"Pekin Red" 302 questions

[Dennis Markham]

I don't think I've seen any colored 302's in the $50 price range.  A blue 302 would probably be in the thousand dollar range, or higher.  The ivory 302's (I'm talking without gaps, breaks, cracks, etc) maybe in today's market $150-$300.  A red one in the $400-500 range, maybe more.  A green one recently sold on eBay for $430 (eBay Item #280298512851).  I have seen Old Rose sell in the $300-500 range too.

As far as I know the 354's were only made in black and ivory as Steve said.

Edit:  I said $1,000 on the blue...now my brain is telling me that should be $3,000 range.  There was one that sold on eBay a while back and I think it was in the higher price range.

Edit #2:  Oldphoneworks is selling non-painted blue 302's for $2,400.  So that $3k price tag may be a bit high. 
http://www.oldphoneworks.com/302-blue-all-original-fully-refurbished.html



I'm talking original plastic through and through...not painted.

[winkydink]

I don't think I've seen any colored 302's in the $50 price range.  A blue 302 would probably be in the thousand dollar range, or higher.  The ivory 302's (I'm talking without gaps, breaks, cracks, etc) maybe in today's market $150-$300.  A red one in the $400-500 range, maybe more.  A green one recently sold on eBay for $430 (eBay Item #280298512851).  I have seen Old Rose sell in the $300-500 range too.

As far as I know the 354's were only made in black and ivory as Steve said.

Edit:  I said $1,000 on the blue...now my brain is telling me that should be $3,000 range.  There was one that sold on eBay a while back and I think it was in the higher price range.

Edit #2:  Oldphoneworks is selling non-painted blue 302's for $2,400.  So that $3k price tag may be a bit high. 
http://www.oldphoneworks.com/302-blue-all-original-fully-refurbished.html



I'm talking original plastic through and through...not painted.

That's kind of what I thought.  Ouch !

I guess that is a little out of my price range. 

Well I guess I will window shop a little more and perhaps something will fall into my lap.   

[Dennis Markham]

That is what makes the heart pound when you find one at a flea market or Estate sale where the value is unknown to the seller.  But in thinking about those colored 302's....since "Ma Bell" owned the phones, who was it that paid extra each month for a set in color like that?  Are they more likely to be found in affluent areas at Estate sales?  If one goes into rural communities it was the black phones that are prevalent because they were the basic phones.  Sort of like the Chevy Impala of the phone world.

[Steve K]

I agree with Dennis's comments about prices.  Most of my phones (not just the 302s) came from antique stores and flea markets (as Dennis mentioned while I was typing this) where you are more likely to find a better price than on eBay.  Also, let others know what you are looking for.  Often that can lead to people who know people that have an old phone in the attic or dark corner of the basement that they are willing to part with!

Steve

[bingster]

What is a fair market value price for one of the colored plastic 302's

The prices are widely varied depending on the color.  Blue seems to be rarest and goes for the most, ivory is the most common and goes for the least.  Green, rose, and red fall in between the two.  The four metallic colors seem to go for prices at or below the price of ivory.

I'm doing a little project tracking the sales prices of subsets and finding the average selling price by type.  I should do it for plastic 302s, too.

The same would go for the 354 what is a reasonable cost for a colored one of those and did they only come in black and white(beige) ?

Black and ivory, yep.

[winkydink]

The same would go for the 354 what is a reasonable cost for a colored one of those and did they only come in black and white(beige) ?

Black and ivory, yep.

As a follow up.... What is a reasonable price for an Ivory 354.  There is one on ebay now (along with 2 other phones) for $100, just curious how much it would be worth by itself.

I will pass on that phone ( because I have reached my bid limit for now) but just curious what type of money I would be looking at for an Ivory 354 in good condition.

[bingster]

I haven't been paying attention to the prices of the 354s, but I think I paid $125 for my ivory, with no discoloration and no cracks.  I thought it was a bargain at the time, and was surprised I got it for that amount.