Interesting Completed Ebay Auctions - British Pipes

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sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,786
45,394
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
This is not interesting, it’s just frustrating.
View attachment 287558
Every time I see a pipe that interests me as being shipped by eBay's ethically compromised Global Shipping, I'll contact the seller to see if they will use an alternative while suggesting that they look at some of the threads here and at other forums.
Not one of them is interested. They always say no. Some are doing deals with local Chinese buyer's agents, others tell me that they've sent "hundreds" of pipe through Global Mail without a single problem.
Since Global Mail is a deal killer for me I'm not spending money, but I hate to see some really beautiful and occasional historically interesting pipes disappear. The dealers clearly don't give two farts about it.
 

runscott

Lifer
Jun 3, 2020
1,080
2,333
Washington State
Every time I see a pipe that interests me as being shipped by eBay's ethically compromised Global Shipping, I'll contact the seller to see if they will use an alternative while suggesting that they look at some of the threads here and at other forums.
Not one of them is interested. They always say no. Some are doing deals with local Chinese buyer's agents, others tell me that they've sent "hundreds" of pipe through Global Mail without a single problem.
Since Global Mail is a deal killer for me I'm not spending money, but I hate to see some really beautiful and occasional historically interesting pipes disappear. The dealers clearly don't give two farts about it.
I've had a few agree to use Royal Mail, but so few that unless it's super-special, I don't even ask.

I get the sense that most of the ones that say "No" are selling for someone else, or are employees of an auction house, so they just send (or drop off) their stuff to a Global Shipping location which does all of the packing, etc. So it's extra work for them AND they don't care if they get a few more bucks by working with me.
 
Dec 10, 2013
2,402
3,036
Nijmegen, the Netherlands
Every time I see a pipe that interests me as being shipped by eBay's ethically compromised Global Shipping, I'll contact the seller to see if they will use an alternative while suggesting that they look at some of the threads here and at other forums.
Not one of them is interested. They always say no. Some are doing deals with local Chinese buyer's agents, others tell me that they've sent "hundreds" of pipe through Global Mail without a single problem.
Since Global Mail is a deal killer for me I'm not spending money, but I hate to see some really beautiful and occasional historically interesting pipes disappear. The dealers clearly don't give two farts about it.
No Jesse, they do not give a hoot.
And I agree ; to see really interesting, often antique objects see totally disappear from the radar breaks my heart.
 
Dec 10, 2013
2,402
3,036
Nijmegen, the Netherlands
I've had a few agree to use Royal Mail, but so few that unless it's super-special, I don't even ask.

I get the sense that most of the ones that say "No" are selling for someone else, or are employees of an auction house, so they just send (or drop off) their stuff to a Global Shipping location which does all of the packing, etc. So it's extra work for them AND they don't care if they get a few more bucks by working with me.
Oh brother, I can tell you about the replies I got from British auction houses :(
 
Dec 10, 2013
2,402
3,036
Nijmegen, the Netherlands
Thanks! I start with a large piece of 400 grit held steady on a very flat smooth counter top, going to wet-sanding after the initial pass.
I suspected that amber CA glue would work on Cumberlands, but wanted to test a really awful stem so that I could try filling, building up, etc. I had to build up the left edge of the top, and had a large 'pond' to fill on the back that starts in the middle (doesn't show well in pic).

Here is the stem (top on left, bottom on right) after scrubbing clean with a Magic Eraser/alcohol. The stem got the entire micromesh progression. The last pic shows the stem before I cleaned it - you can see the 'pool' area better (right-side pic).

1rCa4UL.jpg


oxJdwmJ.jpeg
Thank you for sharing. This looked really very, very bad and you did magic with a few drops of CA glue.
Medium viscosity I guess ? I purchased some from Stew Mac.
This was a so rewarding job .
 

runscott

Lifer
Jun 3, 2020
1,080
2,333
Washington State
Thank you for sharing. This looked really very, very bad and you did magic with a few drops of CA glue.
Medium viscosity I guess ? I purchased some from Stew Mac.
This was a so rewarding job .
Haha! It was NOT just a few drops :LOL:

Yes, 'Medium'. I did 4-5 passes of glue on each side. Even if you create a small puddle and let it thicken before applying, it still drips away from where you want it, so you have to constantly check the stem and adjust the angle - I use an 6-egg crate because it's rough and I can balance the stem as high along the side as I need. Also, the amber is very slow-curing so if you apply more than a smigeon, you almost have to let it cure overnight; otherwise, if you apply another layer too soon you get a gooey mess.

Don't get me wrong - once you've done it, it's fairly straight-forward with little chance of mistakes. I've been using the amber CA glue for amber stems, and it's worked wonderfully. I glue broken ones back together with it, fill chips, etc., and you only notice it at the break point. With amber it tends to leave a tiny hole in the middle of the drops you apply, so you add a touch more and keep doing it until you're above stem level. It was much easier with vulcanite.
 
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bron340

Starting to Get Obsessed
May 16, 2019
110
111
49
Minot, ND
Okay, since I might be responsible for killing this thread by posting a 'not so interesting' Peterson, I'll try to revive it with this 1905-06 GBD. My guess is that the stem was exposed to heat and lost its shape.

Vintage GBD AO Speciale Wood Grain Pipe Sterling Silver Band W/ Case | eBay - https://www.ebay.com/itm/226005100605

s-l1600.jpg
I put an offer in on this one and did not win it. I also asked about the small hole on the right side of the bowl, but did not get an answer.
 
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runscott

Lifer
Jun 3, 2020
1,080
2,333
Washington State
I put an offer in on this one and did not win it. I also asked about the small hole on the right side of the bowl, but did not get an answer.
I also put in an offer and didn't get an answer. So I put in another offer and seller eventually countered.

I forgot about the hole 😮 But...it will be fixable.