Pipe Hunting

I have simply quit the hunt and let the pipes come to me. How? Well, I have a dealer who will send me a batch of estate pipes for me to test-smoke, choose the ones I like, and send the rest back. This works wonderfully for me. I get a selection of pipes within a (to me) normal price range and I have the opportunity to give them a good looking over before I decide what I want.

No, I have a few other problems though. Like having my stuff held for ransom in customs and paying to ship it twice around the world. I have plenty of pipes on my list. Just don't know how much I'll have to pay or if they'll ever get here!

Oh yeah, I've had times when I wanted to buy a new pipe but couldn't find the one that I wanted or none I saw jumped out and screamed "pick me, pick me". What to do? Heh heh heh ... put the money aside and keep adding to it ... then start looking for higher priced pipes you wouldn't normally look at ... *evil grin*.

The rotation is hovering at around 60 or so pipes right now. Plenty ample for me. If I have a few dollars to blow and no new pipe is calling to me, I spend it adding to the tabacco larder.

i always find one that says "pick me, pick me"

The worst thing about that situation (and yes, I've certainly been there) is when you hesitate to buy the pipe when you do encounter it and someone else scoops you! That's happened to me twice, at least, and it's very frustrating!

I may have learned my lesson: I searched pretty energetically for a pipe recently without success. I knew exactly what I wanted and it shouldn't have been tough: I was looking for a relatively highgrade straight stemmed billiard or apple with a smallish bowl, saddle bit, and rusticated finish. This shouldn't have been tough to find--it's hard to imagine a more traditional, conservative shape and size (except for the rusticated finish, which is a teensy bit off). I think it was more than six months before I found the one--a Dunhill Ring Grain lovat (4111). Ahhh!!! I think it was on the smokingpipes.com web site for less than a minute before I hit the "checkout" button and it was in my mouth three days later. It was worth the wait--it smokes every bit as well as I'd hoped.

Would someone else have bought it if I'd waited an hour or two? Or would it still be sitting on the website now? Impossible to say (I doubt if it would have stuck around, though). But I'm very happy I didn't risk it! If you know what you're looking for, when you see it, go for it.

I now only buy pipes by name. So now I'm on a Peterson kick. I also look for names I don't have. If it fits my price range, I'll get it. After seeing what's available in estates, I don't know if I'll ever buy new again. So many pipes, so little time.

Someone once told me buying a used pipe is like eating with someone elses teeth. Now try and get that out of your mind. yikes!

Whenever I've decided I want to buy a pipe, I can't find that perfect one. Then, whey I least expect it, and am not planning to buy, there it is, that one that I've just got to have. Looking at my collection, I don't see a single one that was "planned", they're all in the "unplanned" category.