The Lancaster Improved Special 86 is a 19th-century British plate camera, sold in the era when Lancaster of Birmingham produced a range of mahogany-and-brass field and stand cameras for glass-plate photography.

Auction evidence for the Improved Special 86 is thin: a single recorded UK auction hammer result from 2001 stands at £164, which gives an indicative value rather than a reliable market price in 2026. Because this is a wholesale saleroom figure rather than a dealer asking price, what the camera is worth today depends heavily on cosmetic condition, completeness of the original lens and plate holders, and current collector demand for early Lancaster apparatus.