Why is a Shell Briar So Called?

Clam shell, or in some cases more like an oyster shell, maybe. That's what I've always thought, but with a number of Dunhill owners and history buffs on Forums, I'll let them provide real answers maybe.

The late expert on Dunhill pipes John C. Loring explained the Shell finish as follows in his book titled "The Dunhill Briar Pipe - The Patent Years and After":
"The most innovative of Dunhill's pipe making, the sandblast finish, goes to prove the value of clutter. Algerian briar is among the most beautifully grained, unfortunately it is also among the softest. Given the attractiveness of the grain and the comparatively inexpensive price, in 1914 the company experimented with using Algerian briar for a smooth finished pipe, but because of the softness of the briar, without success. Workshops being workshops, rather then (sic) discarding the remaining briar, the blocks were simply laid aside, fortuitously by the stove. Several months later, at a time when other experiments led the company to find that dye more readily impregnates a bowl with a rough surface, it was noted that the heat from the stove had somewhat effected that condition that (sic) with the nearby Algerian briar blocks, shrinking the briar to a mere 'shell' so to speak, leaving the grain standing out in relief, much like the exterior surface of a seashell and according to an oft repeated story 'sounding like rattling seashells' when first brought to Alfred Dunhill for inspection. Hence was born the Shell finish.
"Initially working with the London Sandblasting Company to develop the process, and accentuate the relief characteristics, by 1917 it was sufficiently perfected to apply for a patent which was awarded in late 1918."

I had heard a similar story, only difference is that the heat that alters the briar is due to the oil curing process. Either way, it's a great story. Love or hate Dunhill's, you have to give credit. The "shell" briar was developed by Dunhill almost one hundred years ago. Today, look how many pipe makers use the term shell, tanshell etc. to describe a sandblasted pipe.

Thank you for that info Hunter, I've always wondered why a shell was a shell. Guess I should look up that book. The evolution of briar pipes is pretty interesting.
Edit- I did a search for the Dunhill book, of my library and google and got no hits.

This is the first time the 10 minute time limit on editing interrupted me.
Anyway I meant to say I had no hits on amazon. Google had lots of hits, but none I found YET that led to the book.

Now's there's another book I want to get. Thanks huntertrw for posting that.

:puffpipe:

hunter, great stuff. I love the serendipity that goes into discovery. It requires intense concentration to observe the unique event and apply it to a practical problem.

What is interesting is also that the discovery of 'Shell' finish is not due to sandblasting but to shrinkage under prolonged exposure to heat. I wonder if this can be related to the observation that the earlier 'Shell' finish tended to achieve patterns with coarser but deeper grains depressions rather than the later and nowadays finer grain standard.

In his book titled "Rare Smoke - The Ultimate Guide to Pipe Collecting" Richard Carleton Hacker had this to say, in part, of the Dunhill Shell finish:
"Alfred Dunhill patented the sandblast in 1917 (Patent No. 1484/17) although some early company brochures state that the Shell was accidentally discovered in 1914. Interestingly, records indicate that the finish was actually being produced as early as 1912, the same year the white spot was introduced. The finish was made possible when the Masons Yard factory acquired a gas stoving machine (initially consisting of a gas furnace, asbestos sheeting and some old piano parts) for treating the raw briar bowls that were being brought in from France. The intensity of the steam and heat was so great, some of the softer wood was actually etched or shrunk away from the harder outer surface of the bowls."
According to the aforementioned John C. Loring, in his patent application Mr. Dunhill explained his invention, in part, as follows:
"This invention relates to the treatment of the surface of the wood in wooden tobacco pipes, for decorative purposes, and refers to a process by which the grain is accentuated or made to stand out in relief, thus giving the wood a very elegant appearance, without interfering with the durability of smoking qualities of the pipes."
...
"Although the sand blast has been used previously for the treatment of the surface of wood, to accentuate the grain, I have found in practice that this treatment in itself does not give satisfactory results as there is a tendency for the wood to become cracked and injured, a result that does not occur with my process where it is used as an auxiliary to the treatment by steeping (in oil) and by heat."
...
"In carrying out my invention, I shape the pipe in the ordinary way...I then steep it for a suitable time in mineral or vegetable oil. For instance, in the case of Algerian briar, a wood very suitable for the production of these new tobacco pipes, the article may be steeped for a long period say for several weeks, in olive oil.
"After it has been removed from the oil, I subject the article to the action of heat...This process occupies a number of days, the oil exuded or coming to the surface being wiped off periodically. The result of the treatment is that the grain of the wood is hardened and stands out in relief to a certain degree, but the oil coming to the surface forms an impervious coating."
...
"I (then) submit it to the action of the sand jet or sand blast, which removes the hardened coating of oil and also has the effect of cutting away the softer wood between the grain and leaving the harder portion-the hardness of which has been intensified by the process of steeping and heating-in very high relief.
"If the article is again steeped in oil, it will take up a further amount...and the treatment by heat and the sand jet or sand blast may be repeated; and so on for as many times as may be required according to the extend to which it is desired to accentuate the grain or make it stand out in relief.
"The resulting article is extremely hard and constitutes an admirable tobacco pipe for the smoker."

The description in this book seems to provide details enough to replicate the oil-curing procedure of earlier Dunhill pipes. It also amazes me how much emphasis Dunhill put onto their unique oil-curing procedure in their patents, while they stopped doing it in late 1960s. As long as their pipes smoke well and look good to the eyes, pipe smokers will be satisfied.

:puffpipe:

"It also amazes me how much emphasis Dunhill put onto their unique oil-curing procedure in their patents, while they stopped doing it in late 1960s."
Alfred Dunhill passed in 1959. The company which he founded merged with Carreras Ltd. (now Rothman's) in 1967. If the discontinuation of oil-curing of Dunhill's pipes took place after this merger, then it comes as scant surprise to me. Do you know exactly when in the late 1960s that change was made?

@Huntertrw
Had to recall :puffpipe: , and finally found where I read it - it's 1968 according to Fred Hanna:

"... Bill Taylor of Ashton pipe fame has remarked that during all the twenty plus years that he worked for Dunhill, that he never observed any oil applied to a Dunhill bowl. David Field told me on two occasions that he is convinced that oil curing stopped after 1968, and after that Dunhill pipes were quite different. Thus, Dunhills after the mid 1960s do not appear to have been oil cured at all and, on top of that, their bowls seem to have come from different suppliers. ..."

http://www.greatnorthernpipeclub.org/Myth.htm
One reason that Dunhill stopped doing the oil-curing perhaps was high cost and that they believed people did not want deep 'craggy' grain pipes so much anymore. Another potential reason mentioned by Bill Taylor is that the oil-curing process pulled out the resin impurities and quite often made new 'sandpits' emerge on briar that were smooth-looking before the process, and hence reduced the amount of briar suitable for smooth-finished pipes. And this implies those early (or nowadays such as Lee von Erck) oil-cured smooth-finished pipes are potentially made of quality briar with really high wood structural integrity.

http://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/new/ashton/history.cfm

@sparrowhawk
Here's what Fred Hanna said about the smokability of oil-cured pipes, "... Bill Taylor implies that after a while oil curing is not a factor anyway. Taylor, who oil cures his own Ashton pipes, has stated that the effects of oil curing can no longer be discerned in a pipe after 30 or so bowls of tobacco. In other words, after a sufficient cake has formed and the pipe is well broken-in, the influence of the bowl treatment or curing method becomes negligible. Now where, I ask, is that unique Dunhill character? The cake and the wood itself probably have more influence on taste than the curing method after many, many, smokes. ..."
I personally would prefer a pipe I buy to be oil-cured if I have a choice.