Yixing teapot group buy?

[thanks]

If we could get 12 people interested in throwing in 75~80$ each we could order this set available at Jing Tea Shop; http://www.jingteashop.com/pd_yixing_dragon.cfm

The only problem I could see is different people wanting same size pot, wanting certain complimentary tea sample, etc. Of course it might end up being slightly more we all have to pitch in to cover shipping after we get the pots to a central location.

Personally I call dibs on any of them around 100ml

As an extra question though, are these pots really worth 75~80 including shipping? They seem to be "dipped" pots being made of at least three different types of clay. Pin Zini is a mixture of two or more clay types I think, and Hong Ni outside.

EDIT:

Thanks to pb2q's detective work, here's the official sizes of the teapots;


#1 - 30ml, #2 - 40ml, #3 - 50ml, #4 - 60ml, #5 - 70ml, #6 - 80ml
#7 - 100ml, #8 - 110ml, #9 - 130ml, #10 - 140ml, #11 - 160ml, #12 - 180ml.

I'm going to try and list what everyone is ordering, and who called it first on a time-basis after pb2q's post on the official sizes on the second page. The asterisk and the name next to the # of pot is who has dibs on it, and same goes for the samples. NOTE: This isn't final- you can negotiate amongst yourselves after a pot has already been called to work out who wants what pot more.

#1
#2 *odarwin*
#3
#4
#5 *pb2q*
#6 *Olivierco*
#7 *cupioneer*
#8 *thejamus*
#9 *wyardley*
#10 *pb2q*
#11 *Goose/Jim*
#12 *Drax*

"He also said that they would be willing to ship them separately in case of a group buy of the complete set, but a tea sample set is included (mentioned on the page), and they'd need to know who gets that.

The sample set of teas consists of:


- 25gr of 1998 cooked Meng Hai Tea Factory brick
- 25gr of Single Bush Dancong
- 25gr of Ying De Gold Red Tea
- 25gr of Traditional Shui Xian" *wyardley*

EDIT:

Sorry guys, but due to the economy's downturn, I'm unable to afford spending money on tea, let alone teaware. I unfortunately have to back out of the group buy. Anyone else still wishing to continue this can do so, but be warned, it's a large pain in the neck!

Sorry again guys.

[Drax]

Neat-o idea!

Actually what I like best about this is the idea of sharing a unique set among friends (or at least, people that I have at least interacted with). It gives it a more special meaning.

So, I'm up for it. If nobody likes this specific set, I still like the idea of finding and splitting a unique set. . .

[edkrueger]

I'm interested, but what about the different sizes of pots, shouldn't the price be different.

[chrl42]

If we could get 12 people interested in throwing in 75~80$ each we could order this set available at Jing Tea Shop; http://www.jingteashop.com/pd_yixing_dragon.cfm

The only problem I could see is different people wanting same size pot, wanting certain complimentary tea sample, etc. Of course it might end up being slightly more we all have to pitch in to cover shipping after we get the pots to a central location.

Personally I call dibs on any of them around 100ml

As an extra question though, are these pots really worth 75~80 including shipping? They seem to be "dipped" pots being made of at least three different types of clay. Pin Zini is a mixture of two or more clay types I think, and Hong Ni outside.

right, pin zini was intentional mixed clay for good. invented by factory no.1. back then pin zini had grades, like 1 special pin zini.. 2 special pin zini etc..

tiao jiang or nei zi wai hong were actually, method was done 1) to make zini, in hongni size(every clay has different shrinkage rate) for size fitting 2) becos different clay requires different tool, different caring. cultural revolution was a ideal for mass production. made sloppier and save time. 3) hongni is rarer than zini.
so it's not special method anyway.

[wyardley]

I have two (of the pots from those sets, a #3 and a #5), Phyll has one, and Danica has a whole set. We both got ours when they were somewhat cheaper - I think the whole set was around $6-700, and at that time, they were charging (for ones broken off a set) $47 for 1-4, $53 for 5-8, and $67 for 9-12.

Phyll wrote about his pot here:
http://phyllsheng.blogspot.com/2006/11/ ... -pots.html

With a little more about 'nei zi wai hong' and with a photo that sort of shows the contrast of the clay. Chrl42 is, of course, right that this method is not a "special" method that makes the pots worth more (and I don't think Jing is really trying to sell it this way). That said, I do like it, because the red clay looks nice, but the inside clay (IMHO) mellows out / softens flaws in certain teas in cases where a good red clay pot might not be as forgiving.

I think they're decent pots, and make good tea, and have considered splitting up a set before as well (I think it makes more sense to split it 3 or 4 ways), though having the whole set is really what makes the set "collectible" -- hard to say if the pots individually are worth 1/2 of the current price, and past experience says that Seb is not typically very flexible on price.

You should keep in mind that 1-3 are REALLY small - I love really tiny pots more than almost anyone I know, and even I have barely used my #3 (probably around 50 ml?). The #5 (~ 70 ml) is pefect for two tiny cups of tea when really, really packed with medium / dark roasted tieguanyin. I've had a hard time even making 1 cup of tea with the #3. Maybe using less tea and a tea that expands less might make these pots useful for one person. But I think overall, you may have a hard time finding people who want the #1-3 pots. The #10-12 pots are pretty big, though they're good for a big group. I borrowed Danica's #12 for the Berkeley pu'er tasting event (with 6-8 people per table), and it was about perfect.

I'm not 100% sure, but I think the sizes correspond to the normall Factory #1 "cups" size, (i.e, #6 is a "6 cup pot" and a #8 is an "8 cup pot", etc). The pots have a # under the lid, which (in this case) isn't the # of the potter who made it, but rather the size of the pot.

Not sure if it's because they were dipped or because of the production method, but sometimes, the holes (in the button on top) are a little clogged, and have to be (carefully) opened up. Workmanship is average -- typical for mass produced pots of the 70s / 80s. I am personally not enough of an expert to speak for whether they are genuine #1 factory or genuine 1970s, though I'm sure Seb would not sell them if he didn't feel fairly comfortable about their provenance.

Depending on the price, you can chalk me down for a #11 or 12 pot if you do the order. I know a couple other people who might be interested as well.

[edkrueger]

I'd be interested in a 1-4.

[Drax]

There were a couple people recently looking for smaller pots in this thread, so who knows?

I'd prefer something around 180mL, so whatever that is... sounds like #7-9 range. But can go smaller, too.

[pb2q]

I'm definitely interested in anything 100-150ml (~#7?).

I may also be interested in a smaller one...

[Goose]

I would take a 175-190 ml or so sized one

[edkrueger]

I'd be interested in a 1-4.

Actually I might be interested in 2 from 1-4.

[thanks]

Actually I think I'd love a #5 or #6 pot.

You bring up an interesting point with the different prices for the different sizes, I didn't really think about that for some reason.

[Cinnabar Red]

Would the smaller pots be more difficult to make, therefore cost more???

In any case I have a 60 ml pot which I love. The lid is slightly warped. so its a bit of a challenge using it, but if I'm mindful, it works great. I'd love to have some smaller ones.
I saw one in an exhibit made by a famous Taiwanese maker slightly larger than a small walnut. Unfortunately it was behind shatterproof glass

[pb2q]

I wrote Jing and asked about the specific sizes of each pot:

- The size of this dragon set starts from 30ml ~1.01OZ (#1 teapot) to 140ml ~4.73 OZ (#12 teapot). Each of them has 10ml ~0.338 OZ in difference.

On the site it mentions 255ml, and wyardlys info suggests a large pot as part of that set. From the pictures, 30-140 looks about right, especially from the overhead.

I asked him to verify the discrepancy.

[heavydoom]

all are 1-holed.

[edkrueger]

Would the smaller pots be more difficult to make, therefore cost more???

In any case I have a 60 ml pot which I love. The lid is slightly warped. so its a bit of a challenge using it, but if I'm mindful, it works great. I'd love to have some smaller ones.
I saw one in an exhibit made by a famous Taiwanese maker slightly larger than a small walnut. Unfortunately it was behind shatterproof glass

Larger are more expensive until you get into the extremely small category. Smaller pots are not harder to make than larger pots. Keeping the same thickness, a smaller pot is easier to make.