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Is this 500 worth it?

Started by McHeath, August 16, 2009, 05:43:28 PM

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McHeath

Here is the auction:

http://tinyurl.com/mqfyu5 ( dead link 08-04-21 )

He wants 400 for the BIN price.  Worth it?

HobieSport

#1
He's asking $499. BIN, but states that he doesn't know what it's worth so is using Best Offer to test the market.

-Matt

McHeath

Oh yeah, it's 500 big ones, guess that was wishful thinking on my part. :)

HobieSport

You could make any offer, if interested, but I imagine the seller may hold out to near the end of the auction to take the highest offer.
-Matt

Dan

I tried $175, which he turned down. I figured the blue one that went for $208 yesterday was a good barometer, but really I think soft plastic yellow ones are RARER than mediterranean blue ones.
"Imagine how weird telephones would look if our ears weren't so close to our mouths." - Steven Wright

HobieSport

Quote from: Dan...but really I think soft plastic yellow ones are RARER than mediterranean blue ones.

GASP!
-Matt

Dennis Markham

Finlover, see what you started with that green 500 with the gray cords?  I was waiting for them to come out of the woodwork after that sale.  :)

JorgeAmely

Jorge

finlover

Quote from: Dennis Markham on August 16, 2009, 07:42:36 PM
Finlover, see what you started with that green 500 with the gray cords?  I was waiting for them to come out of the woodwork after that sale.  :)
That's a nice phone, but I think $500 is a bit optimistic.  The green one was definitely a fluke.  In my opinion, he's going about it all wrong; it takes people bidding against each other to bring the big bucks.  Also, does it look a little over-sanded to you in that side shot?  Kind of hard to tell from those dimly lit photos.

I'm staying off ebay for a couple weeks.  After the green one, my red soft plastic and super nice aqua 500 only brought $75 apiece (which some may argue is all they were worth).  Maybe my high rollers were taking summer vacations.  I'll go back once school starts.

jsowers

I'd say it's worth more like $300 tops, but these days anything is possible, Has anyone noticed that Mr. Helpful has reared his little head again? The info he contributed is just dead wrong in several ways. First, yellow had yellow cords in July, 1956, so it was matter of months and not "much later" as Mr. Helpful says. See the visual evidence posted below. The yellow cords faded a lot at first, kind of like the pink ones, so look closely at the last shot. The cords are indeed faded yellow and not ivory. That phone dates to 7-56. Dennis remembers it well, I know.

Another error is where Mr. Helpful says "they did not come with matching color handset and line cords, except for white and black." That's wrong! First, when this phone was made, white was not on the color chart. It started the following year. Second, black, dark gray, ivory and mahogany brown all had matching cords. It was only red, green, dark blue, dark beige and yellow that had non-matching dark gray cords in early 1956.

Mr. Helpful is correct that the yellow and gray combination is rare. But I don't agree with the seller that yellow soft plastic with yellow cords isn't rare. It's been hard to find for me. And the straight handset corded version is extremely rare. I have only seen the one phone and Dennis has dibs on the next one.  :)
Jonathan

Dennis Markham

#10
Finlover, it's difficult to tell on my monitor about the sanding.  It would be easier to tell by looking at the "mouse hole" where the handset cord exits the phone.  Often people will sand away the small ridge of the so-called mouse hole.   But that is strategically hidden from view...maybe just by happenstance.  Cleaning the leather footpads would dress it up a bit and for the price the seller wants would be worth the time.  Also a neater appearance of the wires (my hang up) would look nicer.  The assembler didn't twist those wires when they were installed.

Jonthan---my yellow phone, I mean your yellow phone looks great.  Your observations about the manufacture date of white sets and other info is very helpful.  To shed light on what Jonathan was talking about ("Dennis remembers it well") goes back to when this phone was listed on eBay.  I was buying phones when possible at the time.  I like to hit them at the end of the auction.  Often there is a "feeding frenzy" at the end and when the dust settles I always hope I'm on top.  I used to lose out on a few to a fellow in North Carolina......guess who?  On this one I had really padded my bid and was waiting to hit the confirm button until the precise second that I always hit the confirm button.  Well this time I hit the button (I have cable internet service--so it's pretty fast) it was "thinking" way too long.  When eBay finally replied to my confirm the reply was something like......sorry big boy, the auction has ended.  What?  It took me a while to get over that one...wait, I'm still not over it! :)

The lesson I learned that day still applies and confirms what I really already knew.....You win some and you lose some.  Also, someday there will be another.

Thanks for showing us that phone though Jonathan, it's a good one to have in the collection despite the fading on the handset cord.


Dennis Markham

Another point about this yellow 500 on eBay...that "question" sure looks like a set-up to me.  Someone confirming what a great phone it is..........

HobieSport

The question really does sound like a set up, doesn't it. Somehow I can't imagine even "Mr. Helpful" making a statement like that. It all seems just too fishy, even to a newbie like me.
-Matt

Dan/Panther

With both the handset and line cords gray, I think he may get close to his asking price. My guess, 400 plus.
D/P

The More People I meet, The More I Love, and MISS My Dog.  Dan Robinson

Greg G.

Quote from: HobieSport on August 17, 2009, 12:23:12 PM
The question really does sound like a set up, doesn't it. Somehow I can't imagine even "Mr. Helpful" making a statement like that. It all seems just too fishy, even to a newbie like me.

My thoughts too.  That statement does not sound like "Mr. Helpful's" style of writing.
The idea that a four-year degree is the only path to worthwhile knowledge is insane.
- Mike Row
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