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10-button Dial Upgrade

(What's this copyright notice?)

Could a 10-button touchtone dial on a Western Electric phone be upgraded to 12-buttons?

No, and yes.

Early dials were designed to be 10-button, period ("non-convertible").
Once Western Electric decided that 12 buttons was the way of the future, in around 1968, the 10-button dials were redesigned to be convertible, like the 25W3 shown below. They had holes where the "*" and "#" keys would be, and were shipped with tape covering the holes.

A kit of parts was available, which could be installed during a set refurb and conversion.
(Anyone have one available or photos to add below?)

"Material and parts required to convert convertible 10-button TOUCH-TONE dials to 12-button dials."

D-180115 - for 25-type dials (with gray buttons)
D-180116 - for 25-type illuminated dials (with translucent buttons)

After adoption of the 12 button standard, all dials were shipped with "*" and "#" keys.

Western Electric 1500D with 25W3 dial.

Delivered with 10 buttons, field upgradable to 12. Requires addition of "*" and "#" keys and replacement of filler panel. This makes the phone a 2500D.

Detail of 10-button 25W3 dial.

Tape on the "*" key hole is removed to show the shape of the hole.

A 10-button filler panel, as on the phone above, covers the taped holes.

Click on the image to get an enlarged view.

Detail of 10-button 25W3 dial for 12-button panel.

If the same dial were to be installed on a phone with a 12-button filler panel, a small plastic cover was used to fill in the unused 2 holes.

These fillers have to be scarcer than 1500 sets!

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