Typewriter Talk / What hobbies do you have?

**Posted by TypewriterKing** 27-1-2017 22:58:44

Some hobbies can and have been sources of income of some kind. For instance, I've repaired many typewriters for pay--sold a few and rented a few. Lately I have a problem with the word "pro." To me, it conjures up a person who is the absolute best at what he or she does, charges likewise, and is probably the most arrogant, conceited, narcissistic, self-aggrandizing person on the whole darn block!! In short, this person is the south end of a north bound moose.

**Posted by beak** 14-4-2017 19:08:26

My telephone hobby got a shot in the arm this Easter; I bought a second-hand PABX (Private automatic branch exchange) and spent the day fiddling with wires and connectors. Now all my old 'phones can dial each other! Up to eight places round the house can ring any of the others. Great to hear that childhood sound of telephone bells.

**Posted by Rattle Tap** 15-4-2017 22:23:45

Telephones, you say?
I like the older crank up wall phones myself.
I recently found a very nice wall phone with the full hand piece , as apposed to the separate ear piece and box mounted 'bugle' and then soon after came up with another very similar unit for a set of two.
The first has the typical long enclosure for the magneto and battery compartment but the second one just has a half a box for an enormous mag and no room for any battery and the same hand set as the first.
My intention is to set them up as a two way phone/intercom between the house and our shop building about 400 feet away.
There is already a phone line that belongs to the shop building that terminates in the network box at the house and is currently unused. I can disconnect the wire from the phone companies side of the circuit and connect it to an old line in the house that was used for a fax machine. I'm thinking that because one of the phones has a battery I would not need the other one to have one seeing as these are the only phones on this circuit.
As you say what a great thing it would be to hear that good old and genuine phone ringing sound in the house again.
I'm not old enough to have grown up with a crank phone but, I sure do like the sound of the ring...

**Posted by beak** 16-4-2017 02:39:56

Your magneto system should work well; my house system was all magnetos before I got this PABX, and they never gave a moment's trouble. Yes you will need a battery to transmit speech at either end. Just be careful with the outdoor wires - they should be protected against lightning strike. Let's know how it turns out.

**Posted by colrehogan** 16-4-2017 11:17:46

What is PABX?

**Posted by Svip** 16-4-2017 13:45:15

I'd say my main hobby is vintage cars. Well, I say vintage cars, but I really mean Citroëns. And only those with hydropneumatic suspension. No other suspension is good enough for me. As such, I have a 1974 Citroën DS 23 and a 1998 Citroën Xantia Activa V6.

It's fine to describe it as my main hobby, since I spend most of my money on that. But second in line is my computer(s) followed by board games, including designing them. Although, I've had little success in the latter part. Well, I also tend to lose when I play board games, so I dunno about success in playing them either.

I am a software developer by trade, but I also do like developing small programs at home. Either for fun or for some additional payment outside my regular job.

Then I also have a thing for studying/debating history/politics. I might consider myself a history buff, but really there is still so much to learn.

Recently I've found fountain pens, and hopefully soon, I'll get properly into typewriters. But that's very new to me (I don't even have a typewriter yet!).

**Posted by Rattle Tap** 17-4-2017 17:53:58

colrehogan, a PABX is a "Private Automatic Branch Exchange"
You don't often see them in a private household unless it is something like a very large home with a land line phone in every room.
Perhaps our friend beak could describe in a little more detail how he is using the one he has recently installed in his private residence (?)
I think a PABX can be used as a switch board to direct an incoming call to a certain phone within the circuit and also act as an intercom of sorts, also only with in the circuit.
I leave it to beak to enlighten us further.

**Posted by Rattle Tap** 17-4-2017 18:10:42

beak wrote:
Your magneto system should work well; my house system was all magnetos before I got this PABX, and they never gave a moment's trouble. Yes you will need a battery to transmit speech at either end. Just be careful with the outdoor wires - they should be protected against lightning strike. Let's know how it turns out.

beak, I don't think I will need a battery in EACH PHONE, will I ?
The second unit I have must have surely been intended to serve as an extension phone to an existing circuit, I'm thinking.
There is no room at all for a battery in the magneto enclosure.
I would think that this phone would run off the power from the main phone.
Obviously I can ring up the main phone from the mag in the extension and I should get voltage to activate the extension hand set when the main phone hand set is picked up......yes?
Oh, and no worries about the lightning, the phone line to the shop is under ground like all the other wiring here at our place.

I hope to try for a picture to post for you. The two units I have here are very nice. Nothing fancy but very handsome to look at none the less.

**Posted by beak** 17-4-2017 22:02:29

Rattle Tap wrote:
beak, I don't think I will need a battery in EACH PHONE, will I ?

If you are using the two magnetos as an independent system not connected to anything else, yes, I believe you will. I don't however, have any experience of magnetos hooked into the public exchange and drawing current from it. I tend to think this would not work well since you are asking the units to be both 'common battery' (remotely powered from the exchange) and 'local battery' (independently powered at each phone) at the same time, though there may be a way to do it.
When it comes to fitting in batteries, remember that you need use only quite small batteries such as AA - two, in a little holder, tucked into each phone, to give you just 3 volts DC. All they do is supply voltage for the microphone in either unit.
Yes do put up some pictures - interesting.

**Posted by Echosfromthecarriage** 14-7-2017 11:53:40

I have a lot of hobbies. I'll try not to leave anything out. I've been playing guitar and bass for the past 28 years. I collect comic books (Star Trek and Star Wars only- I had to impose SOME KIND of limit.) Drawing (with pencil or pen and in Adobe Illustrator), collecting U.S. and world paper currency, full sheets of U.S. postage stamps (monochromatic - intaglio engraved), U.S. and Canadian silver coinage, watching movies (all manner of genre: new, old, comedy, noir, musicals, documentaries.) I'm particularly partial to television shows about history or science. I also collect antique cancelled stock certificates (mainly railroads.) I feel like I'm leaving a few things out, but we'll go with that list.