Remember, this has not been smoked!

[eklektos44]

I must be seeing something different...

http://www.ebay.com/itm/New-Old-Stock-077-Mauro-Armellini-Beautiful-handmade-Italian-Briar-Pipe-/351437565982?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item51d34fb01e

 

[Richard Burley]

Well, it looks smoked, but maybe...

 

[DrT999]

Perhaps it was only 'pre-smoked' . . . a few dozen times

 

[monbla256]

It might not have been smoked but it sure looks WELL USED :twisted: :twisted:

 

[tslots]

Even with the crappy pics, this one looks like it was retrieved from the reject bin. Also, I've never seen a new Italian pipe with a coating on the bowl.

 

[ontariopiper]

Wow - I'm baffled that someone made a stem colour that actually looks like oxidized Vulcanite! :shock: Most of us try hard to avoid that look.....

If it indeed has not been smoked, it certainly makes up for it in dirt. On the up-side, you may be the only bidder!

 

[tslots]

I asked the seller about the unsmoked part and the coated bowl.   His answer was that the description is indeed accurate and that 20 yrs ago, 95% of all new pipes were coated.    

I wasn't smoking pipes back in the 90's ... so is that last comment a true statement?

 

[RDPipes]

I asked the seller about the unsmoked part and the coated bowl.   His answer was that the description is indeed accurate and that 20 yrs ago, 95% of all new pipes were coated.    

I wasn't smoking pipes back in the 90's ... so is that last comment a true statement?

Mauro Armellini to my knowledge never coated his bowls.

 

[DrumsAndBeer]

A real beauty there.

 

[Richard Burley]

I asked the seller about the unsmoked part and the coated bowl.   His answer was that the description is indeed accurate and that 20 yrs ago, 95% of all new pipes were coated.    

I wasn't smoking pipes back in the 90's ... so is that last comment a true statement?

No. But a lot of cheap ones were. And that's a somewhat cheap pipe, judging by its appearance. Looks effed over by a previous owner, even if unsmoked. I've done it myself in my early years with lame pipes, the sandpaper, etc. Might be worth half its asking price.

 

[user 1862]

They have a 100% rating on their feedback?  

I feel sorry for the poor soul that bites on that one.  Reminds me of some of the fairy tales I've heard through the years regarding cars.  "It's all original."  "It's a real SS."  "It has a posi in it."  "The engine is rebuilt."  "It just needs to have the cobwebs blown out."  

Granted, Mauro Armellini has made some unique creations that have not been aesthetically pleasing to me, but I've bought my share of his creations prior to his demise.  New? Unused?  Where's that nice heavy duty faux silk lined box, the chamois like stocking, and the uncut wire that runs through the bowl and stem spanning the open air between the stem and bowl?  Isn't that stem a beauty too?  Hopefully, no one thinks that is representative of an Armellini.  I've not bought one since he passed away, but from what I've seen, his daughter is staying true to his vision.  Excepting that fine specimen this thread is examining with a critical eye,  I'll say you get all your money's worth with an Armellini, and then some.  They are solid, the blast finishes are a mile deep, and they smoke very well, though you might find it takes a little time to break them in properly.  I've never seen a coated bowl on them either. Funny, I could care less about that orphan for sale, but I do care that the marque is being represented by it.  

Thus ends my rant of the month.