Quote Originally Posted by Jock Scot View Post
Purely out of interest, at a guess (I won't hold you to it. Promise!) what sort of figures are we thinking about here? $'s or £'s it matters not. Low hundreds? High hundreds? A thousand? Thousands?
It's so hard to predict the "used bagpipe market" because so much depends on the timing, on what specific instruments specific pipers are looking for at a certain time.

Speaking generally, bagpipes from the 1940s through the 1980s, from known Scottish makers, if mounted in Catalin (the stuff that looked sort of like ivory when new, but as it ages turns to a strange burnt orange) go from anywhere between $500 and $1,000 US.

It's because many pipers have a strong aversion to that look.

The same sets if mounted in real ivory will go for much more, around $2,000 perhaps, though many pipers will avoid ivory pipes due to them being illegal to take across International borders. In the USA it's illegal to buy, sell, or possess any item made of ivory. (There's a de minimis exception for musical instruments.)

If a set has Sterling Silver mounts the price goes up too. Sets with plain silver mounts will go for around $2,000 or more and sets with engraved silver mounts might double that price.

The other factor is the maker. Classic Henderson bagpipes will go for considerably more than similar sets by other makers, for example.