Two Beauties by Martin Paljesek

Last Saturday I happened upon a Canadian online pipe retailer I wasn't familiar with named True North Briar. Their inventory appears to be from up-and-coming or little-known but respected pipemakers from various countries including the U.S. and Canada, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Spain and Korea. Most of the pipes looked very nice indeed but two really stood out and caught my eye. Both pipes were made by Martin Paljesek of Slovakia who’s been making pipes under the brand name Jesek Pipes since 2011.




I generally avoid pipes from unknown makers, especially when I must rely on a photo and can't actually handle them. These two were an exception however. I really liked the designs and the exotic wood accents impart a high-quality and pricey air to them. The staining & finish highlights the beauty of the straight & mixed grain very nicely. Plus both pipes have Cumberland stems, my favorite stem material just behind amber-resin composite stems; a gorgeous material that is sadly no longer available. Both are medium-sized at around 50g and measure just under 6 inches long. Best of all, they were priced very reasonably at under $250 each, making it possible to buy both since I couldn’t decide which pipe I liked better.


There’s virtually nothing about Martin or Jesek Pipes on the web and True North Briar appears to be one of the few online retailers of his pipes. Has anyone heard of him or own any of his pipes? If so, what do you think of them? My order is still being shipped so I used the photos from True North’s website. I’ll add an update once they arrive. If they prove as good as the photos suggest, Martin Paljesek may join the growing number of Eastern Bloc makers worthy of serious attention, producing world-class pipes at a very competitive price.

Thanks so much for your comments everyone!
The pipes finally arrived on Friday after a week-long delay at a USPS sorting facility in Chicago. :x I was growing more and more nervous with each passing day as no further tracking updates were being issued, especially since the package made it through Customs.
Both pipes are gorgeous and exhibit excellent workmanship. The drilling is perfectly centered at the bottom of the chamber and a pipe cleaner glides effortlessly to the chamber. The stems mate seamlessly with the shank, showing no daylight between the two. Even on some of my high-grade Danish pipes this isn’t always the case. The finish, perhaps not at the level of an Eltang, S. Bang or Ilsted, is still excellent and shows off the fine details of the grain admirably.
One of the attractions of these two was the lack of any bowl coatings or treatment. It’s getting harder and harder to find pipes with uncoated chambers; even high-end Danish makers are using them. Coatings may ease break-in and promote cake formation but most of them impart a flavor I find offensive, especially with latakia blends and can hide imperfections in the bowl. Even without coatings or char, both pipes smoke marvelously. Cool and dry without a hint of gurgle or moisture accumulation in the shank and stem. The naturally finished pipe had a slightly more open draw but the other was by no means closed or constricted.
Overall I’m very impressed with these. They offer outstanding workmanship, beauty and smoking quality for a very reasonable price. Similar pipes would easily command twice if not three times their price had they been made in Denmark rather than the Czech Republic. I’m sure these won’t be the only Jesek Pipes in my collection.