sanity check...buying a used VC Intrepid II

[nateschisler]

Hi all - I think I'm making a good deal here, just want to toss it out and see if anyone says I'm a total idiot. Looking at a 2001 Vermont Castings Intrepid II, enameled Bordeaux red, with warming shelves.

Seller claims it was used for 1 season and then pulled out for remodeling. I've inspected the stove and by the amount of dust on it from his garage, and the lack of creosote build-up anywhere suggest he's being honest. Enamel is all pristine, firebrick and such is all intact. About to shake hands at $900...whaddya think?

 

[bholler]

Yeah used very little or not I wouldn't do it they were not very good stoves to start with

 

[begreen]

It's not a terrible stove and good for small spaces. I had a buddy that ran one for about 7 years. It was about due for a rebuild by then, but he ran it pretty hard as it was undersized for his place. Rebuilding is affordable and with the new style refractory it might go a lot longer between rebuilds. $900 is about what it cost new, back then so you might want to take that into account. Offer $600 cash if still interested.

 

[nateschisler]

Dayum! That's some serious appreciation. Can't buy one for twice that now!

 

[begreen]

Back then the price for a painted one started about $1000. The enameled version ran about $250? more I think.

 

[Squirrely]

Dayum! That's some serious appreciation. Can't buy one for twice that now!

That's about right. Plain cast iron ones go for $2k on ebay with free shipping and no sales tax.

 

[jetsam]

I'm afraid to look that up, because I fear I'll find a cult of people selling each other horrible old smoke dragons for thousands of dollars, chatting about crumbling cats and the EPA hiding burn tubes in your stove so they can steal your fillings...

Of course maybe I should- I could offer to sell them the ORIGINAL wood heater, Ring of Rocks, for only $10k (some assembly required).

 

[kennyp2339]

I would spend your money else where, yes it's tempting especially at the $900 deal but your inherenting a bad engineered stove that's cost a small fortune to fix.
Not my cup of tea but what I don't like someone else might like.

 

[begreen]

A rebuild is about $400-500 in parts. If the stove has only a year of use, then that could be several years away.

 

[Ratamahattayou]

I just bought the same stove for $325 a 2005 model.

Sent from my HTC Desire 512 using Tapatalk

 

[bholler]

A rebuild is about $400-500 in parts. If the stove has only a year of use, then that could be several years away.

Yes it could be several years away or it could need it now. And even rebuilt it will not work as well as many other stoves

 

[begreen]

That is up to the owner to determine and choose. It is the smallest and arguably best looking small cat stove on the market.

 

[defiant3]

I wouldn't categorically dismiss all Intrepid II's . Really, it'll depend on the intended use so if you see yourself burning less than 2 cords each season, then this could work out very well. But Intrepids are NOT workhorse heaters, and trying to heat a house with one WILL be a disappointing undertaking. And I'd offer the guy like $750.00 unless he can show you that the catalytic element is like new. At $900.00 you're half way to a new Morso or some other small stove that will have NO maintenance issues and a warranty!

 

[nateschisler]

Thanks all for the input! I actually landed a much better deal on a used VC Encore. Much newer, minimal use, and half the distance I was going to drive for the Intrepid. At max output it might be a little to much for the area we're going to put it in, but it's going to look awesome and should get us through this first winter just fine...then I'll plumb-in the PF100 sitting in my basement next spring