Ken's Payphone Thread

orion3311

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I made this just to pick Kens brain about payphones, and keep the talk out of the other guy's thread. Anyway, this is one of two payphones I have. I have the keys to open it up and its in pretty good shape. Unfortunately its just about empty - no coin bucket, no guts other than a dial and the hookswitch.

Any clues as to what model it is so I can look into getting some guts for it, and the possibility of having it be a "smart" phone so that I can coin enable it again :) Especially if I can get it to work on 984 tokens lol. Although I was exhausted and didn't look too hard I couldn't find any tags on it, other than a date stamp of 1985 on the back inside of the case. I would have never thought it was really that old!

The other is more like a standard issue payphone, also in fantastic shape, but unfortunately I have no way to get into it, and from what I understand it uses the VERY secure locks on it. Any clues as to how to safely open the other one up? That one does work at least on a normal line.

PS - if anyone else knows anything about this/these just let me know, I just put Kens name on it since I think he knows everything about everything anyway ;-)
 

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That is an original GTE payphone case from when payphones were first legalized for private ownership in 1985.

Here is what you are missing:

Terminal block for phone line wiring.

http://www.payphone.com/Terminal-Block.html

RJ11 pigtail harness. It connects the incoming phone line from the terminal block to the smart board.

http://www.payphone.com/RJ11-Pigtail-Connector.html

Terminal block cover. Keeps objects from landing on terminals and shorting out phone line.

http://www.payphone.com/Terminal-Block-Cover.html

Coinco coin acceptor assembly with mounting plate.

http://www.payphone.com/Coinco-Coin-Acceptor.html

Coin reject plastic chute.

http://www.payphone.com/Coin-Reject-Chute.html

Coin trigger switch assembly (coin switches). Bolts to the coin hopper.

http://www.payphone.com/Trigger-Switch.html

48 volt coin relay (required if using Elcotel smart boards). Bolts to the coin hopper.

http://www.payphone.com/48-Volt-Relay.html

Coin Hopper assembly.

http://www.payphone.com/Coin-Hopper.html

Smart board. Elcotel series 5 is prefered. May require a swap of the kepdad/hookswitch assembly to work with a series 5 Elcotel board.

http://www.payphone.com/Elcotel-Series-5R-Board.html

Elcotel series 5 battery.

http://www.payphone.com/Elcotel-6v-Battery.html
 
After spending the morning doing software updates on Blackberries and waiting for them, I finally found the answer: http://www.phworld.org/payphone/ae.htm

Next question is what would be the best way to get this working, and if something says its compatible with "GTE/AE" housing - is that the right designation for this?
 
Here is a picture of an Elcotel series 5 phone interior.

Compatible with GTE/AE would be for your phone. AE (Automatic Electric) is the original name of GTE. Your keypad uses the old style small rectangular buttons.
 

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Hey one other quick question if you don't mind - that board mentions programming/firmware is downloadable. Is there software I can get/download to do this myself?

Just had a crazy Idea - set up both payphones with a little Asterisk PBX to call each other LOL.
 
Similarly, I have one of these pay phones in the basement. I believe it's an Elcotel board, but I'll have to double check. I was able to get the phone working, but the programming for the rates is kind of screwy - some calls are a quarter, others it wants 75 cents for, and some just won't go through. I really want to reprogram it so all calls are 25 cents, no time limit. All the rate information seems to be stored on an EEPROM. I read the chip into my EPROM programmer, but wasn't able to make sense of any of the data.

Is there software that can generate the binary image for this chip so I can just burn a new one and plug it in?

-Ian
 
Looks like its programmed by calling the phone (and the phone answers with an actual modem), and they download new firmware/files to it. I guess you have to have the Elcotel software to do it, but now I'm REAAALY curious as to how it looks if you call it with some terminal software.

From what I read on other posts it looks like if you got Payphone.com to do it, you would give them the # of the phone and they call into it. I also keep hearing "rate file" which I'm sure is some text or binary file you can upload to the phone via xmodem/zmodem somehow.

http://www.payphonehelp.com/parafi.html
 
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Hey one other quick question if you don't mind - that board mentions programming/firmware is downloadable. Is there software I can get/download to do this myself?

Just had a crazy Idea - set up both payphones with a little Asterisk PBX to call each other LOL.

www.theratecenter.com is the place to have your phone programmed (reasonable prices). Elcotel phone management/programming software is called "PNM" (Payphone Network Manager) and is very expensive.

The Rate Center calls in to your phone and downloads the settings you want and updated local phone exchanges so it knows what calls are local and charges accordinly.
 
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Thanks Ken! I have a feeling this thing was converted to "prop" like they sell from Payphone.com, I do remember a terminal block like a normal 2500 set would have inside, but I'll have to look again to know for sure.

Is it possible to drill out the locks on the other phone without destroying it? That one should be the normal/western style but none of the spare payphone keys I had laying around from back in the day unlock it.

Just remembered my neighbor used to be a phone operator! I wonder if he still has the software or any parts ;-)
 
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OK, here's what I've got. I think it's the same Elcotel type phone. I've even got the mounting plate still attached to it. Problem is, I can't get into the coin box so I can't remove it from the plate. I was able to get the top lock open and open the main box, but not the coin box. If I can't pick it, what's the best way to drill it out?

I also need the "key" to use to actually open the main box/coin box - I think it's really no more than a simple plus shaped tool to give you some leverage on the mechanism, but I don't have it. I was able to fiddle the top open with a screwdriver, but I'd like to get the right thing.

The battery is missing (and dead), so I need a new one of those.

Once I can get into the coin box, I can take the whole phone apart and clean it real good, and put it all back together and see about getting it programmed. Like I said, I really just want a simple 25 cents per call, no limit no restrictions - just to keep with the coin-operated theme of the arcade, but not to be annoying.

I also need a new handset. This phone lived a very hard life at a cement plant, until it was thrown away after it broke. My friend managed to score the phone for me, but nobody had the keys.

-Ian
 

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I have a similar Elcotel phone. The top lock was easy to pick, but the bottom was hard as hell. I could not pick it and I checked online and it has security pins in it. I wasn't willing to invest the time to get good enough to pick it so I drilled. And it was still hard - I broke 4 or 5 bits.

I started by drilling out the center with a 3/16, and then 1/4 I think (maybe I started smaller). Then I drilled the sides and top of the lock cylinder with 1/16 and then moved bigger. I had to remove as much metal as I could so I could angle a 1/16 bit to drill out each of the 4 individual pins. Used a big screwdriver to twist it and it was still hard to move even though much of the cylinder was gone. Then I used a bent nail as the T Key to open the vault. Took me about 2 hours and I didn't damage any other parts of the phone.

I just don't have a phone line to test it, all I have is Vonage and I don't think their box puts out enough current to power it.

OK, here's what I've got. I think it's the same Elcotel type phone. I've even got the mounting plate still attached to it. Problem is, I can't get into the coin box so I can't remove it from the plate. I was able to get the top lock open and open the main box, but not the coin box. If I can't pick it, what's the best way to drill it out?

I also need the "key" to use to actually open the main box/coin box - I think it's really no more than a simple plus shaped tool to give you some leverage on the mechanism, but I don't have it. I was able to fiddle the top open with a screwdriver, but I'd like to get the right thing.

The battery is missing (and dead), so I need a new one of those.

Once I can get into the coin box, I can take the whole phone apart and clean it real good, and put it all back together and see about getting it programmed. Like I said, I really just want a simple 25 cents per call, no limit no restrictions - just to keep with the coin-operated theme of the arcade, but not to be annoying.

I also need a new handset. This phone lived a very hard life at a cement plant, until it was thrown away after it broke. My friend managed to score the phone for me, but nobody had the keys.

-Ian
 
Ah hah! Excellent. Looks like I can get all the parts I need right from that site - locks, a new handset, and a fresh battery.

Only sticky part is the phone's programming. I called The Rate Center - they only supply rate files - they don't do the actual phone programming. I'd still need the payphone management software, which I don't have.

It looks like payphone.com has a phone programming service, rate file included. It's only $25 and would probably be worth it, if it works. The only thing is I don't see an "unlimited" option on the long distance time. I'll have to call them when they are open and ask about that, since I want the phone to be all calls 25 cents, no limits.

First things first, I really need to get that lower lock drilled out and removed. Thanks for the tips bungy! I'll give it a shot when I have some free time and extra drill bits...

-Ian
 
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I"m pretty sure the "opened" one I have is a converted to home use phone. There's a sort of terminal block on the back and under that (between the block/board and the dial) appears to be another circuit board that more or less probably equals a phone. The dial and hook switch all attach to the terminal block, so at this point I have more or less an empty housing there. I could use it as it is but I"m not sure where on the terminal block the actual line would connect to. Not sure if its worth bothering to piece back together or not, but then again maybe I"ll get lucky and find some cheap parts somewhere. The phone does look pretty decent.

I went to check out the other phone (stored in a different place), which is a Western style. Turns out the chrome started to pit since my dad put it in a damp spot in the basement (GRRR). Anyhow Its pretty modern so I'm hoping it has a smart board in it. All the signage on it is Verizon. There's a volume button on the top left corner too. I guess I'll have to try to pick the top lock on it. This phone came from a building that was being demolished - supposedly this salvage company cleaning the building out called Verizon to remove it and they said to just scrap it, hence how I got it (From CL). When I got it, a part of the wall was still attached LOL.
 
What is the best/easiest way to find out what model a phone is? I am looking for one but don't want to buy a paperweight. I want one that would be least invasive to have work at home.
 
Open up the top half of it and look at the circuit board. If it's a private payphone (contains a "smart" circuit board) it will be marked with the manufacturer's name Elcotel, Protel, Intellicall, or Ernest Telecom (now known as Ernest Group). If it's a Bell Telephone company phone ("dumb" ) then the circuit board will be marked Western Electric and have a rubber stamped number like 32C on the metal circuit board cover.
 
Does anyone have ideas on how to track down a payphone locally? With payphones going out of service more and more, there must be a bunch collecting dust in just about any metro area if you know where to look or who to talk to. I'm looking to keep cost down on a unit, especially if I'll have to pay extra to get it reprogrammed, and it would be nice to be able to look it over before committing to buying. I've watched craigslist for a while off and on and have never come across one there.

I don't have a lot of cash to spend on one to begin with, but just knowing that there are probably a number of them collecting dust within 5 miles of me makes it that much harder to pay for one to be shipped.
 
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I just got mine off craigslist for $100. I had been looking on ebay, but prices have been going up to $200. The one I have doesn't have much wear and it has the chrome vault door, but I think you can get them from payphones.com
 
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