Peterson Carved Meerschaum

[beetlejockey]

How rare are these pipes? I have my eye on one on Ebay, I absolutely love the look of these pipes. I would love to get one but maybe later into my pipe smoking journey. How often do these guys usually show up for auction or sale on sites in your experience? Attached is a picture of the one I'm looking at.

 

[Briarcutter]

To answer your question, I am sorry, I have no idea. That is however a very neat piece,buy it! I'm sure the Pete collectors here will have an answer for you.

 

[beetlejockey]

To answer your question, I am sorry, I have no idea. That is however a very neat piece,buy it! I'm sure the Pete collectors here will have an answer for you.

Haha my heart is telling me yes but my mind is screaming at me to save my money. Usually the heart wins

 

[Dave760]

That its looks like an African meerschaum pipe. I've smoked a couple of Peterson African meerschaums and they were both fine smokers. One is with a friend now and I still have the other.

 

[Briarcutter]

Haha my heart is telling me yes but my mind is screaming at me to save my money. Usually the heart wins

Seek the advise of the Pete experts here,they probably have a good idea of it's value and rarity. You'll be able to make more money, that Pete may be the last one you see for sale.

 

[Shore]

As a CPG, I'll give my two cents (as always YMMV):

They come up with some regular frequency (at least here in the US), and there is a reasonably large variation in carving of the shapes. I'm not sure what the frequency of listings is in the Ireland (that's where this one is listed). I still have a Pete Meer for Meerschaum March smoking, but they (should) be available when you're ready if the pricing on this one isn't right for you right now...

 

[beetlejockey]

As a CPG, I'll give my two cents (as always YMMV):

They come up with some regular frequency (at least here in the US), and there is a reasonably large variation in carving of the shapes. I'm not sure what the frequency of listings is in the Ireland (that's where this one is listed). I still have a Pete Meer for Meerschaum March smoking, but they (should) be available when you're ready if the pricing on this one isn't right for you right now...

Thanks a lot! It's the first one I've seen listed but I haven't been smoking long. I'm most likely going to wait for another hopefully listed in the European Union because the import charges on the one shown are crazy

 

[BingBong]

It has a plip!

 

[Zeno Marx]

It's amazing how the market has changed on these things. I used to see them used in every shop for $20-25. John's in Champaign, IL had maybe more than a dozen of them in their mass of used pipes. Granted, they had A LOT of used pipes in the back room, but you couldn't help but notice how many you ran into as you perused the tens and tens of pipe display cases they were using for trade-in stock. They, and the rest of us, couldn't give them away. Really, not joking. I have no recollection of how they smoke. Not bashing them.

 

[NoNameLawProf]

Pete geek here. They are moderately rare. Most were probably thrashed and abused because they were on the lower end back in the day. You’ll be able to find one if you start a search in earnest on eBay etc. price might go up though.

 

[OzPiper]

That is an African meerschaum in an “aboriginal” finish.
They were made in the Isle of Man by Laxey Pipes for Peterson. Laxey also made pipes for other brands eg Barling
I have both African and Turkish meers.
African meers are denser (and heavier) and in my opinion, more robust. They smoke equally as well as their Turkish counterparts

This is my Pete African meerschaum pipe. It is a system, P-lipped and hallmarked 1971.

 

[Streeper541]

Meerschaum Pete's are fairly rare these days. They haven't been in production for a very long time, and even when they were, they were a limited production item. I've got one and it smokes very well.

 

[anotherbob]

one thing to remember is that African meer doesn't color like Turkish. Which isn't a big deal, but can be disappointing if you really want to have the coloring a meer experience.

 

[irishearl]

one thing to remember is that African meer doesn't color like Turkish. Which isn't a big deal, but can be disappointing if you really want to have the coloring a meer experience.

My 1 and only didn't color attractively. It developed an ash gray dolor along its ridges and valleys.

 

[bullet08]

Not very rare. But it's a Pete, and it's a meer. Looks to be well used with sterling band. Don't spend too much on it. But who knows when the next one will show up.

 

[OzPiper]

There are a few on offer on EBay right now.
The prices seem up quite a bit compared with prices 3-4 years ago

It may just be that the Oz dollar is on a par with 3rd world currencies these days

 

[Zamora]

one thing to remember is that African meer doesn't color like Turkish. Which isn't a big deal, but can be disappointing if you really want to have the coloring a meer experience.

Lee Van Cleef's meers were apparently Tanzanian, they looked pretty well colored but he probably smoked them more heavily than most people and maybe he just lucked out and got ones that were more porous

 

[Waning Embers]

Lee Van Cleef's meers were apparently Tanzanian, they looked pretty well colored but he probably smoked them more heavily than most people and maybe he just lucked out and got ones that were more porous

The ones colored like that were calcined.

 

[Zamora]

The ones colored like that were calcined.
View attachment 364830

Is that an artificial process?

 

[Waning Embers]

Is that an artificial process?

Yes, done with a heated surface like a grill. Many manufacturers offer it.