A set of 3 Quartz Crystal Fishing Reels
01 December 2020
Description

The 3 reels are actual size and consist of a levelwind, spinning and fly reels. As far as i know they are the only ones in the world!

Provenance

I am a quartz glass blower for the semiconductor industry in the portland area with 32 years experience.I made them myself.

Acquired from
Other
For sale
Maybe
Answered within about 10 hours
By Delia
Dec 01, 11:38 UTC
Fair Market Value
$3,000 - $5,000 USD
Insurance Value $0 USD
What does this mean?

Hi Kevin,

Thank you for contacting Mearto with your appraisal inquiry.
The process of valuing items for auction typically relies on comparable items and what those items have sold for at auction. It's a fairly straightforward process when one is valuing fine and decorative artwork where there are large groups to provide precedent upon which to base a value; it's less straightforward when appraising things that are unique, rare and/or one-of-a-kind.
Do you regularly sell works that you've made? Are you represented by a gallery? Do the parts move (together) or are they individually static?
I'll try to look for some comparables but having answers to the above will help in the valuation process.

Many thanks in advance,
Delia

Kevin halicki Dec 01, 12:33 UTC

No to your questions. I am trying to sell them as a set, or mabey individually.

Delia Dec 02, 11:31 UTC

Thanks, Kevin,
I think a studio art glass gallery might be a better place to sell these, which would be catalogued and priced as follows for public auction:

Kevin Halicki (American, 20th/21st Century)
A three-piece life-size hand-blown quartz crystal fishing reel suite
comprising levelwind, spinning and fly reels
PROVENANCE: property of the artist
$3,000-5,000*
*represents a fair-market value for auction purposes; retail or asking price may vary.

Kevin halicki Dec 03, 00:54 UTC

I'm sorry Delia but that appraisal is poor! first of all the quartz used in this art is purified GE 224 material used in the semiconductor industry! Each reel has easily over $ 250 in materials alone. The cost to manufacture quartz product for sell to Intel, Ibm is outrageous, we have to use diamond blade wet saws, drill bits, core drills cnc machine tools all diamond blade.

In order to clean the glass we use hydroflouric acid and deionized water.

Since quartz takes an incredible ammount of heat to work it, we use a mixture of Hydrogen, and Oxygen gasses! Upon applying heat to the glass causes the glass to be stresses. If the right ammount of heat is'nt applied it will shatter. If the fused glass isn't worked in smooothly with no sharp edges it will shatter. So in order to remove the stress we have to anneal the glass in very high temperatur kiln or ovens. Quartz glass anneals at a temperatue of 1155 degrees celcius, thats aproximately 3500 degrees farenheight!

This Glass isn't the soft glass that you see people making animal, flower etc. figurines at the state fair.

With all that being said I think that's what makes these pieces so unique! It is very hard and expensive to produce art work like this, I have right around 50 hours for the 3. Alot of that is time correcting mistakes becase i had no fixtures to hold parts in place.

Any way thats my story and I hope you can understand my dissapointment!!!

Delia Dec 03, 12:16 UTC

I do understand and appreciate your disappointment. I can increase the value a little based more on the intrinsic value of the materials and the time taken to making these but the market - whether we are talking about the retail or auction market - does not have a way to quantify expertise and skill.
If one considers artistic, individual pieces made in Waterford, Murano or by Dale Chihuly, there is a high level of quality backed by extensive sale records. For Chihuly, his works bring 6 or even 7 figures but he has so many people working for him that it is often very hard to know how much input he had on individual pieces.
In my experience, the best place to sell these would be to start asking around to galleries that sell high-end art glass. They will be better able to appreciate the skill and effort behind these pieces. They will also be in a better position to sell these for a value you consider reasonable. You might start by looking on www.1stdibs.com, www.incollect.com or www.artsy.com for retailers who specialize in art glass.

Delia Dec 03, 12:22 UTC

I would add, further, that dealers and galleries have the ability to discover talent and 'make markets' for untested artists and craftsmen in a way that auctions simply cannot, having to rely solely on pre-existing records for values.

Kevin halicki Dec 04, 01:04 UTC

Thanks for the reply and I still think that appraisal is way too low and I will definitly check into the advice and comments. thank you

Even my coworkers are impressed and sorry for the poor quality pictures. everyone who sees them are in awe!

Kevin halicki Dec 23, 01:21 UTC

Hi Delia Kevin here, iI sent some new pics that show more detail perhaps you can reconsider?

Delia Dec 24, 13:10 UTC

Good morning, Kevin,
Happy holidays. The photos are fantastic but I'm afraid it doesn't change the value; the auction market - which is what Mearto represents - currently has no basis for an increased value on these. I would strongly suggest you reach out to galleries who specialize in artisan glass to see what they say.

Do you have a similar item and want to know how much it’s worth?

Communicate directly with a qualified specialist and get a fair market valuation of your item, typically in 48 hours or less.

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