Used Vermont Defiant Value

[silver78]

Hi folks,
After 20 years I decided to replace my VC Defiant stove. I am trying to figure out a reasonable asking price for the used stove. Actually I would like to get to a very reasonable price. I don't want to give it away but I do want to price it low enough so that you guys would say the buyer got a good deal. It makes parking difficult sitting in my garage so I am willing to price it low.

In addition to the picture below here is some additional information for your consideration.

I am located in Maryland and the buyer would need to pick it up from my home. No stairs involved it's in my garage right now.
I bought it new in December 2000 and run about 1-2 cords of wood a year. It was not a primary heat source.
It needs a new catalyst but the surround is in good shape.
There is a ring of rust under the humidifier pot in the picture. Also a little surface rust on the side. I would think a repaint is in order unless someone just wants it for a hunting cabin.
It needs new gaskets.
I have the fire screen too.

 

[silver78]

I guess there is little information on this matter available? Did I do something wrong here? Is it inappropriate to ask about the value of an old stove?

 

[Diabel]

You must have a price in mind. Let us know please

 

[webby3650]

No, it’s all good.
I’ve seen them go for $1K in good condition, with the cat needing replaced I’d say $650-$750

 

[Diabel]

20 yr old stove (sorry to say) is worthless. Scrap metal equates to maybe 100.00

 

[webby3650]

20 yr old stove (sorry to say) is worthless. Scrap metal equates to maybe 100.00

Sorry, but that’s not the case. I buy and sell used stoves all the time. VC stoves still have a large following, it will sell. The last Defiant encore I sold went for $ 600 I think with a new cat.

 

[Diabel]

Sorry, but that’s not the case. I buy and sell used stoves all the time. VC stoves still have a large following, it will sell. The last Defiant encore I sold went for $ 600 I think with a new cat.

Webby, if you sold it for 600, what did you buy it for? Plus your labor and parts? Not to mention profit.

 

[webby3650]

Webby, if you sold it for 600, what did you buy it for? Plus your labor and parts? Not to mention profit.

I usually pay $100 for them, then go through them in my spare time. I wouldn’t spend the money on a total rebuild, but if all it needs is a cat there’s no reason to say it should go for scrap metal. Especially since the op already owns the stove.

 

[Diabel]

Hence, I said 100.00 for a 20yr old defiant

 

[weatherguy]

How much is a new cat, would it make more sense to sell it with a new cat? When I sold my princess I sold it with a brand new cat and got a decent price.

 

[webby3650]

Hence, I said 100.00 for a 20yr old defiant

The ones I end up with are pretty rough. Nothing like the one the OP is offering.

 

[peakbagger]

IMHO the market for used stoves is very local and tied to alternatives for heating. My guess is Maryland has natural gas which is relatively low cost so less demand for used wood stoves. In my area there is consistent market for the original VCs that were upgraded to the two piece firebacks but once they went to cats or the dreaded Everburn, there seems to be less demand.

 

[Simonkenton]

I gotta tell you silver 78, one reason the silence was deafening, is that the post 1993 Vermont Castings stoves have a terrible reputation.
Before 1993 VC made the best stoves on the market, I bought a VC Resolute new in 1988 and it was a great stove. Six years later I sold it with the house it was in, I wish I still had that stove. My mother and brother also bought that same stove.

You can read the numerous dismal reviews on this forum. Thirty years ago I was the biggest fan of Vermont Castings, but today, I wouldn't take one if you gave it to me.

 

[Bad LP]

A few years back I bought a used pre cat Vigilant for 350. Adapter pipe, tools, gloves, stove polish all in working condition. Needed nothing. Still have it on a dolly. No idea what I’m going to do with it but scraping it isn’t in the cards.

 

[Kevin Weis]

Okay, I should be the man here for this. I sold a two year old VC Encore for $850 this past year ( Nov 19'). I had it for sale for over a year for 1/2 the price it was new a year before. No takers. Same deal they had to come get it out of the house for that. One step into the house. Doorway was on the room the stove was in. What the big problem was nobody could muster up enough bodies to move it. Wheyed about 425. You need a man on each corner. So basically four people. There was no complaints about the price really. Plus in Maryland not a huge amount of wood burners I'm sure added to this. With all of this said I think your looking at about $400 maybe on a good day. If they offer you three I would take it. Most people are looking for a dealer to install it for them. So this is my two cents on it.

 

[silver78]

Thanks for all the info/input. Some replies regarding your comments.

"You must have a price in mind. Let us know please"
At this point in time I plan to ask $250 for the stove. It will include the stove, the stove pipe, the fireplace screen, a gasket kit and five new firebricks.

"How much is a new cat, would it make more sense to sell it with a new cat?"
According to my Amazon search a new cat is about $120. At this point in time I think I will just let the buyer buy and install it. But if most folks here think that's a mistake and I would be better off getting and installing the new cat with an asking price of $375 I may reconsider.
Amazon product ASIN B0754NSKBX
"My guess is Maryland has natural gas which is relatively low cost so less demand for used wood stoves."
Perhaps less demand than New Hampshire but natural gas is not available everywhere and there are a lot of folks in MD who like burning wood. Keep in mind that Maryland has a good supply of oak, maple and cherry wood which makes wood burning more desirable. While it's really cold up north some areas do not have a good supply of hard wood to burn compared to MD.

"I gotta tell you silver 78, one reason the silence was deafening, is that the post 1993 Vermont Castings stoves have a terrible reputation."
Yes I discovered that when I started reading this forum. It's too bad really. This was my second VC stove. I had one of their Dutchwest stoves in my old house. My Defiant (manufactured in 2000) worked pretty well and I never had any problems with it. Maybe because I only burn 1-2 cords of wood a year? I only use wood as supplemental heat when it gets really cold. I actually considered getting another Defiant but decided on a non-catalytic brand/model with 2020 compliance. Dealers still sell VC Defiants around here and the prices for a new one are crazy high.

Okay, I should be the man here for this.... With all of this said I think your looking at about $400 maybe on a good day.
Thanks for the input from another Maryland resident.

Again - thanks for the input. If you think I mispriced it let me know. I won't get offended.

 

[Diabel]

If you are patient you just might get 250 for it. In most cases people just want to have the stove removed and gone, hence they drop the price aggressively.

 

[rwh63]

i'll suggest the possibility of parting it out. i've had the occasion over the past several years to need to dispose early model VC Resolute and Vigilant. Trying to sell them whole would net me about $100 each. broken apart, i have probably grossed about $1500 or more. it was some work breaking them apart, cleaning and IDing each part, taking pics, and listing them on Ebay. i found that certain parts sell best, such as handles, legs, screens, inner parts, doors, griddles, flues, dampers, hinges, etc. least desirable are the most durable pieces, like the back, outer sides, top and front.

you would be surprised how much you can get for genuine used replacement parts. what doesn't sell can go to the scrap yard, or be repurposed.

 

[webby3650]

Maybe your market is different than mine? I doubt it though, very few have natural gas around here unless you are in a town. I’d bet I’ve sold 6-7 Defiant encores for anywhere between $500-1000. All in good shape with a new cat. It never took more than a few weeks to move one, unless it was summertime, and I never bothered to try. The Cat Defiant was more desirable than the encore, it wasn’t a bad stove. How many of you that are saying it’s not worth anything have ever tried to sell used stoves? It sounds like that those chiming in have only tried to sell their one old stove. Just sayin.
I’m not a big fan of VC either, because I have to work on them! I do this all the time, there is still a large following out there, not to mention people that can’t afford a new one.

 

[Diabel]

Maybe your market is different than mine? I doubt it though, very few have natural gas around here unless you are in a town. I’d bet I’ve sold 6-7 Defiant encores for anywhere between $500-1000. All in good shape with a new cat. It never took more than a few weeks to move one, unless it was summertime, and I never bothered to try. The Cat Defiant was more desirable than the encore, it wasn’t a bad stove. How many of you that are saying it’s not worth anything have ever tried to sell used stoves? It sounds like that those chiming in have only tried to sell their one old stove. Just sayin.
I’m not a big fan of VC either, because I have to work on them! I do this all the time, there is still a large following out there, not to mention people that can’t afford a new one.

In my case, I sold my one year old encore NC for 1/3 of its price. Went of a mission of buying a used cat encore (l loved the look). Found one 2550 asking price was 500. After pointing out what the stove needed I got it for 100.00.
I found another encore 0028 asking price was 300.00 I offered to remove it. I got if for free and the stove was actually in decent shape. Found another encore 2140, asking price was 200.00, again after pointing out the damage, got it for free. Took it all apart and it is still sitting in the shed.

 

[webby3650]

In my case, I sold my one year old encore NC for 1/3 of its price. Went of a mission of buying a used cat encore (l loved the look). Found one 2550 asking price was 500. After pointing out what the stove needed I got it for 100.00.
I found another encore 0028 asking price was 300.00 I offered to remove it. I got if for free and the stove was actually in decent shape. Found another encore 2140, asking price was 200.00, again after pointing out the damage, got it for free. Took it all apart and it is still sitting in the shed.

With all the damage, why buy it?

 

[Diabel]

With all the damage, why buy it?

I spent 3k on the encore NC. Recovered 1k after one year. I wanted to take the 2550 completely apart and rebuild it from scratch. I had 1k to work with. Ended up with a good stove and 200.00 leftover. The stove still works fine. Just replaced the cat this fall.

 

[silver78]

Just posted in the classifieds. Price is $199.