop (my garage) so thought I'd bring a project inside to work on. I decided to replace the old used number cards on some of my Western Electric rotary 500 sets with new ones that I scanned and printed. I have used the number card found below. Just copy this image and print it out for your own use. This is what the number card looks like on my moss green desk set that I just completed.

I receive an occassional email from someone asking how to replace the number card on the telephones with the clear plastic finger wheel..

The process is an easy one and the only tool needed would be a standard paper clip. No, the telephone installer didn't carry paper clips with him for this task rather he had a pencil-like tool with a metal tip the size of a paper clip.

Look at the dial and you you will see a small hole drilled between the "9" and the "9" finger holes. Open one end of the paper clip and push it into that hole. Turn the dial all the way clockwise and push down down on the paper clip which presses on a metal tab that holds the finger wheel in place. While holding this "spring" down with the paper clip, force the dial one more space clockwise. The finger wheel will come loose and it can be removed from the phone.

To put the wheel back in place, put the "0" hole over the number "9" on the dial and turn the wheel counter-clockwise. The "spring" will fall back into place in the slot of the wheel and the finger wheel will stay in place.

Looking for a number card to place on your dial? Below is one from the proper era that can copied (right click) and printed. It should print at the proper size.

 

Nickel Plating Phone Parts

February 4. Do you have a telephone with some nickel parts where the nickel plating is shot? The choices we face are limited. We can leave the nickel as found; strip and buff the part back to it's brass base (old phones were never supplied in bare polished brass); paint it black; have the part professionally plated; plate it yourself.

Self-plating is not difficult. Many collectors use an inexpensive Texas Platers Nickel Kit. This is available from Texas Platers Supply, 2453 W. Five Mile Parkway, SGN., Dallas, Texas 75233. Phone (214) 330-7168. The kit consists of a plating brush, wire, clips and a small jar of copper and nickel plating jell.

About ten years ago, fellow collector, Steve Brink took his old worn nickel plated Stromberg Carlson "oil can" phone and re-plated it using the Texas Platers' kit. The results were quite stunning. Those who saw the phone at the Abilene Telephone Show were amazed at his results. The photos below do not show the actual beauty of Steve's accomplishment:

The most difficult part is the preparation of the metal parts. It is best to dissemble the parts of the phone, taking careful notes as to how to re-assemble. All of the old nickel must be removed. This can be accomplished with 320 grit sand paper (I like to use emery paper). For hard to reach and detailed areas a dremel tool with a brush attachment and polishing compound would be appropriate. For any pitted areas, use a 220 grit sand paper. Keep progressing using higher and higher grit sandpaper, each time moving up 100 or so grit increments until you reach 1000 grit. At the higher levels of grit, I like to use the "wet sandpaper." Once at this level, I use a buffing wheel to polish the brass so that it is mirror-like. If you see any scratches, go back over them with the sandpaper, finding the grit that will remove the scratch and work back up the grit scale. The brass should now be consistently "mirror-like." It would be best to go over all the parts with a commercial cleaner such as Semi-Chrome and buff with a very soft cloth.

Once the metal has been prepared, plating can begin. Just prior to plating, clean off the surface with a non-lotion soap to remove any oil that may be on the parts. Some have used a wash of denatured alcohol very successfully. Using the instructions that come with the plating materials, connect the negative side of a battery (3 volts DC are required. This can be done with two 1.5 dry cells or a three volt DC power supply. I use a universal AD/DC adaptor turned to 3-4.5 volt level. I've cut off the pin on the end of the wire and connected the clips that are supplied with the kit) to the part to be plated. The positive side clip gets attached to the handle of the plating brush. Dip the brush into the supplied solution and "paint" on the plating. I have to clean the brush often as the metal comes out of the jell.

Once plated, clean off any excess with soap and buff with a cloth.

Note: the kit consists of two compounds, copper and nickel. It is best to copper plate and then nickel over the copper. If you don't like the results on a piece, the plating can be removed with sandpaper.

 

 

Cleaning Nickel

Febuary 2. Ah, Ground Hog's Day! Now that we will still have a lot of winter ahead of us, according to the little critter that saw it's shadow this morning, it is time to think about cleaning up some of the old telephones we have sitting around the house. For my first blog entry, I thought of that old nickel that we see on the early stick phones and on the plated bells and transmitter faceplates on the old wooden phones that might be blackened by age. Is there a "safe" way to clean the nickel?

If the nickel appears to be in decent shape, probably the best way to clean it is to use common household ammonia. After removing the nickel part from the phone (remove the transmitter parts from the faceplate first), immerse it in a small container with the ammonia. I often leave the part immerced for several hours. You will see the ammonia turning a bluish color as it removes tarnish. Buff the nickel with a soft cotton rag. I've found that my old cotton tee-shirts work really well for this task..

If the nickel is too far gone, ammonia will not help and the best suggestion would be renickeling the part. I'll give a few hints on this process in my next blog.