Luxury Estates or Excellent New Pipes?

[Choatecav]

Exactly my experience on all three counts
1. I would had "heart" to eyes. If a pipe makes me hold my breath for a second or two, I'm already rationalizing adding it to my too large collection.
2. I'm very brand loyal and not very adventuresome
3. Size and weight are critical and I rarely make an exception. 55 grams is my max. A recent exception was a Castello 65, Occhio Di Pernice, sold by a member here (Bluegrassbrian). One of my favorite brands, shape and finish. At 59 grams it was on the outer edge of my tolerance. I smoked it this weekend, which reaffirmed I made the right excepton to my weight rule. But #1 above sealed the deal.

Al, knowing your guidelines of acceptance, you have me, for one, "Jonesin'" to see this beauty. If you get a chance, could you please post a picture?

 

[PLANofMAN]

Well while looking for dublin shape pipes and reading about them here it looks like quite a few members say that dublin in better for flakes and virginia. I smoke exclusively english mixtures and no flakes at all so I wonder if it is a good idea to get a dublin.
I may look for dunhills first but looks like ser jacopo has perfected the shape. He took a plain shape and made art while dunhill's dublin is plain and just nice.

The conical chamber of a Dublin concentrates the flavors as the bowl is smoked. This is better for some tobaccos than others.

Doesnt matter but smaller chambers are often favored for flakes. If you fold and smoke in a big chamber the smoke can last for hours in a big chambers. The dublin shape is just the exterior tho often it includes a tapered chamber. If you break up your flake it makes no clearly defined difference. Every pipe will smoke just a little differently.

Au contraire. If a Dublin lacks a conical chamber, it is by definition, NOT a Dublin. The conical chamber defines a Dublin more than the exterior shape. My Ben Wade Giant is an example of a "not a Dublin." (I still call it a Dublin anyways).

I did finally receive my Nørding World Record Pipe. Turns out it wasn't lightly smoked. It's unsmoked, and I have no idea what to do with it now. I was so looking forward to smoking it, too, but that was before I knew half the value of the pipe would disappear if I did.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Is it just my imagination, or are prices on estate pipes getting higher and higher? Is demand that high? Or supply that low? Or do sellers have an inflated view of the value of an old pipe? Not talking about Bangs, etc., just standard Stanwell's, Savinelli's, etc.

More and more people trying to turn it into secondary income, jacking up the market price more and more. They negatively affect the market because they don't run auctions and let the entire market set prices. They use Buy It Now and artificially mess with the market. It wouldn't matter if it happened once or twice, but the MO of these sellers, which is growing in number, keep at it until a pipe sells for an exorbitant amount. They sell pipes for $250 that commonly sell at auction for 50% or less than that. It's not long until people start to associate worth with that jacked price, and even the auctions start to escalate in final bid values. The irony is that I would assume these are working class people who are turning our hobby into an even more expensive one, negatively affecting their peers and ultimately turning it into an even richer man's hobby. If it sounds like I'm pissed off, then I'm expressing myself well.

 

[bersekero]

Express your self mate! I am with you.

 

[bersekero]

Planofman it felt great to be the first person who smoked that fantastic Radice and the humble savinelli and chacom. Like taking their virginity.
The chacom is long sold by the way. Didn't like it. I got back 2/3 of the price.

 

[sablebrush52]

More and more people trying to turn it into secondary income, jacking up the market price more and more. They negatively affect the market because they don't run auctions and let the entire market set prices. They use Buy It Now and artificially mess with the market. It wouldn't matter if it happened once or twice, but the MO of these sellers, which is growing in number, keep at it until a pipe sells for an exorbitant amount. They sell pipes for $250 that commonly sell at auction for 50% or less than that. It's not long until people start to associate worth with that jacked price, and even the auctions start to escalate in final bid values. The irony is that I would assume these are working class people who are turning our hobby into an even more expensive one, negatively affecting their peers and ultimately turning it into an even richer man's hobby. If it sounds like I'm pissed off, then I'm expressing myself well.

Buyers set the price, not sellers. If someone is pricing things too high, buyers have the option not to buy. Sellers then can either pound sand, or lower their price.
I can be a sombitch on occasion. I've offered a fair market price directly to the seller, had it refused, and when it doesn't sell and the seller approaches me, I'll set a lower price. Should have accepted my first offer.

 

[Choatecav]

More and more people trying to turn it into secondary income, jacking up the market price more and more. They negatively affect the market because they don't run auctions and let the entire market set prices. They use Buy It Now and artificially mess with the market. It wouldn't matter if it happened once or twice, but the MO of these sellers, which is growing in number, keep at it until a pipe sells for an exorbitant amount. They sell pipes for $250 that commonly sell at auction for 50% or less than that. It's not long until people start to associate worth with that jacked price, and even the auctions start to escalate in final bid values. The irony is that I would assume these are working class people who are turning our hobby into an even more expensive one, negatively affecting their peers and ultimately turning it into an even richer man's hobby. If it sounds like I'm pissed off, then I'm expressing myself well.

Off with their heads!!!

Sorry, I got carried away.............

 

[PLANofMAN]

Planofman it felt great to be the first person who smoked that fantastic Radice and the humble savinelli and chacom. Like taking their virginity.
The chacom is long sold by the way. Didn't like it. I got back 2/3 of the price.

Yeah, but did you pop the cherry on a pipe that was made in numbers between more than 3 and less than 20, and is almost 25 years old?

It belongs in a museum.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Buyers set the price, not sellers. If someone is pricing things too high, buyers have the option not to buy. Sellers then can either pound sand, or lower their price.
I can be a sombitch on occasion. I've offered a fair market price directly to the seller, had it refused, and when it doesn't sell and the seller approaches me, I'll set a lower price. Should have accepted my first offer.

There are a lot of new people in pipes. They lack the history and context of pipe values. And then there is China (and this is not an anti-China stance). It only takes a small number of times, or a short period, of exorbitant pricing to affect the market. If I was more of a jerk, I'd give ebay user names. They might only have 20 pipes that they've had to relist 20 times to sell 3 of them at their absurd prices, but as the market searches "sold" items and sees the prices of those 3 pipes, they get a distorted view of the general market. And then other new sellers and buyers think, "Well, if they can sell for $250, I'm not auctioning them and only getting $110." That chasm between the exorbitant and the common shrinks and shrinks. They get closer and closer to one another. That's a small set of people, both buyers and sellers, resetting the market. I've been watching a particular brand, which is my favorite, go through this in the past 12-18 months. The prices were pretty much steadfast for years, and then these new sellers come in with their inflated Buy It Nows, and the rest of the field adjusts upward towards those.

 

[sablebrush52]

There are a lot of new people in pipes. They lack the history and context of pipe values. And then there is China (and this is not an anti-China stance). It only takes a small number of times, or a short period, of exorbitant pricing to affect the market. If I was more of a jerk, I'd give ebay user names. They might only have 20 pipes that they've had to relist 20 times to sell 3 of them at their absurd prices, but as the market searches "sold" items and sees the prices of those 3 pipes, they get a distorted view of the general market. And then other new sellers and buyers think, "Well, if they can sell for $250, I'm not auctioning them and only getting $110." That chasm between the exorbitant and the common shrinks and shrinks. They get closer and closer to one another. That's a small set of people, both buyers and sellers, resetting the market. I've been watching a particular brand, which is my favorite, go through this in the past 12-18 months. The prices were pretty much steadfast for years, and then these new sellers come in with their inflated Buy It Nows, and the rest of the field adjusts upward towards those.

Still a self inflicted wound.
Before I get into something, I do research. I know just how dumb I am.

 

[ssjones]

Al, knowing your guidelines of acceptance, you have me, for one, "Jonesin'" to see this beauty. If you get a chance, could you please post a picture?

My exception:

 

[jpmcwjr]

Hardly anyone is making enough money buying and selling pipes to call it a second income. And no one who has spoken publicly has made pipes an "investment" with decent returns.

And, yes, there are real market forces at play, just not of the tsunami class.

 

[solideogloria86]

You should check out Foundation by Musico pipes. Artisan pipes for the price of a high end Peterson. Excellent pipes worth well above the price, and they do simple and elegant quite well.

 

[solideogloria86]

This is a lot of pipe for $300

 

[sablebrush52]

I was so looking forward to smoking it, too, but that was before I knew half the value of the pipe would disappear if I did.

That's always the trade off when the pipe is a collectible. That first match can be very expensive.

 

[sablebrush52]

My exception:

View attachment 350104

Kind of reminds me of mine.