Some advice on selling some meerschaum pipes please

I've no idea why they aren't selling. Maybe it's time of year, like Walt has said. They look nice too. I'd buy one if I had the money and lived in CONUS.

Sounds like a great opportunity for you to get in on some outstanding buys, while making the family happy at the same time.

When I first started buying pipes I bought several of large carved figural pipes on eBay for around $75 each. None of them are smokeable because of the internal construction and tight draws.
The bottom to might be better smokers, but most of the the buyers won't be knowledgeable pipe people. They will be newbies attracted to the carving. Now if they have the names of recognized carvers they might be worth more, but the name should be the lead in your listing. Turkey has turned out millions of these for tourists and gift shops. The plain pipes tend to be better smokers. A good figural that is also a good smoker will be a $400+ pipe.

Mostly they use the screw in stem or even the plastic stem that is half the size needed for a good draw. No name or identifiable marking means tourist pipe. A large portion of the Paycock pipes are this way, but not the most recent ones before they closed up. I think that they ruined their reputation. Still, 99% of the figural pipes are just for decoration. The last one I bought was supposed to be a Special Edition Collector pipe and had all these papers and stuff. I offered $35 for it and the guy took it. It is decently carved and it's in a box on the top shelf in the back bedroom.

I looked through the meers on ebay and just in the $125 dollar range you have a huge amount of competition. Some are even top name carvers. I would suggest a consignment antique shop if you have a tourist town near you. Someplace that has festivals that bring a bunch of new people to town. You could put these in an antique shop in Fredericksburg TX, for instance and in a year probably clear your asking price. I saw one guy from Austin on eBay that had listed 5 pipes new in the cases for just over a hundred. Tons of pipes that look like yours are listed at under $30 as people just want to get rid of them. If you think they might be higher grade pipes you should find an expert or a good pipe shop that can evaluate them. If the family is close and needs the money you may think about taking one for the team if you know what I mean.

I am sorry to be the bearer of the bad news. I have been burned out on meers from ebay. I have 3 or four out of a dozen that are OK Smokers. The best is the Altinok PSF POY that was commissioned by the old forum, and I have to say that my cheapest briar is a better pipe and the Altinok was $160 in a group buy.

I have a couple of the Chinese pipes and I would be very careful. One still has a strong chemical taste after 4 years and the other is supposed to be morta and was way more than 20 bucks. It's not even a decent hardwood. Just carved and stained to look like morta. I would not smoke it on a bet and it's beautiful to look at. Don't waste your money. Buy Savinelli and you won't ever be disappointed. I have almost a hundred cheap pipes that I don't even think about smoking and they don't really have any problems. Buy estate Grabows and almost any London Made pipe or Italian pipe at a good price. The Italian "basket" pipes are almost always great Smokers.

I'll confirm what Ronv69 said above. About a year ago I shopped for a couple of Meers. I got a pretty good luck at what's available. For generic no names, you're spending from 40-60, new. For something from a known carver, it really depends on size. The smaller pipes are usually made from leftover pieces and are of a lesser quality of Meerschaum. The larger pipes from a known carver will be made from better Meerschaum block. These will run from 150 on up. But again the known carvers are working through reputable retailers like IMP that guarantee their product. I don't know what the size of your pipes are, but say if the billiard and the apple are 5 inches or less in overall length the are not going to command much in price as a used Meerschaum with no stamp. They are still attractive pipes and if good smokers, some smart fella (or gal) will pick it up and get years of enjoyment from it. As a note, I ended up ordering two Meers from a carver in Turkey direct. They are quite large pipes carved from singles blocks of high grade Meerschaum. They were carved to my spec for design. I was turned onto the carver from some fellow hobbyists in Germany. I was not disappointed. They are beautiful and great smokers. Even those were less than what you'd expect to pay for a handmade known carver briar pipe in the states. 
If you want to get an idea of what Meers of different size and shape go for new, both named carver and no named carver, try out this website. They do a huge business. www.meerschaummarket.com/

Welcome to the Patch, Landonspop! Say hello in your own thread!

All those meers look unsmoked to me.

Probably a good reason for that. Just say'n.

Forgive me as a newbie, but who knows every carver name and whether they are good or bad, if not known? I am sure some know some good and bad ones, but not all. Asking for knowledge only.

I go to a lot of bbq contests, and there are always newcomers that come in and do well. I know a few of the big names in my area, but not across the US.  

I have about 10 Meers. 5 are from high end carver named sources. However I couldn't name the guys that made those off the top of my head without going back and looking at the pipe or the order. However, if you go to Meerschaummarket or one of the reliable pipe web sites, like Tobaccopipes or Smokingpjpes and look at their Meerschaums for sale, you can bet if they name the carver then he is one of the top ones. If ebay names a carver, just go to one of those sites I mentioned and see if you can find him. If he is in total absentia, save you're sheckles.
As to why I wouldn't try one the way I'd try a new chef at the barbecue, well, like peteguy says, you'll know right away that his cooking is garbage when everyone runs for the loo. You've lost nothing but the $1.50 you spent to get in there.
I'm not wasting good money on a pipe from an unknown source that may very likely not even be block Meerschaum, but some glue soaked Meerschaum fillings and powder all pressed together. Not for me. That's also why I'd never buy a Chinese Meerschaum. First, I'm guessing it's not block. Second, where are they buying their Meerschaum? I don't know that decent quality is found anywhere but the Mediterranean. The best is Turkish and it it is illegal in Turkey to export Meerschaum block that is not a finished pipe.

So at least for my own opinion, I believe carver name is important. You can verify he is one of the acknowledged and respected carvers in the industry by finding him on reliable website pipe stores. And when he places his name oh the pipe or the pipe distributor (like IMP) places their name on it, you are getting good quality block and construction. Beyond that it's all up to your tastes in shape.

I think Paykoc is a pretty well-known name, or used to be.  They've been in the industry for decades.