Zusatskasten E - A rare telephone fitting!

[M19 MADMAL]

Hi all,

After a chat with MNO KI while watching an M 19 turret room being excavated at Chouet on Guernsey (!), he kindly supplied me with the following info about the Zusatskastern E, which it has been discovered is the telephone fitting placed between the fortress telephone and the battery box found in both the crew standby and ammunition room of the Type 633 bunker

Has anyone ever seen one of these 'in the flesh' as they seem to be unique to the Type 633 as I have never seen the mounting points for them in any other bunker types

Any info or photos of a real example of a Zusatskasten E would be greatly welcome

Regards,

Malcolm

[jopaerya]

Hi Malcolm

This is not my speciality but here a drawing that I found with the "Zusatzkasten E "

Regards Jos

[JTG]

What does it actually do?

[MNO KI]

It's basically a 5 line mini exchange.
Regards
Paul

[JTG]

Hi Paul,

for internal or external lines or both?

John

[M19 MADMAL]

It's basically a 5 line mini exchange.
Regards
Paul

AH That would explain why its found in an M 19 bunker and it must have been for allowing the phones found both in the ammo and standy room's, which had these Zusatskastern E, to be able to 'pick' which of the other phones within the bunker or an outside line the opperator could speak to.

The attachment below was posted elsewhere on this forum (originally by Jos I think?) and as you can see there was 2 telephones on the M 19 mortar (Festungsfernsprecher M and a Linienfernsprecher), 2 in the ammunition room (Festungsfernsprecher and a Linienfernsprecher) and also a festungsfernsprecher in the standby room. Which makes 5 phones.

As the Zusatzkastern E has 5 switches under it to change between 5 different lines then it would seem that the 2 phones fitted with these would be able to choose which of the other 4 phones within the M 19 the opperator could speak to, as well as being able to choose the phone line that leaves the bunker.

I think the headset telephones (Kopffernsprecher) opperated on an 'open mike' system so would not be applicable as you don't see this kind of set up where they are used, like in Jäger, 6-Sch, 631 and 631b bunkers, where several of these were fitted.

Regards,
Malcolm

BTW. Thanks for the photo Jos

[JTG]

Now I'm beginning to to wonder about 6-Sch !

The open Mike circuit would only have been operational in the Cupola?

John

[M19 MADMAL]

Now I'm beginning to to wonder about 6-Sch !

The open Mike circuit would only have been operational in the Cupola?

John

Hi John,

Not 100% sure - but I know there was a Linienfernsprecher (the small phone where the hand set hooks on to the bottom) in the crew room which connected to either the phone circuit for head set phones in the turret or to the Festungsfernsprecher R which was mounted on the raised pillar in the centre of the turret, and forms the base of the periscope mount. As there are 2 telephone lines going into the turret (at least in the 634 at Stp. Corbiere) it would suggest that the circuit for the head sets is connected to the Linienfernsprecher and the Festungsfernsprecher R connects to outside the bunker so the periscope opperator/ bunker commander could relay his observations to other bunkers or recieve orders as to where to fire. but like i say I'm not 100% on this

Regards,
Malcolm

[jopaerya]

Hi Malcolm

Found here some more information about the Zusatzlasten E ( Merci Perros )
http://www.rkk-museum.ru/documents/arch ... 6-1940.pdf

Regards Jos

[der bunkermann]

thanks jos, for sharing the link to this interesting book!
loads of accurate information about the nachrichten stuff inside the bunkers
finally found a drawing that shows the ''deckel'' of our -zuck und druck taste-..

gr, Tim

[JTG]

Is this one?

[AvB]

That's it

[JTG]

Really?

<fx: innocence>

Funny what people find in their garages....

[AvB]

5 knobs on the bottom. Short and long pipe on top. Looks like it yes.

[der bunkermann]

Nice find.. i never find such nice stuff in my garage