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                     $      The Battery Box       $
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What is the Battery Box?

 The Battery Box is a device that will defeat the muted mouthpiece on most
pay phones. In some cities the local telco will disable the mouthpiece on
their phones to prevent Red Box fraud. Until recently this was an incurable 
problem, but now thanks to batteries this problem has been solved!

Construction

  The Battery Box is a simple modification that can be made to any 9 volt
connector. Here are the materials we'll need...

(1) 9 volt Battery (Rat Shack Cat # 23-583)
(1) 9 volt Connector (Rat Shack Cat # 270-324)
(2) Alligator Clips. Preferably Red and Black.

 All totaled the Battery Box costs around $5.30 (excluding tax).

Schematic


 
   9 volt Connector   ------- \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\------{
                    /       /  \\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\\-----{ Gator Clips
                     ------        Wires
                     \/  \/ 
                    _/\__/\__
                   |         |
                   |         |
                   | BATTERY |
                   |         |
                   |_________|


Instructions

 First, you'll have to strip the free ends of the 9 volt connector. Now, 
carefully solder the two alligator clips onto the wires and you are 
finished.

 
How to Use the Battery Box

 You'll have to find a pay phone that is muted, and make a few minor 
modifications before you can use the box. You will need a pair of tin snips,
a pocket knife, and needle nose pliers for this procedure. 

 Lift the handset and look underneath the mouthpiece. Look for the blue cord
protector directly under it. This tube covers the hole where the sheath runs 
into the handset. Take your pocket knife and cut the top of the tube off so 
it becomes free. You should now be able to slide the tube up and down the 
sheath easily. Now take your tin snips and make a cut where the blue tube 
was located. Do not cut too far into the sheath because you may damage the 
wires inside. Once you have made the cut, use the needle nose pliers to pull 
out the wires inside. There should be five wires. One of the wires is air 
craft cable which is difficult to cut. Ignore this wire and turn your 
attention to the other four wires. Two of them should be white. These wires 
lead to the ear piece of the handset and are of no use to you. The remaining 
two wires should be colored RED and BLACK. These wires run to the mouthpiece. 
Pull out the Red and Black wires. Take out your pocket knife and strip back 
the insulation. Now attach the gator clips firmly to the exposed wires. In 
case you haven't noticed the wires are the same color as those on the 9 volt 
connector. Attach the Red gator clip to the red wire and the black clip to 
the black wire. Now plug in the battery and lift the handset. If all went 
well the mouthpiece will be clear! If the piece is still muted, adjust the 
clips until you hear a quiet crackling noise in the ear piece. Blow into the 
mouthpiece, and you should be able to hear the side tone. If not, keep 
adjusting the clips. Making a clear connection is probably the hardest part 
of the procedure.
 
 When you are finished using the battery, remember to push the blue cord
protector tube back into it's original spot to hide the damage.

Theory of Operation

 The mute inside the pay phone is controlled by voltages. When the handset
is lifted, current is allowed to flow freely from the phone to the ear piece.
However, the current running to the mouthpiece is stopped most likely by
a capacitor. This creates the "mute". When a ring tone is detected by 
equipment in the phone, the voltage is increased making conversation 
possible. 
 
 The Battery Box works by increasing the voltage in the mouthpiece so it can
transmit sound. When a phone is in the off hook position only six volts are
present. The volts are evenly distributed leaving only three volts to power
the mouthpiece. When a pay phone handset is off hook only three volts are
present. The Battery Box adds the extra voltage to the mouthpiece which 
enables it to work. You are now free to use your Red Box on any phone you 
choose!

Enjoy your new toy!


DISCLAIMER:

 This file is presented for educational and informational purposes only. 
The author does not take responsibility for your actions if this material 
is used in any other fashion.


