Additional Services

Selling Your Old Instrument

We purchase instruments from the public on a very rare basis, but we would love to take a look at what you have! We recommend that you call ahead of time to the shop you plan on visiting to give us advanced notice of your visit. Our Austin shop can be reached at 512-640-4072 and our San Antonio shop can be reached at 210-349-4700. If your instrument has a label (which can be spotted inside the instrument by looking through the f-holes), we may be able to tell you by phone whether or not we are interested in seeing the instrument in person. While we very occasionally purchase instruments from the public, we are typically only interested in instruments that are rare and/or highly valuable and that can diversify our inventory. We have a very extensive inventory of student instruments and cannot purchase beginner or fractional sized instruments.

We do not guarantee that we will purchase your instrument.

If we express interest in considering your instrument further, please plan on leaving it with us for one to two weeks while we consider. We must assess the authenticity and condition of an instrument before making a decision as to whether or not we would like to purchase.

Consignments

We occasionally accept instruments on consignment. We must see your instrument in-person; please bring the instrument to our Austin or San Antonio shop for inspection. Instruments for potential consignment must be in excellent condition, and must be an instrument that will diversify our inventory. We have a very extensive inventory of instruments and will not consign student-level or fractional-sized instruments.

Terra Nova Violins will assess your instrument and provide a list of repairs and adjustments to bring the instrument to like-new condition. These repairs must be completed at Terra Nova and must be completed and paid for before we can show your instrument to prospective buyers. Reconditioning repairs include, but are not limited to: cleaning, varnish work, seam gluing and new strings. Details such as selling price and commission percentages will be determined during the consignment intake process.

Insurance Appraisals

Terra Nova Violins offers instrument and bow insurance appraisals for $75 per item. We must see your instrument or bow in-person to complete an appraisal. In some cases, the instrument must be left with us for a week or two as we verify the identity of the instrument and its current market value. Please call ahead of time to tell us more about the instrument if you plan on requesting an appraisal. Appraisals are typically requested for insurance purposes and are not required for selling an instrument, although they can be helpful. Appraisals for items purchased at our shop are complementary; please contact us directly if you are needing an appraisal or a renewal.