Mountbatten Pipe?

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webbb01

Lurker
Oct 24, 2012
31
6
St. Paul, MN
Hello, I am a newer member to the forum and was wondering if anyone has knowledge of or experience with a Mountbatten pipe? Apparently a Charatan "second"? Are they still being made?
There is a "Mountbatten Special Made in London,England" at the link below, is this a good price? (I am not the seller nor do I know the seller):
Unsmoked Mountbatten Special Vintage Pipe
Thank you! Brad

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
4
Topeka, KS
Brad:
With all due respect to Mikephillips, I like the design of this pipe very much. However, my concern is that it seems a bit pricey for a second. I realize it's new and I especially loved the owner's remark, "(has been in a non-smoking home)"
Really?
I ran across the following at the pipes.org forum. (Spelling, syntax, punctuation, etc. are not - repeat - not mine.)
"Friends,after 40 years of nosing around pipes,what I have gleened is this:Charatan sold its seconds under private lables and later aquired the English rights for Ben Wade for just this purpose.Mountbatten,on the other hand was not a "second"( in that there was some physical deformity in the pipe) but rather a first line production from Charatan's apprentice program.Each Charatan carver might have four or six apprentices at any one time of various skill levels.As they improved and started cutting pipes themselves,these pipes had to moved...thus the Mountbatten.These were made on Charatan tooling with Charatan materials and teaching.Bear in mind that there was a high attrition rate and ,perhapse,one apprentice in nine or ten made it to cutting thier own bowls much less a Charatan carver.This is why you see more Charatans than Mountbattens on the market.You're never going to put your kid through college by selling one but you've got a day to day workhorse of the first order.Good luck and happy puffing."
So, Brad, your second isn't really a second and just might be worth that 56 dollar bill.
On the other hand, Charatan made tons of blank pipes for B&Ms and one of my favorites is "The Tinder Box Unique." Find one of those, with the Made in England stamp, and you'll be putting a warhorse in your stable that will smoke well for the rest of your life. (They normally sell in the 20 to 30 buck range on the Bay.) It probably won't be the prettiest pipe you'll ever own - there will be a fill, nick, dent or ding somewhere and the shape just might be downright unappealing. But with a bit of care, it'll be a rock solid burner for the next century or so.
Cheers.
Fnord

 
Apr 26, 2012
3,331
4,987
Washington State
Brad:

If the pipe speaks to you then that's what matters. I've seen plenty of high end pipes on ebay etc., but to me some just look awful, and I would never buy them just because they were made by a certain carver. If the pipe speaks to you and is made by a good carver or company then that's a bonus, but if you like the look of the pipe then that's what should be a deciding factor. Feel free to take a shot at it. fnord provided some great information, and based off that it sounds like that would be a solid smoking pipe. Good luck with your purchase.

 

webbb01

Lurker
Oct 24, 2012
31
6
St. Paul, MN
Thanks to all for your replies, opinions and awesome information!
I'm finding that more vintage pipe refurbishers and sellers are transitioning to Etsy from eBay due to the selling fees. While eBay is still the most popular, there seem to be more and more "gems" on Etsy each time I look.

 

lazydog

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 24, 2012
514
1
I have also seen more sellers appearing on Etsy, but dang all the pipes seem fairly expensive for joe blow pipes, and the higher end pipes also seem high in price. But I am frugal (cheap).

 
Aug 1, 2012
4,582
5,122
@lazydog A lot of them are expensive but a lot of them aren't. If you look carefully, you can find some real steals and most sellers are willing to deal a bit.

 
Aug 1, 2012
4,582
5,122
Speaking of Etsy, I just did a deal with a seller to get a Mountbatten for a darn good price. Odd thing is, it looks to have an innertube-like thing in the stem.

 

psperrytops

Lurker
Sep 15, 2016
12
0
My wife recently came across an unsmoked Mountbatten in a thrift store which she picked up for me for $5. It is actually a very nice pipe, reminiscent of a Dunhill Bruyere billiard. In fact its dimensions and stain are almost exactly the same. It is well made, symmetrical , no errors, a good piece of briar, well finished and a good smoke. I think I got lucky. It is stamped Mountbatten 823 and has an 'm' on the vulcanite stem. The oxidation on the stem was the only downside.

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,494
26,846
Carmel Valley, CA
Great necro thread from five years ago. Curl, did you read the whole thread?
My English public school had a Mountbatten house, and I wonder now if there was any connection of the school to Lord Mountbatten- as well as how the pipe got named and if he smoked a pipe.

 

curl

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 29, 2014
722
461
Well, I’m not sure if it’s a shape or a line of pipes.

 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,494
26,846
Carmel Valley, CA
I wonder how Lord Mountbatten got his name on pipes and tobaccos. Anyone know the history?
I suspect that he has nothing to do with the pipe name, and that he couldn't object unless it said "Lord Mountbatten". But love to know for sure.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,427
Maybe one of our British members can clarify this, but I believe Mountbatten is an ancestral name that refers to an aristocratic (very upper class) family, of which Lord Mountbatten is only the best known modern member, killed in an IRA bombing of his speedboat. They may be of royal lineage, though that is a very narrow circle, limited especially in ages past to prevent usurping of the throne. The British class system, bottom to top, has far more layers than a lasagna and is inscrutable to most of us, probably many Brits included.

 

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,373
7,266
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
MSO, the Mountbatten family (German Battenberg) became the Marquesses of Milford Haven. My Mother's sister was at one time engaged to David Mountbatten, 3rd Marquess of Milford Haven. That romance never lasted and she went on to marry another aristocrat though of a lower rank.
Regards,
Jay.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,427
mawn', interesting! The Lord Mountbatten most of us "know" was a friend and mentor to the current Prince Charles, who as a youngster was supposedly sort of a lost soul, and his dad, Prince Philip, was (as the story is told, probably in the tabloids) not particularly sympathetic. Then Lord M.'s assassination was another hurdle for Prince Charles to handle, maybe contributing to his rocky personal life and unsettled image. Some enthusiasts would prefer he abdicate and let his son, Prince William, ascend to the throne. Among English royals, I like the Queens, Elizabeth i, Victoria, and Elizabeth II. They seem to have astute economic/financial sense, stolid strength, and a nuanced hand with the public, more than their male relatives. I think maybe your mom's sister was well out of the uppermost reaches of aristocracy; hope that turned out well.

 
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