Butz Choquin - Whats your opinion?

rls80 · Jul 8, 2011

Well, I finally managed to get back into the swing of forum chat after a few months off, with a new thread. And as the title says, it Butz Choquin pipes, and what people think of them.
I recently won an estate BC Calabash Junior Super (smooth) on ebay. It has a lovely appearance, apart from needing oxidization removing from the stem. It seems to of been barely smoked too, so i got the bowl trim and have given it a few smokes now.

But, two things:

First, it smokes hotter than any other pipe I've owned, despite smoking slowly and trying different types of tobacco etc

Second, (and I know it hasn't really got that much cake build up) it seems to smoke worse (bitter/ashy I guess?) than any other pipe I have had at similar build up, and probably one of the wetter ones too.
So what you all think of this brand?
Cheers

marmal4de · Jul 8, 2011

They're flashy, if that's your thing, I also really like the look of stem materials they use. That being said, I have never owned or smoked a BC, and can't really imagine myself going out of my way to acquire one.

rls80 · Jul 8, 2011

I just thought I'd have a go at this used one, since it was in nice condition and I was curious. I suppose I need to give it a bit more smoking time before being too harsh in opinion, but I am amazed at how quickly and suddenly it gets hot. Does look nice though!

lordofthepiperings · Jul 8, 2011

I bought a Daccord a while back. As noted I loved the stem coloring. It's kind of a smokey grey and silver. Has some nice grain to it, a good mix of birds eye and flame. The Daccord I got does tend to smoke a little hot though regardless of the blend I put in it. Overall it's a nice pipe. Pretty good draw and everything. Like I said only downfall is the bowl gets hotter than my other pipes.

hauntedmyst · Jul 8, 2011

Their fine pipes. Been in business forever.

thekiltedchaplain · Jul 8, 2011

I've only had one that I recently sold, a jumbo rusticated. It was a beautiful pipe but smoked very hot no matter what tobacco I was using, or how slow I was drawing. It also gurgled more than any other pipe I've owned, but both of these may just have been how I smoked. I tend to draw pretty deep and heavy even when I'm "sipping".

clanobucklin · Jul 8, 2011

I own about 5-6 of them and they have never given me any problems. They are nice looking and good smokers too.

cortezattic · Jul 8, 2011

Here's the only pic I have of my D'Accord bulldog.

You can see part of the marbled smoke gray stem referred to by lordofthepiperings.

This one smokes really well, and the stem is very comfortable in the mouth.

No issues with excessive heating or gurgle. Pretty nifty pipe, IMO. :puffpipe:

rls80 · Jul 8, 2011

Very nice looker! I suspect mine gurgles due to the really narrow diametre shank/stem channel. Would this be a reasonable assumption?

unclearthur · Jul 8, 2011

I have several and like them a lot. Excellent pipes.

olderthandirt · Jul 8, 2011

Only have the one, this "d'Argent", but it is a smokers dream.

Not overly blend specific, no gurgle and light enough for my dentures to clench.

rigmedic1 · Jul 8, 2011

Bought my BC Calabash in the mid Eighties, and often called it the pipe that wouldn't break in. I think the heavy varnish holds in the heat. It only gurgles with cased blends, and is a much better with Tinderbox Connoisseur or Dunhill 965. It's a really good pipe during the winter!

audax · Dec 7, 2013

Have several Butz Choquin's but my favorite is the Makuni purchased at a great pipe shop in Paris, just behind the Sorbonne, about 20 years ago. It's a big pipe and smokes cool with the right tobacco. I smoke Savinelli Black Cavendish in it and Butera Sweet Cavendish, when I can get Butera products which is impossible here in Bratislava, Slovakia.

petes03 · Dec 7, 2013

I guess since this has been necro- bumped, I'll give my $0.02.

I only have one BC, a Cadre Noir "1789" 1/2 bent apple. From what I can tell from the one pipe, BCs are well constructed and smoke good for the money. I'd definitely recommend them to the budget minded piper!

papipeguy · Dec 7, 2013

I have 2 BC's. A rusticated Jumbo billiard and a red bent Formula (I just felt that I needed a red pipe). Both smoke very well and, to pete03's point, are reasonable for mid-range pipes.

yazamitaz · Dec 7, 2013

I only own one and like the way it smokes and looks

andrew · Dec 7, 2013

My favorite pipe is my BC, any pipe I have smokes hot or gurgles, doesn't matter on the pipe in my opinion, it comes down to technique and tobacco at the proper moisture.

mso489 · Dec 7, 2013

I have one BC, a Caprice bent billiard with a silver-colored band, black rusticated bowl and shank, and raspberry

colored stem. This is their 1304 shape, one of their standards. I bought this when the Peterson Dracula pipes

were new and exciting, not wanting something quite that over-the-top, but liking the black crimson contrast.

This pipe does not overheat. It's a handy size, I would say a small Group 4. My bent pipes don't gurgle, or rarely.

This is a pleasant smoker, nice balance, good clencher, comfortable stem. I don't even think the design is

particularly flashy as colorful pipes go. I wouldn't mind taking this to a pipe show to smoke samples, wouldn't

feel like a show-off character. Mostly, I find French pipes nicely done and pleasingly priced. I also have a

Vuilliard and a Jobey, and have had good experiences with them.

rymw · Dec 22, 2013

A pipe pal recently bought a Chacom churchwarden and he was all praise for it. I often read on the internet about how pipe smokers rave about Comoy's and such fine French pipes but these are all well beyond my budget. But just this week I came across a BC on eBay that really caught my fancy and it was priced below 50 bucks so I frantically googled for more info on the make although I've come across it before. The long and short of it was, you guys here gave me the must confidence thru your comments cos it's almost impossible to find reviews on estate BC pipes anywhere!
So I took the plunge this morning and bought the Butz Choquin Camargue. Whereas all the other variants of this model I saw on the internet were either bulldogs and bent billiards, this one is a paneled straight billiard with a square shank and a lovely downward bending stem inserted/screwed into the lucite shank extension!
Thank you kind sirs of PMC, and especially rls80 for posting this thread...it gave me courage to fork out for my first estate BC pipe. Will update with photos when she arrives

Merry Christmas everybody.

redbeard · Dec 22, 2013

I have one that was part of my dads collection, I absolutely LOVE IT!! It is a BC Simoun that is my best flake smoker. This pic here is pretty old, back when I first started but you can get the idea. I have cleaned it up really nice, stem and all. Also not the greatest at photography

Butz Choquin - Whats your opinion?

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