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#16
03-28-2024, 03:32 PM
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Lovely guitar. Welcome to the forum. You’ve got a special guitar. Likely worth between $25,000-$40,000 depending on condition, originality, and repair history. It'll likely need $500-$1,500 for a neck reset, fret work, and potentially a new bridge. There are only about 10 luthiers in the country that I'd trust it to, and a few shops to sell it through. Most will ask for up to a 25% commission but that can be negotiated down to 15%, especially if they have buyers lined up. Most vintage shops have a "list" and the guitar will be sold before it hits the internet. Some shops (Carter Vintage in Nashville) will throw a super high price on it and hope someone will just open their checkbook (proverbially nowadays). Others will price it accordingly and sell it quickly. Gruhn is THE place, but The Music Emporium, and Retrofret, are all good bets.
My simple advice is to get insurance on it before you ship it or drive it to get your appraisal. Heritage Musical Instrument policy is where I'd start. Their most basic insurance is for $25,000 or $30,000 for about $250 and it's a stated value policy which will cover as much as you state. The guitar will only go up in value, but a vintage guitar in that category needs proper care, humidification, etc once the restoration is done. I have 11 vintage Martins and Gibsons from 1927-1943. I don't consider them investments, but rather fun tools that seem to hold their value and over 20 years have nearly tripled in value. Yet Apple and Amazon were a better bet over the last 20 years. Who knows the next 20 years. Best of luck. 
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