Mario Grandi Oak Pipes

[wyfbane]

In my quest for Morta/Bog Oak pipes, I found a series of Mario Grandi auctions on ebay that were for oak pipes with black rustication that to the untrained eye (mine) may pass as Morta/bog oak pipes.
I asked the seller and he was honest, for which I will continue to keep an eye out for good deals from as a result.
They are aged oak, but not bog oak/morta. here are the current auctions I was looking at:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PIPE-MARIO-GRANDI-ITALY-OAK-WOOD-WEIGHT-64gr-SANDBLASTED-CLASSIC-NEW-PIPE-/310760784199?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item485ac94147
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PIPE-MARIO-GRANDI-ITALY-OAK-WOOD-WEIGHT-62gr-SANDBLASTED-APPLE-CLASSIC-NEW-PIPES-/370912168983?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item565c168c17
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PIPE-MARIO-GRANDI-ITALY-OAK-WOOD-WEIGHT-46gr-SANDBLASTED-FREE-HAND-SPIGOT-NEW-/310762064274?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item485adcc992
Nice looking pipes, tho I find their pipes hit or miss with my personal taste, but I didn't want anyone else out there confused.

 

[jgriff]

I'm not a woodworker but I thought I've heard the oak is generally not a desirable wood for a pipe due to the open grain. My understanding is that the Morta is different (and more functional) because of the nature of the fossilization process.