Martin's Mobile (MNDX 341)
MNDX No.341
MNDX No. 341 was a one of a batch of 200 mobile exchanges produced in 1972 for the GPO and was used in the South East Region. It was designed to be moved on low-loaders, hence the wheels are only to support the trailer and allow manoeuvring once on site.  
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POST  OFFICE   MNDX
TELEPHONES
         341
TELEPHONE MANAGER
                    

GPO
72 830 0042

History

MNDX341 was recovered from Teradyne of Bracknell in 1997 by Martin Loach who is restoring it to an original condition. The unit was built as a 400 line exchange, but was modified by Teradyne to work as two separate exchanges communicating with each other via a simulated Group Switching Centre (GSC) using DC2 and PCM signalling. The mobile was kept inside an industrial unit for eight years prior to it being rescued, so the bodywork was in excellent condition.


On the Move...

"On the move"
Transferring to the low loader outside Teradyne. With an overall height of more than 12 feet, it's not as easy as you might think!

Centre Aisle

Meters

Meters on the left, rows and rows of selectors & relay sets galore! Collector's dream or maintenance man's nightmare? Checking out the wiring and finding the correct diagrams is a massive task!
Selectors galore
Various sundry items
Getting the first aid kit just right and re-building the battery boxes takes plenty of time and patience. Identifying the various and sundry items and keeping everything clean and tidy is a full time job ! 


You can see more of Martin's photographs on The Strowger Appreciation Site

Teradyne Ltd

Teradyne had used the MNDX 341 for training and field testing of equipment that they re-designed to BT specifications. SCOT -the Stepper Central Office Tester (American in origin) was deployed in many Strowger exchanges to enable remote routine testing of equipments.  The fact that SCOT could be configured remotely and also report back any problems over the same access gateway made it particularly suitable for testing unattended exchanges, especially UAX13s and SAXs. Another test product was 4TEL and it's no wonder that Teradyne are continuing as suppliers of test equipment to the industry

Photos: Martin Loach
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