Re: [A/S] Re: Airstream wanna be-Help Please!

["Terry Tyler" <tylerbears@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

Once a trailer is no longer listed in the bluebook, it's anyone's call as to how value is
determined. I'll share my guidelines, but that's all they are. You'll have to make up your own.

The easy answer is "Whatever the traffic will bear."

BUT - some sort of structure is helpful. For purposes of illustration, here are the figures I use
when assessing a single axle vintage Airstream. They are very fluid, but offer a starting point.

I think all of us eventually develop our own set of guidelines based on what is important to us. If
a feature is there, it's worth something. If it isn't there or has to be fixed, it's a cost to be
negotiated. 

Example: New refrigerators cost $1500, rebuilt ones can be half that. If you haven't been on the
email list before, maybe you haven't accessed Tom Patterson's archives. I'll include that at the end
of this post. With a little homework (lurking), most cost data can be teased out, or at least an
email address can be found of someone who has just done that job. A simple note asking costs is
within the realm of what most of us are ready to share. 

Example: For me, frame sag is no big deal because I know the fix and I know the people who will do
it for me, so I place a low dollar amount on that feature. Others may assign a higher price. That's
okay, too. We do what we want with our money. I know I over pay on certain types of parts or labor,
yet on others, I know I'm exceptionally frugal. 

Here's my "pricing system" for buying a Vintage Airstream (it's not the only system I use). There
are dozens of cost items I haven't included. That's because this is for illustration purposes only.
It's up to you to decide which items are important to you. Think of your first draft as a prototype
or as an evolving work in progress.

The advantage with this type of system is it's easy to do the math on your feet while talking to the
seller. Here's a partial list of the values I'm using this month. If a seller wants me to pay more
than my values add up to, then either he comes down or I do a 180. There are hundreds of Vintage
Airstreams out there. It's a buyer's market for those with persistence and patience. After you have
seen your 12th Airstream, you'll have much greater clarity about what is a fair price to pay.

$2,000  outside skin mirror shiny polished
$1,500  basic running gear in good order  
$1,000  all inside appliances work
$1,000  outside skin nearly blemish free
$1,000  solid floor (no evidence of rot)
$  500  two batteries AND two solar panels
$  500  solid frame (no evidence of sag)
$  300  equalizing hitch (no bows or eggs)
$  200  propane bottles (30#) (no dents)
$  200  inside woodwork blemish free
$  200  interior decor looks new 
$  100  catalytic heater (clean pad)
$?????  allow for parts within 1 year
$?????  allow for repairs I may have overlooked

These ideas are all yours John. Do with them what you will. Listen to what others on the list have
to say. It's your money, spend it wisely. With that, here's my "short" list of useful and fun
web sites.

Terry

http://www.airstream.com/history.htm for history of Airstreams
http://www.vac.airstream.net and for VAC member pictures
http://www.phrannie.org/phredex.html for common sense 
http://www.geocities.com/TheTropics/Cabana/4868/ for any brand of vintage
http://www.escapees.com for the serious RVer 
http://www.rvsolarelectric.com for everything solar  
http://www.tompatterson.com/Streamline/Airstreamlist/Spares7.html - Archives
http://www.realgoods.com Click Energy Efficient Living 
http://www.can-Am-rv.com and click on "hitch hints."
http://www.blainewindow.com/ for window hardware catalog
http://www.rvmobile.com. for info on RV refrigerators
http://www.howstuffworks.com/refrig.htm for how fridges work
http://www.airstream.net for list of rallies
http://www.wbcci.org/MembershipApp.asp for WBCCI application 
http://www.rv-mh-hall-of-fame.org/index.html for RV/MH Heritage Foundation in Elkhart