Need help to appraise

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

Hi people it's time I let my P&O dragon project go to a deserving home as I don't have the space as she is 80 inches long 15 inches wide and I don't know what she's worth ??originally built by scratch in1967 from the original plans there's not another one anywhere I have spent £1000 so far she has 2 x 1967 original motors that work beautifully and twin screws with a bow thruster she's been fully restored and weathereathered but I need some help in selling her… Don't really want to put her on flea bay think she's better than that any help would be great thank you people in advance Anthony

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

80inch P&O dragon model

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

[Colin BishopModerator @colinbishop34627]

It is very difficult to advise on a selling price for a model like this. As always, it will only be worth what somebody is willing to pay. Your best route for a sale is via an auction house with experience of selling model ships as this is where potentially interested collectors will be looking. At the moment the only specialist auction house for maritime items is Charles Miller **LINK**/ This firm does offer free appraisals but you will need to check the terms and conditions before placing your model with them, or indeed any other auctioneers. Commission and expenses can take a significant bite out of the realised price.

Generally the market for model boats is not a strong one at the moment and decent prices usually attach to models with either a historical provenance or interest or those which traditionally command high prices such as top class builder's models. The fact that the model is a working one may not attract an additional premium in this sort of market which usually caters more for static exhibition models. Nor is the weathering likely to help in this respect.

My guess is that you could be lucky to recoup the money you have spent on her and of course your 'amateur' work time will count for nothing in terms of monetary value.

It does of course depend on who is in the market on the day but, to be honest, I wouldn't get your hopes up too much. Just out of interest, the models of the late Brian King were auctioned earlier this year. Brian was acknowledged as one of the best amateur model ship builders in the UK with countless awards to his credit and the auctioneers put a lot of effort into publicising the sale yet the models only realised relatively moderate prices which in no way reflected the time and effort that went into constructing them. You can see the results here: **LINK**

Colin

 

Edited By Colin Bishop, Website Editor on 28/08/2016 22:09:21

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

Many thanks Colin for the info

[The Long BuildParticipant @thelongbuild]

Very, Very Nice Model..

[neil hpParticipant @neilhp]

just my opinion, but if put to an auction house such as Charles Miller, and I have submitted to him in the past, he wants pristine looking models, for showcase appearance, and although looking excellent weathering techniques have been applied, I doubt that his clientele would go for such a ship. his sales are usually april/may and October, so the next sale you would be able to submit to would be next year. the flyer for this October's sale with catalogue details have already been sent out. I received mine a couple of weeks ago. neil.

[Anthony StanceParticipant @anthonystance12355]

Many thanks Neil for the info

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