McMurdoSilver - Master of "Telephones as an Art"

[KeithB]

Don't forget lighting is the other 50% of the presentation.  Wasn't it Dan/Panther who constructed a light box for taking photos?  When the phone is well-lit with diffused bright light from multiple sources, then photography can capture the striking qualities of the restoration.

[finlover]

In the collector car hobby there has been a move away from over-restoration.  The most prized cars are well-preserved originals, flaws and all, because they provide an invaluable reference for how the factory actually made them, and aren't someone's idealized version of history.

When I first started restoring 500s, I would polish the number plates to a high gloss, but now I give them a low gloss finish for a more factory appearance.  Likewise, polished brass ringer bells look beautiful, but these days I shoot for a bright but unpolished look.

[Phonesrfun]

Even though I started this with the "Something to make you drool", I would never buy one of these for several reasons:

• Too much money
• I didn't restore it myself
• It is over-restored (in my opinion)

I don't have the budget to spend on one phone that is going to break the bank.  Aslo, I like to do all my own work, because that is part of the fun.  Lastly, some phones I don't even touch.  They are more real that way.  I think everyone has their own opinion or "take" on what is over restored or under restored.

The dripping wet, better than factory paint job is kind of pretentious for me to display in my collection.  

Now, having said that, Frank a.k.a. mcmurdosilver is in my opinion an artist in his own right.  I don't think he is selling to other collectors, but probably is selling to an upscale person that would love a beautiful retro phone as a conversation piece in their den, theme room or business lobby or something along those lines.  I doubt very seriously that many other collectors have purchased his phones.  He is selling to someone that wants an "instant" beauty, without having to do the work or even know how to hook it up.  For that, the seller has money.  The only way Frank can get that kind of money for them is to make them as enticing to a buyer as possible, and mix in the authenticity factor.

They are beauties to be sure.

On the subject of cars.  I just went to an antique auto show in town where there were 500 entries.  It seems that every year there are fewer and fewer of the "originals" out there.  So many people have taken the classics and put an immense amount of money into overhauling everything from the chasis to the engines and trannies and sound systems to make something that looks, say, like a '57 chevy on the outside something entirely different on the inside.  It seems that fewer and fewer cars are the real thing.  I guess a 54 plymouth that looks entirely stock is just too "drab".  Too "normal"  Maybe they don't win prizes.  There were, of course those original cars that had stock engines and running gears, and some of them really nicely done, but they did not seem to get the oohs and the ahhhs that the jazzier "classics" got.

Just my 2 cents, now I'll get off my soapbox.

[finlover]

Amen, Mr. Geurts!

I'd rather see the most pedestrian old car in nice original condition than some barely recognizable customized '49 Mercury any day of the week.

Still, I'd like to get a gander at one of Frank's phones in person someday and marvel at the artistry involved.  Or maybe it's just a trick of the lightbox and I'd be underwhelmed (but I doubt it).

[Kenny C]

I hate it when they take of the original wheels on say a 57 Chevy and put new wheels on it. I mean the people at Chevrolet worked hard to make the design for the car and they should respect that.

[finlover]

I hate it when they take of the original wheels on say a 57 Chevy and put new wheels on it. I mean the people at Chevrolet worked hard to make the design for the car and they should respect that.

I'm with you, my friend, but we seem to be in the minority.  MY pet peeve is when someone replaces the original fabric on the seats with velour or some other modern material.  That's just tacky!

[Dan/Panther]

Great work, great talent. For my tastes, overdone.
I could not afford one, and doubt I would pay that much. It seems to be a special use for someone to buy, I'm sure not just to add to a collection. Maybe an executives office.
The Bakelite puzzles me, it goes against all I've know for several years, unless it was near new when he began.
D/P

[Kenny C]

1,128.32   

[Doug Rose]

Anyone who has been watching eBay for a while has to have noticed the same sellers with positively great phones. Obviously the leader of the pack is Frank,

mcmurdosilver ( Feedback Score Of 1281) 

but there are others

specialprojects* ( Feedback Score Of1001)

lggrave ( Feedback Score Of 725)

phone-sweep ( Feedback Score Of 423)

l17ajp ( Feedback Score Of 1701)

kka2446 ( Feedback Score Of 1073)

off_the_hook_60 Feedback Score Of 1167

All of these sellers has consistently high quality refurbed phones, that have the right parts on them. Besides our own Finlover, anyone have anyone else to add to the list. Be prepared to pay top dollar, but their phones are just outstanding....Doug

[Doug Rose]

IV 36...this is a wonderful OLD WE 302. I am not a big fan of the over refurbed phones, but there is no denying;  Frank is King. H1-3 over the mouse hole is something I have never seen. This is just meticulously done.

Bingster ....what do you say for a Coontest!


http://cgi.ebay.com/Art-Deco-Vintage-Western-Electric-Antique-302-Telephone-/320662029364?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4aa8f24434

[Dan]

Great minds think alike, I already referred to this--look at the "redeem myself thread."

[Doug Rose]

Great minds think alike, I already referred to this--look at the "redeem myself thread."

Hey Dan....sorry...I have not read the threads this morning. It sure is something...Doug

[Dan]

No prob sir

[Doug Rose]

What ever happened to Frank? I used to love Sunday nights to see what Frank had made into a Masterpiece that week. No one got the high end like Frank did. There are a lot of close seconds out there, but Frank was the King!...Doug

[AE_Collector]

Working at updating the ebaY handles list recently I noticed that Frank had all but stopped selling on ebaY. I too wondered what happened.

Terry