Vintage Phones

Sefton · Jan 15, 2009

Those can go as high as $400 depending on the condition and how much restoration they've had. Some have the old paint bead blasted off and new paint applied, any worn or damaged parts replaced with new old stock, and if the ringer box is original (a key part of the price).
I got mine from a gentleman who does nothing but restore and sell vintage phones. His price includes a full warranty on parts and labor. You may get lucky and score one just as fine for a lot less, especially now that the economy has slowed things down (at least that's how it seems to me-I've made some very good deals on Ebay recently that I don't imagine I could have just a year earlier).

Josephine · Jan 15, 2009

Brinybay said:
... a live auction on the latter, but has now closed. It went for $132.00 + shipping, is that too much? It was for me, I quit when it started getting over $80. I factor in the cost of shipping with the max I want to pay. In this case, it was $10.00 to ship it to Seattle, so I thought that was reasonable.

The revival of this thread sent me looking again, and I was watching that auction. I would have bid on it, as I think $132 was a good price, but there wasn't a ringer box, and I'd would have had to have the guy at PhoneQuest refinish it and maybe get a box from him or on eBay, which would be more and I need to look at our budget.

The PhoneQuest guy sells beautiful 201s w/ ringer box at the DC Big Flea for about $345

BinkieBaumont · Jan 15, 2009

British Bakelite Telephones

This is a good site for British telephones

http://www.antiquetelephones.abdyantiques.co.uk/

Forgotten Man · Jan 16, 2009

David Conwill said:
A tip: try Craigslist first, or at least limit your eBay searches to your locale, because old phones are heavy (that's why they've lasted) and they cost a fortune to ship. If I recall correctly, my AE80 was something like $4.99 (nobody bid against me) but was going to be $15.00 to ship across town. Thankfully, it was only across town and I convinced the seller to drop it off to me at work.

-Dave

Try paying for the shipping on a brass bladed antique electric fan off of eBay! They'll soak ya $25-$35 bucks to ship one of them things!

Phones do weigh a bit but not as much as other things! Especially a cast iron electric fan from 1919!

Brinybay · Jan 16, 2009

Forgotten Man said:
Try paying for the shipping on a brass bladed antique electric fan off of eBay! They'll soak ya $25-$35 bucks to ship one of them things! Phones do weigh a bit but not as much as other things! Especially a cast iron electric fan from 1919!

Some of the phones I see are just as much in regards to the shipping, but I factor that into the max I'm willing/able to pay and bid accordingly. e.g. using the one that I mentioned that just ended as an example, shipping was $10 to Seattle. I was only willing to spend $80, so my max bid was $70. I was watching it as it ticked to a close, and even if I could have afforded more, the winning bid was "swooped", i.e. submitted in the last couple of seconds so competing bidders couldn't respond in time.

David Conwill · Jan 16, 2009

Brinybay said:
...the winning bid was "swooped", i.e. submitted in the last couple of seconds so competing bidders couldn't respond in time.

Hmm, I usually hear that practice called "sniping."

-Dave

Forgotten Man · Jan 16, 2009

Well, if you want a Western Electric 102 or 202 figure you'll pay anywhere from $80-$250 or so for one. If you can get one that's working and in good shape for under $200. you're doin' great!

The 102s go for more since they're earlier... and they aren't as common as the 202s... I have a 202 and it looks the same as the 102s just with an oval base and in my opinion, it looks better then the 102s... the oval base gives it a nice balance about it.

A Western Electric 102 or 202 model aren't too heavy at all... maybe just over a pound or so... not that much. Now, if it comes with the ringer box, then the shipping cost goes up some... only if it's a wood ringer box... the metal ones are light because all it has in side is wires and two brass bells.

Some people selling these things are trying to make a little extra dough off the shipping... be careful of that.

Brinybay · Jan 17, 2009

David Conwill said:
Hmm, I usually hear that practice called "sniping."

-Dave

Is it? Ok, I defer to the more commonly used term. Nobody in my circle of friends and acquaintances does much on eBay. I had to show a lady friend how to bid and search on eBay, so I just invented my own term.

Forgotten Man · Jan 18, 2009

Phone tricks...

Ok, for those candlestick owners, have any of yous mastered the receiver toss from the hook? Like Mickey Rooney does in the "Andy Hardy" pictures? I have practiced and have become quite comfortable with my Western Electric... just hold the hook in the down position and give flick the phone to the left and the receiver handset just flips and then catch it with the left hand... I can do it rather well now, it's fun to answer the phone like that especially when I have people over... they go for it in a big way!

Just curious more then anything.

David Conwill · Jan 18, 2009

Still, I kinda like "swooping", it's less violent.

To keep it on topic, did I show you folks my new phone accessory?

ThinkGeek's Retro Handset for Bluetooth-enabled cellphones. It's great, though too light.

I still want to make a plug-in handset from an old General Electric 500 handset, but I can't find one that's been orphaned or with a destroyed receiver to start with (I hate to ruin a functional old phone).

-Dave

dhermann1 · Jan 18, 2009

Northern Electric Galeon

I got this Northern Electric Galeon, dated 1947, on Ebay a couple months ago. Works perfectly. Has a ring that would wake anyone from the deepest coma.
I thought that digging up the source of the name might be very esoteric. Turns out they're called Galeon phones because they were manufactured in Galeon, Ohio.
I had at first wanted a good old Western Electric 302, just like the one my family had on Riverside Drive back in the early 50's. But this elegant shape caught my eye, and and voila! Here she is.
My building will be getting Fios some time this spring and I'm tempted to go all digital. We'll see. I like the old fashioned sensation of dialing, and if I go VOIP, I'll have to use a beeper doodad to dial. Not the same.

It cost about $150 as I recall. Much depends upon the rarity as well. Upstate we had a small local phone company (since absorbed by Alltel). They used Automatic Electric gear, instead of Western Electric. The equivalent of the WE202 is the AE Monophone. Very similar but with a slightly larger base. The equivalent of the WE302 is their AE34 or 40. The AE 34 goes for as much as $300 or $400, compared to about $150 for a fully restored 302. They're virtually identical in function. The AE has a more sculptured look, with more angular facets.
BTW, I figured out that my currant exchange must have been BElmont, the first numbers of my phone number being 231. Do we have a thread for original phone exchange names? My old number was MOnument 3 3470, we're talking 1953. I still remember from age 5.

Forgotten Man · Jan 18, 2009

David Conwill said:
Still, I kinda like "swooping", it's less violent.

To keep it on topic, did I show you folks my new phone accessory?

ThinkGeek's Retro Handset for Bluetooth-enabled cellphones. It's great, though too light.

I still want to make a plug-in handset from an old General Electric 500 handset, but I can't find one that's been orphaned or with a destroyed receiver to start with (I hate to ruin a functional old phone).

-Dave

Oh, that looks like an F1 handset to a 302 WE!

Swooping? How do ya swoop a candlestick? How is the hook flip violent? I think it's fancy!

Lily Powers · Jan 18, 2009

Forgotten Man said:
Ok, for those candlestick owners, have any of yous mastered the receiver toss from the hook? Like Mickey Rooney does in the "Andy Hardy" pictures? I have practiced and have become quite comfortable with my Western Electric... just hold the hook in the down position and give flick the phone to the left and the receiver handset just flips and then catch it with the left hand... I can do it rather well now, it's fun to answer the phone like that especially when I have people over... they go for it in a big way!

Just curious more then anything.

Actually, yes! I can do that receiver toss! (I can also ride a bicycle with no hands, but I'll save that for another thread.) Here's a picture of my candlestick on top of its ringer box. It's a WE 151AL with a WE 4H dial. I think the mouth piece is called a bullnose? It was a pretty penny but I love it.
.............

..... .............

David Conwill · Jan 19, 2009

Forgotten Man said:
Oh, that looks like an F1 handset to a 302 WE!

Doesn't it, though? The only difference is that it's about ten pounds too light. When I removed it from the packaging I nearly threw it over my shoulder because I was expecting it to be heavier.

Swooping? How do ya swoop a candlestick? How is the hook flip violent? I think it's fancy!

Sorry, different discussion. We were discussing eBay sniping above.

-Dave

Brinybay · Jan 23, 2009

Telephone EXchange Name Project

Came across this database while surfing the net. One hint: Not sure if it's just my computer (I've been having problems with it lately), but the database is slow as molasses in IE. Does better in FF.

I submitted the exchange I remember we had as a kid in the 60s. In fact, I still remember the entire phone # because our parents drilled it into us.

Telephone EXchange Name Project

Brinybay · Jan 29, 2009

So what did I get?

The competition (and prices) of my preferred model of choice, a WE 202, is fierce, so I downgraded a bit and looked at other (less costly) models.

I got this from a Craigslist post today for $30. Dial and switch hook seem to function ok, of course it needs the modern plug in to test it. It looks like at one time someone "modernized" it with the 4-prong plug. Take a look at the dial card, it has some Asian markings on it. I removed the plastic doo-dad in one picture so you can better see them. (It was badly yellowed and has what is probably the glue remnants of a price tag on it). The previous owner could only tell me it belonged to his Dad who passed away 10 years ago, no idea where he got it. Perhaps belonged to a Chinese restaurant? The letters "NEC" inside a diamond appear on the handset, dial, and body of the phone. Bakelite body with metal bottom. Also the "spit-cup" is a little different than the E1's I've seen, this one has slots.

Sefton · Jan 29, 2009

Brinybay that's a nice looking phone and for a good price. The writing on the dial insert isn't Chinese it's Japanese. I tried to inlarge it to see if I could read it with my limited Japanese skills, but the resolution isn't sharp enough to make out all of the characters. If you're interested to know just post a clear picture once you receive the phone.

Brinybay · Jan 29, 2009

Sefton said:
Brinybay that's a nice looking phone and for a good price. The writing on the dial insert isn't Chinese it's Japanese. I tried to inlarge it to see if I could read it with my limited Japanese skills, but the resolution isn't sharp enough to make out all of the characters. If you're interested to know just post a clear picture once you receive the phone.

I have it, those are pics I took at home. I hate Image Shack. Here's a better look at the center of the dial. NEC - Northern Electric Company?

Forgotten Man · Jan 29, 2009

Lily Powers said:
Actually, yes! I can do that receiver toss! (I can also ride a bicycle with no hands, but I'll save that for another thread.) Here's a picture of my candlestick on top of its ringer box. It's a WE 151AL with a WE 4H dial. I think the mouth piece is called a bullnose? It was a pretty penny but I love it.
.............

..... .............

Swell! A fellow receiver tosser!

Bullnose? Close, it's bulldog. That transmitter piece was a common replacement in the 40s or 50s for candlesticks. You can order the original from phoneco if you'd like. My self I like the look of the original mouth piece and transmitter better. That is a nice ringer box! I'd like to find one of them for my 202 oval.

Sweet phone!

Sefton · Jan 29, 2009

Brinybay said:
I have it, those are pics I took at home. I hate Image Shack. Here's a better look at the center of the dial. NEC - Northern Electric Company?

That's much better. The NEC inside the diamond stands for Nippon Electric Company which was originally the Japanese version of Ma Bell. I believe that what you have is a phone made for use in Japan! I believe that it should work here. As for NEC,they still exist of course ,except now they're mainly about computer chips and the like. I'll get the rest translated shortly.
Jon

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