WIX Archives
Re: PV-1/PV-2
Posted by Steve T on Wed Nov 26, 2003 06:14:44 PM
In reply top Re: PV-1/PV-2 posted by RobC on Wed Nov 26, 2003 01:13:26 AM
Rob--
: I have spend a lot of brain cells pondering this question over the years. Why is a Bearcat worth around $2 mil when it has no combat history and was a post-war aircraft.
An F8F is both charismatic and American--that'd be the crux of it!
Because of its racing history?
That adds to the lustre a bit...but when was the last time you heard of anyone buying an F8F to modify it radically for Reno? Like the Mustang, the Bearcat is now worth too much in stock (or stock-looking) condition to be a viable subject for Reno-vation...
Ah, but then why is a Sea Fury not also worth $2 mil? It also has a lot of racing history, is post war and arguably a better looking aircraft.
"Arguably" better looking...?? Them's fightin' words... :-)
Both were at the zenith of piston engine aircraft development.
Yes. Oh well. At least my favourite happens to be the official entry-level sharp-end piston Warbird. In the event of the aforementioned lotto jackpot...I wouldn't complain!
: Both Blenheims and Lysanders were hugely historic aircraft
: , with multiple Victoria Cross recipients and a tremendous
: record of bravery on the part of their pilots.
But they don't go 400-plus knots and look ravishing...
Yet, collectors would rather create a Spitfire from scratch in order to have the 41st flyable Spitfire rather than spend similar money restoring a genuine one of the former.
It's all a matter of demand and desirability, I suppose: because Spits, for example (even largely-newbuilt ones) are so coveted, there's always room in the market for one more. (And of course because of the market status the Spit--and also the Mustang--enjoys, there's now a whole industry devoted to fettling them with brand-new componentry, too...the very fact that there are "new" 51s and Spits is testament to that).
It's like cars: I once saw a 1957 Chevrolet go at auction for $85K US. It was a nice Chev, but still, geez, they mass produced the things, it's not like it was a one-off bespoke Duesenberg or Rolls or Bugatti...It really is funny, and would probably make a fascinating mass-psy study: why do certain collectible items, irrespective of their histories, acquire an iconic status, while others just plain don't?
S.