Yixing

[Balthazar]

That's a nice resource. Thank you for sharing

My pleasure, I had forgotten about Richard "Uncle Hanzi" Sears until yesterday myself

Seal is also not quite the same, might be angle and lense distortion, but then a seal is the least part to consider.

Agreed, seals are pretty worthless to ascertain that a pot is "genuine" (because easy to fake), but they can be useful to rule out certain time periods. I don't know if this version of Mengchen was used in pre-factory times, but none of the pots I have seen it on have come a claim of being that old. Then again, small sample size that I wouldn't dare to make any conclusions out of.

[wave_code]

I am conscious that it feels odd to be debating the authenticity of a pot that sounds like it is doing a good job at making tea, but I'm also conscious that it is nice to know the truth, to the extent that it is discernible.

Its one of the more interesting puzzles that has come up on here in a while - I feel like I learn a lot every time a more unique case like this comes up since there is more sharing and comparison/discussion of fine details and history I don't know.
Also a good reminder (at least for me) that looking for factory pots and/or 100% authenticity aren't the only factors at play here - while theres far more junk than treasure out there even a replica pot can be made well and with good clay/processing. Though again we here in the west are at the disadvantage there often not being able to see things first hand or try them out first almost ever.

[Baisao]

@wave_code, I am glad to hear that. Above all else I wanted this to be fascinating and fun.

[Chadrinkincat]

AFAIK, the pots I posted are not fake. These are the the early 80’s version from F1.

That must be why they're not nearly as elegant as Baisao's pot...

I am conscious that it feels odd to be debating the authenticity of a pot that sounds like it is doing a good job at making tea, but I'm also conscious that it is nice to know the truth, to the extent that it is discernible.

I haven't acquired new pots recently, but perhaps I should post my Xiang Xing Cha Hang pot here and see what people decide about it.

Andrew

Oddly enough I had a Xiang Xing Cha Hang pot set in the mail when you wrote this. At first glance mine feels legit but I need to clean it up and fully examine it. It would be interesting to see what yours looks like.

[Bok]

@Chadrinkincat superficially, I don’t see anything wrong with it. Nice set!

[Andrew S]

Thanks for prompting me @Chadrinkincat; here is my one, for everyone's consideration.

Mine doesn't look like F1 to my untrained beginner eyes... Especially the line around the outside of the lid. But I defer to the opinions of others.

The only detailed source I've found on them so far, and with useful photos as well, is this: http://www.jadepot.com.cn/bbs/forum.php ... tid=273732

If that article is correct (and if my poor attempts at translation haven't led me astray), it seems that mine is the #4 version in the description, and it seems that that version might not be an F1 pot (and if that's right, then presumably that means late 80s onwards).

I look forward to hearing from others around here (and seeing more photos if anyone else has got some). Thanks in advance for using up everyone's time, effort and knowledge for free.

(and before anyone asks, no, the inside isn't coated in shoe polish, it's just years of old puer... it was completely clean when I got it more than a decade ago)

Andrew

[steanze]

Nice pots! In my opinion, @Chadrinkincat's is from the late 1970s, @Andrew S's is not F1 but the clay looks pretty good.

[Andrew S]

Thanks @steanze. It will remain on old puer brewing duty, since it does a good job with that.

Andrew

[Chadrinkincat]

@Bok @steanzeThanks for chiming in with your opinions guys!

I was guessing mine was a transitional piece between mid and late 70’s. Glad to hear my assessment wasn’t too far off the mark. Clay is dirty as hell but looks nice and is well fired.

@Andrew S Even though your pot isn’t F1, it still looks like a good puerh pot. The interior is totally wrecked though. It reminds me of my first F1 pot which I used every day for 5+ years straight before resetting it. I regretted it shortly after and ended up never using it again. I still can’t believe I thought it was a good idea to wash away all those memories.

Also @steanze any thoughts on the tiansha pear shaped pot Baisao posted? Do you know if the F1 version was based on a famous pot that used a similar mengchen seal?

[DailyTX]

@Andrew S thank you for sharing this article. I was having hard time finding articles and resources about HK custom order pots, and Xiang Xing Cha Hang was one of them.

@Chadrinkincat please share photos of your Xiang Xing Cha Hang pot once cleaning is done

For HK custom order pot, here is a pot with stamp H441786. Another type of HK custom order pot by 錦峰公司 if this is authentic. The clay looks like early 80s Heixingtu pot. So far with the information I read about, the number was the phone number of the company not sure if this is true. Anyone know more about this one?

[steanze]

Thanks steanze. It will remain on old puer brewing duty, since it does a good job with that.

Andrew

you are welcome!

[steanze]

Bok steanzeThanks for chiming in with your opinions guys!
I was guessing mine was a transitional piece between mid and late 70’s. Glad to hear my assessment wasn’t too far off the mark. Clay is dirty as hell but looks nice and is well fired.

You are welcome!

Also steanze any thoughts on the tiansha pear shaped pot Baisao posted? Do you know if the F1 version was based on a famous pot that used a similar mengchen seal?

Of course I have thoughts but I am not really interested in commenting on his pots - he knows why.

[Andrew S]

Andrew S Even though your pot isn’t F1, it still looks like a good puerh pot. The interior is totally wrecked though. It reminds me of my first F1 pot which I used every day for 5+ years straight before resetting it. I regretted it shortly after and ended up never using it again. I still can’t believe I thought it was a good idea to wash away all those memories.

Perhaps another worthwhile topic is, how wrecked should you let your pot get.

Other people's dirty pot photos are welcome...

I'm sure it affects how the tea interacts with the clay, but it hasn't turned this pot into neutral porcelain.

And I also guess that the staining is stronger (and perhaps also more visible) in the case of a very dark tea.

Andrew

[Chadrinkincat]

@Andrew S
I mainly used mine for HK stored puerh and occasionally dry storage. It was dirty as hell but worked great until one day it didn’t. I forgot to clean it out in a timely manner a few too many times towards the end which is probably the reason every tea started having notes of moldy blue cheese.
+1 on seeing other peoples dirty pots.

@steanze sounds messy

[Chadrinkincat]

@DailyTX

Ill post more photos once I clean it. Seems like the previous owner kept in in a moldy basement.

What size is that pot? The proportions seem a bit odd to me.