Impulse "Buy It Now" 302 (Does it have the potential to live again?)

[Dennis Markham]

Thanks Konrad.  That one was a challenge.  I had to pull out all the stops.  I wanted to keep the original base but it was too far gone.  I did hold on to the original dial.  Since the time I did that phone I have learned much more about dials and I plan to restore the original dial and put it back on the phone.  I had this phone for about a year before I decided to tackle refurbishing it. 

The musty odor from that case was terrible.  It was then I learned about the bleach method of soaking---one to remove mold and secondly to remove the musty odor.  It did not eliminate the odor but since then it has aired out and does not have an offensive smell.  Literally, if I place my nose against the phone and take a deep breath I can just get a hint of the musty smell.  The dial card is not correct and will eventually be replaced by a Kellogg card---as soon as I run into one or Winky Dink gets his program up and running.

I didn't bring that phone home because I wanted to, as I wrote on my album, it was part of a box of phones that I bought for a 554 wall phone.  In hind sight, this phone is better than the 554.  I have since picked up a couple more of this vintage.  If you see one in color, grab it.  They're rare but out there.  But be prepared to pay hundreds of dollars for it.