Gray 13A Coin Collector
Published: February 2011
This month we are looking at 2 Gray #13As from my collection. One looks to be older, it has a brass tag with the instructions on it. The other one appears to be NOS (New Old Stock). Everything is perfect, the paint, the nickel plating and even the keys. There is no wear on it. This one has screws in it that would mount the instruction plate but unfortunately it is missing. These collectors are very simple, they take a nickel and that’s it! When a nickel is dropped in the slot it strikes a bell. A candlestick phone is attached directly to the collector, the sound of the bell resonates through the bottom plate and arms into the phone so that the sound can be picked up by the transmitter. I would suppose these were used only for making local calls. This model was not made to be mounted to a wall or counter, they are portable. Each one has a carry handle that can be seen in the pictures. They would be used in areas such as restaurants.