The dark side of estate pipes...

[WaydeG]

Some great advice here.
I've bought pipes from 3-4 reputable sellers on eBay and stick to them as they consistently have a turnover in inventory. I highly recommend finding a select few a shopping them like you would a valued retailer.
I have one eBayer who will email me their lots and prices before auctions. I might pay a little more than if I let them go to auction but they always come to me clean, fresh and as advertised.

 

[Guy]

Luckily I have been collecting pipes since I was 18 years old and have established a very sizeable collection of Firsts and Turkish solid block meerschaums. It is so true that some plateau Sardinian and Corsican briar is not as available as it once was simply because the fields are exhausted coupled with time it takes nature to produce a prime burl. But with that said, I still cannot seem to get into used pipes.