The pots were not waxy, they were filthy dirty! The kind of grime that
seems burnt on and drip-shaped. Some were downright scary! Which to my
mind explained why they were so cheap. But lo and behold this denture
product (non minty) called Sparkle that I bought on the internet did
the trick. You have to use boiling water and put cleaner inside and
outside the pot overnight. Then do a rinse soak in hot water for 8
hours. I didn't, which meant repeated brushings, and on some pots I
even had to introduce whitening toothpaste to really get the grime out.
Baking soda would have been much better! But they all got clean, I
shined a flashlight inside and they were restored. I think that wax
wouldn't have responded to denture cleaner the way that this stuff did.
It also didn't leave any residue on my brush bristles, which is
another reason I don't think it's wax.

Once I cleaned the pots they were really nice. Not all of them were
equally good quality but I felt pleased that at least 3 were winners
for my own personal daily use, so at less than $350 for 3 or more good
pots (counting the other six as possible gifts for others) I felt
alright. I also bought a zhuni from Stephane Erler and got similar
results from my teapots. And lastly, none were as bad as the worst
yixing pots that I've bought from vendors.

MarshalN wrote:
> wrote:
> > I have bought 9 pots from Anling and found them to be excellent,
> > although I couldn't verify their authenticity. He will sell you a
> > certificate of authentification if you ask for it. At least three seem
> > to be of pure zhuni clay, and a few other a quality clay mix. They
> > were all very grimy but treatment with denture cleaner, toothbrush and
> > q-tips cured them all. One is my best sheng puer pot, another brews
> > delicious da hong pao, and a third is ok, really high-pitched ring with
> > handmade indicators but I haven't figured out what tea works best in
> > it. It has a flat shape. A fourth, thicker-walled is the one I use
> > for high-mountain taiwanese oolongs and it really brings out their
> > aroma. I have gifted 2 of the pots, and three are too big for daily
> > use so they are sitting around my house.
> >
> > What you can't tell from the pictures, but what Anling will answer to
> > you if you ask, is how thick the walls are of the pot.
> >
> > I had a great experience with him. But get ready to spend time
> > cleaning.
> >
> The question is whether or not the grime is real grime from 40 years of
> use, or is it more like the slightly black wax they use to make the pot
> look old?
>
> Does the pot feel "waxy" when you pick it up when it first arrives?
>
> MarshalN
> http://www.xanga.com/MarshalN