Automatic Electric 1940s Wall Telephone - Black with Chrome Trim

History

This style of Automatic Electric wallphone was introduced in 1938. This combined phone includes all the components required to operate within the casing, eliminating the need for an external network subset and ringer. Like it's cousins the Type 34 and 40 desk phones the wall phone is a graceful example of art deco design. These rugged phones were made of solid Bakelite and engineered to last a lifetime. The body of the phone measures 9.5" high by 5.75" wide. The cradle comes out 5.5" from the rear. The handset is 9" wide. A modern line cord has be added to this unit for your convenience.

The Restoration Process

Dial – The dial has been fully disassembled, cleaned, lubed and timed to ensure years of trouble free service. The outer edge of the dial has been stripped and repainted with a gloss black enamel. Unless the dial is removed, this is something you will rarely ever even see, but this is how it would have come from the factory. The number plate has been cleaned and a perfectly matching overlay has been applied. The finger wheel & dial card ring are freshly chrome plated. A brand new die cut dial card and acetate cover have been added as well

Cords – The phone has been outfitted with brand new cloth covered cords that are made in house on the same type of equipment originally used by the phone companies. They look amazing. You can choose from either black or brown cloth cords. The line cord has a modular connection to facilitate a modern connection to your wall jack.

Shell – The shell has been painstakingly put through a multi-step restoration process which includes sanding with 400, 800, 1000, 2000 grit.  The shell is them carefully buffed on our two step buffing wheels. This process takes out the fine abrasions, minimizes the signs of everyday wear,  removes most blemishes, and leaves the Bakelite with a smooth factory-like finish. 

Handset – Handset has been ultrasonically cleaned to get all embedded debris. It is then sanded with the same process as the shell and buffed back to its beautiful original shine. The handset rings have been freshly chrome plated.

Base – The base is completely stripped of all its components. They are then cleaned, tested and reinstalled.

Shell – The shell has been painstakingly put through a multi-step restoration process which includes sanding with 400, 800, 1000, 2000 grit. This ensures that there are no scratches, dents or dings. The shell is them carefully buffed on our two step buffing wheels. This takes out the fine abrasions left by sanding and leaves the Bakelite with a smooth factory fresh finish. 

Handset – Handset has been ultrasonically cleaned to get all embedded debris. It is then sanded with the same process as the shell and buffed back to its beautiful original shine. As a finishing touch, we have added chrome plated handset bands

Base – The base is completely stripped of all its components. They are then cleaned, tested and reinstalled.

Do you currently have any rotary phones? If the answer is no, it is always a good idea to call your local phone company and check if they still support “pulse” dialing. If they do, you are all set to go. If they do not, your phone will not be able to place calls without a converter. We have internal converters that we install during assembly available for $79.95.

- Dials * and # from your rotary phone to access computerized services.
- Use legacy equipment on tone-only lines.
- Compatible with VOIP services.
- Provides last number redial functionality.
- Adds 7 programmable speed dial locations

As an alternative, we provide an option to use this phone as an extension of your cell phone. The XLink Bluetooth gateway is an device external to the phone that gets it’s power from a standard AC outlet. The cord from the phone will then connect to a phone jack on the gateway. When you pair the gateway to an active Bluetooth enabled cell phone, you will be able to use the vintage phone just like it was connected to a traditional landline. When someone calls your cell phone, the vintage phone will ring, and you will be able to dial out using the dial on the vintage phone. If you want to be able to call # and * using your rotary dial, you will also need to add the pulse to tone converter option.