Fg Tist 282, an innovative German design classic

Siemens & Halske Fg Tst 282 Rot
Siemens & Halske Fg Tst 282 Rot

And to think that this model evolved from an even more outrageous design! Also called the M55 or Modell 55 this model was introduced in 1955, when most of Europe was still struggling from WW2. As the economies of the various countries started to pick up, there started to be some room for luxury and innovation and not just rebuilding and restoration.
So in a world full of black bakelite, Zamac and sheet metal with a touch of wood here and there, Siemens & Halske came up with this. And it made quite an impact, as it won several design awards. It even made it into the collection of the Museum of Modern Art, only the 3rd telephone to do so.

Out of the box, the drum dialler

Fg Tist 261 264 side
Fg Tist 261 264 side
Fg Tist 261 264 front
Fg Tist 261 264 front

Even before the war developers at Siemens & Halske had started to rethink the lay-out of the telephone and after the war they came up with an unconventional model called the Fg Tist 261 (264 for coloured versions). This model was compact, easy to repair and maintain but mostly it was made with not just “form follows function” but very much more ergonomics in mind. Also they wanted their product to stand out from the others, as there were a great many similar bakelite telephones on the market.

Fg Tist 261 264 dial
Fg Tist 261 264 dial

This lead to its two most striking features. Firstly the vertically placed handset, which makes it much easier to pick up, prevents the user from operating the dial prematurely and does not lead to the cord being on the wrong side. When picking up the handset on a conventional telephone with the right hand, the cord needs to be on the right side.
Secondly there was the unique drum dialler. Originally it was developed for switch board operators, to relieve strain on their arms and shoulders and it allowed for a faster dialling at a normal pulse rate compared to the regular rotary dial.

Evolution: a step back and several steps forward

Siemens & Halske Fg Tist 282
Siemens & Halske Fg Tist 282

As the drum dialler did not sell as well as hoped, Siemens & Halske redesigned it even further and quite radically. Only the basic lay-out was retained, together with the shape of the handset and body shell, although the hookswitch was integrated into the body shell on the 282.
The drum dial was dropped for a more conventional dial, which basically was a NrS 38 from 1938.
On the other hand maximum use was made of new plastics for the various external components, making it one of the first European telephones in which this was applied.
On the inside, all components were placed on a cast metal sub frame, both on top and on the underside. In this way maximum use is made of the inside space, allowing for a more compact design. This sub frame can be released with two bolts, allowing easy access for maintenance and repair.
It’s electronics were improved, leading to a better sound quality. Instead of a wiring loom, bare solid metal wires were used to connect the components.

Fg Tist 282 chassis
Fg Tist 282 chassis

A small wheel on the underside controller the volume of the ringer.
The number window was recessed in the housing, under the transmitter cap. The protruding number windows on older telephone designs were prone to damage.
And most of all a broader range of experts and consultants were attracted for all aspects of the design details.
It was this last aspect that lead to the 282 being available in a standard range of 5 carefully selected colours: black, two tone grey, white, red and green.

Legacy and availability

As is so often the case with great designs, many of the features of the 282 were not new, but they were never before combined in one design. The large number of plastic telephones that followed in the late 50s and especially the 1960s were not only inspired by the WE 500 and the Assistent (SEL/BTMC), but also by the Fg Tist 282.
And although it came in five colours, it heralded, together with the Assistent, a flood of grey telephones that dominated European offices and homes for almost 2 decades.

Fg tist 282 magneto
Fg tist 282 magneto

As Siemens sold 500.000 units of this model, they are not very rare, especially the black and of course the grey ones . Even though offered as a standard colour, white ones are less abundant and even more rare are the red and green ones.
Most of them have a white earthing button on the right side, but there are also versions with the button on the left side, without an earthing button, a blinker or a small light.
There is also a magneto version and there are versions with push buttons. Those button 282’s are very rare and sought after.
There is also a wall version of this telephone, but that is a later seperate development. It was made only in grey and ivory.

In my collection…..

 

Fg Tist 282 grey and black
Fg Tist 282 grey and black

As some of you may know I collect red telephones. I did have a grey and black 282, but a red version was very high on my wish list.
I was able to acquire my specimen in October 2015, having been outbid a couple of times on ebay. I took a gamble with this one, as it looked very dull and matte. It was complete and undamaged and had original cords in good condition even though the marks on the caps and housing indicate that it has seen much use.
I gave it a good polish and my gamble paid off: it was just dull and not discoloured. Otherwise it did not need very much work and it looks great now, if I say so myself.
It does however have some issues I want to solve in the future: the foam rubber gasket between the dial and the body shell has disintegrated, the lettering on the bottom has disappeared and the paper diagram that is usually folded and tucked next to the capacitor is missing.
Having worked on this red one and researched this model I have started to develop a liking for this model. I wonder if I will buy a white and green version to, to complete the full range of colours. What do you think?

Acknowledgements: this article is based on Siemens documentation in my collection, information provided by Dietrich Arblenz and his book: Vom Trommelwähler zu Optiset E and Siemens Industrial Design, by the Design Zentrum München.
The photographs of the Fg Tist 261/264 Trommelwahl were provided by fellow collector Peter Beyer.

9 Comments

  1. Dear Arwin, this is a great essay about the 282. I admire your site, and I love this phone, too. – The sound quality had been improved by making use of special contact material in the hookswitch contacts (“Sonderkontaktwerkstoff”) and by the new dynamic receiver capsule Fg tph 57 (instead of the old magnetic Fg tph 10 from the W48). The bare wiring, however, had been used in order to save money because the process of wiring and soldering became much quicker.

    • Thanks very much Stephan.
      I will add the additional information to the description of this type elsewhere on my site.
      I am going to update that piece when I have all colours. There is a white one underway. 🙂

  2. Nice post Arwin. I have the black Fg Tist 261 and I am trying to fix it to make work. I got the same passion which you have. Could you advise on where to get the right schematic for the headset connection? Also I am planning to change the line cord to RJ11 4P4C type in order to work with modern line. Kindly advise. Thank you and best regards.. Sara

    • Hi Sara, I’m not a big fan of changing cords. Newer cords tend to look out of place, not in character with the phone. What is on the other end of your cord? A plug? Terminal box? Nothing, just frayed wires? 🙂

      Regards, Arwin

  3. I, as you probably know, in between own all colors exept from the green one. Your story seems to be exactly mine cause i find myself addicted to that phone, it is so cute. At the moment i am reinstalling the original braided cords and got rid of the to me ugly modern spirale types. Trying to adapt the colors that would fit to the color of the mother. That is dark brown for the red, grey for the grey, dark grey for the one with the dark receiver and ivory for the ivory one. Looks marvelous. First i was afraid of exchanging the receiver cords but it worked out fantastically easy.

    • Thanks Christoph. I saw the pictures on line and the result looked great. Hard to tell the difference between the new cords and the originals.
      Regards, Arwin

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