American Electric Telephone

[1930]

The dialkit used was the same dial used on the set commonly called a FAA phone.  You can remove the nameplate below the mouthpiece and mount the dial there.  If you want to loose the dial in the future you'll be able to hide the wiring hole for the dial with the nameplate.

Conversion from magneto phones happened in the 40s with a change in switchboard technology making the magneto to ring the operator unnecessary.
Conversion to dial service didn't happen until the 50s when Stromberg could return to dial phone and X-Y switch manufacturing after the Korean War.  All Stromberg manufacturing was war support manufacturing until after Korea.
Rochester Telephone, one of the largest independents in 1950 didn't fully convert to dial until 54 because of Korea production.

Any retro involving a dial on that phone would have been a product of field modification by a small rural company so there is no standard.

This is interesting and thus far has been the most info I have gathered to date, still no reply from the phone expert, maybe he is busy or maybe the phone dosent interest him enough to warrant a reply. Either way thanks.

What I may do is come up with a separate box for the dial mechanism that can be hung on wall possibly within close proximity to the phone.

[1930]

Doing a google search for what is an FAA Phone was useless, can you embellish so that I can get an idea of what I may want to start looking for

[1930]

Phone collector/enthusiast replied to my queery....

 What you have is an American Electric wall phone. Looks to be all original from what I can see. It has the A.E. badge transmitter arm and badge name tag. That tag was used on most all of the phones that A.E. put out. It also has the hard to find round bar American Electric magneto and correct receiver. The date of manufacture might be on the paper label on the inside of the door, but I think it came out in the early 1900's. It's hard to put an exact date on any phone. In the early days of telephony the phones were made more ornately, but as the years went on they started to become more and more plain. The one you have is called a pfpt, (plain front, plain top) phone...............

Didnt mention anything else other than value which I specifically made mention of not caring about in my first e-mail but at least he confirmed with his ballpark figures that I did not pay too much.

Doing another google search I chanced dialing a number to another collector and they answered and gave me some site info. Not sure why but thats two guys that cant help themselves but to discuss value, kinda disheartening.

I hope all these phone collectors arent hung up on values.

[Aunt Phil]

Yo'll need to bear with me as this crap dribbles back to the front of my mind.

I have a candlestick someplace here that I built a crappy auxiliary box for after I found an ancient NOS 6 wire cord.

Probably the easiest thing you can do is photograph hell out of the internal connecting block in case you ever want to put it back original.

FAA phones were also called bedside phones, originally configured without a dial.  It's a rectangular metal can containing the network with either a phenolic or plastic top that mounts the hookswitch and cradle.  The can is about 2" square and maybe 6" high.  I'll see if I can hunt one up.

When dial became available Stromberg made a retro kit for FAA phones.  The FAA nomenclature came about because they were made for Airport towers and specified by FAA due to minimal space required and ability to hang anyplace.

I'd offer my opinion of Phone collector/enthusiast, but PawPaw might spit his teeth at what I have to say.  Most of these guys are punk hustlers trying to spew crap and peddle s#!t parts.

BTW, if you want to put batteries in the phone for looks, there is a site on line that you can print the original EverReady label from, paste it on PVC pipe and have a fake battery.
That phone probably never had batteries in it as talk battery would have come from the switchboard.

[Chillylulu]

You can call out without a dial or keypad.  What you do is tap the phone cradle rapidly for each number, pausing between numbers.  If I wanted to dial 303 I would pick up and listen for a ring tone.  Then I would tap three times evenly and quickly on the cradle, then a short pause and tap ten times rapidly and evenly. Finally pause and then tap three times quickly.

You can also get electronic kits that play ring tones. With that you could gave tge phine looking original. Lift the receiver, put the dialer speaker next to the mouthpiece and dual.

Chilly