Used Yixing

[tingjunkie]

Yes, I'd agree with everything Tom said. Even if you invested in all the time required to clean them properly, I still probably wouldn't use them to make tea. Forget 1800's, even a pot which is made in this decade from real Yixing clay is going to sell for more than what you paid.

Welcome to the world of Yixing. There are a TON of pitfalls, and ALL of us pay our "tuition" at some point.

[HeinzFrick]

NOTE: I already mentioned that I was sure these were not as old as the seller listed, and didn't care, however the smell that jumped out of them was definably OLD. It was that type of a mold smell that knocks you on your butt when you were about 7yrs old and open a can that has been sitting on a dusty shelf in the abandoned house down the street that had the stripped apart 1930s car rotting in the garage that belonged to Ms. Jones that everyone in town had some story to tell about. That is the exact smell. Anyway here is some pics of the first pot...not the one I opened in my car. That one I am afraid to touch but will do it later to get the pics up here.

Also: Sorry about the bad pics, doing this on the last min...

[HeinzFrick]

Last three...

[HeinzFrick]

Ok, it has been almost 5 min already from time of pic upload....you guys haven't blasted me yet with both barrels about how bad this pot is.........hahah....standing by on all channels waiting for incoming. You have to admit, I'm being a good sport about all this...

H

[HeinzFrick]

. Forget 1800's, even a pot which is made in this decade from real Yixing clay is going to sell for more than what you paid.

I think my total cost for all three plus shipping came to about $60.00, that's $20.00 each.....for people that smoke and drink, that's one pack of smokes and 5 drinks at the bar plus a small tip.

[the_economist]

$20 is too low for a real yixing pot...especially if you included shipping.

i wouldn't use those to brew tea. clean them up if you like and display them if you think they look cool but you could probably do better by spending 60-70 bucks on a single pot.

[HeinzFrick]

I know this. I have been really getting into this Pu-erh tea stuff and I have found that I like the deep earthly tasting variety the most and have made it my short term goal to do as much research as i have time for and buy the best pot/clay for this blend of tea that I can afford, or am willing to spend on this new hobby. I read in here somewhere that one of the shops will custom make a pot if you ask them, have no idea of how much extra that will be but my budget is about $200... or a little more if need be. I know good things cost more and I'm not too cheap to pay for it. I know the pots go up into the thousands but I really hope I can get something in my price range made form REAL clay and have somewhat good craftsmanship. I want one hand made with the artist's signature on it. Am I crazy to think I can get something like that for around $200.00

I know the pots I am posting pictures of here are junk...but they looked like they were interesting...and they were cheap...

H

[the_economist]

200 will get u something quite nice as far as i know...i'd wait for more knowledgeable people around these forums who would help u better.

based on reading the yixing threads on this forum, a couple of websites are regularly mentioned. I like the stuff from Jingteashop, even though its unlikely i'll have one in the near future

http://www.jingteashop.com/cat-jing-tea-shop-teapot.cfm

[TomVerlain]

look at dragon tea house

http://stores.ebay.com/Dragon-Tea-House ... 34.c0.m322

Yunnan Sourcing

http://www.yunnansourcing.com/store/cat ... ry=8014747

Jing Tea Shop

http://www.jingteashop.com/cat-jing-tea-shop-teapot.cfm

Hou De

http://www.houdeasianart.com/index.php? ... 1d3881d908

I have bought stuff (not neccesarily teapots) from all and find them excellent, reliable sources.

If you want a nice teapot, and willing to pay a little bit, I'd go with something from one of these guys. I am sure other folks have their favorites too.

The inexpensive new ones are good, and there are vintage ones you can rely on.

Honestly, I would not drink from the current crop, though the ones I bought from ebay (not quite as bad), I did clean up and use. I just have moved on from that.

edited - i just saw someone post jing already - I take to long to write ..

[HeinzFrick]

Pot #2, and this is the one that stunk out my car!

[HeinzFrick]

pot 2

[HeinzFrick]

pot 2 last post

[HeinzFrick]

So this is the end result. Anyone want to comment? The black on the toothbrush would not come off the toothbrush while I was scrubbing the pot in a pot of boiling water. It was moving from the teapot to the toothbrush but not dissolving into the water.....shoe polish?

H

[Chip]

Bleh ... as mentioned above, I would definitely not be using them to brew.

[Drax]

Yep, looks like shoe polish.

And looks like they might have been used to store the ashes of an ancestor...???

Well, maybe not, but methinks somebody added the 'dirt' to make it seem even older... like it had been buried or something?