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wyfbane

Lifer
Apr 26, 2013
5,117
3,517
Tennessee
Toob, I get it. But in this case, I was warned that unsmoked Charatan was going into 4 digits. I just was praying for a freak of nature and a win with my bids in the $800's.
But if the thing is worth $1575, then it isn't like I would have gotten bit, even if I didn't intend to go that high. Not like that guy who paid $800+ for the $400 pipe, or something.
My largest fear is getting taken to the cleaners. I have been took, but nothing so bad I wouldn't own up to it on here with you guys. So like I said, I am happy with all my buys.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
'Can't do it. I'd get so addicted to the gaming table aspect, if I did this at all, that the pipes would be totally lost in the excitement. I sure wouldn't want to end up with a $1,500 pipe unless I'd planned to buy it for a year or two.

 

toobfreak

Lifer
Dec 19, 2016
1,365
7
The best bids are the ones where you come across a treasured find and somehow there is no interest in it at all. Maybe it was listed wrong or no one is looking that week. You watch the clock count down and offer a minimal bid or just enough that you should snipe it out from under the other bidder. My problem with a pipe like this is that I could never leave a pipe just sit untried/unsmoked. If I paid $1500 for a pipe like above, it would become an $800 pipe real fast. :mrgreen: So, best thing for me is to just stick with the ones already smoked.
My theory is that if it was well-smoked, it must smoke well. :puffy:
But in reading Jesse and others all the time talk about their Barlings, they are making me real interested in trying one! I'll be looking forward to see these two pipes all cleaned up and how they smoke, wyfbane!

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,832
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
If I paid $1500 for a pipe like above, it would become an $800 pipe real fast. :mrgreen:
Yep. That first match is a very expensive one. An unsmoked Pre-Lane Charatan Supreme is an extreme rarity. Once smoked it's just another old pipe from a collecto's standpoint. I have a few unsmoked Barlings, the oldest being a cased companion set from 1907. That would be really expensive first match.
Since I buy pipes to smoke them, I don't go after the unsmoked pieces, which is why I didn't even consider bidding on the unsmoked EL. The unsmoked companion set was another matter altogether. The other unsmoked Barlings that I do have weren't listed as unsmoked, so I picked them up at favorable prices. I did predict to Mike that the unsmoked Barling could top out at $600, so not a bad guess. I also predicted 4 figures for the Charatan.
BTW, the guy who paid all that money for the unsmoked EL is the same bidder who bid almost $900 for that $200 Kevin Arthur pipe a couple of days ago. He bought a lot of Dunhills at top dollar and I'm assuming that he's either a trust fund baby, or an idiot, or both.

 

toobfreak

Lifer
Dec 19, 2016
1,365
7
The other unsmoked Barlings that I do have weren't listed as unsmoked, so I picked them up at favorable prices.
One man's rank stupidity is another man's good fortune.
BTW, the guy who paid all that money for the unsmoked EL is the same bidder who bid almost $900 for that $200 Kevin Arthur pipe a couple of days ago. He bought a lot of Dunhills at top dollar and I'm assuming that he's either a trust fund baby, or an idiot, or both.
One thing seems certain, he seems to have much more money than brains as a collector and will likely never see a penny's profit on any of them and will indeed likely lose badly if he ever tries to sell anything.

 

buroak

Lifer
Jul 29, 2014
1,867
14
If not for the buyer's Kevin Arthur folly, I would think he was just a bad shill.

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,832
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
One thing seems certain, he seems to have much more money than brains as a collector and will likely never see a penny's profit on any of them and will indeed likely lose badly if he ever tries to sell anything.
I harbor few illusions about profiting from any of the pipes that I own, but I've been lucky with the buys that I made. I'm happy that I bought when I bought as prices have certainly soared in the past few years. I did pretty well with mislabeled listings or poorly presented ones. It's much harder these days to find bargains. Too many irrational bidders. And eBay's software has improved so that many ineptly listed pipes are linked to the correct make. For example, a few years ago, a pipe listed as a Lasieni would not have been linked to Sasieni, a pipe listed as EB WB would not have been linked to Barling. Nowadays, eBay provides those links and takes the fun out of the hunt. These days I'm not really interested in adding to the herd. I still follow auctions to keep abreast of market prices and to enjoy the behaviors of bidders.

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,565
27,066
Carmel Valley, CA
One thing seems certain, he seems to have much more money than brains as a collector and will likely never see a penny's profit on any of them and will indeed likely lose badly if he ever tries to sell anything.
Some collectors don't go there to profit or to ever sell anything.

 

jensen

Can't Leave
Apr 10, 2016
440
143
Well,yes......my Sasieni eight dot was a Lasieni.

When I opened the parcel I thought......what a lot of dots.

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,832
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
As an interesting side note, I sent the link for the unsmoked Charatan Supreme to Kennedy Barnes. He dates it to about 1960-62. He also says that Reuben Charatan carved these horns. Seeing the pipe brought back memories of his days working at Charatan.

 

wyfbane

Lifer
Apr 26, 2013
5,117
3,517
Tennessee
Wow! As awesome as that pipe is, I am glad I am not having to scramble around to sell stuff and get the evil eye from my wife. lol
Now I am curious about the Charatan I did win.

 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,832
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Wow! As awesome as that pipe is, I am glad I am not having to scramble around to sell stuff and get the evil eye from my wife. lol
Now I am curious about the Charatan I did win.
When you get the pipe, take some good pictures of it, especially the nomenclature. Forward them to me and I'll send them on to Ken and see what he says about it. Or you can post them here and I'll let Ken know.

 
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