Estate Ethics

Log in

SmokingPipes.com Updates

New Cigars




PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor

Status
Not open for further replies.

tschiraldi

Lifer
Dec 14, 2015
1,813
3,555
55
Ohio
I have purchased many pipes, both new and estate, and have never thought about the possible consequences to the pipe shops, makers, companies, etc. However, last night I had a thought that if I buy an estate pipe instead of new, I am unintentionally hurting the maker. Let's face it, there aren't many of us pipe smokers left to buy their products. When we buy an estate pipe, a new Savinelli for instance, the seller gets the money, not Savinelli. Now, I really don't care if it's a maker I don't like (call me a jerk), but if it's a maker we like and we want them to stay in business, shouldn't we support them by buying their pipes new, so they get the money and, therefore, stay in business? If I love Castello pipes, and want them to continue to be made, is it really ethical for me to buy an estate Castello? Should any of us be buying estates?

 
Jan 28, 2018
12,955
134,679
67
Sarasota, FL
I don't see how any ethics are involved, is not like you're selling a software license. And what should happen when someone passes away that owns a large pipe collection? Should the pipes be thrown away? Have you ever bought a used car? If so, you may have put 2 GM union workers out of work. It's called capitalism and it is mostly good for everyone.

 

raevans

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 20, 2013
273
17
It seems to me that the pipe maker, shop, etc. have made their money. They made it when the pipe was originally sold as new. I would say buy the estate Castello and enjoy.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
Any time you by a pipe, you are to a degree supporting the "hobby." I definitely want to support specific retail efforts like the local independent pipe shop, even the local chain. When you buy an estate pipe, you are supporting the value of the pipes sold new by the makers or by the retailers who sell them. I think trying to figure out the exact economic correctness of pipe and tobacco purchase is a bit obsessive, but if you can support artisan carvers and your local pipe shop, those are probably good things to do.

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,632
44,859
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
That's a very interesting question. So who do you know that's running their own harvesting operation in Algeria, choosing only the finest old growth wood, curing their own wood, cutting, shaping, and finishing? 'Cause that's what I get when I buy a Barling. It's a bit too late for me to buy them new, since the company has effectively been gone for over 50 years. Somehow, I feel no shame.

It's a fair question to ask about anything used. Is it ethical to buy a used car, used CD's, a used house, used books? What about used people? Should only virgins get married? Boy, the implications of this question are deep!

 

tschiraldi

Lifer
Dec 14, 2015
1,813
3,555
55
Ohio
I don't think my question applies to all things used. I don't feel the least bit guilty about buying estates from now non-existent companies, but I would be very disappointed if Castello or Ascorti went out of business because they could no longer make a profit.

 

raevans

Starting to Get Obsessed
Apr 20, 2013
273
17
Lets say that you buy a pipe and then find out that it really isn't something that you want. What do you do with it?

 

ashdigger

Lifer
Jul 30, 2016
11,379
70,058
60
Vegas Baby!!!
This is simple. No ethics are at play. A pipe is sold and a pipe is smoked. The world keeps spinning. If you want a certain carver to stay in business, buy more from him/her/it.
I own 2 Castellos. I'm not buying more, so they are your favorite.
I own 19 or 21 Ryan Alden Pipes and plan to buy more. Of that number I own 3 of them from the estate market. Yes, I sleep very well at night.

 

tschiraldi

Lifer
Dec 14, 2015
1,813
3,555
55
Ohio
I think what got me thinking about this was a recent episode of the Pipes Magazine Radio Show. Brian and his guest were doing "pipe math" and showed just how little profit a carver actuall makes in the end. I thought it would spark a lively conversation. I was right!

 

wyfbane

Lifer
Apr 26, 2013
5,117
3,517
Tennessee
So if it is unethical to buy used pipes, does that mean I cannot buy a used car for fear of ethically disappointing the car manufacturers?
Good question in the OP, I just don't feel bad about buying estate pipes.

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,258
108,361
The maker originally got the money, so I don't feel at all bad for buying estates. As a matter of fact, I prefer them now.

 

alan73

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 26, 2017
666
653
Wisconsin
For me the ability to sell estates as well as buy them keeps me buying more. If the estate market yielded only 10% of my purchase price I wouldn’t be willing to sell off the pipes that I decided I didn’t like or got bored of. Additionally, if No one bought my estates (at reasonable prices) I’d be less likely to keep buying new pipes . I view buying estates as an expansion of the market, from a demand perspective, not zero sum. Some people either don’t want to spend the money on a new pipe or can’t afford to.

 

warren

Lifer
Sep 13, 2013
11,700
16,209
Foothills of the Chugach Range, AK
It really is no different than buying a used Fender, Ford, Monet, or house. The carver made his moneys with the original sale. Further disposition of the product is not his concern. If a carver is grousing about estate sales perhaps he should be buying back his creations and reselling them if that's where the money is.

 

thomasw

Part of the Furniture Now
Dec 5, 2016
862
24
A very thought provoking question, Tim. I think the estate market is part of the entire pipe smoking market, consider it to be a section of a web that is connected with parts of the entire web that includes new pipes. Often money goes into the estate market which affects the outcome on the new pipe makers, such as when estate pipes are sold or traded so as to obtain a new. It is true that money could be diverted to tobacco or something outside the pipe smoking web, but this is the nature of the even larger web of the interconnected economy. But supporting the sections of the pipe smoking web will benefit the economic viability of the pipe selling web as a whole. It is about the total effect not merely about singular transactions. Buying an estate Castello does help Castello in the long run to stay in the game; the benefits may be direct, yet more often will be indirect. For non-existent companies that made pipes it is different, but even so the estate sales of such pipes do benefit the larger connections of the piping web.

 

saltedplug

Lifer
Aug 20, 2013
5,194
5,097
In the past two months I've paid $2000.00 for the dentist, the vet, car repair, etc, and I'm not done yet with car insurance and the county tax on the car yet to come. My point is that it's damn expensive out there, and thus the choice between new and estate pipes is easy in my life. This has long been the case, and estates have been the only way any pipe of cost has come through my door. If I had $400.00-$500.00 to spend, I could find any number of pipes to buy. But I don't.

 

aldecaker

Lifer
Feb 13, 2015
4,407
42
I don't indulge in the estate market myself, but I certainly see no ethical question for those who do.

 

jaytex1969

Lifer
Jun 6, 2017
9,517
50,591
Here
I would never marry a virgin.
If'n she ain't good enough for her own family, she sure ain't good enough for mine! :rofl:
jay-roger.jpg


 
Status
Not open for further replies.