Time Travelers
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Kevin Godbee - Jun 8, 2012
- 13 min read
Fred Bass
Estate Meerschaums cross oceans of time in their lifetime of service for those lucky enough to smoke them. In a market where the buyer can find himself at odds with the skill, judgment, and honesty of the seller, the seller is sometimes found lacking in these qualities, and may be the victim of yet an older fraud himself. The current hazards to the buyer in the meerschaum market are not new in origin, as deception has been a common practice for hundreds of years; hence the term Meer-sham continues to have credence. It is to the buyer’s benefit to pursue an education, to learn about vintage or antique meerschaums in order to avoid the more expensive results: buyer’s remorse. The rewards of a successful acquisition are many and certainly worth the risk. Vintage (a general guide is less than 100 years old) and antique (more than 100 years old) meerschaums have gained seasoned perspectives by lessons from fire and tobacco that are simply not found in the new pipes. This is one of the reasons that I’m active in the estate meerschaum marketplace as a buyer who seeks the virtues that these old soldiers have to offer. The smoking qualities and advanced patina of these pipes are also the primary source of distraction to those who haven’t done their homework but continue to look for bargains, e.g., that overlooked Andreas Bauer.
Joaquin Verdanguer makes an amusing note of market manipulation in his book, The Art of Pipe Smoking, (The Curlew Press Limited, 1958, 28-29):
Until 1850 meerschaums were made exclusively in Austria. Then the French butted in, boastfully advertising their wares as ‘French meerschaums’ and selling them by the thousands. That would have been all right if they hadn’t played a dirty trick on their competitors. Out of the shavings and other by-products they manufactured pipes of inferior quality and slyly marketed them under the trade-mark ‘Made in Austria’. Consequently this label was so discredited that a Viennese pipe dealer showing a prospective buyer a truly magnificent meerschaum and saying to him ‘A genuine Austrian product, sir!’ was bewildered when the customer would mutter ‘confounded racket’ and then stalk out of the shop.
The modern day version of this drama are the Turkish exports labeled “Made in Vienna”, a remarkable feat, considering that the Turkish government passed a law in 1961 banning the export of raw meerschaum block (Jean Rebeyrolles, Collectible Pipes, 2002). Prime indicators that should arouse a degree of suspicion include the use of the “925” designation for silver, instead of “sterling”; Delrin push-pull connectors of recent manufacture; claims of “real amber” or “cultured amber” in bit construction, when plastic has been used; and pipe cases of recent manufacture. It is wise to note that other concerns exist for the potential buyer. For example, this looks like the site that Sedat Koncak shut down about 5 years ago, advertising both Andreas Bauer & Koncak pipes. It would be prudent to exercise caution and be certain as to the legitimacy of the seller, prior to making payment. http://koncak.sarslan.com/Koncak/advice.htm. Currently, the trademark for Andreas Bauer meerschaums is held by Kopp GmbH & Co. KG. These meerschaum pipes are available thru authorized dealers in Europe at prices ranging from 215 Euros to 350 Euros, depending on the shape and size of the pipe. I suspect they are commissioned pipes made by IMP, owned by Mustafa Albayrak. IMP is Ihrac Mallari Pazarlama, Turkish for Import and Export Marketing. Chances are that if the pipe is a Dunhill, or a Peterson Turkish block meerschaum or a new or vintage Andreas Bauer meerschaum, then it was likely made in Turkey by IMP, Altinay or Koncak as either a contract commissioned order or by the unauthorized use of a patent trademark. This is speculation on my part, as none of my inquiries to these companies have been answered. Trade secrets are closely guarded today, as they have been in the past within the meerschaum trades.
There is yet another dimension of counterfeit that has continued rather unabated – the use of epoxy (or resin) material in the manufacture of replica pipes, which is much denser than meerschaum. In the 1970s, there was a man in Massachusetts, who made molds from his own antique meerschaum pipes and cheroot holders, replicated them in resin and sold them as meerschaum-like objects. He designed the card stock on which these pipes were displayed, advertising them by a name he coined, “Hydrostone.” These pipes are still around today, and will occasionally show up in the marketplace. This is a case of caveat emptor and caveat vendor. Clues to this fake often appear as unusual proportions of the pipe’s shank and the use of push-pull connectors that are supposedly from the Victorian era. Since that time, the following believed-to-be resin motifs have appeared at auctions, at pipe shows, and on e-bay: (1) the “Nude Victory,” a woman on the front of a tulip-shaped bowl, her arms outstretched over her head; (2) “Woman and Child,” two of which were recently offered on e-bay, one in the US and one in the UK, whose shank configuration and push stem are most unusual for an “antique” meerschaum pipe, and most recently (3) the bust of a Norseman or Viking, whose telltale signs of new-age construction are a latticed pot-metal shank band and an orange plastic mouthpiece, both characteristics reminiscent of the exact same components of the pipe reported in Rapaport’s, Collecting Antique Meerschaums. What is not known is whether the sellers of these pipes are doing so wittingly or whether they are unaware of or unfamiliar with what they offer. Until further discovery–if discovery ever occurs–it is best that caveat emptor and “being forewarned is being forearmed” be the watchwords to buyers. I have even seen one that appeared as though someone had attempted to smoke it. I can only imagine what that experience must have been like. The first formal notification of such skullduggery appeared in Rapaport’s book, in which he identified a reproduction in resin best described as a blood-red pre-colored motif of a man carousing with several girls, supposedly signed by Gustav Fisher (an incorrect spelling of someone who never signed his pipes), a pot metal shank band and an orange plastic mouthpiece. Even so, resin counterfeits continue to show up in auctions and sales. One American collector owns at least six of these replica pipes that were offered for sale in various venues from as little as $100 to as much as $600.
Another example can be found in the case of similar circumstance with a seller in Nottingham, England. A noted American collector had this to say:
John Lee, from the United Kingdom, was an individual who reproduced antique meerschaum pipes. He made them out an epoxy. His main claim to fame was in working on old palatial estates including what he called some small castles. He would reproduce and repair items from the days of old, including fire places, walls, etc. He did reproduce some meerschaum pipe designs (about 40), as a hobby and sold hundreds. He advised that he never said that the pieces were of meerschaum or that they were antique. John Lee was seen as friendly, helpful, honorable and very concerned about his product being misrepresented. He said that the weight and texture would be dead giveaways as to the pieces not being meerschaum. This American collector told John that some of the buyers were selling these replicas on the Internet as meerschaum and he was upset with this. He did not wish for anyone to get hurt… He either stopped due to illness, age or found something else to do. John was known as being kind and polite in dealing with those he knew. He must be in his 80’s, if he’s still alive. He made a video for a show, talking about how he did this type of molding. He sent this American collector five of his style of pipe reproductions. In one of their last conversations 6 years ago, John invited this collector to send him any meerschaum pipe; of any length or style and that he could reproduce it, even three dimensional. John was also an artist. He sent this collector a painting that he did of a falcon. He loved falcons and had one. 6 years ago, John was helping another collector with a resin base to make large replica amber stems. They worked on the color. The only problem that they had with the stems was that after bending the stem it would straighten out and had to be re-bent. They eventually got the problem corrected.
Today there are 4,125 listings under a general search for “meerschaum” on e-Bay alone, which is a steady indicator of the continued and increasing interest of both buyers and sellers for new, vintage and antique meerschaums. This is a huge opportunity and challenge for the collector. For the most part, my interests are confined to the new and vintage pipes for smoking. What little understanding I have of the antique pipe market comes from my association and friendship with Ben Rapaport, whose efforts to research and publish articles about these pipes carved from about 1850 to 1925 have been a major influence for decades. It is worth mentioning that potential buyers in the antique meerschaum market would do well to read João P. Martins’ Meerschaum Pipes @ E-Bay (1999-2010) available at http://www.blurb.com/bookstore/detail/1545260. Ben’s review of this book is: “As a long-time pipe collector and author of six books on the subject of antique pipes, it is my professional and personal opinion that Joao Martins has made a significant contribution to this hobby by filling in the gaps and voids with current-market prices for these rare objects of art … No prior book in any language has accomplished this feat: a ready reference to what’s hot, what’s not, and what people are paying for these collectible meerschaum pipes.” I quote this because it is good to know the difference between antique and vintage pipes—which seems to be a point of ignorance for many sellers.
Just as these old frauds continue to circulate, there are new ones to contend with as well. Shallow mines yield low quality block and no amount of skill or artistic merit will overcome the poor smoking qualities and patina development from pipes produced using low grade materials. New pipes priced exceptionally low in relation to what else you see being offered for sale should trigger a cautious response and an inquiry should be made to the seller prior to bidding. Whether I’m looking for a masterpiece of craftsmanship or a simple pipe that will give good service, clear dialogue with the seller is a deal maker/breaker for me. Comprehensive and accurate photography better aids the seller for a quick sale, at a higher price than out-of-focus, blurred images that some use to disguise pipes made of clay, Plaster of Paris, resin, pressed or formed block, some of which are not that easy to distinguish from natural block. Sometimes, you will have the opportunity to inspect estate and vintage pipes firsthand, but most of the time you will just have photos to work from. Generally, I avoid sellers who do not accept returns and I pay attention to what previous buyers have to say about past experiences.
The high value that many place on advanced coloration in a meerschaum gives incentive to shortcuts employed by some sellers. Pipes colored in smoke jars will have a dull appearance without depth and exhibit a darker color in the places that usually show the least amount of color in pipes that have been smoked and waxed. Some re-sellers will use their own wax finishes that give the appearance of color, but it usually turns out to be spotty and uneven. I’ve seen pipes that had been stained with pigment or dye, and ones that were boiled in tobacco stew or dark tea; tea can stain (and age) new ivory, so imagine tea’s effect on porous meerschaum. It would be advisable to become well-schooled in these arcania before paying for knowledge acquired thru poor purchase decisions. Cultivating an eye for general condition and repair of used estate pipes is advisable. Pipe repair and restoration is a big topic in itself but it should be mentioned here, since it needs to be taken into account as part of a wise purchase decision. If you are determined to acquire a pipe that has been abused for decades, be prepared to make it a years-long project of care and cleaning. I have taken in pipes that required drilling out the chamber and draft to remove years of cake build up. The results of careless handling and neglect can be addressed but can easily require years to do so. After sanding the exterior with progressively finer grades of micro mesh in an Everclear bath, re-waxing the block and spending a few hours cleaning the bit, it still took years of smoking, waxing and routine cleaning for the pipe to smoke with clarity and the patina to return. These pipes have been worth the effort involved in getting them back on their evolutionary path. It’s not so bad when the previous owner was a Virginia smoker, but cheap Aromatics will ghost a pipe for longer than you ever thought possible. Cleaning up these pipes is a labor of love as you don’t have the option of using a salt/alcohol treatment or the use of a retort, like you can with a Briar. Repair is another issue that should be taken into account, as it can cost more to have the pipe fixed than it did to purchase it, unless you have the skills, materials and equipment to apply to this end.
In writing these considerations to give the potential buyer information about the estate meerschaum pipe market, it’s my hope that these perspectives and experiences will serve the reader in future purchase decisions. The large body of books, articles and essays available afford those who wish to learn the opportunity to do so. The challenge is to find good information to serve as the basis for wise decisions beyond what is available from general hearsay and myth that is common to so many public discussions, groups, forums and poorly researched literature. Whether you’re looking for pipes that will provide you with good service within the limitations of a small budget or seeking high end collectables, the opportunity to find both never has been greater. In this context, it is good to remember never to underestimate the desire of a pipe seller to earn your purchase. For me, the thrill of the hunt is big part of the fun in acquiring these gems, and increases my appreciation of them during the smoke, as well as their display. A few years ago, it would not have been something that I thought might be for me. Now a significant part of my collection includes estate pipes. Cleaning them up & repairing them has given new dimension to the pleasures of pipe smoking. May your hunting be successful and bring the pleasures of these pipes to you as well.
Read more of Fred’s expert articles on meerschaum pipes at the following links –
–The Meerschaum Pipe Experience
–The Thrill of the Hunt (A Guide to Estate Meerschaums)
–Slave to the White Goddess
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Fred Bass is the founder of the “All Things Meerschaum Group” on Smoker’s Forums. All but one of the pipes shown in this article are from his collection. You can see more of Fred’s Meerschaum Pipe Collection in his Pipe Photo Album, which includes close to 100 pipes. |
Written by Kevin Godbee
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Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 634! Our featured interview on tonight’s show is with Warren Ertle. Warren is an extremely accomplished musician with a PhD in music. He started early as a percussionist in sixth grade. Later his grandmother got him a cheap Casio keyboard which he taught himself to play. He started playing in blues bands in high school, and has been a pianist with jazz big bands for years. Even though he was already a professional musician, he took his first real piano lesson when he enrolled in college with his studies in classical music. He is of course a pipe smoker. At the top of the show we will have an Ask the Tobacco Blender segment with Jeremy Reeves. Jeremy is the Head Blender at Cornell & Diehl, which is one of the most popular boutique pipe tobacco companies in the USA.
Soon now, supposedly, our neighborhoods will shift from grinning pumpkins, skeletons in various assortments, and zombies dashing about to pretty reindeer, angels, and flashing lights illuminating homes with sparkling stars and laughing, scurrying Santas. But, lest we forget, there is the turkey season, fancy pie aromas wafting from kitchens, and a national pardon of a big Tom Turkey. Remember, now, that only one of these holiday personalities is a pipe smoker. And that is the hefty, bearded fellow in a bright red suit sitting in a sleigh with a herd of deer hitched up and ready to streak across the globe, bringing tidings of joy and many presents. Ok, the scene is set for the next couple of months, right? So, before we get too far off the beaten path, let’s just take a deep breath of fresh autumn air, shall we? Ahh. That’s better, isn’t it? What’s got the Pundit in a snit is not all the Halloween spooks who came a-jostling for candy. Or the wild turkeys gobbling in the backwoods or all the fuss and feathers over the big one—Christmas. No, it is that we might need to take note of all the little things that mean so much to us. Like a good sunrise (seriously, Pundit has not gone all Pollyanna.) Mayhaps we need to appreciate more of what we have than what we have not. Or something like that. Like, a good pipe in the morning with coffee as the dawn brings us coolish weather now that we have flipped the calendar to autumn. But it also brings beautiful leaves that have become a spectacle of technicolor in the wind. It is the little things. The rereading of an enjoyable book and finding something you did not see or learn in the first go-round. Or a stunning phrase you commit to memory with the re-read, while smoking that favorite pipe. And you notice a superior puff that just seems to be different. It’s in the air and the seasons of meaningful little things. It’s aromatic! Or perhaps it is that sense of satisfaction knowing and appreciating you made it to another day. With the world in a kind of rinse-and-repeat history, reminiscent of a Shakespearean play, it is perhaps a good moment to remember some of Pipedom’s philosophers whose cogent thoughts brought light to clear a path in the mists of confusion and confounding opinions. Ok. No gloom and doom. Just some down-home thoughts. Think of times in the past when history was running off the rails. It took our pipe-smoking thinkers (the mind workers of the world) to speak of better pathways to more light. Think for a moment, with a pipe in hand, these wizards of the world and word: Albert Einstein, J. R.R. Tolkien, Mark Twain, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, Edwin Hubble, Bertrand Russell, C. S. Lewis, and Jean-Paul Sartre. All learned and enlightened. They offered wisdom instead of storms of meaningless roads to nowhere. All while smoking their pipes! Maybe especially with the help of their pipes in the art of thinking and philosophy. Recall the words of Mr. E=MC2 when he said, “I believe that pipe smoking contributes to a somewhat calm and objective judgment in all human affairs.” Amen and amen! Dealing with world-rattling events takes a calm and objective view of things, to the Pundit’s way of summing it up. You just don’t go messing around with quantum physics without a calm and objective approach, methinks. Or as the extraordinary physicist Robert Oppenheimer said after he and a team in the Manhattan Project at Los Alamos Labs developed a way to split atoms into bombs during World War II. “I am become Death, the destroyer of worlds,” said Oppenheimer referring to the development of the first nuclear bombs dropped on Japan. It must be pointed out that Oppenheimer was more of a cigarette smoker than a pipe smoker. Nonetheless, pipes were part of his personality. Now, if you have read some of the great authors of the past and present, their pipes were always nearby. Reading Sir Arthur Conan Doyle can be a three-pipe problem at times. S. Lewis and Jean-Paul Sartre require time with your pipes to reflect on the existential problems and solutions these authors provide in learned novels and other narratives. Or take Edwin Hubble and Bertrand Russell, philosophers of another world. Pipes are required for reading. The quantum lode of ideas Pundit is attempting to sort out is that our pipes are relaxing and stimulate our thoughts and creativity. Especially in these last months of the year. Many times Pundit has had that light bulb flick on while smoking my beloved pipes. And friends in Pipedom, it ain’t easy to turn on the lights in Pundit’s rock pit head. Now it’s time for a quote from a Pipe Smoker of the Past. Shelby Foote was born Nov. 17, 1916, in Greenville, Miss., and died June 27, 2005, in Memphis, Tenn. A fact is not a truth until you love it—Shelby Foote. A parting thought: It is said that famed Southern author William Faulkner carried a packed pipe in a coat pocket wherever he went. That’s one effective way to deal with workday conflicts and confusion. A calm and objective judgment in our everyday human affairs, as the quantum man said.
Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 633. Our featured guest tonight is Jon David Cole. JD is the Owner/Tobacconist at The Country Squire in Jackson, MS, and the accompanying online store. We’ll have JD and Brian talking about what’s new at the store and in the business in general. At the top of the show, Brian will discuss tobacco growing, what happens to the leaf, and provide updated information on where tobacco is being gown today. Tobacco production originated in the United States and we were once the #1 producer. It’s quite different now.
Well there’s nothing like a touch of the plague to usher in the changing season. Leaving the airport just when the first advertisements for all things pumpkin spice began to appear—lattes, muffins, shampoos, trash bags, and myriad other concoctions—so, too, my ability to breathe freely disappeared. The unfortunate side effect of losing one’s sense of taste and smell for weeks is the utter inability to enjoy tobacco. Not that I consider myself an expert on anything but my own tastes, but be forewarned that this review was made with mildly impugned sensory equipment. Just when a comforting pipe was most needed, its comfort was denied. Be that as it may, the road to recovery found me limping along on one lung this past month, trying to wrest the particulars of two blends on offer from Sutliff: the latest 175th Anniversary blend, Silver Quarter, as well as their spooky seasonal Maple Shadows II. Silver Quarter is a new style on offer from Sutliff, their first coin-cut blend. Naturally a Virginia-Perique, it is enhanced with a traditional core of black Cavendish. In the tin it holds much promise, with a lightly bready and very woody, if ever-so-slightly sour, aroma. After some time acclimating to air, the bouquet softens further and offers hints of the burley with some chocolaty notes wafting through the more dominant dry grassy aspect. The tin art is of a coin-style bas-relief bust, presumably of a founding Sutliff brother, à la The Old Boss On the reverse of the tin we find the blend’s description: Reflecting on Sutliffs 175 years of tobacco excellence, we came across a brand that embodies true value, SILVER QUARTER. This name pays homage to Sutliffs roots, the legacy of two brothers who popularized pipe smoking in the burgeoning mining society of San Francisco. We celebrate this heritage with a coin cut composed of the finest African Virginias, complemented by a core of Perique and Black Cavendish. The tin notes are, forgive the pun, on the nose for a good VaPer blend: mild tart sweetness peeking out from behind dried hay and slight chocolate undertones, with a lightly tannic finish of weathered oak. It is always a joy to prepare a coin cut, my preference being to put a few in my palm and vigorously warm my hands together to fully break them apart. These well-formed discs pack and light easily, and smoke with little prodding to the end of the bowl. For technical points it scores well—it smokes light, and it’s easy to tend the ember. While it gets sharp after a few quick bowls, pacing should be heeded to easily smoke down to the heel without inviting bite. Of the flavor, though, I am left a bit wanting. There are tart and high notes aplenty, but very little of the lemony citrus I would anticipate, as well as scant midtones; they tend more toward the red wine-vinegary and sour. The flavors are muted, also, lacking the sweetness and piquancy of other marques—the small measure of Perique tickles the nose now and again with peppery hints, and there is a smidge of a deeper sweetness to be found in the Cavendish from puff to puff, but overall it lacks some dynamism. The Virginias, to my palate, come off a bit on the dry side, and here they dominate the blend. The aftertaste and mouthfeel are neutral, again evincing more of the dry, woody, tartly tannic end of the spectrum. The blend has plenty of polish, but not enough depth or richness (*yet) to make it a standout. Here, comparisons are inevitable: Luxury Bullseye Flake has more sweetness, both from its Virginia as well as its Cavendish, and a better finish; Davidoff is similar but with a pronounced umami that is absent here; as for Escudo, I haven’t had any fresh tins lately so it would be unfair to compare. While it rates as a solid, fairly mild smoke, particularly to lovers of the genre, it does not surprise with any exceptional flavors. To be fair, all the boxes have been checked for the blend to benefit from some real aging, and it would be worth checking in on this after a couple of years sealed away. I’ve set half my tin aside to sample again in a month or two, in case I’m merely suffering from the lingering effects of parosmia, and will amend this review in that case. Maple Shadows II, on the other hand, made up for the weeks of sniffling and sneezing I’d endured. Offered in a full 8 ounce tin with delightfully spooky Halloween art, it’s (hopefully) enough to last through the season. Somehow I had missed this last year, so it’s a real pleasure to get some in my candy bucket this year. As the chilling winds of autumn draw eerie prattle from contorted, deciduous limbs, we find ourselves possessed by the spirit of the season. Bewitched by a dissonant charm, we’ve created Maple Shadows. In a season that is defined by the unlikely harmony of treats and frights, we’ve joined the enchanting sweetness of maple with the earthy spice of Dark Fired Kentucky for a smoking experience that captures the senses with an otherworldly fusion of flavor. This may be the best aromatic blend Sutliff’s ever made—and they make a ton of them. First off, it’s not overbearing in the least—quite the opposite, it is also one of the more restrained aromatics they’ve ever made, with a clear but very light topping that melds oh-so-well with their choice Kentucky added to the mix. Opening the tin, the sweet maple is up front and center, but so too is the must of fallen leaves, bready pie crusts, and a crackling fire in the hearth—a perfect invocation of Herbstdüfte in a can. Packing best in an open and capacious bowl, the flavoring is subtle, and recedes to the background while puffing. With a sweet coffee or tea to accompany, the aftertaste of the maple is reinvigorated on the palate […]
Welcome to The Pipes Magazine Radio Show Episode 632. Our featured guest on tonight’s show is the host of the Pipe & Tamper Podcast, Mike Murphy. Brian and Mike will have an extended chat revolving around the days before, during and after the Las Vegas International Pipe Show. We will hear about their travels to the show and the anxiety of Hurricane Milton bearing down on Florida at the same time while running a show and not knowing if your house is going to be there when you get home. In the end, the show went great and our homes survived, although many others in Florida were not so lucky. We’ll have clips from the show, and shoutouts to other podcasts and vlogs that were broadcasting from the pipe show.
Vegas Baby The show started out strong on the 14th floor hospitality suites hosted by the Vegas Pipe Show and Smoking Pipes as well as room hopping to carvers, estate sellers, and vendors to pre-game for the festivities. If you’re interested in what that looks like I’ll refer you to last years pipe show round up. I circled with Brian Levine to get the totals in comparison to last year: This year’s show numbers: 108 Exhibitor tables, 445 attendees, 3,250 Raffle Tickets, 100ish dinners, 172 Rooms in the Hotel. Last year, by comparison, 107 exhibitor tables, 425 attendees, 2,200 raffle tickets, 104 dinners, and 175 rooms on Friday and Saturday nights. We were at capacity, basically, when it came to vendor tables and the dinner, so there is no physical room for growth at this point except for attendees. That said, we filled that smoking lounge to the brim. New Carvers Spotlight Garret Woo (Pipes by Woo) How long have you been carving? Garret: I’ve been carving since 2021, and I’m guessing your next question is probably how’d you get started carving? James: Yes. Garret: In 2021 I took a break from my full time job – that included machining and assembly work and I thought maybe it was time I made something that I would like and I started looking at youtube and Instagram and putting together my shop. I did struggle on the stems to start and there was a lot of failure at the beginning. James: How many pipes have you made so far? Garret: I number my pipes, so I just finished up 186. James: What is your favorite shape you’ve been making? Garret: I really dig Canadians and pipes with longer shanks and lovat Canadian blends. I like to play with different shapes of stems on the longer shanked pipes. The billiard would be my go-to shape but I want to learn more techniques on freehanded shapes. I like to put brass and copper adornments on my pipes with my machining background it helps. James: What is the craziest thing you’ve seen at this show? Garret: The first thing that comes to mind is the table over there with C-Pipes with the shapes and the size and petiteness and the intricate details they did. You can check out what Garret is working on by going to his Instagram. Stefan Cashwell James: how long have you been carving? Stefan: about 3 years. James: What’s the craziest thing you’ve seen at the show? Stefan: The Adam Davidson pipe with the clear shape and the bamboo—I don’t know if it’s 3D printed or what, but it’s amazing. James: What’s your favorite shape to do? Stefan: That’s a tough question. I think they’re all the same shape, but what’s fascinating is that Dublin, volcano, and blowfish are all the same depending on how you turn them. Playing with that, with all its variations, is a lot of fun. My favorite accent to use is also horn; it’s finicky, but it’s a great accent on pipes. You can check out Stefan’s work on his Instagram. Science: Meet Pipes I chatted with Chris from the San Diego Pipe Club; he started off doing stem replacements for estate pipes but also improved the airflow. James: How are you doing 3d printing? What is the thought process? Chris: It’s a 3D-printed pipe with a briar insert. The design is a calabash meets a Peterson system meets a metal Falcon/Kirsten radiator style. It is a bottom draft smoking bowl like a radiator like those metal pipes. The inside chamber is a calabash. The stummel and accent rings in the stems are all 3d printed. The insert is briar, olive wood, or I have the potential to use meerschaum as well. This idea came about through the San Diego Pipe Club, wanting to see if we could 3D print a pipe and being curious about the technology; I have a printer and design ability, so here we are. James: What’s the type of plastic you’re using? Chris: It’s all PLA plastic, a renewable potato starch plastic that is food-safe. The stummels are printed with a plastic that has wood in it 40% wood fiber, bamboo, rosewood, ebony, redwood, and walnut are the woods I’m printing. For the accent rings I just got a new material that I’m printing that has 40% copper, so its real metal that you can sand, and polish the same as wood filament. The stems are 3d printed as well. The concept is renewable and cheap from a production standpoint, with the ability to make a very high quality smoking pipe based on the experience. By combining the calabash system pipe and bottom draft hole and using 3d simulations to see airflow, I can see where I’m having eddies and ripples in my current, and see where my moisture and all the particles are dropping back out from a vapor to a liquid. Most people who have tried these say the stems are clean, and they don’t even have to run a pipe cleaner afterward because everything collects at the bottom. Chris has also been experimenting with color-changing plastics so you can see the hotspots. Chris said he was able to use this to slow down his cadence, which, of course, could mean you could get a slow-smoke training pipe to teach yourself to perform better. If you’re interested in learning more or want to check one out, you can contact him on Instagram: Copper Beard Pipe Works The Negative Space The show was buzzing about one specific pipe, which had everyone guessing how it was made. I chatted with Adam Davidson briefly about it. James: How did this idea come to fruition? Adam Davidson: Smokingpipes.com had an expo back in August open to all of the makers they carry. The theme was to make a pipe utilizing bamboo. Given that the last time we had the expo I made a smooth Almond with three bamboo shanks, […]
A fine article by a true gentleman and pillar of the online pipe smokers’ community. One of Fred’s posts got me to buy my first Meer. I now have a no-name Turkish skull, a Baki apple, a Peterson system African block, and an Isle of Man African Block billiard. Great job Fred, thank you!
What can I say? You da man, Fred! Valuable information to fellow and future devotees of the White Goddess!
Great information Fred, well done!
Fred’s artiicles have always been very helpful. Thannks again for posting. I never thought to be so cautious with eBay meerschaum sales.
Thanks guys..!! This one was fun to write and hopefully
fun to read as well. After a couple of years of the Muse’s
absence, she has been giving me frequent inspiration to write again. Now, I have the challenge to find the time to do little else… She doesn’t keep regular hours, and there are more to publish as long as people continue to enjoy reading them.
Fred, thanks for expanding the pipe smoker’s information resources with this excellent article. It exposes aspects of the meerschaum market that few of us were aware of, and the timely heads-up is much appreciated.
Good article.Regarding the hydrostone pipes,it may be helpfull to check their advertisement page on pipe smoker magazine.They show their models so they are easier to spot in an auction picture.I have not seen them oftenly on ebay but sometimes they appear.So good that you mentioned Ben Rapaport.For anyone interested in meerschaum pipes,Ben’s books are a must.They are full of valuable information.I highly recommend those books.
It’s kind of crazy that this rock comes from so few places on earth. Is there no quality Meerschaum anywhere else?
I inherited an antique Meerschaum Pipe that belonged to my Grt Grt Grand Father in Germany. Must be 150+yrs old as far as I can tell. What is the best way to appraise and sell it to someone who collects and appreciates this type of antique?
Intricate carved figurehead. Very Yellowish,
Contact a collector of fine antique meerschaum pipes and he will be happy to appraise or purchase your pipe. I am one of those collectors should you be interested.
Hello, My name is Michael. I’m 24. I’ve been smoking pipes for roughly seven years, though I knew nothing about them until more recently. I have a Butz Choquin St. Claude bulldog. I literally hate this pipe but now it’s the only one I have after an ex of mine stole my favorite bent dublin Stanwell. I’m looking to get rid of the butz choquin and purchace a new pipe. I think I might need a little help and direction, I know what I like but I still have many questions.