Chasing Grain

[Mike N]

I'm more of a Birds-eye guy but this James Upshall B grade is the top grain pipe in my collection



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I agree. While I love my straight grain, finding a pipe with the grain and Birds Eye is the Holy Grail for me. This little bamboo by Danish carver Henri Sorensen surprised me with both when it arrived. Henri learned his craft from Jens "Tao" Nielsen, Tom Eltang and Lasse Skovgaard. I assume he also learned where to source quality briar, too. As any chef will tell you, even the toughest recipes are a lot easier to prepare when you are working with top quality ingredients.

 

[Mike N]

One more smooth bamboo billiard from a personal favorite, carver Abe Herbaugh:

 

[OzPiper]

Here is one of the straightest grains I have ever held in my hands and the brand was absolutely unexpected for me...
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@Dshift,

Would you mind showing the other side please

I have a Parker "Straight Grain" Billiard, but the grain isn't quite as spectacular your example

 

[sablebrush52]

Here's a pipe by Ken Barnes:

 

[sablebrush52]

Here's one by Paul Tatum with one of his signature hand poured stems. I call it my hot rod pipe, fins and flames:

 

[irishearl]

One more smooth bamboo billiard from a personal favorite, carver Abe Herbaugh:


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I do like pipes with bamboo extensions, owning 1. However, most seem to have bowls with relatively small chambers and I'm more into large chambers these days.

 

[Dshift]

@Dshift,

Would you mind showing the other side please

I have a Parker "Straight Grain" Billiard, but the grain isn't quite as spectacular your example

Of course - here are all the sides

This Parker almost didn’t survive its previous previous restoration attempt - the “restorer” overreamed it with a sharp knife, resulting in a football shaped rim and wavy chamber walls… had to sacrifice some material in the reshaping of the rim and chamber itself but now she looks a lot better. Also the briar is superb - so soft that you can put a dent with your fingernail.

 

[Mike N]

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I have to reiterate bootlegpipes request - who made that incredible pipe? Wow..

 

[Dshift]

I have to reiterate bootlegpipes request - who made that incredible pipe? Wow..

The stem logo looks like it could be a caminetto

 

[lukasstrifeson]

Here's a pipe by Ken Barnes:

That is pretty much a perfect example of a straight grain pipe. I'm old-fashioned in the sense that I'd probably would've preferred a white band to a black stem but this is stunning none the less.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

I have to reiterate bootlegpipes request - who made that incredible pipe? Wow..

As I recall, @georged and a friend of his collaborated on it; there’s a thread somewhere about it. Overall, I think it’s gorgeous, but have had mixed feelings about the angle of the accent in terms of visual flow since I first saw it (and guess I still do).

 

[sablebrush52]

As I recall, @georged and a friend of his collaborated on it; there’s a thread somewhere about it. Overall, I think it’s gorgeous, but have had mixed feelings about the angle of the accent in terms of visual flow since I first saw it (and guess I still do).

Quinton Wells is George's friend

 

[Mike N]

Here are 3 more smooths I pulled from the pipe case with nice straight grain:

Top: David Neeb bamboo

Left: Stokkebye 4th Generation “Autumn”

Right: Edwin pipes smooth apple

 

[Dshift]

I think I've shown a photo of this pipe before, but now with all angles in the right thread

 

[Dshift]

I couldn't find an Il Ceppo thread so this pipe lives here now
IL Ceppo House pipe 1997


I am also adding a before and after photos of the bit, just to show my progress with the "invisible" stem repairs

 

[Dshift]

A very dramatic straight grain on a larsen

 

[TimeKiller]

Here is a crazy one from the 2025 Pipe Show, by Dan Butler.
I'm partial to this H.R. Giger grain style, whatever it's called.

 

[Chalaw87]

Here is a crazy one from the 2025 Pipe Show, by Dan Butler.
I'm partial to this H.R. Giger grain style, whatever it's called.

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I’m not typically a birdseye guy but that pipe is outstanding.

 

[Alanon]

I agree that the plateau freehand styling and grain chasing was terrific, I guess one question I had while perusing the thread is - are there really that fewer pipe-makers chasing grain today, as opposed to yesteryear? What are they doing then? AFAIK grain is one of the only price differentiators in the higher price brackets and most master pipe-makers are standing on the shoulders of giants - damn near every one of them is producing freehands in the Danish tradition?

What I’d say the Old Danes perhaps had, if anything, was superior taste, and a sense of measure. Most knew when to stop, or what kind of shape would be much too unwieldy. Not all up and coming master pipemakers seem to have mastered that particular art.

Anyway, here’s a modestly begrained Karl Erik, probably the first such pipe I ever bought:



I also love Bari pipes and find them frequently punching above their weight. This one in particular is not only massive but also has some dramatic flair, though she’s so glossy that it’s extremely difficult to take pictures that depict the colour, size and heft of the pipe. Bari Wiking:



I guess I mostly enjoy the serendipity of what @sasquatch mentioned. I love my meticulously made pipes, but I also love when destiny gets involved and clearly some unplanned terrific grain ends up in a pipe, maybe punching above its intended pay grade.

Though I am curious @sasquatch, how one can tell the difference between those nuances? How can we see when a master was able to elevate a merely "good" block to a great pipe, vs. when a great block produced a great pipe without necessarily needing a master’s hand?

Of course, what’s a thread about nice pipes without some Stanwell! This one I think was particularly serendipitous, I’ve seen many 204’s with very lacklustre grain. This is not one of them:



Another great example that is not Danish at all is this fantastic belge my wife just bought me. This is from Butz-Choquin’s "Master Pipemaker" line, and one of the best I’ve seen from the marque. Here one of two of their master carvers was allowed to craft whatever unique shape they saw fit, and here they decided to exactly what @sasquatch mentioned, use the briar block they had to its fullest and create a nice belge. And how nice it is! The way the grain seems to sort of hurl itself forward all the way from the shank, and kind of meet right at the foot is striking to me. Nice little birdseye at that meeting point too.

 

[Alejo R.]

I agree that the plateau freehand styling and grain chasing was terrific, I guess one question I had while perusing the thread is - are there really that fewer pipe-makers chasing grain today, as opposed to yesteryear? What are they doing then? AFAIK grain is one of the only price differentiators in the higher price brackets and most master pipe-makers are standing on the shoulders of giants - damn near every one of them is producing freehands in the Danish tradition?

What I’d say the Old Danes perhaps had, if anything, was superior taste, and a sense of measure. Most knew when to stop, or what kind of shape would be much too unwieldy. Not all up and coming master pipemakers seem to have mastered that particular art.

Anyway, here’s a modestly begrained Karl Erik, probably the first such pipe I ever bought:

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I also love Bari pipes and find them frequently punching above their weight. This one in particular is not only massive but also has some dramatic flair, though she’s so glossy that it’s extremely difficult to take pictures that depict the colour, size and heft of the pipe. Bari Wiking:

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I guess I mostly enjoy the serendipity of what @sasquatch mentioned. I love my meticulously made pipes, but I also love when destiny gets involved and clearly some unplanned terrific grain ends up in a pipe, maybe punching above its intended pay grade.

Though I am curious @sasquatch, how one can tell the difference between those nuances? How can we see when a master was able to elevate a merely "good" block to a great pipe, vs. when a great block produced a great pipe without necessarily needing a master’s hand?

Of course, what’s a thread about nice pipes without some Stanwell! This one I think was particularly serendipitous, I’ve seen many 204’s with very lacklustre grain. This is not one of them:

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Another great example that is not Danish at all is this fantastic belge my wife just bought me. This is from Butz-Choquin’s "Master Pipemaker" line, and one of the best I’ve seen from the marque. Here one of two of their master carvers was allowed to craft whatever unique shape they saw fit, and here they decided to exactly what @sasquatch mentioned, use the briar block they had to its fullest and create a nice belge. And how nice it is! The way the grain seems to sort of hurl itself forward all the way from the shank, and kind of meet right at the foot is striking to me. Nice little birdseye at that meeting point too.

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They are fewer pipe makes, period.
But I believe that nowadays the grain is an important factor in evaluating a pipe. Therefore, artisans try to extract the best possible grain for each pipe.