Brown Ericofons appear in all kind of flavors. Original North Electric, the Dutch PTT dark, the CEAC painted, and of course the 700. And since last week I also have a Metallic Nichco in dark brown color as well. Rick from Canada was so kind to offer it to me and it is in perfect condition. Thank you Rick!!

In full sunshine, it lights up. The metallic is so beautiful!! This brown Ericofon is much darker than the Metallic Nichco Orange that I have although the picture above seems to show something else.

For a long time I was doubting if I should add these metallic series to my collection but I am glad I did it.

How many Nichco metallic colors there are is not really known but I have seen 12 different around. Randomly divided over the wedge and flat case rotaries but also in TouchTone makes at least 36 possible variations. At this moment I have 5.

Although the site is not yet up and running for 10 years, I have actually started my collection 10 years ago late February 2013 (Hurrah!).

When I started I focused on the Ericofons themselves, but later on I also started to get some related items. Most of them I have already shared here: historic pictures, promotional items, boxes, stamps, etc. It is actually fun!! Walking through the 1950s till the 1980s, 4 decades of history. So I will keep on collecting, I guess for the next 10 years as well. Not only the phones themselves, but also the historic surprises.

Last month I got some nice posters from the late 1970’s. These posters sized 35×25 cm (14×10 inches) were used in a store for promotional purposes. That is why there is some ‘sunwear’ on the colors. But that also has its charm.

In December I gave some considerations on buying Ericofons online. With this post I want to focus on a specific topic in this area: painted Ericofons.

Sometimes you run into a specific color that you want (or need in my case 😉 ). Before you get carried away an click the ‘buy’ button there is a simple check you might be able to do because sometimes Ericofons are painted and do not show the original color. First thing of course is to ask the seller. But the seller might not respond to your question, might not know or just might say it is original…

The 2 colors brown are different, but the principle of the check is the same. On the left you see a different reflection on the phone around the holes of the microphone. This one is clearly painted, as paint, even if professionally applied tends to go around the sharp edged corners of the holes. The thicker the paint the higher the impact. Even with thin layered paint it can be visible. But of course it also depends the pictures you have.

The pictures above were ‘exaggerated’ to show the principles of this small check you can do yourself. Just to make sure there are no surprises. Although surprises are sometimes great as well.

Above another example of a painted Ericofon that I encountered in an online auction. The Accent Green (my heart skipped a beat because it was a wedge type) turned out to be painted after a few checks. Light reflections are your best friend. It would have been the first wedge Accent Green ever spotted.

Online there are many possibilities to buy Ericofons. Normally sellers make pictures of the models they offer and describe their goods. I’m sometimes astonished by the quality of the pictures, the angles they were shot in, and the details shown. Colors are sometimes hard to recognize as exposure and light are not always optimal. But descriptions can be quite shocking as well. I found some examples of quotes that I personally would never use.

Now these examples are quite obvious and visible. Actually, I find them very funny and amusing in a way. If there are other nice and ‘innocent’ examples in the future, I will add them in the gallery here as well.

Other sellers deliberately hide the imperfections. Recently I bought an “in very good condition” Ericofon which appeared to be melted on one side after I received it. Of course, it was not mentioned and not shown on the pictures. The seller never answered…

Always be careful what you buy because conditions, colors and damage are only opinions. And, maybe most important: do not get distracted. 🙂