A Look Into The Sasieni Oil Curing Method

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May 31, 2012
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As is often the case, there's been a bit of controversy surrounding the premise that Sasieni pipes may have been oil-cured,

"Sasieni's curing was reputed to be different from Dunhills, though whether or not the early pipes were oil- or air-cured is subject to some debate."
http://www.glpease.com/Pipes/Collection/sasieni.html
...and, noted Sasieni collector Stephen P. Smith has said this:

One change he incorporated in his pipes was the method of curing the bowls. While the briar blocks were air cured, similar to Barling, Sasieni took this process a step further by “oven curing” his pipes. Each pipe was cured in an oven over a period of six weeks, being removed periodically by a factory worker, who would wipe away the moisture as it emerged from the bowl with a rag, and check it for cracks. The end result was Sasieni pipes (the ones that survived) were extremely dry smoking.
The old catalogs boasted of the quality properties in their "matured by a patent process" technique.
By finding and reading the 1919 Sasieni patent, we can say without question that the early Sasieni pipes were most definitely oil-cured, very much in the same manner as early Dunhills, as described here by R.D. Field:

"Oil curing - originally invented by Alfred Dunhill as a way to short-cut the time needed for air curing but not the quality of an air cured block. I quote from the patent application filed with the United States Patent Office on October 14, 1918 by Alfred Dunhill:
In the manufacture of tobacco pipes, from brier (sic) and other woods it is often advisable to employ oil in the preparation and finishing of the pipe, but such employment of oil is open to the objection that when such pipes are first used the heat of the burning tobacco causes such oil to exude, and not only impart an unpleasant flavor in the mouth of the smoker, but also destroy the finished glossy appearance of the exterior surface of the pipe. In order to overcome this objection, more especially in pipes of high quality, they are frequently stored for a considerable period, such as twelve months or longer, to insure the perfect incorporation of the oil with the fibers of the wood and to thoroughly season the pipe. But it will be obvious that such storage of manufactured or partly manufactured articles represents capital lying idle, and the object of the present invention is to prepare and season such pipes, as to render them ready for sale and use in a comparatively short space of time.(my italics)
Dunhill led the way in developing a whole new curing system- a system that many people from around the world swear was and is the best in the world. From 1918 onward Dunhill pipes were steeped in a bath of vegetable oil or oils, and then placed on brass heat pegs which stood over heated gas jets. The heat was controlled so that, over a period of weeks the oil would exude from the bowl bringing with it sap, resins, and other impurities. This “exudite” was periodically wiped from the surface of the pipe bowl before it could harden into an impervious coating. In a manner of weeks the pipe was cured. But this type of curing is different than air curing; the flavor caused by the curing is different. Nutty, say some; oily, say others. Advocates of this system feel that the fibers in the wood are somehow changed, made more durable and able to withstand higher temperatures than an air cured or kiln cured pipe."
It's very interesting to note the striking similarities in language between the 2 patent applications, not only in the descriptor title, Improved Process and Apparatus for Seasoning and Finishing Tobacco Pipes vs. An Apparatus for Seasoning and Drying Tobacco Pipe Bowls, but in the body of text as well.
Here's how Joel Sasieni wrote his up, very close to what his old boss Alfred Dunhill was writing in 1913!

In the manufacture of high class tobacco pipes, in briar and other woods, it is advisable to employ oil in the preparation of the pipe, but although it adds to the value of the finished pipe, it is objectionable when such pipes are first used owing to the heat of the burning tobacco getting into contact with the oil and causing an unpleasant smell and taste to the smoker. Therefore manufacturers of high class tobacco pipes are compelled to store their finished pipes for a considerable time to ensure the perfect incorporation of the oil with the fibres of the wood and to thoroughly season the pipe.
This invention is to extract all oil and sap from the bowls so as to render them fit for immediate working.
A comparison between the 2 documents clearly shows the close similarities and perhaps it pissed old Alfred off that his former employee "swiped" the process from him, and adding insult to injury had also did a single blue dot logo that was almost an exact copy of the famous White Spot --- no wonder that Alfred pursued legal litigation over the matter. I wonder exactly how bad the blood was between the two?
Anyway,

here's the 2 documents:
1913 Alfred Dunhill original document: GB191302157 (A) ― 1913-12-11
1919 Joel Sasieni original document: GB124410 (A) ― 1919-03-27
When looking at the images of the drying stations, it does appear as if Joel had modified the design to solve a problem, in his design the bowls were not placed directly onto the pegs, which allowed for full air circulation through the stummel, supposedly drying it much better than the bowl-in-peg method which is said to have leave some oil residue where the peg made contact with the inner bowl.
Here I've put the design images back-to-back so it's easier to note the differences:
aSmU5Qv.jpg


HrVkJg8.jpg

This quote from PMF further details the difference:

"As to the expulsion of the oil, apparently you can leave the stummels sitting around for a year or more and then finish them as normal. This is how it was done before Dunhill came up with the pegs. If you smoke them before a year or more has gone by then the oil will seep out of the wood, into your tobacco chamber and to the surface of the pipe. That said, apparently a year of drying was common practice. Sasieni was oil curing also and came up with a special heating apparatus to get around the Dunhill patent on the peg system. These heat systems were invented solely to speed up the process, at least according to the patents."
Oil-curing in and of itself has always been a hot topic,

here's what Fred Hanna said in his famous Brand Myth essay:

"...and Bill Taylor implies that, after a while, oil curing is not a factor anyway. Taylor, who oil cures his own Ashton pipes, has stated that the effects of oil curing can no longer be discerned in a pipe after 30 or so bowls of tobacco. In other words, after a sufficient cake has formed and the pipe is well broken in, the influence of the bowl treatment or curing method becomes negligible."
...and I would pretty much agree that the value of oil-curing is mostly in the break-in process, making it safer from burnout as well as adding a distinct universal pleasant flavor for the makers pipes.
Anyway,

it's interesting stuff to look at.

:puffpipe:

 

agnosticpipe

Lifer
Nov 3, 2013
3,332
3,413
In the sticks in Mississippi
My dad used to say, "just being around me is an education". I never saw it that way completely, but you misterlowercase are definitely an education to be around! You always have the most interesting and informative posts, coming up with more obscure facts, pictures, and information than I've ever seen. Keep it up! :worship:

 

prndl

Lifer
Apr 30, 2014
1,571
2,901
you, sir, should start a "pipes in history" thread...a worthy twin to "pipes in art".

 

ssjones

Moderator
Staff member
May 11, 2011
18,322
11,090
Maryland
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I've had the pleasure of breaking in two oil cured pipes (Modern Ferndown and a NOS Ashton). The oil-cured effect does only last for 5 or so bowls. However both of those pipes broke in fast and were tasty right from the start. I'm still waiting to acquire that NOS unsmoked Sasieni...

 

huntertrw

Lifer
Jul 23, 2014
5,223
5,350
The Lower Forty of Hill Country
ssjones:
I have an estate L.C. Smith side-by-side shotgun, the neck of whose stock was simply saturated with oil when I purchased it. I removed the stock and "stoved" its wood in the kitchen oven as a means of expelling as much of the oil as possible. It was shocking to see how much seeped to the surface.
I imagine that this phenomena is much the same as what the Sasieni personnel experienced in "oven-curing" their bowls, except that they were wiping away briar sap and water.

 
May 31, 2012
4,295
34
Michael Linder points this out:

"For whatever it's worth, the 'true' Sasieni oil curing/baking process was

stopped by Alfred S. near the end of the 1940's. He then switched over to a

charring process to pre-carbonise the bowl. So if you ever come across a

supposed 'unsmoked' Sasieni first from before 1950 (ie, with a patent

number) and it doesn't have a virgin bowl... the seller is mistaken."
He also mentions that Sasieni did rum-curing on some of the second lines.

Rum-curing itself was a fairly popular seasoning method,

here's an unrelated 1925 patent for the process,

it notes that after hot rum-curing, the pipe is wiped with sweet oil...

http://worldwide.espacenet.com/publicationDetails/originalDocument?CC=GB&NR=232536A&KC=A&FT=D&ND=3&date=19250423&DB=EPODOC&locale=en_EP
:puffy:

 
May 31, 2012
4,295
34
...more about rum-curing:
In this 40's advert it specifically shows that the HRH line was advertised as rum-cured:
http://i.imgur.com/ZaLUHTp.jpg
...as well as copy talking about their "baking of the bowls" by the "patented process" on the Sasieni proper line.
Pretty neat old ad.

:puffy:

 

graydawn

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 7, 2014
164
1
Fascinating information. My older Dunhills and Astons definitely are great smokers. Due to the oil curing? Hard to say.
Richard

 

saltedplug

Lifer
Aug 20, 2013
5,194
5,097
Whether oil or cured, it seems to me that the makers of an upper-tier pipe must somehow season the bowl so as to remove the foreign matter that still occupies the wood's pores.

 
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