Good points Miriam, and believe me, I'm not trying to dis the machines that you work so hard on and resell...that wasn't my point at all... I believe Muv said it better than I did....
A GOOD sewing machine, regardless of age, is worth much more than the going market for them. This little 99 is a GOOD machine, however, when folks buy these old black girls, they want "pretty" more than they want function, altho they really want BOTH.
I will say that I've noticed the market for the old machines picking up tremendously in this area. A good thing for the value of the machines I already have, not so good for the machines I would hope to own....