Kaywoodie/KBB/Yello Bole Collectors Thread

[buroak]

It is out of line, but I have an unsmoked Heritage I am now tempted to sell.

 

[ssjones]

that heritage pipe had a number of retracted bids on it. in fact I called ebay again and reported it

 

[buroak]

I cannot tell if the retracted bids problem is worsening dramatically, or we are simply taking more notice.

 

[xrundog]

It is out of line, but I have an unsmoked Heritage I am now tempted to sell.

It seems strange to me that only certain sellers are getting these high prices. I've sold some nice Kaywoodies over the last year that brought pretty mundane prices. I feel like something is going on. Exactly what, I have no idea.
Maybe the retracted bid thing. I'm not sure how that even works. Seems like a retracted bid should bring the price back down like the bid never happened. But eBay makes more money if it stays up. Dare I whisper...>conspiracy

 

[plateauguy]

Here is the Yello Bole church warden my wife found. The stem had the usual oxidation and it needed the general clean up. I haven't had time to polish it or smoke it, life happens.

 

[buroak]

It seems strange to me that only certain sellers are getting these high prices. I've sold some nice Kaywoodies over the last year that brought pretty mundane prices. I feel like something is going on. Exactly what, I have no idea.

xrundog, I know what you mean. I have done OK selling Kaywoodies, but not nearly as well as some other sellers with similar pipes. Reputation may have something to do with the disparity. Valitchka would always get more money selling my pipes than I do. The situation with kapster, though, is harder to explain. His pictures and the condition of his pipes are top notch, but the prices are often wild outliers.
The other factor may be the markets we tap. I do not know about you, but I only ship to the US. I know I could get more money selling internationally.

 

[buroak]

plateauguy, That is a great-looking Yello Bole churchwarden. It looks to have been only lightly used.

 

[xrundog]

I've made some international sales that netted better than expected prices. On occasion wildly better. And I have seen repeat business from those buyers. So they do watch certain sellers.

Probably a couple or three Chinese dudes absolutely wanted that Heritage. There are a few Japanese collectors who don't mind over paying too. That's very plausible. Disconcerting for those of us who have enjoyed having our pick of certain makes for years though.

 

[buroak]

I think Asian buyers might be the X-factor here. I am pretty sure some of my more successful sales have been made to US-based middlemen buying on behalf of Asian buyers.
As you say, Asian buyers are a boon to sellers, but are really upsetting the applecart for you and I when it comes to buying for our own collections.

 

[xrundog]

I just saw that a 40s-50s estate cased Kaywoodie Meerschaum Dublin with a cut stinger sold for 169.99.
null
It appears that I have been giving them away. :lol:

 

[buroak]

Ha! Estate pipe pricing on Pipes and Cigars is often wildly off the mark, sometimes in the customer's favor. Whoever bought that pipe made a horrible mistake.

 

[xrundog]

I could see $100 for a really nice one in an unusual shape. I have a few I'd be looking to ask that for. For the vast majority, $75 is a good price.

 

[buroak]

The most I ever paid was $85. The pipe was not in a rare shape, but it was in good condition, came with its case, and was an earlier specimen (the stem was inlaid with the plain clover and the stinger was the early, reg. no. type).

 

[buroak]

Are there fills in this Heritage Antique? This pipe looks to have the same putty fills I have been scrubbing from an old Yello-Bole blast.

 

[xrundog]

I see one fill for sure on the center backside. The worn stain makes it really hard to tell on the rest.

 

[buroak]

What about picture six, the front of the bowl, right side as you see it on the screen?

 

[xrundog]

Yeah, the pic is out of focus and I missed it the first time. Hard to believe because it is a great big one.

 

[Sjmiller CPG]

Was looking at Ebay today and noticed something I found interesting and thought I would post it here to see if anyone could add anything to it. It concerns the Yello Bole Imperial line. On Ebay I saw a 9.75 inch long churchwarden bearing the Imperial name. I have a small Dublin marked Imperial. After doing some more looking on Ebay and a few other sites I found four more shapes marked Imperial. They were Canadian, Bulldog, Bent Rhodesian, and a Square Billiard. Also found a full sized Dublin with the mark. I also found four different logos for the Imperial line. The standard yellow circle, standard black circle, an "I" in a circle, and Imperial with a crown above it. The pipes seemed to span a good part of the Yello Bole time line. They went from the 1930s numbered shanks through 1955 when the KBB was taken off the shank. Also found them with both Vulcanite stems and the yellow stem (can't remember what they called that at the moment).
Anyone know of any other shapes or logos? How they decided what made something an Imperial?

 

[buroak]

sjmiller, You will sometimes see an Imperial with a single black dot on the stem (for yellow stems), a single yellow dot (on black stems), or a black circle (on yellow stems. Those are the only additional markings with which I am familiar.

 

[lifeon2]

I know people have been getting some good prices lately but this seems a little hopeful.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/261893386520?_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT