Vintage Kaywoodie Set Number Two

Being so impressed with the Kaywoodie Matched Grain 5-Day set I picked up the other week, I couldn’t pass up this two-pipe Matched Grain set. It was described as having been smoked but in very nice condition. After the set arrived I saw that the billiard had not been smoked and the Dublin perhaps only once or twice as there was minimal char. Both pipes and case are in near-mint condition and without the slightest ding or scratch. It's rare when a pipe turns out better than its eBay description implies! :clap: The pipes smoke wonderfully; just a tad warm but that’ll be remedied once a layer of cake develops.



Before the set arrived I thought they were made later than the five day set, perhaps in the mid 70’s. I was surprised to discover that these have four-hole stingers as opposed to the three-hole stingers found in the five day set. They also have two-digit shape numbers which were used from the mid 1940’s to around 1972.


From what references I could find, the transition from four-hole stingers to three-hole occurred around 1955. So this set is actually older than the five day set and was made between 1945 and 1955. The natural finish threw me off as I thought it was a more recent variation.

I’m truly impressed with both sets. I can now understand why Kaywoodie was held in such esteem by my stepfather and pipemen of his generation.



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Thanks everyone!
I was really surprised to see four-hole stingers on these but then again, two-pipe sets like this were much more common before the 70's. All of my two-pipe sets were made in the 40's and 50's so it's not surprising that these may be from 1947. The older Kaywoodies were excellent pipes if these are any indication.