...but only because I don't get to very often.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=290315434686 ( dead link 04-13-21 )
The handset is going to require a miracle to get some shine, but all in all not a bad deal, I think.
Bingster, you lucky dog! You must have been in the right place at the right time. I just paid over $80 for one and it arrived incomplete...no terminal strip inside and missing the mushroom cap. The price you paid is the best price I've ever seen for a 500 U or P/U. Put an open center finger wheel on there and you're in business. That is the deal of the year if not the decade. Nice job. (You're lucky I didn't see it first!) :)
Bingster,
Congratulations, that sure one heck of a deal.
Here's a thread I posted a while back which may help you with getting a shine back on the handset. Since posting, I've used it on several other handsets that I thought were beyond hope, and they all cleaned up very nicely
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=842.msg10138#msg10138
Congrats! That's a heck of a find! Definitely a steal of a deal! I'm green with envy!
Quote from: Dennis Markham on May 06, 2009, 07:43:20 PMYou must have been in the right place at the right time.
I was. The seller had just put it up as a BIN auction, and as a
thirty day listing! I saw it after it had been listed for about three hours.
Quote from: benhutcherson on May 06, 2009, 07:51:59 PMHere's a thread I posted a while back which may help you with getting a shine back on the handset.
I'll definitely have to get some simichrome, then. A phone like this deserves a little extra work.
Oh... This time I remembered to give the seller helpful packing hints. I'm still really worried, though.
Great deal on a mushroom! What's the difference between a "U" and a "P/U" ?
I'd be worried too...about shipping. Three hours is an eternity with a phone and price like that. Excellent snag. I've heard stories from a buddy of mine where he came home late...like 3:00AM and checked eBay to find the latest listings. He said he got more than one from a west coast seller putting it on as a Buy It Now at some price that was way too low. I believe he told about an Oxford gray listed as Green with a cheap Buy It Now. Let's keep our fingers crossed that the seller ships it properly.
Quote from: bingster
This time I remembered to give the seller helpful packing hints.
Goody!
http://www.paul-f.com/SaveThePhones/
Hmm. Bing your phone is just one month off my birthday. I'm sure you won't be wanting to keep it, what with that unsightly little lump on it... ;)
Congrats on a great deal. I offer prayers to the shipping gods.
Yup, bragging rights you have. Nice snag 8)
Snag of the month there, most impressive! Maybe we should have a section to record our members major great deals like this, so the rest of us can weep and envy. :)
Quote from: McHeath
Maybe we should have a section to record our members major great deals like this, so the rest of us can weep and envy. :)
Cool idea, Heath. I started a new thread for that here:
http://www.classicrotaryphones.com/forum/index.php?topic=1011.msg12284#msg12284
Quote from: Dan on May 06, 2009, 08:33:35 PM
Great deal on a mushroom! What's the difference between a "U" and a "P/U" ?
I just looked it up on Paul Fassbender's site, and it says the "P" had no key switch, and had it's light go on only when the handset was lifted. The "U" had a key that allowed the light to light at a low level while on-hook, and light bright while off-hook (like a Princess).
I have one that is marked both, 500 P/U. It has the key.
I wonder if they discontinued the separate P and U for economy's sake and replaced it with a combined P/U? Or maybe they went with P/U just because it's funny to say.
one thing about those P-U phones, they don't stink ::)
Quote from: Dan on May 06, 2009, 11:47:37 PM
one thing about those P-U phones, they don't stink ::)
Where's the stage hook when you need it? ;D
What a find.
Was it pure luck or do you scour the ebay listings every few hours?
I wouldn't rule out a good bit of luck, but I do check for newly listed phones every couple hours or so. The counter of this one is stopped at "2" and I'm sure both those views are me. So it looks like nobody else even looked at it. I guarantee if the seller had known to put the word "mushroom" in the title, it would have been snapped up much sooner.
Nice find. I think I saw that phone and said to myself "$34.99 for a black 500? Hah!" It just shows it pays to look at auctions that seem outside your price range, you may find that the price is actually a bargain. I do it for 300 sets, I will start doing it with 500s.
Wow! What a find! Whenever I find something like that, I feel like I just won the Lotto. I have one identical and I think I paid ten times that!
The phone arrived today, and thankfully it arrived with no damage. That was a huge weight off my shoulders. I tore right into it, naturally, and was both pleased and disappointed. Pleased because everything dates from January 1957 (and a receiver cap from 12/56). Disappointed because I loosened the dial and found:
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e376/bingsterdc/P5140019.jpg)
That's pretty bad, but I really can't complain too much for $35. The mounting cord was also replaced, and normally I'd be disappointed that it's not the same age as the phone, but it's one of the thick ones with the chunky collar, and I really love those.
All in all, I'm very happy. It's soft plastic, 6-hole receiver cap, all right except the dial, which I can live with. And even though it's filthy, it's got no major scratching, so I think it'll clean up really well.
As an extra, I also wound up with a hardwire-to-modular adapter (which I didn't have, and which will come in REAL handy), and a run of six-conductor station wire. I've never seen that many conductors in station wire before now. I'll post a few more pics when I get it cleaned up and tested. In the meantime, I'm seriously considering pulling the dial from my black 12/57 500 to put in here. But do I want one incorrect phone or two? Decisions... Decisions...
I think I would try to find a dial first, then change it after a reasonable search period like maybe an hour or two. You can always switch it bacl if your conscience gets the best of you. I would rather have the all matching 57 mushroom.
D/P
Quote from: Dan/Panther on May 14, 2009, 02:43:27 PM
I think I would try to find a dial first, then change it after a reasonable search period like maybe an hour or two.
Hee hee... I already have. ;D
Does the mushroom light work yet? 8)
Not yet. I have it all torn apart for cleaning. I'll probably get it put back together later tonight for some testing.
Bingster, I'll bet I have a dial for you AND the proper black dial bezel. If you're real lucky I'll find a dial marked -3 close to the date you need. Do you need 1/57 or 12/56?
The base is dated 1/57, but I'd be grateful for anything close to that. Thanks, Dennis, you're aces.
I've cleaned it and did a basic polish with Brasso, and it turned out really nice. I'm sure with Novus, it would be much better, and I'll have to look into getting some. The light didn't work on the first try, but after a brief tussle with the very confusing U500 diagram, It's working fine now. I haven't hooked it up to the phone system to see if the phone's working, but I double-checked that part of the wiring, and there's no reason for it not to work. Anyhoo, here are some artsy pics:
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e376/bingsterdc/U5001.jpg)
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e376/bingsterdc/U5002.jpg)
(http://i43.photobucket.com/albums/e376/bingsterdc/U5003.jpg)
She's a beauty. Glad the dial didn't turn out to be a let down after all.
Nice bing!
VERY Nice! Gives me more incentive to shop often on eBay!
Bingster, since you are worried about shipping, just have it shipped to me, and, I'll remove the worry from you. ;D
Great find...
Bill Cahill