Aug 16
$1,500.00 - 1890’s W.E. Repeater Coils (seven)
$1,275.00 - Western Electric E4 multi-line
$987.77 - Western Electric model 102
$860.00 - A.E. Wall Phone (early rotary dial)
$578.99 - Automatic Electric Sunburst Dial
$511.99 - Automatic Electric Sunburst Dial
$487.99 - Automatic Electric Model 40 (ivory)
$455.09 - Post & Co. Ringer (circa 1878?)
$405.00 - W.E. 3-slot payphone (1920s)
$399.00 - Stromberg-Carlson 1157 Wall Phone
$375.00 - Stromberg-Carlson Type 1243
$360.00 - W.E. Model 653A Wall Phone
$328.00 - Kellogg Oak Wall Phone
$321.66 - Automatic Electric AE34
Jul 05
$1,262.97 - Automatic Electric Model 50
$850.00 - Stromberg-Carlson “Oilcan” (BIN)
$787.00 - Charles Williams wood phone w/wood receiver
$600.00 - Western Electric Model 233G 3-slot payphone
$330.25 - Automatic Electric 3-slot payphone
$289.99 - Julius Andrae & Sons wood wall phone
$288.99 - Western Electric wood wall phone
$249.28 - Kellogg wood wall phone
$284.00 - Kellogg “Grabaphone”
$255.00 - Leich Electric model 90
$249.99 - Western Electric 102 (BIN)
$225.00 - Western Electric 202, gold plated
$205.50 - Western Electric candlestick, model 323
$201.50 - Western Electric model 302
$200.00 - Western Electric rotary single-slot payphone
Jun 22
$3,800.00 - Western Electric pre-production #1 dial
$898.00 - W.E. model 102
$760.00 - W.E. model 102 w/684 ringer box
$725.00 - W.E. model 202 w/ringer box
$688.99 - “Whisper It” mouthpiece
$650.00 - Gray model 24 “Wanamaker” payphone
$510.00 - Stromberg-Carlson 1243
$399.00 - Automatic Electric type 11-A Monophone
$383.88 - Automatic Electric 183 Space Maker
$349.00 - W.E. model 553 wall phone
$300.00 - W.E. model 500 (nos)
Jun 17
An ever-increasing number of people are discovering, or rediscovering, old phones. I don’t recall seeing any collectible grow in popularity as fast. Why the interest? I think it’s a combination of things. I’m inclined to believe that the “baby boomers”, that loosely-defined generation that followed WWII, are partly to blame. They (we) remember the rotary phone with an undeniable fondness, in spite of a brief infatuation with the “modern” touch-tone phones. Once the novelty had passed, pushing buttons seemed somehow a less satisfying, less organic process than that of a rotary dial, and electronic beeps were a poor substitute for the traditional clicking and whirring. It seems that many are just now remembering this, and finding that the old phones can still be enjoyed and used on a daily basis. Rotary phones were once an integral part of life, tied directly to countless fond memories. If nostalgia enhances ones memories a vintage phone can serve as their affirmation, as they’re every bit as enjoyable as we remembered. Read the rest of this entry »
May 31
$1,500.00 - Western Electric A1
$889.99 -Interstate Electric oak wall phone
$800.00 - Stromberg-Carlson “oilcan”
$712.00 - Northern Electric pay phone
$720.10 - 1908 Western Electric Catalog
$655.50 - Western Electric model 653 wall phone
$531.90 - Stromberg-Carlson model 1157 wall phone
$501.99 - Automatic Electric pay phone
$482.77 - Western Electric model 500 (brown)
$480.00 - Automatic Electric AE40 (ivory)
$439.00 - Automatic Electric pay phone (red)
$428.00 - Automatic Electric AE50 wall phone
$409.00 - Automatic Electric pay phone (pink)
$396.01 - Western Electric 202 w/634A ringer
$392.00 - Vote Berger oak wall phone
May 12
You know, eBay is a funny place. You search for, say, “bakelite telephone”, with no real intention of bidding. It is, after all, great fun just to see what’s out there, right? That’s how this got started. I spotted an auction for four (four) North Electric “Galion” telephones, and they weren’t seeing much action. Now I didn’t need four Galions, but gosh-darn-it, it would be a shame to let a bargain slip right through my fingers! Read the rest of this entry »
May 09
I’m going to share some fundamental “secrets” to finding good buys on eBay. The reason I say fundamental is because these tips can apply to most anything one might purchase at auction, including vintage telephones. Here’s the crux of this whole thing: The more desirable a given auction item appears, the more bidders will participate and the higher the winning bid will be. That is the essence of the auction process in a nutshell. “Well dang, Mark, am I just supposed to bid on the crap that no one else wants?” That is certainly one approach, I’m going to suggest another… find the phones that don’t appear to be as desirable. Read the rest of this entry »
May 07
$21,100.00 - Charles Williams Jr. telephone (late 1800’s)
$2,333.01 - Automatic Electric AE40 (jade green)
$1,412.99 - Kellogg model 1000 (factory red)
$1,225.00 - Western Electric 202
$849.99 - Stromberg-Carlson “oil can”
$711.99 - Ludlow Telephone (late 1800’s)
$636.00 - American Electric candlestick
$565.55 - Western Electric 20B candlestick
$510.00 - Western Electric candlestick, brass
$500.00 - Automatic Electric AE34 (mahogany color)
Apr 13
$6266.66 - AT&T Picturephone Set
$1346.99 - Elston Candlestick
$1244.00 - Kellogg 925 “ashtray”
$1125.00 - Western Electric 102
$685.00 - Automatic Electric AE50
$676.00 - Western Electric 500 1957 (NOS)
$600.00 - Western Electric 553A
$559.00 - Stromberg-Carlson 1211
$550.00 - Western Electric 302 (red thermoplastic)
$510.00 - Stromberg-Carlson 1212
Mar 22
$1,647.22 - Automatic Electric 1A Monophone (nile green)
$709.00 - Loeffler Intercom (pictured)
$655.05 - Western Electric 205 (converted to single-line)
$510.00 - Western Electric 464
$406.00 - Western Electric 5-Line (3500/Autovon), green
$326.60 - Western Electric 302 (metal housing, restored)
