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Any home telephone (landline) experts in readerland??
My wife and I are both geeks, just different varieties of geekiness.
This morning Mrs Geek found a clear plastic phone (remember the ones that was all the rage in the 80s?) surprising it still works.
I have the Enterprise phone (also a flea market buy) it was new in the box when I bought it.
My question: is there anyway to make them functional without a landline??? I thought it might be amusing to have a “Matt phone” hotline from the garage to the house. Of course, I’d charge 4.99 a minute to talk! 😁
If I remember correctly, the ringers were set up for 70 volts AC, if thats indeed correct Id need some kind of step down transformer. I don’t need the keypad to function, unless my 4.99 a minute conversations become popular 😂.
I have had my Star Trek phone for probably 10 years, it’s been at least that long since we have had a land line.
just brainstorming, wondering if there was any way to use these.
Thanks!!
Last edited by matt69olds; September 4th, 2022 at 02:36 PM.
Matt - I believe the cabling is basically the same as the older rotary dial phones, except I believe yours is push button, correct? I think that is a simple RJ11 Telephone Connector. Anyways, w/o going into a bunch of stuff, check out this video on the X-Link. You basically setup a Bluetooth Network Gateway. Might help. There are probably competitors but here's the skinny for X-Link Bluetooth Gateway.
The standard, rest voltage is -48vdc. Yes, that's negative. 70-90vac will make it ring, and audio operates on AC.
Standard wiring is green/tip/ground and red/ring/voltage
My house was built for an electrician. There is much conduit, and one momentary contact switch that I did not know what it did. I should have gotten a hint it was related to the three way porch lights in my detached garage out back.
It was a buzzer, and the wife could buzz the husband. I found this out by getting a friend who was back there, by chance, when I had just bought it and was showing it to family and friends to loudly yell at me after she was annoyed by the buzzer it turns out I hit.
My wife and I are both geeks, just different varieties of geekiness.
This morning Mrs Geek found a clear plastic phone (remember the ones that was all the rage in the 80s?) surprising it still works.
I have the Enterprise phone (also a flea market buy) it was new in the box when I bought it.
My question: is there anyway to make them functional without a landline??? I thought it might be amusing to have a “Matt phone” hotline from the garage to the house. Of course, I’d charge 4.99 a minute to talk! 😁
If I remember correctly, the ringers were set up for 70 volts AC, if thats indeed correct Id need some kind of step down transformer. I don’t need the keypad to function, unless my 4.99 a minute conversations become popular 😂.
I have had my Star Trek phone for probably 10 years, it’s been at least that long since we have had a land line.
just brainstorming, wondering if there was any way to use these.
Thanks!!
DORK! Seriously, though... this is a hilarious idea, you need to follow it through and get it done.
Originally Posted by Koda
My house was built for an electrician. There is much conduit, and one momentary contact switch that I did not know what it did. I should have gotten a hint it was related to the three way porch lights in my detached garage out back.
It was a buzzer, and the wife could buzz the husband. I found this out by getting a friend who was back there, by chance, when I had just bought it and was showing it to family and friends to loudly yell at me after she was annoyed by the buzzer it turns out I hit.
That's awesome. Now you just need to add a spouse, and she can annoy the sh*t outta you with that buzzer!
i always wanted a red phone with a red light for when the wife wants me in the back garage.like the batphone.
I actually have an all red desk phone from the government. It was when the High level officers would call our office. They were going to throw it away so I kept it. Funny you said red bat phone because thats what we call it at our house too.
my problem if i did get a batphone i would be under a car and the compressor running and not here it,then when i get in the house i'd get my butt chewed out for not answering it.
DORK! Seriously, though... this is a hilarious idea, you need to follow it through and get it done.
That's awesome. Now you just need to add a spouse, and she can annoy the sh*t outta you with that buzzer!
Dork??? DORK????!!!!! I suppose so. That’s ok, I’m proud of that label.
one of my pet peeves is calling the my wife/kids and nobody answers their phone when I know damn well all 4 of them are at the house. For some reason, kids today refuse to have their ringers turned on. I get not having the ringer on at school, but turn the damn thing on when it’s appropriate!!! My wife sometimes forget to take her phone out of her purse when she gets home from work. God forbid one of the family calls me and I don’t answer!!
Maybe it’s cruel, but I took great pleasure watching #1 stepdaughter (I’m guessing she was 14 or so at the time) frantically looking for her phone around the house. She had put it down somewhere and forget where she put it. I suggested calling it and listening for the ring, it took great willpower to avoid the “I told you so” lecture.
I really hope the guy that invented Bluetooth patented his idea, if he did I’m sure he rakes in serious money in royalties!!
I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that you can Bluetooth a landline phone to work with a cell phone, it seems you can Bluetooth anything.
Im not necessarily interested in using these phones for everyday conversation, I’m thinking more like a intercom.
Anyone in readerland remember the McDonalds McDiner test from the early 2000s? Kokomo, Indiana had the first one. For some strange reason, the idea didn’t take off 🙄. I know whenever I’m craving a steak, McDonald’s is first restaurant that pops into my mind!!!
For those that never had this fine dining experience, you sat down at a booth, looked at the menu, and picked up a phone to call in your order. A few minutes later, your meal was brought out to you. The phones were red, it infuriated my girlfriend at the time when I would pick it up and in a stern voice answer “yes Mr President?”
Matt, I'm sure you recognized the "dork" part of my reply as sarcasm. The only Star Trek's that I have yet to watch are the Paramount+ cartoon series. While I don't collect any Trek toys, I have quite a collection of Star Wars. I am firmly in the dork category.
How is this post related to anything Oldsmobile and why hasn't it been moved to the round file!
This is the General discussion section of this forum. That means exactly what it says, general discussion. There are threads in this section on vintage audio equipment, other hobbies, travel, movies, current events, basically anything in GENERAL!!! Granted most of the threads are automotive, but not limited to automotive.
September 4th, 2022, 02:32 PM
