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Grenadilla Wood Anyone?

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withnail

withnail

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 30, 2011
737
1
United Kingdom
Hi all,
I've been killing some time looking at various UK pipe shops online. A collection of non standard shapes caught my eye and reading the description it says it is made from Grenadilla wood and are carved by Rafael Arzuaga in Cuba. They claim that this wood gives briar a run for its money.
Any of you out there ever smoked a Grenadilla wood pipe?
See here

 
gray4lines

gray4lines

Part of the Furniture Now
Nov 6, 2012
679
2
KY
Yup! as Mike mentioned, many woodwind instruments are made from it. It apparently does not absorb much moisture at all... some places even go so far as to say "moisture repellant"
I would give them a try if the orice is right. It is supposedly a very dark color (like ebony) I bet it would make at least a nice looking pipe.
Edit, I did just saw the link. They are nice looking pipes, but quite pricey! You may not notice a difference, it may even be better than briar... it's an expensive gamble though

 
withnail

withnail

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 30, 2011
737
1
United Kingdom
The blurb about the wood says it is often used in wood wind instruments and from what Mike Phillips & Gray writes it sounds like a suitable wood. But they are a little pricey to buy one simply out of curiosity. Let's see if any other forum members have smoked one. Although - does the USA still ban imports from Cuba?

 
gray4lines

gray4lines

Part of the Furniture Now
Nov 6, 2012
679
2
KY
Although - does the USA still ban imports from Cuba?
Click to expand...
Yup, it is illegal to own, or have in your possession anything cuban. Even if you travel to Canada and someone hands you a Cuban cigar, it is illegal to take it.

 
ejames

ejames

Lifer
Oct 6, 2009
3,916
23
Looks like it is in the Rosewood family. Rosewood pipes have been around for a long time.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dalbergia_melanoxylon

 
J

john218

Part of the Furniture Now
May 5, 2012
562
1
Connecticut
I never heard of it being used for pipes.
As others have said, t is used for woodwind instruments, especially clarinets.
It is in the Dalbergia (Rosewood) family. Other Rosewoods have been used for pipes. I have one and it smokes okay, but hot. One source of information online said that it has a lot of natural oils, which may affect the smoking qualities. If it is as good as they claim, I wonder why it hasn't become popular for pipes.
Being made in Cuba, there is the problem of getting it through customs.
At a cost of over $200 U.S., I would like a good amount of feedback from people who have smoked a Grenadilla pipe before making a decision to buy one.

 
mzpuff

mzpuff

Lurker
Feb 13, 2013
34
0
Toronto
Grenadillas are in the passion fruit family. They taste great. So the wood is likely safe in terms of non-toxic sap.

 
withnail

withnail

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 30, 2011
737
1
United Kingdom
Thanks for all the info. At that price, I'm not keen on risking something that claims to be better than briar. As others have said, if its that good, why hasn't it become more popular?

 
mawnansmiff

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,679
8,262
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
An old thread I know but I stumbled upon it whilst looking up the name of the wood and its potential use in pipemaking. Then I found the following...
A story states that it has even been used as ballast in trading ships and that some enterprising Northumbrian pipe makers used old discarded blackwood ballast to great effect.
That said, nice as the wood looks, I think I shall be sticking to briar pipes for the time being :puffy:
Regards,
Jay.

 
clickklick

clickklick

Lifer
May 5, 2014
1,699
211
Old thread indeed. I think you always have to ask the question, what is the reason for the current materials being used today. If any of these things has superior smoking qualities they would be in wide spread or common use today. The main 3 staples are Briar, Meerschaum, and Corn Cobs. However, there is a tiny increase in Olive Wood use and some Strawberry wood. And of course quite a following and interest in Morta.
Everything else, was tried and pretty much left at the side of the road for a reason.

 
mso489

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,610
Advising new pipe smokers, I would suggest getting a rotation of briar/Meerschaum/and-or cobs. Then if you want to try less-used woods or materials, do so. Briar is the king of tobacco pipe materials and so far there is no improving on it. I have a home-state carver who does excellent work with Mountain Laurel, and I have four or five of these. I bought the first one of these in 2002, and so far they are comparable to briar, but with less showy grain. However, pipes in Mountain Laurel are pretty rare. The carver I speak of sells only twice a year at the N.C. Fairgrounds, and I don't think I've ever seen a Mountain Laurel pipe online, or rarely if ever. So I wouldn't recommend something that is not available. (I asked the Mountain Laurel carver if he sold online, and he said if he did he'd spend all his time taking pictures rather than making pipes. He's a country guy, very independent, and I respect that.)

 
dottiewarden

dottiewarden

Lifer
Mar 25, 2014
3,053
58
Toronto
Briar has yet to fail us a fine replacement for fragile clay and expensive meerschaum. I suspect tradition alone will keep briar as the top choice by pipe smokers, well accompanied by earlier success stories with cobs and meerschaums.
Do we really need a replacement for briar?

 
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