chinese teapot gallery- quality?

[zacstill]

Is there any reason why chinese teapot gallery is so inexpensive?
http://stores.ebay.com/Chinese-Teapot-G ... idZ2QQtZkm

I'm considering buying some pots there because of the price, and speedier/cheaper shipping, but the super low price has got me worried about the quality of the teapots.

Has anyone ordered from them in the past?

I particularly like this one
http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-CHINESE-YIXING- ... m153.l1262

[PolyhymnianMuse]

Is there any reason why chinese teapot gallery is so inexpensive?

There is the ever popular debate whether a cheap yixing pot is infact real yixing, or at the least mixed with other stuff where supposedly more expensive yixing pots will be pure yixing clay and whatever else...

I'm considering buying some pots there because of the price, and speedier/cheaper shipping, but the super low price has got me worried about the quality of the teapots.

I havent ordered from them but have looked through their stock countless times. They seem to look good and I'm sure the quality is nothing to worry a great deal about.

[Geekgirl]

I had a $5.99 yixing. It was so much fun to pour, since more water came out of the space by the lid than actually poured out of the spout! Not saying they're all like that, but...

OTOH, I have a $12 yixing that performs great, fast pour, no leaking.

[Salsero]

I have purchased several pots from them, all at very low prices. They are serviceable, but even to my unschooled eye the material is clearly not as good as any of the somewhat more expensive vendors. The pour on some of them is slower than, say, the pour on Scott's pots at Yunnan Sourcing. My regular shu pot, however, is from them and it does produce a good pot of tea.

If this is a first or trial pot, I would definitely say go for it. The are real pots that do brew tea. The clay is not the best so they don't feel quite as nice, but the quality and workmanship are acceptable. If you collect more pots, you will likely want to move up. I have not tried any of their pricier pots; some of those may be quite good, but I don't know.

Yesterday I received the worst pot I have seen. It came from Yunnan Colorful on ebay. There are peculiar shiny areas and rough blobs of clay that should have been removed before firing. It looks like it may have been painted or glazed in order to look more like a traditional pot. I may never use this one, but it does give me a handy benchmark for what a truly low quality, dubious pot looks like!

The Teapot Gallery products are serious, low-end products unlike the Yunnan Colorful pot I got, which is just scary! Also, a lot of TeaChatters have purchased their first pots from Teapot Gallery.

[wyardley]

These prices are very low, but keep in mind that prices in China are low in general, and so the teapots that you might get from a US vendor for $15, or $20, or even $40 may well be cheap slipcast pots of similar quality.

I'm surprised that the shipping costs are also reasonable, though. That's usually where they get you.

I personally wouldn't buy any of those pots, and I don't particularly care for most of them aesthetically, but I don't think you're going to get any sort of poisoning from them. Just don't think that you're getting some sort of bargain on a one-of-a-kind hand-made pot or anything.

[Chip]

Looking at the cups, so many have handles. It is like this whole line is made for the western market ... maybe the pots as well.

[Bubba_tea]

The Teapot Gallery products are serious, low-end products unlike the Yunnan Colorful pot I got, which is just scary! Also, a lot of TeaChatters have purchased their first pots from Teapot Gallery.

Thanks for the headsup Sal - I think we need another sticky... yi xing vendors. I was intrigued by this pot from yunnan colorful.

[Salsero]

I was intrigued by this pot from yunnan colorful.

The photo looks like the same clay as the one I got. This is the vendor photo of mine:

It only took a minute of observation to see that it was lousy quality and bore little resemblance to the photo. And at these prices, it's crazy. The guy is selling pots for more than Teapot Gallery that are much worse (unacceptable) quality and charging you postage from China to boot! BTW, of the six items I ordered, two arrived broken.

[edkrueger]

I think almost all of those are factory seconds, from particularity bad factories. Notice how the spout is off to the side on most of them. Also notice how clunky they are and how flat the clay looks. I think this is a you get what you pay for.

[Chip]

Some of them would be interesting for decorative purposes only. Or a non tea purpose. Yixing teapot planters anyone?

I could see using them in a decorative indoor fountain with water coming out of the spout.

[eanglin]

I'm on a tight budget, and I have a three year old who likes to play with my teaware, so I restrict myself to teapots that won't break my heart should they break.

I have purchased several teapots from Chinese teapot gallery and I ahve been satisfied with the price /quality ratio.

The $4 pot I purchased poured rather slowly, and it was obviously a factory piece that you might see used in an inexpensive cafe where breakage is expected. It was no joy to hold, but it worked passably well and had no major defects. I gave it to a friend of mine along with a box of teas to enjoy while he was recovering from surgery and having used only European and American mass- made teapots, he found it a joy to use and I believe, still uses it regularly. The clay was rather thick, very porous and had a sort of flat quality that only improved somewhat with the limited seasoning I gave it.

The $12-15 pots I have purchased are quite nice. The two I have are both the ones he sells that have 'ball' filters. The clay is thin but quite dense- it does ring when tapped. Lids fit snugly though they may drip a tiny bit if I pour fast.

I have one of the small green dragon egg shaped pots that gets almost daily use with sheng puerh, and a round slightly flattened pot with many small grooves etched around its middle This pot has a shine on the outside that makes me think it has been lightly glazed or finished in some way, but it doesn't seem to affect the taste of the tea, though it seems to resist 'seasoning'. . The green dragon-egg pot doesn't have this shiny finish and has soaked up a patina very readily.

I'd say stay away from the <6 pots unless you are looking for a 'disposable' pot for rough and tumble use- if that is what you are looking for though you should find them serviceable.

The $8-20 pots are pretty nice everyday pots and *much* nicer than anything you could get for the same price at Kmart, Walmart or Target.

[PolyhymnianMuse]

Some of them would be interesting for decorative purposes only. Or a non tea purpose. Yixing teapot planters anyone?

I could see using them in a decorative indoor fountain with water coming out of the spout.

Chip that actually a pretty interesting idea. Pick up some of those cheap $5-$10 (which most decent clay pots are about anyway) possibly drill a hole or two in the bottom for drainage with a diamond-tipped bit... That would be very visually appealing

My only dilemma would be deciding what to plant in them than

[Chip]

Tea Plants

I was thinking about this since I wrote it.. I may pick a few 4 buckers.

I also love indoor fountains and seriously envision this as well.

[PolyhymnianMuse]

Tea Plants

I was thinking about this since I wrote it.. I may pick a few 4 buckers.

I also love indoor fountains and seriously envision this as well.

The fountain idea would be nice too. I can picture a bunch of pots, as the water pours in one and out another that would look so nice.

[edkrueger]

There was a teapot fountain that hou de was selling a while back. I want to make one the next time a break a pot. Or you can send one of your broken pots.