Okay, say your group wants to sell their starship...

[rinku]

Coming in a little late, not sure if it was bought up earlier, but wouldn't the first step be... talk to the bank?

If I want to sell my mortgaged house and purchase a more expensive house, the bank is usually OVERJOYED to help out with that process, as long as it's clear that you will be able to keep up the repayments.

They do not care if the old house is in need of repair.

They do not care if the purchaser is getting a dump, even if they are financing the buyer's new mortgage (although you can be sure they will do a thorough valuation).

Contract is signed, they get paid.

Ka-Ching.

 

[Condottiere]

The thing about banks is, they want to be sure they hold your testicles in the palm of their hand, if you aren't in the class that actually doesn't need loans, but find it convenient as a tax write off, or that it's cheaper to borrow, than self finance.

 

[rinku]

Well, the pretty generous standard ship mortgage arrangements have always suggested a degree of banking regulation. Or possibly an accord reached between the old Vilani megacorps after a few centuries of financial warfare, back in the olden days.

No one wants a Fourth Great Financial War.

 

[Condottiere]

 

[ottarrus]

Example: a merchant musters out of the service with a Free Trader with twenty years left on the mortgage. After a fairly profitable five years, she wants to move to a larger ship.

How would you, as the Referee, determine a reasonable sale price that they might expect? How difficult would such a sale be to arrange? And how long would it take? Any suggestions?

If they mortgage with the same bank, it's fairly easy. The bank would LOVE for you to start all over again with your payments.
It's more complicated, requiring some Broker and Advocate rolls, if you try to sell to a third party. What's more, unless they're buying and selling on the same world as a branch of their banking institution, it can take a couple of months to get that done. And that's two months of no income... or at least, not enough income to make two more payments on Ol' Wulfy.
Another thing to remember is that when they sell their old ship they're only getting one-quarter it's estimated value...
But yes, with planning, luck, and good skill rolls it is absolutely possible to 'trade up'.

 

[Ol'Weedy]

Scout ships are odd though as they don't come with a mortgage and cannot be sold if the discussion on other threads remains valid so their second hand value is moot.

I've always rule-zeroed that out. The Type-S has been around centuries, I doubt the many ship yards building them would still be restricted to a single customer, and there would be tons of knock-off versions (after all, what's a Seeker).
Maybe they don't market it as a Type-S, and you may have to drop the fancy sensors, but you could probably still buy one.

 

[boggo2300]

it is Canon in Mongoose (one adventure excplicitly states it) That the Scout Service sells surplus Type-S

 

[Sigtrygg]

It has been canon since CT S:7 Traders and Gunboats mentions the IISS sells off surplus scouts at a ~MCr.10 discount (have to check exact number but that is close enough)

 

[AndrewW]

It has been canon since CT S:7 Traders and Gunboats mentions the IISS sells off surplus scouts at a ~MCr.10 discount (have to check exact number but that is close enough)

Supplement 7: Traders and Gunboats, page: 16

Costs: A new type S scout/courier, direct from the builder, costs MCr27.63. Using a standard financing arrangement, a down payment of MCr5.53 would be
made, with monthly payments of Cr132,600 for 480 months following.
Surplus scout/couriers can generally be had for MCr15 to MCr18, but those prices are for cash, and financing is difficult to obtain for such used vessels.

 

[Condottiere]

It's like looking the prices of the current range of graphic cards, and deciding to buy a second hand Polaris.

 

[swordtart]

it is Canon in Mongoose (one adventure excplicitly states it) That the Scout Service sells surplus Type-S

It would make absolute sense for them to do so. The point was that getting one as a mustering out benefit is mortgage free. You can buy whatever someone is willing to sell once you have your own money.

 

[Fluffy Bunny Feet]

It has been canon since CT S:7 Traders and Gunboats mentions the IISS sells off surplus scouts at a ~MCr.10 discount (have to check exact number but that is close enough)

Needs to be canon to allow for the Seeker conversion from the Scout/Courier.

 

[Condottiere]

Exactly, why does a prospector need a jump drive?

 

[MasterGwydion]

Exactly, why does a prospector need a jump drive?

Prospectors need to travel. Miners, on the other hand, would mostly stay in one place.

 

[Condottiere]

Cheaper just to freight a smallcraft.

Also, smallcraft are cheaper.

 

[MasterGwydion]

Yeah. The best way to asteroid mine in Traveller is with a Largecraft. 100+ dtons, but no jump drive.

 

[Fluffy Bunny Feet]

Exactly, why does a prospector need a jump drive?

While prospecting they don't. They may however be prospecting in systems they need to jump to. Remember they will likely behave like real world gold rush prospectors and migrate to the area where the newest "big strikes" are found often in another star system.

The Seekers are equpped for small scale mining and they may carry their ore to another system for sale. Finally of course they are used as trading/smuggling vessels as well and need Jump ability for that.

Seeker style interplanetary vessels can be built as pure prospectors and they can be significantly smaller and cheaper than a 100 ton Seeker. Or they can go the other way and be larger and more flexible.

 

[Terry Mixon]

Yeah. The best way to asteroid mine in Traveller is with a Largecraft. 100+ dtons, but no jump drive.

 

[Condottiere]

While there would have lots of prospectors, with differing access to resources, there would be a minimalist mindset to keep operating costs as low as possible.

 

[Fluffy Bunny Feet]

A mining operation should have the mining craft stay on site constantly with separate craft using Jump Nets to deliver the cargo. Using your Seeker to both mine and deliver your ore is a path to bankruptcy. In fact if you do use the Seeker that way it is more economical add a jump net and if delivering in system enough jump net to move at fractional g acceleration, you spend a higher percentage of your time mining that way.

A 20 ton launch with a laser drill on the nose, a grappling arm customized to gather the ore and deposit it into a 10 ton container behind it is a good mining vessel. Airlock at the rear so the crew can be exchanged on site with minimal interruption

A mother ship that uses a Heavy Grappling Arm to collect and replace those 10 ton containers can service multiple mining launches. It can use a dual UNREP system to remove the ore from the container and transfer to a jump net to be carried to a location where it is sold (see tug below). You could of course instead have a small craft that is modular that can drop off and pick up the containers if they are modules.

A tug that leaves a breakaway hull section holding a jump net that can be filled while the tug is taking the ore (metal if refined on site) is more efficient than taking your mining craft away.

A smelter station on site is optional but for major finds efficient (transport 1/2 the mass and the purified metal should be more valuable/ton).

Finally you need a habitat, either a station or a ship for the mining crews.