What's the one phone you've always wanted, but never owned?

[Telephones_etc]

Even for the most avid collector, there's always been the one they never had. Whether it's a 1936/'37 WE 302, or a mahogany 500, (almost) everyone has one they don't have. What yours? Post it below:

[AL_as_needed]

For me its more a sentimental thing that alludes me. Growing up my grandparents owned and ran a small hardware store in Cold Spring NY (a literal classic main street cliché) and they had an early 50s black WE 500 at the front desk. Decades of random paint splatters, a very stretched 9 ft cord, original dial card, lots of familiar character. Sadly when my grandparents retired and my cousins took over running the show, the phone vanished... No collection is complete without that personal touch and I doubt ill see that one again.

[Telephones_etc]

For me its more a sentimental thing that alludes me. Growing up my grandparents owned and ran a small hardware store in Cold Spring NY (a literal classic main street cliché) and they had an early 50s black WE 500 at the front desk. Decades of random paint splatters, a very stretched 9 ft cord, original dial card, lots of familiar character. Sadly when my grandparents retired and my cousins took over running the show, the phone vanished... No collection is complete without that personal touch and I doubt ill see that one again.

That's really sad. for me, it's a first year WE 302. Always seems to elude me...

[paul-f]

A dates-matching WE 500 from 1949 would be nice!

[Key2871]

This is going to sound a little strange, but I've always been into complicated stuff. So for me, it would be a console telephone used in Comkey or dimension systems.
I used to see pictures of Western Electric telephone sets and some really cool consoles that had buttons for everything.
That's why I still like 1A2 the best, because I can do so much with them.

Ken

[compubit]

A good old Mediterranean Blue 500 and/or the similar colored AE-80.

I know I've had a few chances at them, but haven't gotten one of either yet.

Jim

[dsk]

It is also a matter of what you are willing to pay, I do actually not have any telephones with separate earpiece, like an original candle stick. The handset came long before CB telephones here in Norway. The GPO 121 wall telephone may be an example.

I also would like to have 2 German phones as pictured.
The Cobra looking telephone is absolutely the most attractive, the drum dialer and a phone with earpiece are both on the next place.

[FABphones]

...I also would like to have 2 German phones as pictured...

Same here. The Siemens 264 in your second photo is top of my list - one in ivory and one in black. I came close this week to getting my first, but not close enough. 
The Siemens 'Hockender Hund' phone in your first photo is fab, but I daren't even put that on the want list. I think it will always elude my collection, even if I found one, probably waaay to expensive for me. 

[tubaman]

The Siemens drum dialler ('Trommelwähler') is well up my wanted list too.
Not many seem to be available, and those that are are badly damaged and/or too expensive for me.
The 'Hockender Hund' phone is a true beauty but I doubt I'll ever get anywhere near owning one.
I'd also like a plain desktop version of the Fuld 'Bauhaus' phone. I have a multi-line version (which I'm still looking for the right handset for) which is nice but I still want the basic version because of the classic elegance of the design.

[dsk]

I would love to have them, but not pay for them :-)
I did actually forget one more, but here the shipping costs make it to expensive. A Field exchange SB-22/PT made in USA.  for one and only one reason, we used it when I served, and it wakes up some good memories.  I actually have some NIB line packs, but that is all.

The most  of the fun with phones is to solve problems, and make them working, just a very few is important beyond that point. 

dsk

[RB]

just a very few is important beyond that point. 

dsk

A few dozen??? Lol

[andy1702]

I'd like to find some of the original items used in film and TV. Probably the most famous is the speaker unit on the desk in the Charlie's Angels. This must always have been a pretty rare thing because when they came to make the movies they couldn't find two that matched (watch out for the vanishing Bell logo). From here in the UK there was a gold plated trimphone used in teh gameshow the Golden Shot, a pink GPO 706 (or perhaps an Ericsson 'clone') used in kids TV show Emu's All Live Pink Windmill Show and various odd coloured trimphones used on Multi-Coloured Swap Shop. In more recent times there is the Banker's phone from gameshow Deal or No Deal. I do actually know who supplied that one to the TV company, so maybe I have a chance of tracing it.

The Swap Shop phones changed from season to season. By the final run they seem to have had grey trimphones with customised handsets. Look carefully at the image and you'll see a red one, a dark green one and a bright blue/purple one.

[TelePlay]

That "Squatting/Crouching Hound" phone brings back one of my contest disappointments.



A seller listed on one eBay in 2016 in a 7 day auction for $39 and before I could send a message telling her not to do a side deal, she sold it for $200 in a side deal. I did not have the heart to tell her one like that sold about a month earlier for $6,000.

Granted, hers had some Bakelite damage and didn't have the "subset/ringer" but it was worth well north of $200 and the ivory/white Bakelite finger wheel was undamaged.

     http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=16476.0

If one of these is on your wish list, first, they don't come up that often and second, they are not cheap, unless you can steal one away from a phone price ignorant eBay seller.