I bid on and won a calabash gourd pipe on Ebay. From the description and photos, I knew I would need to replace the stem and live with a large chip on the meerschaum cup. Here are the photos:
When I received the pipe and pulled the cup, I found damage on the underside. This damage was probably due to a cake in the bowl (not seen in the photos) of approximately 1/4" or the dropping of the cup. This damage was not mentioned in the description (see photo below).
I contacted the seller and he stated that he was unaware of the damage and that he did not realize he could remove the cup. He was honest and offered me a full refund. After considering his offer I agreed to paying $15 for the gourd, which was in perfect condition and "roll-the-dice" on locating a new cup and stem. He gave me a partial refund and we called things square.
After scouring the internet, I found these parts and paid:
This was quite a bit more than I planned on spending but I like having a new, fresh pipe and do not think my expenditures are unreasonable.
Lesson learned:
Don't buy a calabash unless you see a top and bottom photo of the meerschaum cup removed from the gourd.
Here is my calabash collection, so far:
When I received the pipe and pulled the cup, I found damage on the underside. This damage was probably due to a cake in the bowl (not seen in the photos) of approximately 1/4" or the dropping of the cup. This damage was not mentioned in the description (see photo below).
I contacted the seller and he stated that he was unaware of the damage and that he did not realize he could remove the cup. He was honest and offered me a full refund. After considering his offer I agreed to paying $15 for the gourd, which was in perfect condition and "roll-the-dice" on locating a new cup and stem. He gave me a partial refund and we called things square.
After scouring the internet, I found these parts and paid:
$15.00 for calabash gourd bowl (ebay-see above)
$45.00 for large Altinok meerschaum bowl (including shipping)
$46.00 for lucite stem including ozoning gourd (Walker Briar Works)
$5.00 for cork (Hobby Lobby)
$111.00 total for (basically) a brand new Pioneer Calabash Pipe (see below):
$45.00 for large Altinok meerschaum bowl (including shipping)
$46.00 for lucite stem including ozoning gourd (Walker Briar Works)
$5.00 for cork (Hobby Lobby)
$111.00 total for (basically) a brand new Pioneer Calabash Pipe (see below):
This was quite a bit more than I planned on spending but I like having a new, fresh pipe and do not think my expenditures are unreasonable.
Lesson learned:
Don't buy a calabash unless you see a top and bottom photo of the meerschaum cup removed from the gourd.
Here is my calabash collection, so far:
