Lane Era Charatan

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

After doing some research, I came to the conclusion that I just had to add at least one of these to my newly forming British collection. I love the history behind this brand and there seems to be a good many very old pipes for sale. The listing name was this Charatan's Make London England 311DC Lane-Era Sandblasted.I searched an old catalogue and clearly saw the model 311 listed . Here is the pic of it.

bigmike · Jun 23, 2012

That's a Beauty.
What year was it made?

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

I don't know how to tell exactly what year it is. I looked at this catalogue http://pipepages.com/charatanpage3.htm which is a European one from the late 60's to verify this 311 shape was in existence. If you can tell me how to date it other than it being a Lane Era, I would appreciate it.

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

I don't have a pic of the nomenclature but it seems that if it has a DC in it then it was from when Dunhill took over the company. Once I get the pipe in hand I will report back. I figured any Lane Era Charatan that was in very good condition was worth a shot at 35.00 bucks. The Ebay seller has a great rating with over 5000 sales.

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

herbinedave, thanks for posting that. I did read that before I made my purchase which is why I became interested in Charatans. If anyone has any in their collection, I would love to hear how they smoke. I figured if so many people are collecting these then they must be pretty good smokers. I have my eye on a couple others.

lonestar · Jun 23, 2012

Its confusing to date Charatans. The best giveaway that it is a Lane Era will be the Lane "L" stamp (sort of a funny looking L in a circle). But not all Lane Era pipes will have the L Stamp.

I have several Lane Era pipes I've been meaning to list for sale, pm me if you'd like more info on them.

docwatson · Jun 23, 2012

The higher graded Charatan pipes are known for their wonderful straight grain and are have a large collector base worldwide. They are the focus of my collecting and the largest collection of high grades was displayed at the Chicago show this past month. I highly recommend that everyone try a Charatan pipe.

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

doc, how do the lower end pipes smoke i.e specials. Do Charatans smoke as well if not better than Upshalls and Ashtons? I am expanding my British collection of pipes and I would like to include a number of Charatans.

tbradsim1 · Jun 23, 2012

I have several lane era Charatans and they really smoke good, especially a big Canadian I have, I really like them the old cajun

papipeguy · Jun 23, 2012

This is my Lane era pipe. It had a crack in the shank and I sent it to Floyd Norwood. He put a band on it and it's as good as new. It has a large bowl but thin. Tends to smoke hot but it's a nice pipe.

docwatson · Jun 23, 2012

@cigrmaster

I have some Special graded pipes and YES they will smoke as well as a Supreme!!!! I've even had many Belvedere graded pipes (ruby stain) that were exceptional smokes. Basically what you are paying for in a higher grade Charatan is the grain and size IMO. As for smoking qualities in British pipes, my personal preference leans heavily with Ashtons and Charatan pipes.

Good luck in your search I believe you will enjoy them equally.

cigrmaster · Jun 23, 2012

Thank you docwatson, I just received my first Ashton Pebble Grain by Bill Taylor today and I see why you are partial to them. I just found this grading chart for Charatan http://www.rarememories.com/Charatan.htm. The one I bought is an apprentice Charatan which is probably why it is so inexpensive. I will start looking for different grades now that I am more informed.

johninkc · Jun 24, 2012

Look for the Florid L. That dates it from roughly 1960 to 1978.
Get a copy of Tad Gage's article on Charatan's Make from Pipes and Tobaccos Magazine. That's the most reliable source. For an online copy, use the Internet Wayback Machine:
http://web.archive.org/web/20070624230857/http://www.pipeguy.com/charatan.htm

johninkc · Jun 24, 2012

Here is Ivy Ryan's reminiscence for NASPC, also by way of the Wayback Machine...
http://web.archive.org/web/20000303121951/http://www.naspc.org/charatan.htm

johninkc · Jun 24, 2012

BTW, the Florid L was in theory only for US production, but I have new Charatan's, bought here in the US, without it (from the 60s-70s), and I've had Charatans bought in Switzerland without it!

ssjones · Jun 25, 2012

That is a great Charatan! Charatan pipes smoke great, at least the two Lane era pipes I have do. Equal to my Ashton or my Upshalls. Both of mine are the "After Hours" line. Be careful, as you head up the Charatan quality chart, prices skyrocket! A gentleman had a Coronation grade pipe at the last Philly Pipe Club meeting, $1,500! I put it down very carefully....
Here's a nice review of the Charatan grades and shapes:

http://www.rarememories.com/Charatan.htm
My two:

cigrmaster · Jun 30, 2012

Well I got my Charatan in today and it smokes great as I knew it would. So what the hell, I went and snagged this baby off Ebay. It is a Lane Era Charatan's Make 4211DC.

cigrmaster · Jun 30, 2012

Al, those are beautiful pipes. I just noticed them, can't figure how I didn't see them before I posted. It is amazing how few After Hours you see on line. There are tons of other Charatans but none of those. Were they some type of limited edition or just not that many made, or collectors holding them?

ssjones · Jun 30, 2012

The After Hours line was a clever move by Charatan. They were able to salvage otherwise unusable strummels (flaws, etc.) by cutting off the problem area and afixing the acrylic extension. They pop up on Ebay every once in a while, with fluctuating prices. I get to the NYC pipe club occasionally. One member, an ER doctor always has one in his bag. He says he owns over 100 After Hours pipes. I keep wrangling to get an invite to see them, but not yet.

cigrmaster · Jun 30, 2012

Cool, thanks for the info. That must be a hell of a collection.

Lane Era Charatan

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