I Bought and Installed a Payphone

Since we already know there's a PBX in the house, it makes sense to mess about with telephones in the yard. I alluded to this near the end of my bedroom reno video I was leaving one line unused for future plans. Here we are.
For a few hundred dollars I purchased and bought all the materials to install and operate a surplus Verizon/Frontier payphone and booth.
The result is....well, it's a phone....that you put money into....that I have not even properly configured as of this video....
But it does work! I'll explain.
Remember to follow me on "X" at @CelGenStudios to keep up to date on what I am doing and what might be happening in the next video.

[@radio645]

It's not worth a damn unless there's a Yellow Page phonebook enclosed in a metal box hanging from a heavy metal cable!

[@ineedstuff8286]

HArdcore laffing hahahah

[@klaasj7808]

i removed pages on several location when i didnt had a pen or paper with me and i had to remember the address. sorry to all those that because of me couldnt find a certain person

[@zombiedearth]

​@@klaasj7808we all did it 🤷‍♂️

[@-Jakob-]

Back in the 80s, where I grew up in Germany, there was the whole phone directory of the whole city in every phone box, divided up into 4 books (A-H, I-P, Q-Z and one that had directories for the bigger villages of the county), in addition to the yellow pages book. So it was like a 60cm (24") row of hanging books to the right of the actual phone. You could have called the directory assistance right from the phone, but that used to be rather expensive.

[@RealSnail3D]

@@radio645 lol useless

[@WVnFL_Gal]

As poor college kids we couldn't afford a phone, so we gave out the number to the payphone across the street. We would leave the door open someone would yell "phones ringing" and one of us woud run over to answer it. 😊 thanks for bringing that fun memory into my conscious

[@LagrangePoint0]

dayum, for real?

[@sebastian3004]

I was surprised after I learned you can call a fucking payphone from the landline in Hollywood movies. In my country, there was no such thing.

[@YouilAushana]

​@@LagrangePoint0you could only imagine the schemes my sociopath mother had us pulling

[@wileecoyote5749]

80s drug dealers in Bronx too

[@FullHD-g4x]

Back in mid 70s I used the long distance calls with the help from zA Hoffmans book that let me record sounds of coins and the kerplunks Play Back 5 10 25 cent sounds and make your calls

[@writerconsidered]

I love the internet. You get every kind of mad lad with some niche interest you never thought was a thing.

[@FlatbushZombiesBuyNTrade-lq5ji]

@@sheateeley1doesn’t make a difference what way you say it..

[@sheateeley1]

@@FlatbushZombiesBuyNTrade-lq5ji Alright bud.

[@OnceShy_TwiceBitten]

yup. lol

[@daveshongkongchinachannel]

Many of us would be that mad lad too if we had the skills and knowledge.

[@xenthia]

??? What did that person say? ​@@FlatbushZombiesBuyNTrade-lq5ji

[@AxelWerner]

Who wouldn't want a personal payphone in the backyard??!

[@kensims4086]

Me.

[@bobcaygeon975]

Historically, Payphones were always 1/4 mi. from a crack house methlab.

[@elixier33]

Like everyone. No one wanted to use them when installed in public either..

[@CookieXD1998]

Mee

[@Kredo800]

Good passive source of income though. ))

[@hosk1677]

My dad worked for GTE in the 80s and early 90s as a lineman. When GTE phased out their rotary pay phones he snagged one and installed it in my bedroom as my landline. He converted it to touch tone and bypassed the need to put in change. That sucker was HEAVY, lol

[@MoonbeamAcres]

My Dad also was a lineman in the 1980's. He retired before GTE sold their soul to Verizon. He originally worked for Texas Telephone after WW2, then 'Ma Bell' in the 1950's. then General in the 1960's and I grew up with him working for GTE and going off to disasters to help lay phone lines. Do you remember that dial up portable phone thingy they used to clip on the phone lines and test them? Somewhere, I still have my Dads... And I still have his original pole climbing gear (before they started using bucket trucks). Damn I miss my Daddy...

[@hosk1677]

@@MoonbeamAcres yep! My dad kept his test kit for a while but I think it got lost after a couple moves. Wild how they used to climb poles with the boot spikes. My dad’s spikes slipped once and he suffered a pretty nasty back injury sliding down. He ended up getting laid off in the 90s when GTE started downsizing and got into the nascent cellular coms field. That ended up being a blessing in disguise.

[@DandyDon1]

That Automatic Electric equipment is heavy duty! You should see their early transistorized reel to reel tape answering machines!

[@jordan.7]

Thats real cool. Do you still have the payphone in your room?

[@hosk1677]

@ no, that was decades and many moves ago. Probably got donated or given away when we moved across country. Would be a cool thing to still have though.

[@bobcaygeon975]

the MOJAVE PHONE BOOTH sat in a remote area of the Mojave National Preserve since 1948. It drew attention in 1997 after someone published its number online. People from around the world call it at all hours and have conversations with random strangers. The fun lasted until the Park Service ripped it out in 2000.

[@RealSnail3D]

“Until the Park Service Ripped it out in 2000” lololol that sounds personal

[@Tomovox_PAMS_Radio_JIngles]

@@RealSnail3D That's the part that caught my eye too! "ripped it out..."

[@Tomovox_PAMS_Radio_JIngles]

I actually like that random people would call a payphone and have a conversation with other random people. So of course, we can't have that sort of thing happening!

[@bobcaygeon975]

@@RealSnail3D The Parks Service also removed a plaque that memorialized the booth.

[@tapetwo7115]

You can still call the Mojave Phone Booth number. It’s ported to a live public conference bridge where random curious people dial in and meet like minded individuals. (1 - 9)There’s also a new fun silly public voice bulletin board if you wanna post a voice message for others to hear. (0)

[@Techsupport243]

Wow KZbin recommended a random video that's actually good. That doesn't happen often. This is exactly the kind of video I want. A video from an extremely knowledgeable person enthusiastically talking about an esoteric subject. Awesome video man!

[@CelGenStudios]

I may be a bit dry at times but I try the best I can without a script. c:

[@Techsupport243]

@@CelGenStudios Just realized comment could come off as sarcastic. I thoroughly enjoyed the video. Probably could have worded my comment better.

[@CelGenStudios]

@@Techsupport243 No offense taken. I didn't notice. :)

[@MrTurkeypoult]

Dude has one of the only exits to the Matrix left!😂

[@imafirenmehlazer1]

Lol yes morphis I'll take the red pill.

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

Operator! I need an exit!

[@snesguy9176]

If the matrix were to be remade I wonder what they would use instead 🤔

[@3nertia]

So that's the real reason payphones went extinct! Now we're all trapped in the Matrix! 😱

[@3nertia]

@@snesguy9176 Smartphones because the Matrix got a wifi upgrade :D

[@cburgess5294]

"Why is this guy so jazzed about pay phones???" Starts talking about his personal PBX..... "Oh, I get it now"

[@ridgerunner-x3w]

👍😃

[@Tmm42s]

In Australia payphones are still common and funded by the government and free to use just in case people’s phones are flat or people’s prepaid phones are out of credit…. They also have free wifi access points inside

[@My_Old_YT_Account]

Based Australia

[@waza987]

Indirectly funded by the government. Basically the government has a contract with the largest phone network and pays them to provide a certain number of pay phones covering certain areas. The provider was charging still for calls but basically decided it cost them less to just give free calls anywhere in Australia rather than go around and collect coins and maintain the coin collection mechanism.

[@intensecutn]

​@@waza987and that historical contract has allowed Telstra to convert their 'payphones' into giant billboards that obstruct the footpath in the city. Free advertisements in lucrative areas is the reason they still have payphones.

[@goombabear]

Many American cities and municipal parks have free wifi and most businesses have free wifi for it's guests. Poor Americans can get a free cell phone and a certain amount of free minutes as well. And in the US we don't pay anywhere near the taxes Australians have to pay out.

[@marklar7551]

​@@goombabearpopulation of Australia 27 million Population of the USA 335 million Which government do you think collects more in taxes? Texas is smaller than Australia yet has 61 million people and is still mostly empty....free phones are a good idea 👽🗿👽🗿👽

[@tissuepaper9962]

0:45 the dolly zoom done by hand is actually hella impressive. i've tried doing that several times and it's rather difficult to get the zoom speed matched up with your walking speed.

[@y0ur_name_here]

I have a gate at the end of my driveway. A keypad was needed to operate the gate, so I installed a drive up payphone pedestal and a payphone. It also connects to the line in the house, so along with the cameras installed there, I can talk to someone without having open the gate. Plus it just looks cool.

[@Mutlap]

photo, please

[@y0ur_name_here]

@Mutlap you can't post photos here unfortunately.

[@imafirenmehlazer1]

Do you want to accept this collect call?, press 1 to accept 😂 God that is pure nostalgia

[@okaycola2]

Genius

[@marklar7551]

It's also built to last, unlike anything available to buy these days 👽🗿👽🗿👽

[@generaldissaray4109]

you really nailed that sickly yellow color and pale glow of the original light

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

You just need to add the occasional flicker of the dying tube/ballast.

[@maa76249]

If I bought your house with this already installed in the backyard, then it rang in the middle of the night, I would have a heart attack and actually die. Imagine having this in the backyard and having no idea who installed it or why. This is how urban legends get started.

[@3nertia]

I hate how right you are and how accurate that is xD

[@marklar7551]

One reason, it's an exit from the matrix 🗿👽🗿👽🗿

[@evelynwaugh4053]

You would mostly get calls from stoners asking for Dave.

[@Davett53]

I grew up in the Payphone era. I always loved the sit down, full enclosure models. They were places to escape to in a busy airport, tavern, bowling alley, etc.

[@MaseraSteve]

Oh yea I got a very short experience of it in the early 2000s gotta have to get those replicated on my lounge room one day after my own vending machine. But I prefer the newer model obviously

[@marklar7551]

Oh yeah, the sex boxes.... don't touch ANYTHING in there

[@Davett53]

@@marklar7551 Ha ha!

[@Davett53]

@@marklar7551 Ha, ha, ha,.....(Sex boxes?!) Too small for intercourse, I believe,.....maybe a blow job, or a hand job. LOL!

[@thatoneguy6725]

This video speaks to my soul. Ive wanted a payphone for some time now. Every time i see one in the wild i see if it works. Sometimes they do and i call my mom and tell her im calling her from a payphone lol

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

I'm always amazed when I encounter one. Most have been gone for 20+ years if not more. I wonder if there are more of them in extremely rural places where there aren't cell towers. Heck, I live in a cellular dead spot, but you can get service a mile or two away! No payphones here, though.

[@CopelandPlays]

That’s so wholesome

[@Kazekoge101]

Basically 99.999+% gone here in NYC

[@MrCantStopTheRobot]

You would think payphones would always be useful as an emergency / last resort tool... so there should be just a few scattered around every town. Like 2 on the main street. Don't have to know any addresses, just wander what looks like the main street and you'll hit one.

[@philp7353]

does 1-800-COLLECT still work?

[@SomeoneBloodyRandom]

I’m sure, one day, the novelty of having a payphone will wear off…. BUT TODAY IS NOT THAT DAY!!!!

[@wlot28]

If anything, it'll only increase over time as it becomes more historical

[@jbird5953]

Lighting it up at the end was the finishing touch. This is a fine tribute to a bygone era and it looks completely at home in your backyard. Thanks for sharing this!

[@chargermopar]

I have had one in my yard for almost 20 years. Just got through derusting and repainting it. That's a good deal on that stuff. My payphones have Protel boards and I have them set up with Expressnet software running on an old computer. I have no landline but I do use a channel bank running off of Asterisk. I installed LED lights in mine as well and it's solar powered!

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

It'd be fun to put one out in the woods randomly. I'd have to run a lot of wire, though, unless I rigged up a wireless link. That would be cheating and inauthentic, though. There's a rail trail up in the woods behind my house. This is a very rural one, the kind people cross country ski on and there is usually no one on it. It would be fun to have a phone off the trail (still on my property) and see who would try to make calls on it. Either local calls only, or some kind of mockup PBX that would simulate a real phone. It's the kind of novelty that would probably eventually appear in a local paper, assuming people didn't vandalize the crap out of it.

[@chargermopar]

@@Dwigt_Rortugal You could also string up a drop line between trees LOL!

[@networkg]

I'm glad your realize the false sense of security surge suppressors or even ground fault interrupters have. I once watched a lightning strike travel down the wire to the house, melt then jump over the remains of the ground fault interrupter and go on its merry route through the electrical system and eventually into the ground.

[@virtuelles-ankerzentrum]

Great ti see that there are normal ppl with normal hobbys

[@oatmeal710]

thanks for installing the first working payphone i've ever seen in my lifetime

[@erichross672]

I'm 43, and pay phones are what I miss most about the old world, if your phone dies and you need to make a call you can't. They took them out of the poor neighborhoods first, they day because of drugs, there real goal was to get a cell phone in everyone's hands so they could track our every move.

[@TheKing-jt4bg]

I'm 22, and there were many payphones in my city in southern Argentina when i was a little kid, but unfortunally they removed all of them around 2010, 2 years ago i traveled to a nearby town and in one street there was a busted payphone like the ones i saw as a kid

[@NetflixForeign]

I would LOVE to have a booth. I used them one or twice to call someone when they were more in use. I still think it is smart for emergency reasons to keep a number of them on state and national highways. I know people can dismiss it and say "Hey, you can get cell phone for emergency use only.". If someone gets kidnapped or something happens the first thing that will happen is that cell phone is getting seized.

[@Compact-Disc_700mb]

Yeah they are a very nice thing to have around, cellphones can get lost, stolen, broken, not have service, dead battery, or just fail. I don't really like cellphones and would like to have payphones as an option, it probably won't happen but it would be nice if they came back or at they very least stop disappearing.

[@NetflixForeign]

@@Compact-Disc_700mb Well them disappearing on busy highways and especially more rural just says they are ok with people being trafficked on there.

[@vadim6385]

@@Compact-Disc_700mb payphones get broken, vandalized, stolen, disconnected, just randomly die. No more reliable than a cellphone

[@tsiefhtes]

I firmly believe they should be and all state-owned highway rest stops. There are versions of payphones that accept bills, credit cards and even tap to pay. A lot of those car rest stops are in areas that have dodgy cell phone reception anyways so if someone is stranded this would guarantee they're able to reach out for help. If tax money is being used to pay for rest stops there is no reason not to add something as basic as this.

[@Compact-Disc_700mb]

@@vadim6385 Yeah true, but cellphones have problems too, if both are available then you have another option.

[@greglee1174]

In 1983 I had a cousin who worked for a telecommunications company. We spent the night with her and she let us call our mom from her car. Hey Mom, we’re calling you from Sherry’s car. Now in 2024 I would like to call my wife and say hey, I’m calling you from an actual payphone. 😂

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

That's pretty slick to call from a car in 1983! That was a real rarity! In fact, I didn't even know that was possible back then.

[@marklar7551]

Since June of 1946 you could call from inside a car wirelessly. The first consumer car phones were in development since the 1910s with 1 million users of car phones by 1964. The cellular phone hit cars in the early 1980s and didn't need to be part of a car package but could be installed after purchase. Then they packaged up that phone as a mobile device that was a giant briefcase and a corded handset (you can see it in 80s movies like Lethal Weapon) 👽🗿👽🗿👽

[@jameswood231]

Interesting🤔

[@seabass1111]

Im glad you put a payphone for the time traveler from 1960

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

It was sad when all the payphones started to get decommissioned. My entire childhood, payphones were all you used when you were away from home or work. My first car broke down, and I walked to an old lady's house and used her phone to call AAA. There was a payphone in my dorm, and I'd use a cheap MCI calling card to talk to my girlfriend. The dorm was old enough that there was an actual wooden enclosure with a seat. Then, over the course of about a year, the payphones started disappearing, leaving behind sun bleached outlines and dangling wires. I didn't have a cell phone yet. It was the end of an era. I never thought it would be kind of sad remembering that, but once something is gone forever, you look back at it through a romanticized lens.

[@youtoobe169]

Very cool! I am glad KZbin randomly recommended this to me

[@CocoHutzpah]

I didn't know I wanted this, but if I have a yard again, I need a payphone for it.

[@RunnerSandman]

GTE! YES! I grew up in Redondo Beach. I remember the walk-in phone booths (convenient during rain, lol) and, when I was knee-high to a grasshopper, it was 10 cents for a local call... of course, I would have been just as pleased had you installed a Pacific Bell setup, since I had childhood friends in Torrance, one of whom turned me on to phreaking and inspired me to build a so-called "red box" by replacing the crystal in a Radio Shack pocket dialer. Memories! You got yourself a sub from me!

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

All the different boxes distinguished by colors... there was so much lore around them. I never tried to build one, but now I wish I had.

[@kathleenking47]

Pacific Telephone Pre 1984

[@fab555trainspottingandmore]

I couldn't believe it when i saw a Person using a phone booth in Zurich in Switzerland. There are still a few left but they are free to use since a few years

[@423tech]

Your Panasonic PBX should support automatic line selection. Just set ext 205 for ALS and give it your POTS line.

[@andywolan]

Now this is the kind of "KZbin recommendation" videos I need to see more of.

[@borisbeaver]

Also, I just realized that it's a GTE model. My grandmother worked as an operator for GTE for many years in Oregon. She started in the era of hand-pulling and plugging individual connecting cords and retired a few years into the early computerized era.

[@Heather420]

I honestly did understand most of this but I've gotta say it's so badass you have one up and running. It was very nostalgic hearing it ring

[@johnlondon5413]

Now ET can FINALLY phone home😂 My father had an old wooden phone booth and it worked even the light came on when you shut the squeaky sliding door. Glad to see people still keeping retro stuff alive. Nice one, thanks 👍

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

No, ET needs a Speak&Spell with a sawblade rigged up to it. It's specialized equipment.

[@robertmoore254]

I acquired 8 of these for free and I have refurbished one and converted it for home use. Most of them still have money in them but you have to drill out two hardened steel locks.

[@Subgunman]

Do some research and you might be able to find some keys for these, with so many pulled from service and many former bell employees out there you might hit the jackpot.

[@CelGenStudios]

This one came with no locks at all installed. The store sells replacement lock and key sets and I'll probably have to purchase a set in the future when I also go back and buy a coin box.

[@Sashko_Dee]

@2:09 Excellent, I found a place to get a phone booth. That's like half the time machine right there.

[@stafomosakez]

I remember when we used to skateboard and got the number to the payphone near a store. We'd call it and see if anyone would pick it up.

[@choppergirl]

I own a 1970's walk in glass payphone booth with no payphone lol I also got a lineman's handset signed by Capt'n Crunch... My neighbor owns a vending machine with the pull out bottles You need a fully operating telephone switching exchange in the basement like the Telephone History Museums

[@HermesTrismegistes369]

Gorgeous payphone. Love the soda machine too ❤ phuck yeah 🤙

[@NeverMetTheGuy]

This is the most throwback-feeling KZbin videos I've seen in a long time. Thanks for making a video I never knew I needed.

[@angellynette8258]

I love that my town has left a few of the old pay phones standing, some even have the phone still in them even though they are no longer in use. I’ve even seen people taking pictures at one, 😂

[@kellyclark7517]

Me too, and I took pictures of all of them❤

[@Subgunman]

If you have issues with lack of power to get the bells working try replacing them with solid state ringers. Mike Sandman in Chicago might still have some in stock.

[@ENWWN]

Thanks! Memories my childhood school years ..... Three-slot pay telephone, small public drinking fountain, police/fire call box, bus stop bench seat. What more could you ask for? Just remembered .. a street light. Thanks again!

[@mgratk]

In the late 80s early 90s my local public library had a great full sized dark stained wood phone booth. Even then it was ancient and I wonder what ever happened to it.

[@Ojisan642]

I like the cross branding of this unit. I worked for GTE right before it merged with Bell Atlantic to become Verizon. GTE and Verizon never coexisted, but rather one replaced the other. So having these both represented here is just great. I don’t miss using pay phones but they are definitely nostalgic!

[@leebryantutah]

You could have seen a mix of branded parts out in the wild, though, correct?

[@Ojisan642]

@ I would say definitely yes and this combination makes sense. An old 1990s GTE phone booth gets a broken phone replaced during the post-2001 Verizon era. Assuming they don’t bother replacing the booth itself, this is what you’d end up with.

[@Davett53]

Life was so much simpler, in the 1960s. You felt safe with hand full of dimes, to make an emergency phone call any time of day or night to your folks, or a buddy. A car repair shop or a service station if you were in trouble, your car broke down, you missed your flight, all sorts of situations. As kids we'd check the coin return slot, and fairly often you'd find a left-behind coin. Payphone were everywhere. Grocery stores, bowling alleys, service stations, etc, etc.

[@Dwigt_Rortugal]

I'd always check the coin return slot, too, though I grew up in the 80s. They really were everywhere. Until they suddenly weren't.

[@Davett53]

@@Dwigt_Rortugal I wish a few were still around. People find themselves in situations where they may not have a personal cellphone. Although, through government subsidized programs even "bums" and hobos, have cellphones.

[@cheetonian]

When I was in high school in the late 90s, we discovered that if you picked up the phone, and then pulled the cable far enough that the dial tone stopped (a small break in the metal shielding would help) - you could then dial a number, and after letting slack back into the cable, the phone would call the number you dialed without requiring any payment. I would LOVE to know why that worked... and if that works on yours :)

[@precisionxt]

There was a payphone booth nearly knocked over and sitting in front of a local Dairy Queen in TX. Every time I passed it, i thought about stopping by and asking if I could remove it and bring it home. Unfortunately i waited too long and that Dairy Queen shut down one week and the booth was gone. I was bummed about it as I’m sure it was scraped. That’s very cool that you were able to get on in good shape!

[@hufficag]

Should of taken it. I ripped off a China Ping Pong sign at my local bath house where the ping pong table used to be. Glad I did because a year later it was renovated and gutted with an entirely new style, no more ping pong, no more many things, it's now family friendly, meant for people to bring their wives and children.

[@klaasj7808]

@@hufficag yeah the world is getting sadder, here they tore down a local music/concert events venue 2 years ago. Was in use from 1963. Builden was from the 1950's. Now they have built concrete apartments.

[@redline1916]

One of the local diners near me still has a functioning payphone with an updated yellow pages.

[@Egress.]

That pedestal has a rather rare addition - the Attractor top! its a neon green-yellow sheet of plastic in the top designed to catch your eye. they came in green, yellow, and a purple-red color. I've only ever seen the green and yellow ones. BTW, do you have a link to the listings of the payphones, I can't seem to find them :/

[@Egress.]

Also, obligatory “welcome to the club of having a working payphone”. Maybe we can call eachother sometime 😂

[@azurplex]

Coin op things are strict about coin size and weight to reject blanks and counterfeits and Canadian quarters have slightly different dimensions and weight than U.S. ones so will be rejected by the mechanism. Perhaps the hardware exists to swap in a Canadian quarter mechanism. That would probably mean buying a whole payphone from somewhere in Canada since the coin checker is probably not available separately anymore but it's worth some internet (or antique/surplus shop) searching.

[@RetroCaptain]

GTE is/was USA only company as far as pay phone went that I ever saw. 50 years ago some small communities were on their own phone system and used AE rotary dial phone.

[@yommish]

You’ve planted the seed in my head to have a working payphone in my garage or workspace some day.

[@CelGenStudios]

Harmless fun!

[@invicta6110]

This is great! I bought a pay phone years ago and have been trying to figure out what to do with it. It's almost too heavy for a wall mount unless you want lots of reinforcement, ordering a platform from her sounds about right. Need to look her up.

[@davidshepherd265]

Good move using a Panasonic battery instead of a “Maxell bomb”, as they’re known in the retro Apple community. Anyone with an old piece of gear that has an old Maxell half-AA battery installed is best to remove it ASAP before it pops and spews its guts over the internals. Also, that is neat. I’d probably look into doing the same thing if I didn’t own an apartment.

[@ivanxyz1]

So cool. My mom has some yellow pages for that thing.

[@kaleych.8065]

That dolly zoom at 0:44 is a moment of cinema I didn't expect on a random vlog appearing on my feed

[@CelGenStudios]

I gotta try that again somehow.

[@That0neDud]

You should get a redbox kiosk

[@oldschooldude8370]

There was a working payphone at the Murphy in my town up until 2 years ago now I believe. This is neat. Well done, sir.

[@itskdog]

Tom Scott makes some good video recommendations.

[@mrt1957]

one of the best KZbin of 2024! Great idea and presentation!

[@badwolf9090]

I've been wondering what my garden has been missing. Thank you, I needed this.

[@Drug_Fueled_Nightmare]

I wanted to buy a Redbox and put my own dvds in there but when I went to my Walmart someone already beat me to both of them

[@ckm-mkc]

There's still one in my local Safeway....

[@Drug_Fueled_Nightmare]

@@ckm-mkc I found one at my Walgreens still too there sprinkled around

[@timcat1004]

I have the three coin slot chrome rotary dial phones. I bought it from AGT in the 80's

[@RDraGoNR660]

0:23 on "free-play" like it's a Pinball machine 🤣

[@theabhominal8131]

i have a Bell Atlantic phone booth in my man cave that i keep a landline just to it works and yes you have to put 25 cent in it to make a call.. mine is a booth that you step into and close the door...

[@MattsCorner-kc6pt]

Not all protel boards support programing from the keypad. Only a select few do. I think i have the programing instructions for mine somehwere. There are codes you punch in on the keypad to alter different settings. Send me a PM and ill see if i can dig up my instructions.

[@blankstares4355]

cool. brings back memories. nice piece of vintage tech practical nostalgia

[@almosthuman4457]

Very nerdy. I like it.

[@BRYDN_NATHAN]

thank you. > i wonder > if im in the backyard i walk by a ringing payphone with a light >> i pick it up.

[@RetroTechIIfx]

GTE badging with a Bell/VZ money holder, interesting combo. Is the original chassis/dial pad a GTE AE manufactured one, or a Western Electric or Nortel one that was transplanted to former GTE territory after protel-ization? To complete the look, instead of a small plastic box for fault isolation, you need to find one of those small metal pedestals used by the telco. The example you have isn’t that that weathered! And it lights up nicely, which is awesome. Nice job on the install.

[@CelGenStudios]

Not entirely sure myself of the config. From what I was told it's currently as-is from where in the Seattle area it was removed form service.

[@thecooldude9999]

That’s a GTE Automatic Electric style phone. When Bell Atlantic bought GTE in 2000, creating Verizon, they put the Bell logo on all of their payphones, no matter if they were former Bell or former GTE. WE and AE Payphone parts are not interchangeable, not even the vault door. And yes, that means Verizon made vault doors with a bell logo on them that could only fit GTE AE phones! Was a weird rebranding effort back in the early 2000s.

[@knottheory79220]

Ha, I remember GTE back in the day, that company was like Comcast or Spectrum before those existed. Every time one of their commercials came on the radio my dad would sing along to it, "Gee Tee Eee, Almost like a real telephone company!"

[@stpworld]

I found a rest area with a working pay phone this summer.

[@krylonizer]

Ahhh... I ❤this so much. Makes me want to break open an old copy of 2600.

[@Alexander_l322]

It’s like a GTA payphone 😮 I love this and think you’re a very cool person for having such a unique idea to put this in your garden

[@TheCencc]

Yeah... very interesting thing, those "GTA payphones"... uh, they're from this thing people call real life.

[@furryballsploppedmenacingl8534]

When people forget GTA is based off of real life.

[@tsu08761e]

​@@TheCenccobviously, but not everyone is going to be familiar with it from real life

[@paulwarner5395]

Nice video. To solve the outside line issue check if the PBX has a hotline feature that will allow the PBX to seize an outside line when the payphone goes off hook and then you can dial the outside number.

[@salpertia]

Not sure if this was already set up to make calls, but it was a missed opportunity to not have it ringing at the end of the video. Subscribe anyway though neat stuff

[@CelGenStudios]

Now that you mention it, I think I know what you mean. Whoops.

[@jeremiahnewell]

Very inspirational! Oh and I used to go fishing near Sultan! Cool stuff. Take care!

[@johng.1703]

rather than reprogramming the payphone it might be a lot easier to reprogram the PBX and not require the 9 for an outside line for that one particular extension.

[@CelGenStudios]

That was considered. Mainly I have to choose what VoIP line I want to use. The local number or the number that goes into a private phone network.

[@nathansmith1085]

I work in the commercial food service repair industry. A while back I ran a call where a place turned an old glass phone booth into a smoker, it was pretty cool.

[@mfbfreak]

5:29 i would kinda expect that when i pick up, i get a Grand Theft Auto mission...

[@CelGenStudios]

There may or may not be instructions taped under the phone....

[@thenarrowpathoftruth9443]

You have my deepest respect and admiration.

[@wesley00042]

"Gee!" No, GTE.

[@Shawn-c2i]

How many times a payphone has came in handy for me so a working piece of nostalgia in your yard yeah why not and having own pop machine just because a bonus too since something can use in your man cave or garage to hold sodas or beer

[@borisbeaver]

I'd expect nothing less 😊

[@devoncutmore]

THIS IS AWESOME AND MY DREAM AS WELL! I also live in Canada and might be checking out that lady's ebay

[@Thomas-yr9ln]

In the UK they started scrapping pay phones as soon as they came out with cellphones. They didn't wait like America. Out with the old and in with the new.

[@someguy9778]

Yeah...Not true. Some of us have traveled.

[@Drawededed]

It's like you stayed in the 90's, love it!

[@JamMC]

Next, a street light.

[@CelGenStudios]

There's TWO rare fluorescent streetlights in storage. There's no way in hell I'm installing a pole for that. :P

[@JamMC]

@ You could mount them onto a wall with a wall bracket.

[@harveyradius]

I've wanted to do this for so long. Great video, super informative. Glad to see another coin-op enthusiast.

[@GabeTheGabriel]

4:54 bro is out of breath from walking in his yard 😂

[@kathleenking47]

He could use some exercise..he'll stop breathing hard

[@brianduarte6045]

This haircut parlor I go to has a working pay phone, walls are covered in badges, patches, tags, bills, etc of different branches, services, throughout the years. Very cool spot $7 haircut too

[@dglass2008]

PAYPHONE!!! I REMEMBER THOSE!!!

[@wumpus3719]

this is the coolest thing ive seen all month

[@minty_Joe]

0:44-0:47, nice zooming effect. Were you zooming in whilst backing up or the opposite of that?

[@CelGenStudios]

Yeah I noticed that by accident and decided "hey, I should try and use that effect" and it's hard. The further you zoom in while walking backwards the harder it is to keep it steady.

[@minty_Joe]

​@@CelGenStudios It's the same technique Spielberg used in Jaws, when Chief Brody is alarmed by the shark attack on the Kintner boy (Alex). Or The Lion King, when Simba sees the wildebeest stampede coming down the gorge.

[@mediocreman2]

​@@minty_JoeIt's not the same technique in Lion King because it's a freaking cartoon and there were no cameras.

[@loganstroganoff1284]

GTE yes that's what we had here in NW Florida. I built a blue box, a device that replicated the tones the quarters made when deposited, to make free calls on them. My friend and i also used to document the numbers and locations of phone booths all over town so we could call them and talk to random ppl who answered. I may have to get one of these.

[@LazyPirate8]

Canadian sam hyde lol

[@shannongolden]

Love it! Rad! I think the nostalgia will last forever!

[@realbigtrees]

can see where a dog pissed all over it 9:44

[@CelGenStudios]

D:

[@twizz420]

Ahh these bring me back. I used to skip school with my friends and we'd go to the payphone with $10 in quarters and spend the entire afternoon smoking weed and prank calling people. Good times.