About L. Dalton Potter Expertise I have been involved in the violin trade for over 28 years. I am currently the President of The Potter Violin Company in Bethesda, MD. I can offer clients initial advice on the value, authenticity and quality of almost all bowed string instruments (violins, violas, cellos & basses) using good quality digital photos. I would decline to give final evaluations without examining instruments in person.
Experience Experience in Music Business: Charlie Byrd's Music House; 1977 - 1980
Senior violin technician: Violin House of Weaver; 1980 - 1996.
President: The Potter Violin Company; 1996 - Present
Organizations: Founding member;String Industry Council, Violin Society of America, American String Teachers Association, Guild of American Luthiers,
Suzuki Association of America, Publications; Journal of the American String Teacher's Association, American Suzuki Journal Education/Credentials;Berklee College of Music 1974 - 1977
Awards and Honors: Chester J. Patranek Award for Excellence in the Music Industry
Traugott Rohner Leadership in the Music Industry Award
(26 years of service - too many to list)
Expert: L. Dalton Potter Date: 4/10/2008 Subject: Upright Bass
Question I wrote AllExperts recently about getting a violin appraised and my husband has decided to ask you about another instument he has and would be interested in selling. It is approximately 60 years old and is a Czechoslovacian upright bass. Inside is marked
Salvadore J Duro
B & J New York
Sales Importers
It is 3/4 size with soft case and blonde in colour. It is in very good shape. It has an emblem on the back inside scroll work and has 3 stars on top of emblem. He paid $350.00 for it back then and was new when he purchased it. Any help you can give us would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Jacqueline Kuzyk
Answer Hi Jacqueline,
Because the Czech basses came in both solid carved wood and also laminated (plywood) versions, its hard to be accurate without seeing it. The "B&J New York" label appears on instruments manufactured between the 1920's and the early 1960's. They tend to be decent quality student instruments designed for high-school and college students. The Plywood versions in good condition should sell for around $1200 to $1500; the solid wood ones might go from $2500 to as much as $5000. The condition of the instrument is key to evaluating potential sales value; remember that a set of strings and and new bridge (and some minor gluing)on a bass can cost as much as $400. so this should be factored into the sale price. Don't bother investing in these repairs; most of the time it doesn't pay since most people have their own preferences and are reluctant to pay more for the extra work. Unfortunately, because of their size it's not practical to ship them as part of a sales deal but most bass-players understand this and will be ready to drive to pick it up. Craig's list and EBAY both attract lots of customers but you'll need to take some digital pictures in order to post it.
All the Best.
Dalton Potter
