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SA 3: 1905 Strowger 11 Digit Lamp Phone Special Auction Contest - Ended 10/26/14

Started by TelePlay, October 22, 2014, 11:22:28 PM

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TelePlay

Here is another auction contest just for the fun of it. It is a lamp phone atrocity but it is also, maybe, restorable, at some unknown cost, by the buyer. Just no way of knowing how complete the innards may be in this Lamp Phone, or if the bidding will exceed the reserve.

It was listed in a 5 day auction ( with thanks to a heads up from Fabius ) and there are 4 full days left in the auction as of this posting. If it did not have the lamp attachment, I would have done this as a regular Auction Contest, but, it does so it's being put up as a special auction. As with the other special auctions, there is no gap minimum, no rules and no winner. Just take a guess and I'll run the list of guesses to document this eBay auction item for posterity.

All I ask is that guesses be at least $25 dollars apart, one guess per player (can't revise a guess) and no guesses will be accepted with less than 12 hours to go in the auction, special rules for a special contest . . .  ;)

This phone was listed on eBay for $50.00 and with 4 days to go, 3 interested buyers have run it up to $202.50.

The seller listed it as a "1905 Strowger 11 Digit Desk Telephone" with the item condition as " - - - " and " - - - " with the auction listing description simply as an "1905 Strowger 11 digit desk telephone. The eleven digit dial was invented by a mortician named Almon B. Strowger. He was convinced that the local operators were diverting all the mortuary business calls to his competitors. So, he decided to do away with operators. He was granted a patent on March 10, 1891. And thus, the Strowger Automatic Exchange (which later became the Automatic Electric Co. Then finally GTE) Came into being. This Telephone is being sold as it was found. Somone made it into a lamp. It was a very well done job. Look at the picturs to see how it was done. " Sorry, my spell checker is working but I will not edit an eBay description.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/351203524243

Since this is a "special rules" no winner contest, the best guesser will not be included in the Hall of Fame or be counted in the Contest Standings as a win. This one is just for fun.

Absolutely any and all members are very welcome and strongly encouraged to take a guess. After all, there are no wrong guesses, just one lucky one. No one knows the winning bid on any auction until it ends. However, it is important to get your guess in before someone else grabs your guess.


S C O R E B O A R D

$     675.00 - poplar1  ( 1 )
$     899.00 - Kenton K  ( 2 )
$     925.00 - Fabius  ( 4 )
$  1,234.56 - TelePlay  ( 9 )
$  1,500.00 - tallguy58  ( 5 )
$  1,625.20 - WesternElectricBen  ( 10 )
$  1,750.00 - Sargeguy  ( 7 )
$  2,000.00 - kleinkaliber  ( 8 )
$  2,061.00 - Fabius  ( 11 )  ( revised guess )
$  2,200.00 - wds  ( 4 )
$  2,300.00 - Russ Kirk  ( 6 )
$  2,400.00 - AE_Collector  ( 3 )
Final eBay bid was $2,650.00 but it did not sell  reserve not met


Early Morning Auction Status Changes

10-21-14       Listed      $         50.00
10-22-14         2 bids    $       200.00
10-23-14         3 bids    $       202.50
10-24-14         6 bids    $       676.00
10-25-14         7 bids    $       710.00
10-26-14       10 bids    $     1,025.00
10-26-14       11 bidders, 14 bids $2,650.00 Ended at 21:19:06 PDT   reserve not met

poplar1

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

Kenton K


AE_Collector

So many unknowns here, and not just "What's the reserve price"?

Has anything been messed up with the dial? Probably not as the hook switch may have needed to be spot welded to the dial enclosure if the dial assembly was removed.

Has anything been messed up in the base? An extra hole has been drilled for the lamp tube and it looks as though they rotated the base 90 degrees putting the cord exit on one side and push button on the other side (for some reason) but probably no damage done there. Could be damage to the terminal strip and or push button contact pile-up tough.

All in all, it looks reversible without too much damage.

$2400 but my real bet is someone offers them $1000 off ebaY and it suddenly disappears.

Terry

Fabius

Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905


tallguy58

Cheers........Bill

Russ Kirk

- Russ Kirk
ATCA & TCI

Sargeguy

Greg Sargeant
Providence, RI
TCI /ATCA #4409

Doug Rose

From a collector who has a liqour bottle for the Strowger in his collection, that is the saddest lamp I have ever seen....Doug
Kidphone

AE_Collector

I don't even have a "Beam" Strowger. I'd take the lamp. Maybe I should have done what I expect will happen, offer $1K BIN.

Terry



WesternElectricBen

1,625.20

I believe this phone could be patched by a good welder.

Ben

Fabius

Tom Vaughn
La Porte, Indiana
ATCA Past President
ATCA #765
C*NET 1+ 821-9905