Hi Jim,
The seller has a billiard listed that he likes better but I, too, prefer the Quaint.
All of the Barlings that I've given away are post-transition (> 1962). The post-trans pipes are comparable in quality to the better lines of GBD from the same era. The pre-transition pipes were (generally) better quality and are more expensive as estates.
If I give a pipe as a gift it's either a good smoker or I've never smoked it. If a pipe smokes poorly I will sell it or trade it accompanied by my opinion of it. Of course I've had guys take this as a challenge, believing that they can make my pipe smoke better than me. :yawn:
Pete