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| Passion Investments: Yachts |
Mahogany Champions
Michael Verdon
09/01/2004
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Even badly
neglected, worm-eaten Barrelbacks command a small fortune these days.
“Regardless of condition, their values continue to escalate. A friend of mine
just bought a derelict 23-footer for $50,000,” says Ayers. “Chris-Craft made
only about 40 [of the 23-foot models], so few ever come on the market. And
everyone wants a Barrelback.”
| While most collectors caught in the spell of these craft shy away from
the word “investment” and refer to their obsessions as a hobby, many
have seen the values of their boats climb steadily over the years. |
Not all Chris-Crafts hold the same value as
the stylish Barrelbacks. For years, Chris-Craft was by far the dominant brand,
producing tens of thousands of boats. Consequently, other, rarer brands like Gar
Wood, HackerCraft and Dodge often command higher resale prices. This hierarchy
of values exemplifies the cardinal rule of vintage boat collecting: Supply and
demand, as well as the popularity and condition of specific models, will
determine pricing. Some boats’ values have lifted with the tide of rising
prices; others have skyrocketed.
Warner estimates that the survival rate of
most vintage boats is about 20 percent, and he admits that could be a generous
estimate in some cases. “Dodge built only 1,600 boats from 1922 to 1936,” he
says. “I know there aren’t 400 Dodges out there. There might be 40.” Dodges hold
a premium, as do names like Gar Wood and HackerCraft. “Gar Wood always claimed
to build as many boats as Chris-Craft,” says Warner. “But its sales records
showed it built about 3,500 from 1922 to 1947. HackerCraft only made about 2,500
during its 30 years in business.” The result is that these brands, particularly
the triple-cockpit models, often sell for six figures, and the numbers continue
to rise.
 | | THE BARRELBACK stern adds appeal to this 1940 Chris-Craft Moonshine Runabout. |
This was not always the case. “If you go back to the ’70s, these
boats had little or no value,” says Stebbins. “Some were brought to burn piles,
and others left to rot. You could buy just about any boat for $2,000 or $3,000.
For me, it was a very affordable way to get into boating.”
Todd Warner’s
father, Frank, was an avid collector long before it was fashionable, and he went
to the French Riviera in 1968 to buy a 1959 27-foot Riva Tritone called Piranha,
which had belonged to actress Rita Hayworth. Warner paid the princely sum of
$2,500 for it. In the early ’80s, Todd Warner restored it for a client, making
three trips to Europe to find parts and figure out the finer construction
details from other Tritones. “It’s gorgeous now, and worth about a half-million
dollars,” he says.
Other collectors spin stories about the “big barn score,”
where they’ve found a diamond in the rough under an old tarp. Al Schinnerer, a
collector and owner of California Classic Boats, which manufactures chrome
hardware and replacement castings for vintage boats, bought a rotting wooden
speedboat called Miss Dee Wite II for about $300. Despite its illustrious
history—in 1936, it set a speed record of 76 mph—Miss Dee had seen better days.
Schinnerer sold it, unrestored, to fellow collector Bill Patton, who has
invested over $600,000 into its restoration. Patton also plans to include a pair
of rare original Liberty engines to bring it back to original historical
authenticity. He expects the boat to fetch in excess of $1 million.
For one-off race boats like this, documented evidence about its history goes
a long way in determining its market price. “A boat’s pedigree impacts its
value,” notes Stebbins. “If it belonged to Guy Lombardo, who raced boats, or to
famous families like the Pillsburys or the Wrigleys, the owner can demand some
increased value.”
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