This switchboard was developed by the Germans in late WW2. It contains all of the elements of the Small, 10-Line Switchboard, but for only 5-Lines and in a very crudely made, cost reduced wooden housing. Hinged covers protect the front and rear of the switchboard during transport.
The 5 telephone lines are connected at the rear by the top and middle rows of terminals. The top row is for La and the middle row is for Lb. The five terminals in the bottom row are for connecting the operator’s field telephone and an optional DC bell and batteries. The first two terminals on the left are for the phone. The last three terminals are the W and WB connections for the bell.
The Small, 5-Line Switchboard is VERY rare, especially outside of the EU. They are difficult to find and expensive. Incidentally, Rochus Misch was Hitler’s telephone operator and operated the switchboard in the Fuhrer Bunker at the close of the war. In his book, Hitler’s Last Witness, Misch stated the the Fuhrer Bunker switchboard only had 5-Lines. It was probably one of these units perhaps with a rotary dial Amtszusatz.
For more information about this switchboard, visit my friend Albert Lampl’s website… https://der-fernmelder.de/geraete-der-nachrichtentechnik/klappenschrank-zu-5-leitungen/
Check out my new book on WW2 German field telephone equipment… https://www.lulu.com/en/us/shop/rotwang-manteuffel/world-war-2-german-field-telephone-equipment-a-basic-guide-for-reenactors-and-historians/paperback/product-976w9q.html?page=1&pageSize=4
WW2 German Field Telephone Equipment 