What to Look Out for When Buying Old, Used Pipes?

[Apipeinthewoods]

EDIT: Fixed Capitalization in Title (See Rule 9)

In amongst the vast quantity of spare time I've been having recently I have been browsing second hand online stores. I've found an advert for a number of old French pipes for sale.

I thought it will be a good hobby in the future, to renovate them.

I'm looking for advice on what to look out for when I'm buying. They are old, and have obvious wear and tear as expected.
Are there non-obvious things I should look out for, that would be a waste of time trying to work on.

Thanks for any advice and I hope you are all well.

Patrick

 

[ray47]

I've never purchased estate pipes, but if I did I would look for how well it is drilled (if possible). I would also look inside the bowl (again if possible) to see if there is any flaws.

 

[BROBS]

Make sure the stem isn’t chewed up and the bowl/rim/chamber isn’t charred up.

 

[didimauw]

I like buying pipes that most people would think were garbage. That way if something goes wrong, it's not a loss. Cracked bowls, holes in stem, caked, etc. It's been a great way for me to get into the restoration hobby. I can Learn many different things as well, when I'm not afraid to hurt the pipe.

 

[sallow]

Stems that don't fit or don't fit flush.

Bowls out of round

 

[mso489]

Cracks anywhere in the briar; irregular charring and cake inside the chamber that may denote either a burnout or reamer damage; chewed up bit or holes in the bit; burnt down brims; makeshift repairs; blocked airway; misaligned or unseated stem.

 

[hoosierpipeguy]

I'd look to determine if the pipe needs recleaning or rebuilding. You can't clean away a burnout in the bowl or a stem that has been chewed through. Depends on to what extent you want to take your repair hobby.

 

[sablebrush52]

1. Be prepared for the unexpected. Pictures can't reveal hidden flaws.
2. Be realistic regarding what you willing to do, or are capable of doing, in the way for a clean up.

Things I tend to avoid at this stage are pipes that have severely oxidized stems. I don't have the time to clean them up and in the end, the line between shank and stem can be ruined by the amount of material that needs to get removed. A slight bit of oxidation I don't care about.
Look out for pipes that have a severe amount of darkening along areas of the bowl. That often portends heat distress from being smoked way too hot.
Don't be surprised if an old pipe has fissures in the bottom of the chamber from being smoked too hot. That can be dealt with.
Look at the alignment of shank to stem for possible re-stemming.
Look for cracks. They never get better, though they can be dealt with.

 

[Apipeinthewoods]

Thanks so much everyone. Alot of great tips there. I'm a terrible buyer, I get too excited about buying things often forgetting to ask the right questions.

 

[mso489]

People have mentioned trouble-shooting. Also, if you school yourself in several brands of pipes, whether currently produced or long discontinued, you can learn about the history, choicest periods of product, and any especially desirable rarer items to look for. So if you come upon a real jewel, even if it isn't spruced up, you will know what you're seeing, like coin collectors spotting the rare ones in a handful of change.

 

[Old School 3319]

I don't have a lot of experience. I bought an estate lot off eBay I didn't give much for them and only one if the 15 pipes were bad. Most were Dr Grabow and they all smoke good. But if they had been bad I wouldn't have been out much

 

[condorlover1]

Avoid anything owned by Condorlover1 or Weezell as it will be ghosted!

 

[BROBS]

1. Be prepared for the unexpected. Pictures can't reveal hidden flaws.
2. Be realistic regarding what you willing to do, or are capable of doing, in the way for a clean up.

Things I tend to avoid at this stage are pipes that have severely oxidized stems. I don't have the time to clean them up and in the end, the line between shank and stem can be ruined by the amount of material that needs to get removed. A slight bit of oxidation I don't care about.
Look out for pipes that have a severe amount of darkening along areas of the bowl. That often portends heat distress from being smoked way too hot.
Don't be surprised if an old pipe has fissures in the bottom of the chamber from being smoked too hot. That can be dealt with.
Look at the alignment of shank to stem for possible re-stemming.
Look for cracks. They never get better, though they can be dealt with.

Good advice here. A really really green stem can take more time to remedy properly than anything.

 

[logs]

Check for hip dysplasia and other signs of inbreeding.

 

[mikethompson]

You already have lots of good advice here. You just have to decide if you are getting an estate to practice restoration techniques, or getting one to smoke.

Restoration is a slippery slope though!

 

[pappymac]

Start by buying real cheap, often no-name pipes and restoring them. It's a good way to learn and if you screw up, you're only out $10 or $15.

There are also some good blogs out there about restoring pipes as well as some good youtube videos.

 

[jpmcwjr]

After you've restored or refurbished an old, used pipe, it becomes an "estate pipe". It's magic!

If you have photos of your purchase or potential purchase, post 'em!

 

[mau1]

Dampen down your excitement, otherwise you may end up making purchases you will regret later. Educate yourself on different carvers, styles, etc. Read, read, read. Take your time as MSO once advised. Follow different pipe repair blogs to see how repairs are done. Here's one site that has hundreds of pipe repair blogs. Dadspipes.com. Look under Blog, then go to the Archives link. Have fun!

 

[Chasing Embers]

After you've restored or refurbished an old, used pipe, it becomes an "estate pipe". It's magic!

As soon as a pipe is bought from a retailer it becomes an estate pipe. Look at all of the unsmoked ones available.

 

[Chasing Embers]

A really really green stem can take more time to remedy properly than anything.

About thirty minutes with a lighter and a wet paper towel.