Comoys 6-Pipe Christmas Pipe Set

[ssjones]

Richard Hacker said there were only two of these sets in existence. The seller claims he was the purchaser of this set from an LA dealer. You can't really see much of the pipes, but he describes they as lightly smoked during the holidays. If all this is legit (seems to be), I don't think this will last long at $1,000.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/161836822928?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

This shot does bother me a bit, it appears to be a stamped C. Pipes of that era should all have drilled C logos. It's hard to tell if the others are drilled or stamped.

 

[mso489]

The pipes are excellent, but the case makes them supreme. What a set.

 

[disinformatique]

Hmm the C is definitely stamped. Perhaps that one was Post Cadogan era.

 

[pepesdad1]

Just looked at my Comoys (all pre-Cadagon) and I noticed the "C" stamp hole is obviously done by hand as the open part of the C is up, straight, down...all hand done. That one C certainly looks stamped.

 

[ssjones]

Someone bought it last night.

 

[jeepnewbie]

That was one sexy looking set.

 

[buckaroo]

That's the weirdest C I've seen on one. Mmmm, some tinkering going on there?

 

[jpmcwjr]

To my untrained eye, all the C markings look the same. If not drilled, does that mean a lesser value, a different era?

 

[ssjones]

Absolutely @jpmcwjr. Stamped C's are the Cadogan era. Christmas pipes in that era sell for around $50-$70. Pre-Cadogan, drilled C logo pipes (made prior to 1981) are worth around $150-$200.
The strange thing is that those years listed should have all drilled C logos and the briar is stamped with the year. None of the pictures show the detail of the year stamp.
In later years, Comoys went back to a drilled, one-piece C logo. This is from a '92 Christmas pipe my son-in-law is getting as a Christmas gift this year (and his birth year).

 

[disinformatique]

@jpmcwjr 3 Part C logo stemmed pipes have the most value.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Thank you, Al. A lot of folks here have been eyesight than mine, though I can see a difference in the shape of the C between the two now that you've posted the real McCoy.

 

[ssjones]

Here's the real McCoy, a drilled 3 pc logo. Those pipes should have this type of logo, if they are from those years.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Dang! I just checked a Comoy Estate I bought a year ago, and its C looks like that except there's no ring (drill mark?) in the space between the two ends of the letter. Further, the nomenclature on the bottom of the shank (a rusticated billiard with a saddle stem) is so worn I can't see anything truly legible, except maybe a C. So, heck it may not even be a Comoy!

 

[buckaroo]

@jpmcwjr - 3 piece C (what ss posted) went to 1 piece (prob what you have) then went to stamped over the years.

 

[doctorbob]

I thought that chronologically it went 3-piece -> stamped -> 1-piece.

 

[shaintiques]

I only have one Comoy, a Celebration pipe, great little smoker. Don't remember what the stamp looks like. It is a 1976 era pipe.

 

[huntertrw]

"Richard Hacker said there were only two of these sets in existence."
Actually what follows is what Mr. Hacker had to say, in part, concerning this set in his book titled "The Christmas Pipe - A Collector's Celebration of Pipe Smoking at Yuletide":
"However, there is a Comoy's Christmas rarity that is so scarce, most collectors and tobacconists are not even aware of its existence: it is the Comoy's six-pipe Christmas set. Only 150 of these cased pipe sets were created by the factory and they were made available for the 1981 holiday season. This special Comoy's Christmas set consisted of a green leatherette case which was gold embossed with the Comoy's logo on the lower left hand corner of the lid; the case was secured by two gold sliding latches and was lined with blue velvet. The inside lid on the left hand side of the case has a gold Comoy's logo and "Pipemakers since 1825" stamped in the center. The right hand side of the case interior was French-fitted with the six Comoy's Christmas pipes that were in existence at that time, ranging in years from 1976 through 1981. Because of its scarcity, when one can be found, this six-pipe Comoy's Christmas set often sells for more than a complete set of the Comoy's Christmas pipes! To date I have only uncovered two of these 1981 sets: one is in Chicago and the other is owned by a collector in Los Angles..."

 

[ssjones]

The seller of this set claims to be the collector from LA. (he posted part of that book excerpt in his ebay ad)

 

[jpmcwjr]

Hmmm. So Mr. Hacker was conveniently misquoted.

 

[ssjones]

Hmmm. So Mr. Hacker was conveniently misquoted.

I just drove 16 hours to New Orleans, so my brain may be fried - but I don't understand your point. ...