Help with the value of a unique boat

[cogzoid]

Hello,

It looks like my time for sailing is drying up in the short term. I enjoy the sport, but I think my boat would fare better if it was being used by someone than taking up space in my backyard. I would like to sell it sometime this spring (after a few last trips around the lake, of course). But, I'm having a hard time pricing the boat, as I've never seen anything else like it. It's old, in working shape (definitely not perfect), and it could actually be worth something.

A little history, first.
I bought the boat from a guy in the high desert north of LA for a song. His wife wanted it out of his driveway, and I scooped it up. The only information about the boat was that it was a 16' 1950 "Dutch". I took that to mean that the boat was homemade and the boat maker or design was of Dutch origin. I don't know where to go to get more information about the boat. The trailer is just as old, clearly homemade, and needs a lot of work. But, I still use it to take the boat to the reservoir 20 miles away when I can.

After I bought the boat I spent a few weekends sanding and varnishing the gunwales and all of the exposed wood. The exposed wood is teak and mahogany. The hull and deck of the boat have been covered with fiberglass. The sails were almost knew when I bought the boat, and still have many years of service left in them.

My question is, how much is such a boat worth? Any ideas?

Thanks,
Dan

[bljones]

Need more info. Pics would help. It could be worthless, or it could be priceless, depending upon a) provenance, b) condition. A trailer is an asset, but a trailer in poor shape is a liability. Sails with lots of life in them and refinished wood are useless when attached to a rotted delaminating hull. I am not running down your boat, I want you to understand that I need more info to be able to offer anything more than a WAG.

How much is it worth to you?

[camaraderie]

The surest way to value it would be to take plenty of pictures and put it on E-bay. Let the market set the value.

[cogzoid]

That's funny, I sure thought I uploaded the photos. Maybe it didn't work. Let me try again... Well, it keeps saying that the upload failed. Here are some picasa photos: Picasa Web Albums - Daniel - Sand Piper

The photos will say a lot more than I can.

It's really not in bad shape for a 59 year old boat!

[CrazyRu]

The boat looks like pre-historic “Flying Dutchman” to me. It is international racing class.
Old FD fetch anywhere from $150 to $3000.
You may post pictures on some racing forum and try to identify it positively.

Is it really 16 ft long? FD is 20, and yours boat looks longer than 16'

California's fleet's website:
California Flying Dutchman

[cogzoid]

Thanks for the help, CrazyRu! The boat is indeed 16 feet in length, and it does look a lot like a Flying Dutchman. I'll pass on some information to the California FD fleet and see what I can learn. Great lead!