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Find of the Month - June 2015

Started by AE_Collector, June 01, 2015, 06:06:43 PM

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Find of the Month - June 2015.  *** VOTE FOR 2 ***

Russ Kirk's Western Electric date matching 1938 metal 302 for $125 at the SoCal phone show
4 (13.8%)
Fabius' Western Electric date matching 1952 H5 mount 306 with the original electron tube for $31 plus $12.65 shipping on eBay
2 (6.9%)
wds' Northern Electric Burled Walnut No. 1  for $117 total (including shipping) on eBay
6 (20.7%)
WEBellSystemChristian's Western Electric date matching 1957 light gray 500 for $60 BIN plus $15 shipping on eBay
6 (20.7%)
compubit's Western Electric 1960s gray 554 for $2.99 plus $19.50 shipping on rBay
2 (6.9%)
WesternElectricBen's Kellogg Master phone with a subset for about $7 at the Lancaster show auction
9 (31%)
AdamAnt316's Western Electric 1953 ivory 305 from a friend for free
17 (58.6%)

Total Members Voted: 29

AE_Collector

Post your "Find of the Month" here.

A "Find of the Month" is a telephone or a related item that you acquired during the month that you are particularly excited about either because of its rarity, the difficulty you had in trying to find it for your collection or the exceptional "deal" that you got on it.

The "Find of the Month" contest is focused on the collection of telephones rather than on their sale for a profit. To be eligible for the "Find of the Month" contest:

- The finder must have personally acquired and actually own the item.
- The item can be acquired for free but it can not be a gift or present from anyone.
- The item (or any of its components) cannot be put up for sale during the contest period.
- Only one "Find" per owner can be in a "Find of the Month" contest.


A Nomination Should Include:

1) at least one picture of the item.
2) the price & shipping cost.
3) where and/or how it was found.
4) the forum link if discussed in another topic on CRPF.
5) the eBay link if won there.
6) and other information of importance about the find.


Ideally your item would be posted in its own thread elsewhere on the forum such as "Auction Talk", "Flea Market/Yard Sale Finds" or "Collectors Corner" Board. Then you or anyone else can nominate your "Find" to the Current "Find of the Month" thread by posting at least one picture and other details including the price paid, any shipping costs and a link to the original discussion on the forum. It is not a requirement that your find be posted elsewhere on the forum but the more details the better.

Nominations of phones listed in other forum discussion topics, by members that do not own the item but realize it is indeed a "find" worthy of being nominated as a "Find of the Month" candidate, are always welcome.

Please pick your best "Find" to submit for the month limiting your entry to one phone or one "Find" that might include multiple items. If you have already entered for the month and come up with something even better either submit your new find indicating that it replaces your previous entry OR you can enter your new Find in next months contest.

TelePlay has grabbed pictures of all of the "Find of the Month" winners since we started this back in 2010 and he has put them into albums on PhotoBucket. Thanks John.

To check them out, click --> HERE <--

Terry

Russ Kirk

OK,  I will be the first to post my new find for this month.  I attended the SoCal phone show last weekend and purchased a few nice additions to my collection.  It never fails, every year I find a great phone or two from this particular seller.  All his phones are exactly as described, clean and top notch and 100% ready to display.  Most of his items for sale have a display card detailing all the questions a buyer may ask.

Here is what he had on the display card.

"W.E. All metal 1938 edition. ALL parts of this phone are dated either 3 38 or III 38 or 8 38. This includes the handset, caps, receiver and transmitter elements, ringer, induction coil, dial base and housing. The dial is a #5H and has a celluloid dial plate.  The handset cord has been replaced with a NOS W.E. cord."

It is as close to a date matching phone as I have seen from this era. I feel the $125 I paid was a very fair price for a phone in this great condition. Not bad for 77 years old! 
- Russ Kirk
ATCA & TCI

WEBellSystemChristian

I absolutely love phones like that! It's perfect and valuable in the way that it's all-original and classy, just the way a 302 should look!

Nice phone!
Christian Petterson

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right" -Henry Ford

Fabius

I nominate my Western Electric 306. The is the 302 party line variant with the original electron tube. Also note the ringer gong equipped with the 101A gong attachment. This one appears to be lead. It provides some enhancement in volume of the gong.  The phone is dated 1952 throughout. The shell has the correct H5 marking. The number 5 dial has a very nice Sherwood 2 number card. No cracks or other damage, just needs the remains of the red sticker removed. Cost: $31 plus $12.65 shipping. Found on eBay.

Most of the above specification info provided by forum member unbeldi
Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905

AE_Collector

Four more days for Find of the Month entries. So far there are only two nominations so a few more would be good. It is 302 versus 306 so far!

Terry

wds

#5
I'll throw in my Northern Electric Burled Walnut No. 1  $117 including shipping.

Burled Walnut
Dave

WEBellSystemChristian

I'll nominate my 1957 Light Gray WE 500. As an all 8-57 phone (except for the line cord and transmitter cap), and as the first year for this color, I'm pretty proud of this one!

It indirectly was bought from Harry Smith, who sold it for $166.50 originally. I bought it from that buyer for $60 BiN!

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=14583.0
Christian Petterson

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right" -Henry Ford

compubit

While we're on grey...

I'll throw in my $2.99 grey 554 from eBay (plus $19.50 shipping - at least the seller did a decent job of packing the phone). It was a mid-60s, with a 72 refurb sticker (I'm out of town and don't have the phone in front of me...).

A phone phanatic since I was less than 2 (thanks to Fisher Price); collector since a teenager; now able to afford to play!
Favorite Phone: Western Electric Trimline - it just feels right holding it up to my face!

WesternElectricBen

I hope I can squeeze into the month with my Kellogg Master phone with a subset for about $7 at the Lancaster auction. There are no plastic cracks and the cords that are on it are in good condition.

I have no idea on the real value, but I thought I'd throw my hat in the ring.

Ben

WEBellSystemChristian

I have a general question/thought regarding FotM as a whole, but I didn't know where to put it, so I just put it here.

For phones that people buy that need to be shipped, should shipping costs be included in the total cost of the item in FotM nominations? In other words, should shipping costs be a deciding factor in a FotM vote? There are some great deals out there that members have gotten on phones, but they seem much less like a great deal just because shipping was really high if that member lived across the boarder.

Technically, the shipping price is just the cost to get an item from point A to point B. The contest should really reflect solely on the price that was paid in order to possess that item, IMHO.

Just my two cents.
Christian Petterson

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right" -Henry Ford

WesternElectricBen

I don't think the shipping cost really matters. If it did, I'd have to say I bought the phone for $7, but over $200 in gas or shipping costs. (or however much)

Ben

TelePlay

Quote from: WEBellSystemChristian on June 30, 2015, 05:07:25 PM
Technically, the shipping price is just the cost to get an item from point A to point B. The contest should really reflect solely on the price that was paid in order to possess that item, IMHO.

Well, I'm of the total data world and let the voters decide. I prefer the price paid and the cost to receive or have delivered rather than the price and cost to receive or have delivered added together. 

If added together, the information for the purchase part of the find becomes distorted, the true purchase price is distorted. By having both values, the members who vote and judge the phone, the price paid and the cost to receive or have delivered as part of their decision process before placing their vote(s). Everyone is different and they value things differently so give them all of the information and let the chips fall where they may when the poll ends.

All of that was in my humble opinion. Others, including Terry may feel otherwise and can post to rebut my thinking, my preference to have all data available and separate.


Quote from: WEBellSystemChristian on June 30, 2015, 05:07:25 PM
Technically, the shipping price is just the cost to get an item from point A to point B. The contest should really reflect solely on the price that was paid in order to possess that item, IMHO.

Isn't the price that was paid by the buyer the sum total of purchase price plus shipping But what if the seller paid the shipping, as in free shipping. Or the seller paid part of the shipping asking the buyer to pay a minimal amount less that actual shipping. No free lunch for delivery. It's separate from the purchase price and as such, as I said above, should be stated separately to let voters decide if it is important or not for a specific phone nominee. Also, free shipping by the seller ends up reducing the purchase price by some amount making the purchase price even better and if shipping, in this case free, is not stated, that would negatively affect the value of the phone in the eyes of the voters. Again, IMHO subject to rebuttal.

HarrySmith

It is stated the price and shipping must be in the nomination. As far as adding into the value or not, that should be up to each individual.
Harry Smith
ATCA 4434
TCI

"There is no try,
there is only
do or do not"

WEBellSystemChristian

I guess that makes sense.

The point I was trying to make is that a high shipping amount would possibly deflect voter activity, and would look bad, even though the item itself was a fantastic deal without shipping.

I realize now that members of this forum are smart enough to figure out that high shipping charges don't mean much in the way of the deal of a century! ;D
Christian Petterson

"Whether you think you can or think you can't, you're right" -Henry Ford

AdamAnt316

#14
Here's my big find of the month, an ivory Western Electric 305 which I got from a friend for free. I haven't removed the base to check for sure, but the base is type H4, and the switch is marked OFF-ON, which seems to correspond with the 305. The inside of the handset is dated 11-53. The only cracks I've been able to find are minor ones in the receiver and transmitter caps, and they don't go all the way through to the inside. The handset cord (original?) is frayed near where it enters the handset, and the line cord (apparently white cloth covered) has been cut where it enters the base. Other than the aforementioned cracks and cord issues, it looks to be in pretty good shape.