That is a query I've never had the impudence to ask openly...though it has been a burning issue. I'm not old enough to beard a Sage about his handle. You obviously speak/read the language, and perhaps know Hontonai well enough to presume at that level. Good luck, son.
That is an excellent suggestion, and after the CNG folks have their say about possibilities with their auction I'll consider it. Fees up-front on eBay BIN are substantial, as I recall...but might just be a good investment in such a case. Thanks...
Handles are unpredictable. I signed up on one forum as Ye Olde Stamp Geezer, and apparently no one thought a thing about it.
That's not how you do it. Get an "appraisal". List the items at AUCTION with an absurdly high hidden reserve (1% additional fee). If your hidden reserve is $1500, and the high bids cluster around $900, you have a pretty good idea that's what the item's worth. If it happens to sell, your Reserve was too low, nevertheless you can tap dance all the way to the bank. You CANNOT ship these coasters overseas, that's the catch. There's no way to protect them in transit, plus there may be unknown duties at the other end. Maximum indemnity for Registration is US $45, and there's no insurance available for all practical purposes. This is why you want an auction house (US or foreign) with offices in the US - to bypass all this shipping problem and potential liability. It's worth paying for to let them manage the risk. You are a lamb in a den of wolves, and although the bidders assure you they are vegetarians..........
There's no listing fee anymore. The maximum sales fee is $250, so if you set it up as a BIN at $10000 with "best offer" as an option, you can see what folks are "willing" to pay, and it costs you nothing.
No. You would get the appraisal from an auction house. If you have an account with Heritage, your consultant can help you.
The bids you get constitute the "appraisal" and of course this only works if you get a dozen bids or more. With a hidden reserve of $2000, if you get $80, $90, $125, $250, $350, $400, $425, $450, $700, $725, $750, and $761, you feel somewhat intuitively that the item is worth between $700 and $800, and then you list without reserve starting at $650. It is not an exact science. I doubt that ANY U.S. firm really knows how to appraise these Yen coasters. For such an obscure item of potentially great value, due to its provenance, and the Seller's need for the house's guarantee of authenticity, I still think it is worth the auction house's fee to handle not only the sale but the VERY tricky business of assuming all the risks of shipping them overseas, which is where your best bids are likely to come from. And there's only one chance to do it right.
That's the scary part. I AM th' lamb...the wolves will eat me for lunch, and leave me, well...fleeced! Sorry...pretty badly mixed metaphor.