Dialing issue with the 5304 IP phones

[Rango Phones]

Hello

I work at a school district that uses the 5304 IP phones for teacher classrooms.  Over the last 6 months I have received numerous complaints that the number keys are not functioning properly when a user attempts to dial an extension.  For example, a user reported today that they have to press the 1 key multiple times before it accepts the number.  Other users report that random keys will suddenly stop working.

I have inspected the devices to check if the keys feel stuck or gummed up, but everything appears to be fine.  With the first couple of reports I thought maybe the devices were simply getting old and defective.  However, I've since had three more with the same issue.  I do not know the exact age of these phones, as they were here when I started the job 4 years ago.  Is there anything you would suggest I try to troubleshoot these?  Or, do you think the devices are just beginning to fail due to age?

At $170 a pop I'm really hoping we don't have to start replacing all of these...

[acejavelin]

Why are you paying $170 each for these?!?! If you are replacing them, look into the 6920... You can get new ones for $123 or refurb "A" grade for around $100, both include a 1 year warranty and they are 10 times the phone the 5304 is, but if you really like the 5304 sets, you can get grade "A" refurbished units for under $50, also with a 1 year warranty. These are ones I found very quickly just looking at pcliquidations.com, but metrolinedirect.com, atlasphones.com, and startechtel.com all have them around the same price.

The most likely issue here is the phones are just failing... they are a minimum of 5 years old, probably closer to double that, and are getting toward the end of life as Mitel is slowly migrating away from the 5300 series phones altogether. I would not put any real effort into them or get new ones. You obviously don't have a maintenance contract with your current vendor that includes phones, or they would be taking care of this, so they shouldn't have an issue with you going elsewhere for devices as long as you use them for service and major hardware.

[artieouellette]

5304 phones are not great I have hundreds of them and replace at least a dozen a month, mostly hook switch problems but some bad key pads, mi e are covered under a maintenance contract but I get them from my VAR for 120


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[VinceWhirlwind]

The out-of-the-box reliability of the 6930 is about 10x better than the 6920, and they only cost a tiny bit more.

[sunspark]

Hi  ,

Do you have a Heartbeat error on the logs menu ?

[patrickez]

The problem with the 5304 phone is the design of the plastic pieces are not rigid enough to keep the parts of the hookset switch steady. So when someone stabs there finger at the number pad, it deforms the frame and closes the hook even though the handset is not in the cradle.  It's momentary, but enough to screw up the call.
I found a way to tie the plastic body layers together so it keeps the hookset stable.  Disassemble the phone and you will see a "well" that the hookswitch parts rest in.  You can tie the top layer down to the well by drilling 2 small holes at the bottom of the well and carefully thread some strong waxed lacing string through the holes and tie the circuit board down on top of it. I can provide pictures if you want to see how to do it.  It take about 30 minutes to do it which is usually a little less then buying a new phone (that will do the same thing eventually).

[lundah]

The problem with the 5304 phone is the design of the plastic pieces are not rigid enough to keep the parts of the hookset switch steady. So when someone stabs there finger at the number pad, it deforms the frame and closes the hook even though the handset is not in the cradle.  It's momentary, but enough to screw up the call.
I found a way to tie the plastic body layers together so it keeps the hookset stable.  Disassemble the phone and you will see a "well" that the hookswitch parts rest in.  You can tie the top layer down to the well by drilling 2 small holes at the bottom of the well and carefully thread some strong waxed lacing string through the holes and tie the circuit board down on top of it. I can provide pictures if you want to see how to do it.  It take about 30 minutes to do it which is usually a little less then buying a new phone (that will do the same thing eventually).

At this point the whole 5300 line has been EOL for a good 5+ years. You're better off just going ahead and spending the money for a 6905 or 6910.

[rikko]

Where I work, we have about 3700 pieces of 5304 telephones, so replacing them with new model is a capital investment, currently not feasible. I've faced the issue described in this thread, sometimes on brand new phones if they were sitting inside the box, long enough.
My finding is that the hook spring is insufficient to do the task. It compresses over time, and that causes the poor plunger contact, which can easily be interrupted by pressing buttons on the keypad, especially button 1. There are other symptoms as well, depending on the condition of the spring.

So I took it upon myself to do some basic calculations, and based on my measurement, I picked a spring in McMaster-Carr catalogue. Spring is a bit different, but it's close enough, and unlike the Mitel spring which has no coils, MCM-C spring has 3 of them. Once I installed them, my measurements were confirmed correct. 4 years now, the telephones with new springs are still working.

The spring that I got is catalogue number 9271K31, if anyone wonders.

Name: Torsion Spring
Type: 90 Degree, Left-Hand Wound
OD: 0.315"
For Shaft Dia.: 0.187"
Wire Dia.: 0.035"             
Leg Lg.: 1.25"
Number of Coils: 3.25
Max. Torque, in.-lbs.: 1.071
Material: Music-Wire Steel
Pkg. Qty.: 6
Maker