Ebay Estate Pipes - Any Experience With Them?

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CarterHallJunkie

CarterHallJunkie

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Good Morning Gentlemen - I trust this Saturday morning finds you well.

I was up late last night looking through various Ebay stores that deal in estate pipes. I need to expand my collection (if you can call three pipes a collection) but have a limited budget.

Has anyone bought pipes off Ebay and what has been your experience - good or bad?

Frank :D
 
Ive had good experiances form ebay. Pipes are the same as anyhting else you buy there look closely at the pictures and ask any questions you may have before you bid.Unless your interested in cleaning and sanitizeing the pipe yourself bid on one that has already been refurbished and is ready to smoke. There are also some good buys on older pipes that are unsmoked..NOS new old stock.
 
I've had mostly good experiences buying and selling pipes on EBay. The few less than great experiences were mostly due to wishful thinking on my part, like, "oh that dark spot on the rim is probably just a shadow", instead of "hmm, I think I'll pass on this one due to the charred rim". You'll find some pipes being blatantly miss-labeled, like "Wow! 360 degrees of awesome straight grain!!!!" when it's clearly not, or "Super Rare Find! Antique Kaywoodie!". Some sellers don't really know what they are selling, and don't know how to describe a pipe"s condition, others are scammers. All in all however, I would say EBay is generally a good way to get a collection started, especially for estate pipes, and sometimes you can get some real bargains. Just try to do a little research on what certain pipes are going for, and bid accordingly. But if you see something and you just gotta have it, then all bets are off! :cheers:
 
As you prowl ebay, you will discover some vendors have a good reputation and a constant presence on the site. If you have any doubts on an item, follow the wisdom that Harlock has provided. It's almost as though you are young, it's closing time at the bar, and there she is http://www.ebay.com/itm/DUNHILL-Estate-Pipe-1-Tobacciana-/400236272823?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item5d2ff0dcb7. This is an example of pipe libido gone wild. I know it's easy to say, "I wouldn't bid on that," but someone is going to take her home...
 
My experience has been good overall. There are some deals out there............and also some not-so-good deals. I always pay attention to the sellers feedback rating as well. It's generally a good indication as to whether you're dealing with a stand-up seller or someone who just throws whatever junk they find at a garage sale up there to see what sticks.

And as someone else said, if you don't enjoy cleaning/refurbishing yourself then look for those that are already done and expect to pay a bit more for them. If you are willing to do the work yourself (and it's not rocket science) then there are some great smokers out there waiting for your bid.
 
Thank you gentlemen for sharing your experience and advice. I'll be on the interwebs today looking at some Ebay pipes!
 
Lesath":5he65tuo said:
This is an example of pipe libido gone wild. I know it's easy to say, "I wouldn't bid on that," but someone is going to take her home...
Click to expand...
That's funny, I noticed that pipe as well!
I was actually thinking about bidding on it if it stayed below $10 (don't ask why), but this is not the first time in the last few months that a gravely damaged Dunhill has inspired bidding upwards of $50-60 dollars.
 
I have purchsed numerous pipes on e-bay and have only ever had one bad experience, and that with a "new" e-tailer, who appearently was just too busy to have an e-bay store.
My advice would be to have a solid idea of the pipes you wish to own. Style, manufacturer, carver, etc. and to watch for these pipes exclusively. Have an idea what the pipe in question sells for new and tailor your bidding accordingly.
It is a good idea to deal with merchants who have earned good feedback, though that is not a guarantee.
Try to deal with merchants that belong to any of the forums that you also are a member.
Many of the members of this forum also are e-bay sellers. At this point I will mention Pipestud, as he is one I have dealt with most often and he is impeccably honest. That is not meant to detreact from others, but I have dealt with Steve Fallon several times and never been disappointed.
As stated, read all discriptions before bidding and do not hesitate to ask questions. If the seller is unwilling to accept and answer questions, chances are they won't be responsive to solving problems that might arise.
Many of the sellers may not be very knowledgeable concerning pipes, this creates a potential for problems, but can also result in "the killer deal", so tread cautiously.
Good luck.
 
Frank,

A pipe like that one would make an interesting curio, if you could get it cheaply enough. I don't know if any of you noticed its sister a couple of listings down. That one looked as though the owner reamed as a nervous habit. Pipes like those really do all of us a service. They demonstrate why it's important to learn how to take care of a pipe and give it the proper respect.
 
CarterHallJunkie":3n1uklru said:
I assume huge cracks like that are un fixable?
Click to expand...
Here's a Dunhill patent# LB that I bought for $6.00. I call it Dr. Frankenstein's monster. I laughed when I saw that it was listed as being in "good" condition! I figured I could brag about having the cheapest Large Billiard ever, and have some fun photographing it. The same seller was selling an old Dunhill ODA, with a HUGE hole in the side of the bowl, also in "good" condition, and it sold for almost $60.00. I guess the original bidder failed to pay up, so it was re-listed, and eventually went for about $30. The Dunhill auction that Lesath linked above ended at almost $60 too. This poor pipe below will spend the rest of days in peace, as a bookshelf curio. For six bucks, I just couldn't resist!
 
ask lots and lots of questions. A lot of pipes come out of estate sales, antique buys, etc. These merchants couldn't possibly have expertise in every field, so you need to educate them while they educate you via good questioning.
 
Harlock,

That's a good save on your behalf. Granted, that pipe will never smoke again, but it fought so many battles that it deserves a retirement in a place of honor. Just think of the history that pipe has seen, maybe even helped make. I wonder the thoughts of the owner when its fatal flaw revealed itself? It's fairly obvious that the pipe was important, because it was not tossed. Just a little something to ponder over a drink, be it tea or something a bit stronger.
 
I just bought this little bad boy today for $16.50 - the price of an fancy hamburger!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/160638907723?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1439.l2649

A so-called Comoy's Freehand. Should clean up nicely. If the exposure is negligible, you can't go wrong with Ebay buys.

I also bought a Savinelli Capri with a loose stem (and some minor bite marks) for $37. Did some repair work last night and it's looking good (yet to smoke it)


PS - my first time posting here. Been silently watching for some time though.
 
Very Nice indeed!

I'll be paying much closer attention now to pipes on ebay - everyone has encouraged it as a good place to grab some good deals.

Glad to see you posting! Thanks for sharing your find.
 
Having purchased a few dozen pipes off eBay here are my few words of advice. If there is only one picture of the pipe, don't bid on it. The seller should have pics from all angles so you know what you are buying, if they don't they are likely hiding something. Some auctions go for more than what the pipe is worth. There is really no way to know this unless you know what estate pipes sell for. Don't buy really old smoked to hell pipes if you are looking for a pipe for your weekly rotation. Oxidized stems (the yellow ones) taste like you are chewing on a tire and will likely produce a very sour smoke. Also there really isn't any super deals on eBay in the sub $150 realm. Peterson, Savinelli, Stanwell all attract a lot of attention and ones that would sell for $100 or so new can go for $60 - $70 on depending on the condition. IMO If you are paying more than 50% of the new price on pre smoked pipe you are no getting a good deal. Watch for the 'estates' that are unsmoked (seems like a contradiction), they tend to go for a lot less than what you would get a new one for. Picked up a unsmoked 'estate' Radice today for $140 which would normally sell for $250+ new, got a similar deal on an Ardor the other week ($150 vs $350). And one last word of advice, speaking from experience, try to resist the temptation to build a collection of $40 estate pipes as oppose to buying one or two nice $150 - $200 pipes. All my $40 estate pipes ended up in boxes instead of on my pipe rack.
 
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