The ABC's of Payphones part 4.

MAD!'s most popular series!

The Telephone lock.


   Rotary payphones dial by having the number roll back to its original
position.  It breaks the signal the number of times indicated.
You can achieve the same effect by tapping rapidly on the little button
at the top of the phone (the one you use to hang up with).

   Let's say you wanted to call 123-4567.  You would tap on the number
once, pause half a second, tap rapidly twice, pause, tap three times
fast, pause, and so on.  It takes a little practice to get the numbers
right, but it does work.  So much for locked telephones.

OFF HOOK.

Everyone knows the old trick where you would call someone on a payphone,
then walk away and it would stay off the hook till someone hung it up,
or a ma bell repair crew came and hung it up.  Well, that doesn't work
anymore.  It resets itself within 4-5 minutes.  Well we were thinking
wouldn't it be nice if you could wire it so that the payphone wouldn't
hang up if the button was pressed.  What you would be doing is turning it
off.  Then the payphone couldn't be hung up.  And while we were at it,
we found out how to keep it from reseting.  Here's how...
Remove the top cover, and find the totalizer (for complete instructions
on how to do this see ABC's of payphones parts 1 and 2).  Now unscrew
the cover of the totalizer and locate the center position where 6-10
wires meet.  Clip all these wires.  Put both covers back on.  Now open
the front panel.  Find those main wires we're always using. Now cut the
3rd wire to the right.

Ok what all this does is stop the payphone from reseting, and it turns
off the hang up button.

How to use it.  Call someone up, and do the above instructions.

Getting money back.

If a payphone takes your money and won't give it back, but the money is
still in the hopper, here's what you can do.  Just dial a 950 number,
such as 950-1044, and it will clear it out.

Endless ringing

This will make a payphone ring and ring.  The only way to stop it will
be if a repairman comes out and fixes it.

Open the front of the phone.  Now the in the front row of wires go and
clip the first, third, and fourth.  Now touch them to each other until
two of them make the phone ring.  Now attach the two top ends and bottom
ends two each other.  Take the odd wire and reconnect it.  Now cut the third
wire to the right.  If the payphone isn't ringing right now, make sure the
receiver is hung up and touch those wires again.  It will now ring.  Put the
phone together and walk away.


Remember after every trick to put the phone back together for another day.

    This is one of MANY Great MYSTERY Notes at:

                 The Mystery Zone
                  (312) 231-6183