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Pricey "P" in Pink - 500P Mushroom

Started by RotarDad, February 04, 2014, 10:55:03 PM

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RotarDad

Wow - I've been watching this one for the last couple weeks.  A starting price of $725.  Finally on the second round someone stepped up and made the buy....

http://www.ebay.com/itm/310859132839

Very nice from '58, but the cap is a repro.  I've never seen a pink "P" before - I assume there can't be many left.
Paul

WesternElectricBen

#1
I saw that one too, very nice cond., but quite expensive. Though, a competitor trying to sell the same one, but in worse condition for 864. some odd dollars:

This can be viewed here: http://tinyurl.com/m7pgbah ( dead link 12-19-21 )

I'm with you, they are quite rare, I was even lucky to get my 500 P/U for only 22.00 at an antique store!

Ben

Sargeguy

I have heard that there are a lot of fake 500Ps out there.  I would beware of anything with a repro cap.
Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

poplar1

I don't think this one is fake, other than the lamp cap that the seller admits is repro. Still, I'd be wary of any phone starting at $725!
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

RotarDad

Poplar1 - I agree this one appears legit with inside pics showing the lamp assembly, plus the brass insert on the shell.  The color is also very nice on that phone.

Ben - That other pink mushroom is a "U" with the nightlight switch. I believe a "P" model is much harder to find.  That pink "U" also has lots of fade in the plastics....  You did get quite a deal on your black one - that was a great find!
Paul

tallguy58

What was the purpose of the mushroom?

What is the difference between the "P" and the "U" ?
Cheers........Bill

TelePlay

Quote from: WesternElectricBen on February 04, 2014, 11:17:45 PM
. . . a competitor trying to sell the same one, but in worse condition for 864. some odd dollars . . .

And that one has been around for some time and discussed in several topics on the forum. Here's one of them:

http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=5618.msg68102#msg68102

jsowers

Quote from: tallguy58 on February 05, 2014, 06:18:07 AM
What was the purpose of the mushroom?

What is the difference between the "P" and the "U" ?

The "U" has a night light feature and a switch to activate it. The "P" does not and is quite a bit rarer. The mushroom is the cap over the lamp on top of the phone and is often missing since it's easily removed. The night light is on when the phone's on hook. It's dimmer in night light mode than when you lift the handset and then the lamp is at full brightness so you can dial.

I know a little info about this particular phone and I hope the people involved don't mind my sharing it. The seller contacted Dennis Markham when he found this Forum and Dennis helped him out, providing some parts for the fingerwheel and giving him info on purchasing a repro mushroom cap for it. The seller did an excellent job of matching and painting the cap, I think. He went to quite a bit of trouble.

Here's his description of what he did. I have a friend who's wanting to paint a mushroom cap and was interested in what the seller did. He started with a black mushroom cap, BTW. I hope he doesn't mind my posting it, but I thought others could benefit from his efforts...
 
Quote
Did the Home Depot deal myself and still the color just did not quite match but still looks pretty good. Home Depot test size jars are usually a flat water based paint for Interior/Exterior use and I assume that is what you got. I used a small 'detail' air gun driven through a 1HP compressor @ 90PSI. You could use a regular size spray gun I'm sure, just more tuning to get a smaller pattern for such a tiny object. To manage the mushroom while spraying I used a round wood shaft, say 8" long, that will fit inside the brass fitting and then taped around the stick and fitting so paint will not get on these underside parts of the mushroom. Won't look right if that stuff gets paint on it. You can spray underneath around the edge that is not taped up. Just go easy and don't get too much build up on the underside. I mounted the stick in a vise to dry in between coats.
 
For the color, I thinned it out with H2O until I got a good blend that resisted running, as water does not evaporate very fast when spraying and it will run if too thin and tends to run no matter what! Made quite a few test runs on some junk plastic first to get a feel for the paint and to test its effectiveness. Finally after testing I sprayed probably 5-6 coats to get a good build up so the color does not appear transparent. Too many coats will make the mushroom look what I call 'fat' in appearance so you have to get the right blend. Color is dull so you have to use a can of 'water based' Minwax Polycrylic 'gloss' clear spray to finish (HD has it) and apply several coats until you get the depth that somewhat matches the phone. This can spray does dry fairly quick as it is a much finer mist than the color. Use enough spray on each coat to cover without running. Let all coats dry in between applications.
Seems like a lot of trouble for such a small item. But the effort is well worth the final appearance you can get. Good luck and hope this helps.
Jonathan

Dennis Markham

#8
No problem, Jonathan.  I don't mind at all in your relaying the information.  To elaborate a bit, the seller contacted me in August of last year (I think from a link to my blog site) asking questions about a 500P that he had purchased at an antique store, I believe it was.  He said he paid $10 for it.   That's right, TEN dollars!   For those of us that collect these we should all be so lucky (to find one like that, for that price).  He said he was undecided about what he was going to do with it.  He does collect some antiques and thought he might like to keep it or possibly sell it.  He sent me photos of the phone and said it was minus the "mushroom" cap.  He wanted to know if I had a Pink cap to sell.  I referred him to John LaRose, telephone collector.  I know John makes a very nice reproduction cap as I have purchased one from him.  At the time John made them in Black or White.

So the seller purchased a cap and his painting technique has already been described.

I had forgotten until Jonathan mentioned it here that later he asked about finding a dial card and acetate disc.  I told him if he'd send me his address I'd mail him both for free, just asked him to send me a self-addressed, stamped envelope.  I have a small supply of the blank 212 dial cards (New York City) so I sent one of those.  It may not be time-period correct but it's better than nothing.  (Even after seeing it for sale on eBay I had forgotten I'd sent him that card and disc).  I also noticed he was missing the three-flanged retainer clip for the back side of the finger wheel.  I sent that along as well.  I was just re-reading through e-mail exchanges with him and don't think I asked for any money for that part either.  But I had ulterior motives as well....I didn't make an offer but said I'd be interested if he were ever to want to sell the phone but I did suggest eBay was the best way to get market value for it.  Then in early November (2013) he said he was going to sell it on ebay.  This listing was the second time through, with a starting bid of $750.  I told him after the 1st listing that I doubted anyone would bite on that for that price with a reproduction cap.....once again, I was wrong.

And now you know the rest of the story.  That almost qualifies as the find of the year! :)

~Dennis


WesternElectricBen

Quote from: RotarDad on February 05, 2014, 12:46:04 AM
Poplar1 - I agree this one appears legit with inside pics showing the lamp assembly, plus the brass insert on the shell.  The color is also very nice on that phone.

Ben - That other pink mushroom is a "U" with the nightlight switch. I believe a "P" model is much harder to find.  That pink "U" also has lots of fade in the plastics....  You did get quite a deal on your black one - that was a great find!

Thanks, and I think you are right, mine being black, and having the switch makes it a bit more common.

Ben

poplar1

The housings for the 500P and the 500W/Y (Message Waiting) appear to be the same other than the type lamp cap. Here is a 500W with missing red cap:

"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

WesternElectricBen

I never knew they made the message waiting phones. But I agree with you, they probably share the same housings..

How were these wired, were they the same as a 500 P - the fact of a dial, and night light? One more question, are these collectible, especially being in aqua blue?

Ben


poplar1

They were often used in hôtels and motels. The switchboard operator could activate the lamp to let you know that someone had left a message while you were out.
"C'est pas une restauration, c'est une rénovation."--François Martin.

jsowers

I think the 500 W/Y used a bayonet-base neon lamp and it had a resistor wired into the socket. I attached a couple pictures of my light gray 500 W/Y. It's missing the lamp, but luckily it came with the little red cap. The base is exactly like the other posted, including the "Message Waiting Phone" stamp. I think the light gray 505A plug is also original, but I can't be sure because that wouldn't jive with it being in a motel room. This phone came with a dial but no card, so the number card isn't original. It's an early 60s card from Kansas City and I stamped it.

I got this phone in an eBay auction over 12 years ago. It came with a lot of five other phones, all packed loosely in a huge box. And you would just know this phone was the only one to be damaged. The handset was on-hook and it made a big crack on one side of the cradle. I was able to glue it back together, but a crack is a crack.
Jonathan