Yixing

DailyTX
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:26 am

Inspired by the other thread on yixing discussions, what do you all think about the clay on this pot? I don't have much exposure to coarse sand pots, this may be a tuition pot :lol:
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Bok
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:54 am

DailyTX wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:26 am
Inspired by the other thread on yixing discussions, what do you all think about the clay on this pot? I don't have much exposure to coarse sand pots, this may be a tuition pot :lol:
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Definitely tuition for me… that shape looks very odd and the clay seems off as well.
DailyTX
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:14 am

Bok wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:54 am
DailyTX wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:26 am
Inspired by the other thread on yixing discussions, what do you all think about the clay on this pot? I don't have much exposure to coarse sand pots, this may be a tuition pot :lol:
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Definitely tuition for me… that shape looks very odd and the clay seems off as well.
👍 the shape is an imitation of a coffee pot designed by Gu Jingzhou, 三線壺, but poorly made. The clay was what puzzled me, it looks like zini plus something else.
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StefTeaPot
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 6:33 am

Hello there, I am new on the forum. And learning!

I want to join the wax discussion.

I just purchased a tea pot , made by Chan, Chun Fang.

It had never been used to make tea before, according to the seller.

After boiling it for an hour ( well protected by towels) I let it cool down in the pot for a while, then took it out. The tea pot dried covered with a white layer. First I thought it was chalk ( the tap water is very rich in chalk here, I should have chosen rain water for this). But: the white layer looked like brush strokes.
The boiling water, result of the first boiling, had a colour of light black tea.

The white layer is only present on the outside of the pot. The inside of pot and lid are clean, black like the clay. Thus I conclude the white deposit does not come from the clay itself, but it was applied on the outside only.

So I boiled the pot a second time, let it cool off, and air-dried it. The white deposit was still present. The boiling water was clear this time.

Using a soft cloth, I started rubbing, and some of the white layer got off.

So that leads me to conclude that there was a wax layer applied on the tea pot, from which the composition is unknown.

Simply rubbing with cloth will thin the wax layer, but will push the wax deeper into the clay pores. I have to be able to remove the wax entirely, and I am grateful for any hint that would be helpful.


steanze wrote:
Sat Jun 26, 2021 11:30 am
Mark-S wrote:
Sat Jun 26, 2021 3:45 am
steanze wrote:
Fri Jun 25, 2021 9:48 pm
This is an interesting one. There are several features that look "correct": the base, the interior filter, the exterior of the lid, the outer edge of the underside of the lid, the upper portion of the body... yet other features look suspicious: the underside of the lid, the spout... I'd give it a ~60-65% chance of being antique, with workmanship that is a bit inconsistent for different sections, possibly made for export.
The clay looks fine to me with Mica and small black/yellow dots... The teapot also has a small hairline crack. I don't know if this is easy to fake.

The teapot seems to be waxed. What do you think of this? I've read on teachat that this is a red flag... but I've seen a green label pot with wax applied (I think it was posted in this forum)... and the seller told me that it's common. However, he was wrong about other things, so I don't trust him blindly.
What makes you think it is waxed?

Wax was common in new 1960s and 70s F1 hongni. But not in antiques. Wax washes away after one or two uses. Your pot does not look waxed to me, just tea stained. in any case it's easy to find out: if you pour hot water on it does the wax come off?

Yes, I noticed the clay texture, but it could also be a 1990s replica with decent real clay.

There is that thin construction line near the outer edge of the underside of the lid that is sometimes seen in certain antiques, that is promising. But other details are a bit suspicious.
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Baisao
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:33 pm

@StefTeaPot, that is definitely wax. It will readily dissolve by wiping it with a soft towel and high percentage ethanol. Good luck!
DailyTX
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:39 pm

@StefTeaPot
Try to boil it with tea, slow simmer, and don’t wrap the teapot fully with towel so the wax can float on top. Good luck cleaning
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StefTeaPot
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:47 pm

Baisao wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 1:33 pm
StefTeaPot, that is definitely wax. It will readily dissolve by wiping it with a soft towel and high percentage ethanol. Good luck!
Thank you, I will try that.
I'd like to mention that the red - coloured leaves decorating the pot are massive clay, not painted dark clay. So the possibility of dye or paint reacting when boiled ( thus contaminating the pot) can be left behind us. That's a relief for me, for I would like to be able to use the pot for tea tasting.

The pouring of the sprout is very strong, no restrictions, and no leaking of the sprout at all.

I will get back with the results of an ethanol - dillution treatment.
.m.
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 2:21 pm

DailyTX wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:26 am
Inspired by the other thread on yixing discussions, what do you all think about the clay on this pot? I don't have much exposure to coarse sand pots, this may be a tuition pot :lol:
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This is how it should look like:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collectio ... 4-0202-100
DailyTX
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 5:11 pm

.m. wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 2:21 pm
DailyTX wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 12:26 am
Inspired by the other thread on yixing discussions, what do you all think about the clay on this pot? I don't have much exposure to coarse sand pots, this may be a tuition pot :lol:
Image
Image
This is how it should look like:
https://www.britishmuseum.org/collectio ... 4-0202-100
Nice find! The online information did not disclose the maker aside from the base chop, it’s rare to see vintage Yixing made it into museum. Maybe this was the one made by Gu Jingzhou or someone famous?
.m.
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 6:37 pm

DailyTX wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 5:11 pm
Nice find! The online information did not disclose the maker aside from the base chop, it’s rare to see vintage Yixing made it into museum. Maybe this was the one made by Gu Jingzhou or someone famous?
They have a few pots from this period in their catalogue (I wonder if they acquired them through KS Lo). Might be just particularly well made pieces from a regular production -- so likely made by someone famous. There is a chop under the lid, not sure if it identifies the maker.
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Baiyun
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 10:10 pm

I ordered two fully handmade pots from Yanni, a few days apart, and the first arrived today.

This one is the 65ml (mine measures 75ml) Jian Hu by She Rong Fei, said to be made from 20 year+ aged and traditionally processed Zhuni by the Fu Gui Jin Sha gallery and clay factory.

The clay certainly looks nice and high fired to me, it is obviously dense, no porosity, with a lot of iron spots, an interesting texture and different from my other modern Zhuni pots. Along with the small volume (which seems hard to find in the fully handmade market) and weirdly practical looking shape, clay curiosity was the main reason for the purchase. Despite not having particularly thick walls, the size and shape make the pot feel reassuringly chunky. The pitch is clean and high. It should make a good solo duty workhorse!

Craftsmanship is adequate for the price; the spout is not perfectly aligned and there are some slight deviations near the handle around the indented rim edge that runs around the top and bottom of the body. Lid fit, seal, and handling are very good. I am keen to see how the second pot I ordered compares in the craftsmanship department, since it comes in at a higher price yet again with similarly aged and traditionally processed Zhuni, yet from another clay factory and larger in volume.

Worthwhile mentioning here is that I came across some older posts from member @teabug who had a previous version of this pot and issues with an incredible 17 second pour speed. This updated pot design now pours at 7 seconds (water with no leaf), which for 75ml means that it is right in the usual ballpark with my other pots in terms of ml/second, so that has been resolved and it should now work well for shorter brewing teas. Redesigned elements I can spot include the knob (used to be round and is now elongated), spout (used to be shaped differently with a smaller opening), and filter (used to be holes and now is a ball).

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I think it has soaked enough and is now ready to go, off to do some testing...
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Baisao
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Wed Jan 18, 2023 11:27 pm

@Baiyun, I’m unfamiliar with Yann Art Gallery but I think modern zhuni is underrated. As I’ve said elsewhere, it is generally consistent and brews true.

Pour time and all that only matters so much. How does the tea from this teapot compare to tea from your other teapots?
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Bok
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Thu Jan 19, 2023 12:05 am

After so many years of use, this humble pot is still getting more beautiful by the day/brew…
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Baiyun
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Thu Jan 19, 2023 12:46 am

Baisao wrote:
Wed Jan 18, 2023 11:27 pm
How does the tea from this teapot compare to tea from your other teapots?
My scientific side wants to get back to you on that in a few days because I only had two shengs go through this new pot within the last two hours, but something just surprised me and I will share some premature impressions.

I first tried a sheng I really like, which came out just great as usual (not really a tea you can mess up), and I brewed it until it was water. Second, I purposely tried the last bit of a sheng sample I know don't like, but nevertheless had just tried again a few days ago. It always had a weird manure-note bitterness that I found a little sickening two cups in, not a subtle thing. Effective tea otherwise.

The surprise was that I did no longer get the specific note that had always irked me, and there was a stronger and more definite lingering sweetness to it, even when pushed a bit. I still taste it as I write this. Unfortunately (yesterday I would've said fortunately), I ran out of that specific tea sample and can't investigate this supposed interaction further for now. I am intrigued by this, but I can't draw any obvious conclusions, given how low interacting both pots in this scenario supposedly are. Leaf to water was the same and I had a very recent baseline, so no cupboard aging magic involved either.

I can say that this new pot certainly is a keeper for me because I also enjoy how it handles, which is welcome because I just had to send another one (from another Chinese source) back the other day because it arrived with some strange damage. I'll share more on this here soon for some input from you experienced lot once that has all gone through. I'm not a collector, so just trying to build a fixed lineup of dedicated pots I really enjoy, after being a one pot and one Gaiwan drinker for some years, and it hasn't been straightforward!

Edit: @Bok stop it already before I do turn into a collector :lol:
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Bok
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Thu Jan 19, 2023 1:31 am

@Baiyun don’t fight it… ;)
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