Question about Upshalls and Charatans...

[lasttango]

Hey friends. Forgive my ignorance. I have been researching this for a few days and I am still a bit unclear.
#1 The "new" Upshalls that are currently on eBay for sale from Upshall etc... Are these the same quality as Upshall pipes that were being made in the 1970's? 1980's?

I see more vintage Tillsheads being sold for significantly more than the newer Tillsheads.
I did buy a P grade Lovat from them through eBay a while back. I found the quality to be quite good.
#2 I love Charatans. I have a couple later Lane era pipes. I see a Early Dunhill era pipe I like. It's a Belvedere... (which I understand was formerly "special").

Are the Dunhill Era Charatans of the same quality as the Lane era pipes? I've read a lot of the quality articles on the internet, but I am still a bit unclear.
In both cases, by Quality I mean... briar, craftsmanship and "reputation."
Thanks, Geoff

 

[JimInks]

I just got a late '70s Charatan "Special" pot, which was right when Dunhill started production. It smokes as well as my earlier ones as the briars and carvers were from the Lane era. The quality didn't start diminishing until about 1982. Also, I think the Belvedere and Special pipes are not the same, but are not the higher grade pipes, mostly because of the grain. I own one of each, and they smoke as well as the higher grades.

 

[ssjones]

In my opinion, pipes sold by the last Moty Ezrati's estate/widow are suspect and I'm not a customer. I believe members here have bought those pipes and been satisfied on the quality (the provenance/vintage is the primary area of suspicion). I've not held one of these in my hands, so hopefully those folks will chime in on the quality.

 

[lasttango]

I had a nice lovat. I traded it to a member here. I thought the quality of the pipe + briar were top notch. I am just confused because I see some of my most trusted internet stores... like P+C, Pipes2Smoke, the Briary etc selling estate tilsheads and upshalls for more than they are asking for new ones on the upshalls ebay site.
So, I am thinking... perhaps the vintage ones are different enough that they demand a premium. Maxim has a Tilshead XL Skater in VG shape. That is making me going crazy. I like it so much... but for $30 less, I can get this beautiful brand new P grade billiard on eBay. I still want the skater though - its my favorite shape.