Am I The Only One?

northernneil · Mar 27, 2014

Is there anyone out there who does not like estate pipes, or am I the only one? I understand the value, the fact that they are well aged, and the claim that they used better briar back in the day (which I don't necessarily believe as a blanket statement). However, I just don't see the attraction of smoking something that spent most of the time in someone else's mouth, filled with someone else's tobacco.
I love the process of breaking in a new pipe. Being present as the pipes true character starts to show with use and care. Being able to find the tobacco that smokes best out of each new pipe, and not have to condend with ghosts of owners past.
I have absolutely nothing against those who like estate pipes. There is no question that they can be a great bang for your hard earned dollar. Nonetheless, am I the only one out there who actually likes and prefers new pipes?

cortezattic · Mar 27, 2014

Ditto, Neil. I don't buy used pipes -- especially because of an old thread wherein someone asked what he should do with

a pipe that fell in the toilet.

natibo · Mar 27, 2014

I purchased a couple just because I wanted to own some Dunhills. One was advertised as being only smoked 10 times. It actually, looked new to me. Another Dunhill was listed as an "estate" pipe but was un-smoked. Got it for almost half of what a new one would go for.
Other than that, I smoke Petersons and other similarly priced pipes. For pipes originating under $300, I don't see the point in buying an estate pipe.

apatim · Mar 27, 2014

I like a good deal and there are some to be had in estate pipes. Germs don't bother me much... figure most anything can be sanitized and besides, in 57+ years of life I imagine I've ingested a lot worse things than what might be left on a pipe stem after a good cleaning. ;-) Hell, if we knew what went on in most restaurant kitchens, we'd probably never eat anywhere but home! What doesn't kill me might even make me stronger. And, if it kills me......... oh well.

judcole · Mar 27, 2014

I wouldn't buy an estate unless I knew I was dealing with a reputable dealer, who will clean it properly. Then I have no problem.

There's also unsmoked estates. : puffy

:

bluesmoke · Mar 27, 2014

I smoke old and new. About half of my pipes are ones I've bought new (some fairly recently, and some I've had for 30 years or so), and the others are estate pipes. Estates that I've bought from reputable sources, who know how to clean and restore them, still offer the fun of deciding which tobacco smokes best in it, breaking it in, and gradually seeing its true character emerge. Another reason for buying estates--some of the traditional shapes, stems, materials, and other features that I like aren't available on a lot of new pipes.
Yes, I made the mistake of buying a real "treasure" on ebay and discovered that it held some permanent ghosts (it only took one time to learn that lesson), but I like estate pipes for the same reasons that I like all my old pipes that I bought new, years ago.

msandoval858 · Mar 27, 2014

I avoided estate pipes for a long time. The trick to successfully enjoying an estate for me is knowing how to properly clean and restore them to the point you are comfortable smoking it.

salewis · Mar 27, 2014

It all depends on where you buy your estate pipes. I have purchased at least ten estate pipes from smokingpipes.com which provides a rating system for their estates. I to am concerned with hygiene and every one of the estate that I have purchased from smokingpipes.com have arrived in pristine condition and I have never had any qualms about smoking them because I know that these pipes have been thoroughly reconditioned and are very hygienic.
I have also bought two estate pipes from eBay. Now this site is a turkey shoot because you never know really what condition pipes bought on this site are going to be in. The trick is to buy from a reputable dealer on eBay. One of my pipes, a Bari, was in outstanding condition while another pipe was terrible and I was so concerned about putting this pipe in my mouth that I conditioned it myself using the salt method and a lot of disinfectant on the stem.
Do not be afraid of the hygienic condition of estate pipes if bought from a reputable dealer like smokingpipes.ocm.

layinpipe · Mar 27, 2014

northernneil wrote:

I understand the value, the fact that they are well aged, and the claim that they used better briar back in the day

This is why I like estate pipes. The better briar argument to a lesser extent, it depends on the pipe. I can buy and be able to afford a better quality and more aesthetically appealing pipe with some prior use, for half the price, oftentimes more than half. Don't get me wrong, i agree with your argument and the fact that it is an experience unto itself breaking in a new pipe and it being your sort of "baby", you being the only one who has smoked out of it. Most of my pipes were bought new, but the ones i have bought estate i have zero regret in buying, and are no different, IMO, than the ones purchased as virgins.
As a side note, i am not a germiphobe and as long as the pipe has been thoroughly cleaned, i could care less who smoked it before me and what they smoked in it. It is also a process and an experience in itself to take a pipe that has a history with another person(s) and make it your own, IMO. A "broken in" pipe, as many other things in the pipe smoking hobby, is relative and subjective to the owner and smoker of the pipe. What may be "broken in" to you might not be to me. Either way, both of us are right.

surlysoul · Mar 27, 2014

In general I am not a big fan of estates and prefer to purchase new. However, I have purchased a few estates. In this case I agree with Jud. I look for unsmoked estates, or only buy from a reputable dealer.

kcghost · Mar 27, 2014

I think estates are a great way to get high quality pipes at a good price.

billypm · Mar 27, 2014

I truly hate breaking in new pipes. Which is why probably 95% of my pipes were purchased as estates. I love owning older pipes and do not mind cleaning them to the point where I feel comfortable smoking them. When you clean your pipes yourself you know how sanitary they are.
I have nothing against those who insist on buying and smoking new pipes. I'm just not one of them.

shutterbugg · Mar 27, 2014

I have to take continuing ed in infection control every year to renew my license, so estate pipes don't bother me. There aren't that many potential pathogens that retain their potency for very long outside the body, and most that do can be easily neutralized with a germacide. So it's more of a psychological thing. If you're the sort of person who brings his own silverware to a restaurant, probably an estate pipe would gross you out

That said, I bought an estate Dunhill off ebay and the stem was badly discolored and tasted terrible, and none of the procedures I read online worked. So I had Norwood's make a new stem for it. Stem with authentic-looking white dot cost me about $30 IIRC, and the pipe was $125. So $155 for a 1962 Dunhill smooth billiard seemed like not such a bad deal.

rmbittner · Mar 27, 2014

I believe about 90% of my current collection is made up of estate pipes. I've been buying them ever since I started smoking a pipe. (My first dozens estates were from Barry Levin.)
Bob

dottiewarden · Mar 28, 2014

I used to feel the same way as northernniel until I read the Estate Barling Story!

A must read at:
Dot

tuold · Mar 28, 2014

Ya know, the estate pipes I buy are soaked in grain alcohol, scrubbed with a brush, sanded, wiped down with acetone, sanded again, then buffed and polished. Anything that survives that would have killed the original owner.
Besides, there's no other way I'm going to get the enjoyment of owning a fine pipe from the '30's, 40's or 50's any other way I can afford. You can wait for a boxed, never smoked estate specimen but they are few and very far between, besides being very expensive.
I completely understand not wanting to buy somebody else's refurbishing job who you don't know and might not trust to sterilized your pipe for you. But if you do the work yourself, well, why not? Now I'm going out to my "office' and smoke my 1915 Chesterfield! :P

ssjones · Mar 28, 2014

Being in the restaurant business for 35 years, I got over aversion to "used" anything a long time ago.
I'm with Sam, the older the better in my book.
I recently bought a very expensive (for me) Rad Davis. It smokes very well.

I bought a $40 Sasieni (50-60 year old pipe) and a WWII era Kaywoodie handmade. Both of those smoke significantly better than the new Rad Davis (I'm hoping as the Rad pipe breaks in, it will improve). For less than $100 for both pipes, the value ratio is incredible.
And,at some point down the road, should anyone succeed in prying either out of my hands, I'll sell either for way more than I paid, particularly in the case of the Sasieni. The Rad Davis lost money on the strike of the first match. There is something about the way that old wood smokes.

anglesey · Mar 28, 2014

I never buy estate pipes. I know I'm missing out on some bargains and my collection is rather hampered by the lack of then, but I find the idea simply unappealing. I know some folk say it's the same as having a knife and fork in a restaurant, but it isn't. If you eat a particularly spicy curry, the flavour isn't transmuted into the metal. There's no telling what has happened to an estate pipe, where it's been stored, what's been smoked in it, etc .
If I came across one for the right pride that was very lightly smoked, I'd probably buy it, but I have to be able to see it with my own eyes, I could never buy online. I also feel a large problem I have with estates is that I simply can't repair them effectively, or to my satisfaction.
At the end of the day, I just like a fresh pipe. Most of the pipes I've bought new seem like they've been sitting around in the shop years anyway.

northernneil · Mar 28, 2014

Great discussion guys.
I don't have an issues with potential germs on an estate pipe. In my opinion, the more scared of germs you are, the higher the chances you have of getting sick, because your body has not had the chance to buildup your immune system against these germs.
Nonetheless, my main issue with estate pipes is that I just do not think they are as great of a value as others. In my opinion, you might be able to buy an estate pipe for $50, but then you need to spend your time cleaning and sterilizing. I don't know about you guys, but my time is not free. So you get a $50 estate pipe, spend 3 - 4 hours cleaning, this pipe now cost you around $150 (depending on your hourly wage of course). Is this still that much better of a deal than I new pipe? Not in my opinion. But obviously, to each his own.

rmbittner · Mar 28, 2014

Neil:
I think maybe you're looking at the wrong sellers! I've never had to do ANY cleaning for the estates I've bought. Every one I've bought has come in ready-to-smoke condition.
Check out SmokingPipes.com estates. Or visit a B&M that handles estates.
I'm not saying I *favor* estates over brand-new pipes. I just pick up the pipes I really like -- regardless of whether they're brand-new or previously smoked.
Bob

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