Monthly Archives: November 2015

Going Up

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Last week I was removing some ear-pieces from a few old case Ericofon ‘necks’. Those necks were part of a large batch of parts that I got some time ago. And I desperately needed the speakers for other Ericofons (some New Old Shells or NOS) to be completed. When I was opening up one after another a surprising result was revealed to the world ;-). Never before I had a good look at the inside of the old case ear-piece. And this is what I saw.

SwedishColors

The only information about the necks is actually this. There was no body of the shell attached, only the top part was there. So I do not know anything on the origin of the shell. These numbers seems to be some kind of color code, or…?

The known color codes, at least to me, are the ones from the models produced by North Electric in the US market. Here they are listed in ascending order:

North Electric Color Codes
Code Color Code Color
520536 Taj Mahal 520545 Chartreuse
520537 Sandalwood 520546 Aqua Mist
520538 Sahara 520547 Accent Green
520539 Royal Dubonnet 520548 Charcoal
520540 Riviera 520549 Wedgewood
520541 Princess/Petal Pink 520550 Mandarin Red
520542 Nordic Blue 520551 Persian Gray
520543 Golden Glow 520552 Crystal Mint
520544 Dusty Rose 520553 Candle Glow

Plotting the numbers from the picture in the same table gives a very surprising result…

Generic Color Codes
Code US Code Color Code US Code Color
520536 510852 Taj Mahal 520545 Chartreuse
520537 510853 Sandalwood 520546 Aqua Mist
520538 Sahara 520547 Accent Green
520539 Royal Dubonnet 520548 Charcoal
520540 Riviera 520549 Wedgewood
520541 Princess/Petal Pink 520550 510866 Mandarin Red
520542 Nordic Blue 520551 Persian Gray
520543 Golden Glow 520552 510868 Crystal Mint
520544 Dusty Rose 520553 510869 Candle Glow

The pattern matches with the colorsequence. If the other colors exist the numbering should be logical. Where the numbering comes from I still have to sort out. Is it Swedish numbering? But then the NE specific colors should also be applicable in Sweden? Or is it just the shell number? The 5205xx code seems to be a combination of manufacturer, ringer and color. So more a configuration code. No idea on this (yet).  Need to dig somewhat deeper into this.

I appologize the way I removed the ear-pieces, it was not subtle… I admit. But opening up one after another made me more curious on the next number.

Disclaimer: for this experiment no Ericofon was harmed.

The Dreamer Is Still Asleep II

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In the last couple of months I have found some special models to expand my collection with but the most special is the one showed below. Remember the post where I received a painted Accent Green (February 2015) and totally reworked it to remove the paint? Well, it is no longer alone.

DuoAccent

A few weeks ago I got the opportunity to buy another Accent Green. I was not sure what model is was, but since the price was right it did not really matter. There was a slight suspicion it was a New Case, and when I received it yesterday, it definitly turned out to be one.

The Old Case is ‘rather common’, there are more collectors who have one, but the New Case is not so regular. At least that is my vision, because I have never seen one before. I know that Richard from ericofon.com has listed one in his collection recently.

It is a fully original Ericofon from 1960, with color code 520547. Even the ring around the microphone is Accent Green. The chassis is a K7 with an Ericotone 2 ringer. This color was produced until the early 1960’s and not sold in other markets than the US so most of them are Old Cases. By the way, the Old Case is from 1959. Comparing the detailed dates, the breakpoint of the Old to New Case should be around Q4-1959 – Q1-1960.

The phone is in a very good shape, only a few minor marks on the shell. The Old Case, and this picture makes that more visible, is a little less shiny. This is because of the sanding and polishing process.

If all is well there are 2 more nice phones on their way and I hope they will arrive in a week or 2. and that should be it for 2015 I expect.  I am broke… Will keep you posted.

Tectonic Plates

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This week I received a small present from my kids. In a second-hand store they found a few small ceramic ‘plates’ used to put glasses on to protect the table. Not sure if this is a typical dutch item or invention… 😉 Originally it used to be a set of 6, as I found out, but I only have 3. Luckily the Ericofon was there.

onderzetter

The set was made in 1970, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Ericsson in The Netherlands (1920 – 1970).  The Ericofon was introduced 8 years later… which makes me think it is a standard set. Are there more around? The plates measure 10 cm in diameter, so they do not have typical tectonic sizes.

Update 09/05/2020:

Another coaster representing the Ericofon. Made in 1978, and as part of a set of 6 different phones, this was to celebrate the ‘telefoondistric ‘s-Gravenhage’ (telephony disctric of The Hague). It measures 9×9 cm.