The joys and dangers of Ebay pipes

**OC Richard** · 5th August 23, 04:19 AM

These started super low and are getting plenty of bids.

The chanter is Hardie but nothing about the drones looks Hardie to me.

Frankenpipes, as we can see, not to say that Frankenpipes are necessarily bad. Prizes have been won on some of them.

No cords to hide stamps but I've not spotted any stamps yet.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/22570779340...ndition=4%7C10

I did a quick collage where it's obvious that the three drone tops are by three different makers.

I would guess the middle Tenor top is Grainger & Campbell. They didn't always do oddly small stumpy drone tops, but I can't think of another maker who did them at all.

The right-hand Tenor top has more ordinary proportions.

**OC Richard** · 5th August 23, 05:01 AM

The Tenor bottoms also are from different makers.

Grainger & Campbell sometimes did the thinner style at bottom.

You can see that the combing of the Tenor top (at upper left) doesn't match either Tenor bottom.

**DCampbell16B** · 5th August 23, 06:24 AM

What's your opinion of the base top?

**OC Richard** · 5th August 23, 06:32 AM

It's strange for sure.

It's mere guesswork just seeing photos, but it looks like the ring is the non-Catalin non-yellowing stuff that Lawrie used back in the day, or perhaps Catalin that's had a ton of wear.

The bush looks like Galalith, which most pipers incorrectly call Casein.

(Casein is milk protein in raw form. Galalith is a plastic made from Casein, introduced in 1914, which was very popular in the 1930s and drastically declined in popularity during and after WWII.)

**OC Richard** · 8th August 23, 03:48 AM

Here's what probably is a superb-sounding set, but wildly overpriced.

Says his great-grandfather played them in WWI and they do look old enough for this to be true.

However a piper looking to buy a pipe to play isn't going to want to pay extra for somebody else's familial sentimental attachment to the pipes.

Just superficially based on the ferrules it looks like a Lawrie Bass and non-Lawrie Tenors, however looking at the projecting mounts and the drone tops I would guess that the parts are all Lawrie, but that the Tenor ferrules fell off at some point and were replaced by ordinary rolled seamed ferrules. Note that you can see hemp where the Tenor ferrules were stuck on, and that the two Tenor ferrules don't match each other. How lovely would it be to obtain a couple Lawrie ferrules to restore the look of the set.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/35461930454...ndition=4%7C10

**Toxpert** · 8th August 23, 05:42 PM

Pipe set is a mashup of pieces from different periods.. seems like could be Lawrie for some.

Tenor drone bottoms…possibly early enough for claim. Thin top projection mount with round edge.

Bass projecting mounts later than the 1930s. Thicker top with quarter round to flat underside.

Seller story of grandfather, WW I use, and high price seem like a bamboozle… in the making.

Notice that it is always ‘my grandfather’ used to fool buyers the pipes are old.

**OC Richard** · 30th August 23, 03:58 AM

Here's a Henderson set getting loads of bids, let's see how high it goes.

It's an odd example of a seller under-selling what he has.

He says the pipes are marked Henderson in "several places" but the only photo he shows of a Henderson stamp is on the chanter.

He shows a photo of a cord guide, which is blank.

As we know the chanter in the majority of vintage pipes isn't the one that originally came with the pipes, and often as not is by a different maker than the pipes themselves.

So I messaged the seller, who sent me closeup photos of the drones tops showing Henderson stamps. The stamps are under the cord guides, much like Kintail did.

Now why didn't the seller include these photos in his listing? In any case the pipes are getting plenty of bids.

Does anyone know what time-period Henderson was stamping their pipes under the cord guides?

https://www.ebay.com/itm/35499991237...ndition=4%7C10

**imrichmond** · 30th August 23, 03:50 PM

Originally Posted by OC Richard

Does anyone know what time-period Henderson was stamping their pipes under the cord guides?

My first set of pipes was an old, rather dilapidated set of Henderson with casein mounts, ring caps and bushes and plated, soldered brass ferrules. I purchased the pipes in 1958, not long after I began piping, and they obviously dated from well before WWII. They were stamped P. Henderson in the cord guides. Unfortunately, the casein deteriorated and crumbled and the bass drone bush broke into pieces. I had some refurbishment done on the pipes, but ultimately sold them on after almost 20 years.

**OC Richard** · 31st August 23, 04:04 AM

Thanks! That's very helpful for dating in-the-cord-guide Hendersons.

Now here's an Atherton for what seems to be a reasonable buy-it-now.

Dave Atherton, as most pipers know, is a quixotic character. He's gone through a number of cycles of making, not making, and making again.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/22575190209...ndition=4%7C10

**OC Richard** · 5th September 23, 04:05 AM

Going very cheaply, they could make a backup set or parade set for somebody.

Or who knows, they might be good players.

They don't look particularly like Grainger & Campbell to me, but I'm no expert on those.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/16630859015...ndition=4%7C10