I built an intercom from vintage rotary phones!

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  • Опубликовано: 12 дек 2024

Комментарии • 318

  • @vespaesian
    @vespaesian Год назад +134

    I’ve been scouring youtube for a video detailing how to build an intercom system using specifically soviet era phones for hours. Finally found this channel and I’m absolutely floored by the production quality. Everything was perfect. When I saw the number of subscribers I was shocked. I fully expected to see several million. This channel deserves far more recognition.
    Thank you so much for all the information. I’ll be watching on repeat till I finish my own!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +5

      Thank you so much for watching! Let me know how the build goes, or if you have more questions!

    • @Nevir202
      @Nevir202 Год назад +5

      What on earth inspired you to do such a thing in the first place?
      I mean two people doing that same thing isn't THAT many, but still strange that something so obscure came up twice...

    • @borninator
      @borninator Год назад +2

      My sentiments exactly. I can't reconcile the quality with the subscriber count. So grateful that Tom Scott's newsletter led me here. This is amazing.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +2

      @@borninator Thanks so much for watching, Örn!

    • @borninator
      @borninator Год назад

      @@ThomasBurns No, thank you! It pleases me so much to watch these types of videos. And thanking me with my name even, accents included! Real classy and makes me feel special.
      A question regarding the build, did you consider an on/off time for the AC ringing to stimulate the type of ring used by the telephone system?

  • @ezyto
    @ezyto Год назад +70

    sometimes the youtube algorithm does good things like recommending this channel, just awesome

  • @santyias87
    @santyias87 2 года назад +35

    This channel is a goldmine. I'm so glad I clicked on the link on twitter. Teaches a lot abt tech and life in a beautiful way! Look forward to seeing all your videos!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад +4

      Thank you so much for watching, and for your support!

  • @rts9862
    @rts9862 2 года назад +7

    Beautiful video! What a wonderful project!!! It was such a pleasure getting to spend 15-20 minutes with you Thomas, as well as "meeting" your beautiful family!!! I truly enjoyed this project and seeing your passion for every facet therein, Thank You !!!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад +1

      Thank you so much for watching!

  • @anubhavpanda06
    @anubhavpanda06 Год назад +6

    Rather than being technical and dirty nerdy, you videos are so wholesome and full of life nerdy. I love them. Thank you so much sir 🙏🏼.

  • @dalemettee1147
    @dalemettee1147 2 месяца назад +2

    In the states, we can use 9VDC for the voice circuit. For the ringer circuit, we need 90 volts AC @ 20 hz. An unit serves this voltage.

  • @choppergirl
    @choppergirl Год назад +3

    My uncle had an old mechanical exchange up in the attic, that he wired all the house phones into, so you could dial an extension and ring any other rotary phone in the house. 1 for ground level, 2 for second floor, 3 for the attic third floor. If you were up in the attic and someone operated it, you could see all the rotary actions move on the mechanics to connect the call and disconnect it. And of course you could dial out on the single house line or two. So you are missing that critical part to connec them all, some mechanical exchange.
    By the time I got around to setting up my own similiar system, it was the 90's, and you could buy something called the RingRite which would allow 2 or 3 phone lines to share the same line, and with the multi ring tone service from the phone company, the RingRite box would capture the first ring, and depending on the ring pattern from the phone company, route the call to the right phone and subsequent rings would be heard on that phone. So basically with one phone line, you could have 3 different numbers with 3 different ring patterns, and the box would capture it and route it to the right phone in your house so everyone could have their own telephone number and never have to get called to the phone somewhere else... but still only pay for one telephone line.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Oooh this is cool! That would have been a simpler solution. But not as fun to set up. :)

  • @MegaSuperCritic
    @MegaSuperCritic Год назад +12

    I am SO excited to watch all your existing and future content. Came over from the friendly CRT robot build. Incredible!!!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +1

      Thanks so much for hanging around, and for the words of support!

  • @_Ben_T
    @_Ben_T 2 года назад +11

    Loving the production quality.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад

      Thank you, Bekar!

    • @benmaxinm
      @benmaxinm Год назад

      Absolutely amazing. Looks like Netflix documentary.

  • @yeraye.falcon2709
    @yeraye.falcon2709 2 года назад +12

    First video of yours that I watch and I'm already addicted. I'm not a techie myself, but the quality of the production and the stories you tell are engaging. I'm looking forward for more!

  • @Hugatry
    @Hugatry 9 месяцев назад +1

    The other day I was watching phone related videos, thinking about different ways I could use an old rotary phone in this day and age. I am glad I stumbled upon this video. Project as interesting, storytelling was relaxed and enjoyable, describing what you are doing in very natural way, as if we were there following your work in person. Then I watched rest of your videos and they were just as great! Excited to see what you come up with next.
    Good luck with all the things new job and moving brings to your life!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  9 месяцев назад

      Thank you, Hugatry! Working on the next version of the Alexatron robot now!

  • @wildedaveable
    @wildedaveable Год назад +1

    Loved the video. Especially loved the end with your chandelier and friends as you spoke of in the beginning of the video, beautiful and touching. Well Done!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Thank so much for watching, and for the kind words!

  • @latterdaydad
    @latterdaydad Год назад +3

    I'm gobsmacked by the production quality of your videos! After watching tech videos on RUclips for years, I'm almost unsure what to do by not being segued to the sponsor and not hearing the same 12 soundtracks they all use. THANK YOU for your thoughtful, unique projects, tone and especially what I can only describe as a cinematic quality so severely lacking on most of RUclips, particularly in the tech informational/educational realm. You have a new fan and I hope you get many, MANY MORE.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Thank you so much for watching, and for the kind words of support!

  • @slblackmamba
    @slblackmamba Год назад +2

    I just watched every single one of your videos and i can't imagine a how perfect your contents are. In every aspect , your videos are crazy good. Content , editting , story telling and everything is just perfect. Hope to see more from you in near future. Thanks for sharing your knowledge with us. God bless 😍

  • @su30mk30
    @su30mk30 2 года назад +3

    Hello.
    Thank you for such a fun video. That was my childhood dream, unfortunately, I had no knowledge or resources to do so. Maybe I will do it now.
    I remember when I saw an advertisement you were looking for old Soviet electronics to repair, I thought it was a kind of scam and someone was looking for electronics just for the gold scrapping.
    I am so glad I was wrong and you bring a second life to those devices.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад

      Thanks so much for watching!

  • @grumblepus
    @grumblepus Год назад +1

    You should add a momentary button to control the ring after picking up the handset, like a mine phone. That way if one gets knocked off the hook the other isn't ringing incessantly until you can hang up the other.
    Fantastic build! I have casually considered something like this and I love how simple your system is.

  • @JohnMassaglia
    @JohnMassaglia Год назад +1

    Having access to a big electronics market like that would be so fun! Thanks for the video.

  • @analogMensch
    @analogMensch Год назад +1

    That's farly one of the easiest way to connect two phones including ringing :) I also run some vintage rotary dial phones here at home (german W28 and FeTAp 611), but they are connected to an ond PBX, which is connected to a VOIP adapter, so I can use these phones to make calls to the outside world :)
    I think the problem you have with the connectors for the phones is, that they short out the upper connections on the phones on your circuit diagram. The capacitors are there to block DC current running to the relay and let AC current for ringing pass through.
    If you put both upper connections on the sleeve of the jacks, they short out and bypass the capacitors, so DC current can run from on side to the other. So if you pick up one phone, the relay of the other phone also will close and disconnect the ringing.
    Solutions for this are isolating the jacks (as yu did) or putting the positive side of the DC to the sleeve (positive ground).
    If you want to build this with a microcontroller, you can also use an series inline relay with DC on the phone. If you dial a number, the relay should flicker. You can sense series relay that's on for a certain amount of time as a picked up phone, and each short pulse on the relay as a number count. a certain amount of downtime on the relay can be detects as hung up phone.
    On german phones pulse dialing was 40/60ms per number, so I think I would try around 350ms for pick up/hung up and everything below 150ms for number pulsing.

  • @dylancoppard9733
    @dylancoppard9733 Год назад

    By far the best video editing on RUclips. Worthy of big production companies

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Wow! Thanks for the kind words, Dylan!

  • @waynestewart1919
    @waynestewart1919 9 месяцев назад +1

    Thank you for sharing that journey. I really enjoyed the simplicity and the retro phones used in this project. I pray God's blessings on your computer shop. Something I would love to have one day.

  • @ericapelz260
    @ericapelz260 Год назад +1

    Beautiful work, both he electronics and the production. Here in the States, we called this a "ring down" circuit; they were typical for field communications at football games.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Thanks for watching, Erica! And for the kind words. :)

  • @ckovalev
    @ckovalev 2 года назад +5

    What an epic! Fantastic project, Thomas. And really well shot/edited, too!

  • @mcabzas
    @mcabzas 2 года назад +4

    Thomas, this video’s got it all! Engaging! Great work.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад

      Thank you, Michelle! My kingdom for an editor like you. :)

  • @mikefitzryk1871
    @mikefitzryk1871 8 месяцев назад +1

    Nice analysis of how to make it work

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  8 месяцев назад

      Thanks for watching, Mike!

  • @itsmehans8056
    @itsmehans8056 Год назад +4

    Saya dari Indonesia, saya harap channel ini bisa berkembang dengan sangat cepat🤲
    Kualitas produksi konten, materi, dan informasi yang disampaikan sangat luar biasa. Saya melihat channel DIY besar lain dengan kualitas di bawah anda, sangat mudah untuk melampaui mereka💪💪

  • @davidcasanova5820
    @davidcasanova5820 Год назад +1

    What the fuck, this is at the level of stuff made here, practical engineering, etc, The quality, music, narrative, heck its even super interesting! RUclips recommend this Channel more and let him grow! Saludos from Spain❤

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Thank you, David! ¡Viva España!

  • @ninomartinenko2071
    @ninomartinenko2071 Год назад +5

    This was so much fun, missed my city streets driving down to Eliava 😁 loved it, interesting and entertaining, Loved seeing Khatuna and the kids too 😍

  • @pavlosslavinskyi4871
    @pavlosslavinskyi4871 Год назад

    First of all respect for the technical aspect it's awesome. Production quality of the million subs channel.
    Secondly, I always respect Georgian people.

  • @ichbinilya
    @ichbinilya 2 года назад +3

    love the chandelier subplot

  • @kd1841
    @kd1841 Год назад +2

    I tried to make a similar intercom system with my kids as part of a Homeschool project. However, I only had a page or two of poorly written instructions and the project flopped. Back then RUclips was mostly cat videos, so I never used it as a school resource. Oh how I wish this video existed long ago. Oh well, nothing stopping me from trying to still make one for myself. 😂 awesome video! ❤from Texas!

  • @avick718
    @avick718 Год назад +1

    8:45
    Twisting the stranded wire before crimping the terminal often leads to the wire falling out of the terminal. The wire is simply unscrewed from the sleeve.
    Crimp only the straight wire!

  • @alyahewich3062
    @alyahewich3062 2 года назад +3

    Уже соскучился! У вас так мало видео... )) а вообще, очень интересная и полезная идея для частного дома. Спасибо и будьте здоровы!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад +1

      Спасибо что посмотрели!

  • @kaueeuripedes9482
    @kaueeuripedes9482 Год назад +1

    man i`m realy facinated with the project and the production of your content, everything is amazing, congrats!

  • @martynehook590
    @martynehook590 Год назад

    I love this so much, you're telling about five stories at once and the production is funny, technical, detailed, touching and just wonderful. I really hope you have zillions of subscribers soon, never more deserved!

  • @I000I
    @I000I Год назад

    5:23 - at first i thought it would be "ave Maria"! 😁
    Astonishing videos you made!
    Those phones, chandelier, but also people and this market. Music and production.
    Really enjoying it! Total gem!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Thanks so much for watching, and for the comment!

  • @haom95
    @haom95 Год назад +1

    Great project!!!!!
    When I was young (probably you just surround the 50's too), I dreamed with this project.
    Until I went to the university to study Electronics Engineering, I faced this challenge. But I did with key telephones, using audio transformers and I felt great, when felt the ring sound..
    But your project is harder, because this rotary phones needs those heavy transformers...
    Awesome project!!!!

  • @James.Bondsai
    @James.Bondsai 2 года назад +1

    Great video Thomas! Absolute joy to watch, and really cool that you made it work!

  • @Nyymi85
    @Nyymi85 7 месяцев назад

    Absolutely inspiring and stunning project. The atmosphere and feeling in your videos are superb!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  7 месяцев назад

      Thanks so much for watching, Vapaamies!

  • @markpirola8152
    @markpirola8152 Год назад

    Thanks for the passion and simple repurposing of these old phones. On the schematics and metal enclosure I trust you added a nice solid earthing wire to both upper and lower lids. Also a good idea to minimise the 240 AC wiring by having the fuse and switch near the inputs to the transformers where possible. Add additional insulation over any exposed 240v.

  • @gregkara427
    @gregkara427 Год назад

    you are gonna make me cry bro, i was born in neighboring Armenia (live in the US now) and i completely understand the courtyard vibes, keep up the great work.

  • @ElenGlazova
    @ElenGlazova 2 года назад +1

    What a wonderful episode Thomas! Amazingly shot, pleasure to watch🙌🏻

  • @simonagherman
    @simonagherman Месяц назад

    I truly enjoyed this video. Love the courtyard as well!

  • @eastmolman
    @eastmolman Год назад +2

    On the old pre rotary phones the ringer uses DC.

  • @BenedictMario
    @BenedictMario Год назад +1

    I love your explanations, you make them easy and fun to follow along for beginners

  • @RafaelCardoso299
    @RafaelCardoso299 Год назад

    I get lost with the technical part , but these videos are mesmerizing to watch ! Such well done video and amazing craftsmanship. Keep rocking !!!!!!!!!

  • @UnwelcomeGuestVideos
    @UnwelcomeGuestVideos Год назад

    Yes yes yes yes yes. Absolutely love the use of these. Very clever AC/DC switching system.

  • @cameronweston1762
    @cameronweston1762 Год назад +1

    Those phones are likely using analog microphones; causing the crackling you hear. Analog microphones use loose carbon granules and tended to shift while the handset is used, this causes the crackling sounds. It could also be static electricity within the phone itself too. Phones are so fun!!!

  • @NoodleFlame
    @NoodleFlame Год назад +1

    My dad did this for my sister and I when we were younger, fun times. We could talk to each other from our bedrooms for hours on end without having to go into each other rooms, the things parents will do to stop their kids getting out of bed 😁
    edit: ours were also very crackly but it just added to the experience!

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +1

      The true test of any cool tech should be whether children like it. :)

  • @RaspduinoUno
    @RaspduinoUno Год назад

    Excellent work. Amazing video production quality as well. Well done!

  • @ajithd19
    @ajithd19 Год назад

    The days of instant and fast content, I love your content it shows you are your passion in people and technology ❤🎉

  • @BreathingAir
    @BreathingAir Год назад +1

    Refreshing to see a channel without built-in paid sponsor reads.

  • @Frank-Y
    @Frank-Y Год назад +1

    You must have a big team making this kind of video quality.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +2

      Hahaha I wish! I do have a few very talented friends who are cameramen and camerawomen, and they've been very generous with their time. I couldn't have done it without them!

  • @mohamedchikhaoui2463
    @mohamedchikhaoui2463 Год назад

    Such great videos. Your projects are so much fun and the production quality is pretty unmatched on RUclips. And also, a wonderful family that you've got. Hope the best for you guys

  • @matthewjenkins1161
    @matthewjenkins1161 Месяц назад +1

    Very interesting project and loving the soviet era telephones.
    But you porobably can use them with a Grandstream ATA for VoIP.
    In the UK I have vintage British rotary pulse dialling telephones working originally with a Grandstream HT502 and now a Grandstream GXW4008.
    I did need to alter the dials make/break ratio to match US standard, but that is just a matter of trial and error with the points gap that flickers during dialling.

  • @isobelcockerell9068
    @isobelcockerell9068 2 года назад +1

    Proud of you Thomas!

  • @harrison2025
    @harrison2025 Год назад

    Really glad i found your channel. Its a wonderful place to
    nerd out and your filming/editing is really well done. Please, keep it up!!

  • @belabertalan
    @belabertalan 8 месяцев назад

    Great video and project. That large transformer looks so cool, it would deserve a transparent acrylic enclosure.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  8 месяцев назад +1

      A clear acrylic enclosure would have been so cool! But given the weight, it would have to be thick acrylic. Thanks for watching, Béla!

  • @KyleBevis-u7j
    @KyleBevis-u7j Год назад

    Your channel is amazing! I’m annoyed RUclips didn’t suggest it sooner. I’m burning through all your videos ❤

  • @dheofugado2117
    @dheofugado2117 Год назад

    I love all the choice of songs, now a subscriber. Kudos!

  • @NicolasMaton
    @NicolasMaton Год назад

    Your channel is a gem everyone should discover

  • @abrahamshabatee4384
    @abrahamshabatee4384 Год назад

    Super cool ☎️ project ❤
    Thank you for sharing kind sir.

  • @antonygreenup
    @antonygreenup Год назад +1

    Your channel is EXCELLENT. THANK YOU SO MUCH.

  • @go-ig1sh
    @go-ig1sh 2 года назад +1

    Wow! Thanks for your work

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад

      Thanks so much for watching!

  • @johnterry8890
    @johnterry8890 Год назад

    Greetings from Texas, USA! Loving this channel. Awesome content. Thank you for sharing your work. I’m positive you will have millions of subs in the future! Have. A great day

  • @FabioEnrico100
    @FabioEnrico100 Год назад

    Wow I am really impressed about the quality of your videos! Good job!

  • @Electroarc24
    @Electroarc24 Год назад +1

    Sir...
    You are so professional when it comes to making videos 😉

  • @danc1470
    @danc1470 21 день назад

    Wonderful!
    Thankyou kindly.
    I appreciate you sir.

  • @NoBug404
    @NoBug404 Год назад

    Looks like a lovely space to be in.

  • @tscomponents33
    @tscomponents33 Год назад +1

    This video, and channel, are great and it needs more views and subs. Glad I found it.

  • @liltr3w339
    @liltr3w339 Год назад +1

    I am not sure how but you became my favourite channel on yt. Actually i know why but this is hard to describe, like i have personal connection with you and your videos, something like your goals are mine as well and when i am watching i get the feeling like we have achieved the result together even i have not moved my ass of my chair :D

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад +1

      Thank you so much! This really means a lot to me. :)

  • @progexmagzweihander7124
    @progexmagzweihander7124 2 года назад +1

    fun build, thanks for the video

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад

      Thanks so much for watching!

  • @akshay-ashok
    @akshay-ashok Год назад

    So glad I found this channel.

  • @-Nobody-1
    @-Nobody-1 3 месяца назад

    As a radio guy my initial reaction is just use radio waves… but i really like this land line style intercom system. Its just cool… maybe cooler than a radio technology version….

  • @weraarchanon3486
    @weraarchanon3486 Год назад +2

    It's great. I love your project. It's incredible but you can do it. Thank you for this video.

  • @peterhayman
    @peterhayman Год назад

    mate youve got a real eye for production, your videos are inspiring my inner child, thank you! ♥

  • @l3chevalier
    @l3chevalier Год назад

    This looks awesome! Nice simple invention, this is the second video I watch (watching it on lunch breaks), I don't want to watch more than 1 a day because I don't want it to end. This channel is amazing ❤🎉 very happy to have this suggested for me, I came up when watching a Adrian Digital Basement episode. Same vibe, but not so much only on computers.

  • @jack_fm2751
    @jack_fm2751 Год назад

    This channel is everything I need

  • @weirdARAB.
    @weirdARAB. Год назад

    Love the style of his videos

  • @4business-englishrundown
    @4business-englishrundown Год назад +1

    Very cool video! Enjoyed watching!

  • @stephenjohnson5380
    @stephenjohnson5380 2 года назад +1

    very enjoyable and interesting Thomas!

  • @mr_dlt
    @mr_dlt Год назад

    Thomas, I found out about your work from the robot friendly video and now you have another fan, this time from Los Angeles, California USA. I love every part of your videos, but my favorite is when you express frustration with your "argh"... :-)

  • @amircogs
    @amircogs Год назад +1

    Beautiful!!

  • @belaoxmyx298
    @belaoxmyx298 Год назад

    I really like the way it’s produced and how he uses recycled parts

  • @p-niel5328
    @p-niel5328 Год назад

    I am a new subscriber here. I am happy that I found another YT Channel whose contents are interesting.

  • @illiadubrovin8995
    @illiadubrovin8995 Год назад +8

    nice skills for upcoming nuclear apocalypse

  • @dtriplett03
    @dtriplett03 Год назад

    1:00 We(You) put the Able in Feasible 😅❤

  • @honda86tb
    @honda86tb Год назад

    Just found my new favorite channel

  • @khatunamikautadze6082
    @khatunamikautadze6082 2 года назад +1

    Great job!

  • @Kim-yr4sy
    @Kim-yr4sy 2 года назад +1

    Awesome video!

  • @fivestarservicesnetwork7887
    @fivestarservicesnetwork7887 Год назад +2

    The crackle is the KGB scrambling to listen in to a system that's been dormant for 35 years. "I don't know what's happening, it just came back to life."

  • @cedricwilford
    @cedricwilford Год назад +1

    Really well done. Subscribed.

  • @pegrunnels42
    @pegrunnels42 2 года назад +1

    Brilliant!

  • @BurkenProductions
    @BurkenProductions 5 месяцев назад

    13:00 This is why you never use steel cases and always plastic, especially when having large transformers and stuff in them and mains power.

  • @claytonconn-mh6ve
    @claytonconn-mh6ve Год назад

    Immediately subbed, dude do this as your full time job, youre damn good man 👨

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  Год назад

      Hahaha I wish I could. But it’s evenings and weekends for now. Working on it!

  • @ashisroy101
    @ashisroy101 Год назад

    Watching 2nd video of this channel. Just subscribed at 13.3K. I am telling you this channel going to sky high very soon.

  • @-Nobody-1
    @-Nobody-1 3 месяца назад +1

    I like the wiring crimping ferrules… always just tinned the wire, but this is a little more “finished” not sure how else to put it.

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  3 месяца назад

      @@-Nobody-1 I have to say that ferrules have really changed by electronics game. They are just a much more elegant solution than twisted bare wire. For low voltage electronics I went ahead and ordered a bunch of tiny 26AWG ferrules, as these never come standard with the ferrule assortment kits. Thanks so much for watching!

  • @juangrijalva7646
    @juangrijalva7646 2 года назад +1

    Love your vids, great content. Watching from Mexico

    • @ThomasBurns
      @ThomasBurns  2 года назад +1

      Thank you, Juan! Viva Mexico!

  • @ashisroy101
    @ashisroy101 Год назад

    So much relaxing classic cinematic beutiful ☺️🫠 video editor and camera person should be awarded 😊

  • @codingwithtd5196
    @codingwithtd5196 Год назад

    Love the videos you are doing. Thanks.

  • @pinu1166
    @pinu1166 6 месяцев назад

    Hello, thank you for the wonderful videos in your channel, they are enjoyable and informative. I have already subscribed to you. I need some advice. I have two hand crank phones (western electric). They do not have any dials, the phone rings when the crank is rotated. Any idea, how can I connect these two phones to make an intercom? thought is if I rotate the crank in one phone the other phone should ring and by lifting the receiver I should be able to start the call. Do I need external battery or any exchange box? what type of wires needed. I am in Oregon USA. Thank you in advance.