Canadian pipemaker ANAN

[tanzebjorn]

Anan Pipes on Ebay
Hello!
Does anybody here have any experience with pipes from Anan Pillai? I see that he has some interestin designs on ebay for a good price... :?:

 

[layinpipe]

I own an ANAN pipe. I paid around $110 for mine and i believe i got more than what i paid for. My only complaint is that it was drilled too narrow for my tastes, but this is a problem that is subjective and one that is easily remedied. The construction of the pipe is good and for a smooth finished pipe with above par grain and exotic wood included in the shank, i think it is a good deal. Also passes a pipe cleaner.
Here's a couple pics of mine:

 

[tbradsim1]

Corey, not my shape but I like the look of it, good price too.

 

[layinpipe]

Yes, i would consider the grain on this pipe above par, i don't know what kind of basket pipes you are dealing with. I did not say it was superior grain or excellent grain, but is certainly above par, in my opinion. My opinion is subjective though, as is yours, so neither of us would be right or wrong. It smokes pretty good, i just am not a fan of narrowly drilled pipes and prefer a wide open and effortless draw. As long as you don't pack the bowl too tightly, the tightness of the draw doesn't cause too much of a problem, but i plan on getting someone who knows what they are doing to open it up a bit at some point.
The carver left some natural flaws in the briar untouched on purpose, as he informed me upon me sending him an email regarding these flaws. I think they add to the pipe and give it character. Sounds like you would not agree, but i really couldn't care less. Was the pipe worth $110? Absolutely, that and a little more, IMO.
Tanzebjorn, i say they are worth a shot and worth the money for what you are getting. Let us know how it turns out if you do decide to pull the trigger.

 

[layinpipe]

The honesty is in the pictures he posts, which are detailed and clearly show those flaws. I don't think he has any deceitful intentions by not specifically pointing out the flaws. If he is consistent in leaving the flaws on most of his pipes, it would seem that this is just the way he designs his pipes. I bought a pipe from him because it looked great, even WITH the flaws, and i like giving up and coming pipe makers a shot when i can. The price was great as well, but that is not the sole reason i bought the pipe. Like i said, it smokes well, the draw is just a bit tight for my tastes. I might or might not get it fixed, or i might just sell it down the road. Also, flaws in briar (unless inside the bowl, which lead to burnout) have absolutely nothing to do with the way a pipe smokes. Some people might think like i do and see the flaws as a natural part of the pipe that adds character. He is still selling pipes and seems to be having little trouble doing so, so obviously others enjoy his pipes as well, flaws included. For what his pipes sell for, i would not expect an s. bang quality pipe.

 

[tanzebjorn]

I belive that you have to give credit when credit is due. ANAN seems to be honist about what he produces and has fair prices on his pipes.
I guess you have to start somewhere if you are going to start at all...
If i decide to pull the trigger I will post my experiences. Than you for your opinions ::

 

[toby67]

Yes the prices reflect the pipe but in all honesty, yes they are interesting shapes currently posted on ebay, however, wouldn't anyone who has a passion for his work reflect that in the finished product.

What you put out to sell reflects you as a craftsman. The finish, shape and detail is what makes a person want to pick up the pipe and take a closer look with the intention of purchasing. So to me the finish is one of the most important aspects of the pipe.

 

[zack24]

Checking the completed auctions, most of those pipes actually end up selling sell for $40-80 which seems a reasonable value for what you're buying. I found it interesting that he had 139 positive feedbacks in the past 12 months which shows good customer service and people reasonably satisfied with what they buy. Which raised an interesting question- It's always been my experience on EBay that maybe 1 out of 4 purchasers will leave feedback…which would mean a production of over 560 pipes per year…and I don't know of any individual craftsman producing 500 pipes per year (Grant Batson by contrast is very productive but only produces 220 pipes a year)….so he either has perfect feedback from every customer….or works 20 hours a day…or…??

 

[toby67]

I'm not sure of the one in four purchases leave feedback, I would put that stats more at 1 in 2 or 1 in 3 tops. That would drop production stats somewhat, also who knows that he doesn't buy predrilled kits or maybe have a small team of people assisting in other areas to build up the production. A number of factors could bump up production, even the fact that his lack of focus on detail and the finished product puts his pipes into the budget range where slowing down and focusing of putting out a better product would make his pipes more saleable.
As I said earlier in my previous post about what you putting out reflecting you as a craftsmanship............?

 

[leacha]

1 in 3 sounds reasonable for feedback. Ive never sold and I do not leave feedback until the seller does. After I purchase the item I feel I met my end of the arrangement and should have feedback left from the seller. In fact my last purchase no feedback has been left yet.

 

[tanzebjorn]

After looking at his website it allmost seems as his motivation for taking up pipemaking was only based on personal economic reasons.
If this is the case, it is disrespectfull to the artform of tobacco pipes. :|

 

[ejames]

Regarding your thoughts and his on natural flaws in the briar ... most pipe shapers will blast or roostercate or a little more shaping and sanding to get rid of natural flaws

You do realize don't you that while rusticating or blasting will get rid of or HIDE a flaw that you cannot always do more sanding or re-shape to get rid of flaws? You can sand one out and another or two will pop up in another area.You can't just sand in one spot. This guy seems to favor making smooth pipes and like some others I have seen,myself included, chooses to leave small natural flaws in order to maintain the shape he was going for.

I don't know but I just don't think buying a pipe from somebody who uses Spanish and Greek briar and who uses cheap Japanese ebonite ... well it just sounds like he is using the cheapest materials he can find and your probably going to get exactly what your paying for a cheap pipe made from the cheapest materials to be found.

What's wrong with Spanish or Creek briar? I've seen some nice pipes made with it,especially the Greek. Japanese Ebonite is about half the cost of the German stuff but still not cheap IMO and is certainly better than that used in molded stems. I've used both the German and Japanese with no problems and no complaints--yet.

There is also a picture of his shop in the corner of his garage with a bunch of yet to be completed pipes and I just don't know but they look almost like preturned stummels from a factory and are close to the the same shape but maybe he is just cranking them out one after the other in some sort of production line on his little mini lathe in his garage

What's wrong with his shop? A lot of pipe makers( including some well known) started in "the corner of the garage". While a large well equipped shop makes it easier and quicker a very nice pipe can be made with much less than what he has there. And those stummels in the pic on his website? If those are factory turned stummels I'll eat my hat! Ain't many factory made stummels that can be drilled for a reverse calabash or reshaped to make that "pickaxe".

I'll agree that he needs to put a bit more work into his finishes judging from what I saw in some of his listings,but I don't think he is over priced.
" Tight" drilling? You might be surprised at the number of $2-300.00 pipes,especially some of the Danish pipes that have come through my shop that had tight drilling not only in the bowl but also the stems.

I recently had a guy send me a brand new pipe made by a well know English pipe maker because the draw was to tight. It was cheaper to send it to me than back to England.

 

[toby67]

I used to sell on eBay for about 8 months and I got feedback from all but about 3-4 buyers, that was a 90-95% feedback from buyers. Not sure what it is now as that was 3-4 years ago.