Just a few years ago (4-5) I found some nice pipes in JJ Fox's shop in St. James. I bought a Parker out of the collection,. A few others I might have bought, too.
A Little About Basket Pipes
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I'd like to say something here. You might find factory rejects/seconds which have no name. You might also find names that when you research them, find out they are by a well known name. some brands have very iconic shapes, either to the bowl or the stem. basket pipes are very functional, at the very least, imo!
I don't see basket pipes at any B&M I enter any longer. They are all heavy on marijuana pipes and vapes, glass is the biggest sellers I guess.
When I started smoking a pipe seriously we did have an actual tobacconist in my area, and I picked up this Kaywoodie and a "Golden Sliced" tobacco. I loved the tobacco, and was sad when I could no longer get it. I still have the pipe, and it has served me well for many years despite the abuse I have given it. The Kaywoodie has a screw in stem and stinger, but I have had it in the ocean and dropped it off my motorcycle. It still smokes just fine, and I might add still looks good (at least to me). Not sure what I paid back then, but I was poor so I know it was not much.
When I started smoking a pipe seriously we did have an actual tobacconist in my area, and I picked up this Kaywoodie and a "Golden Sliced" tobacco. I loved the tobacco, and was sad when I could no longer get it. I still have the pipe, and it has served me well for many years despite the abuse I have given it. The Kaywoodie has a screw in stem and stinger, but I have had it in the ocean and dropped it off my motorcycle. It still smokes just fine, and I might add still looks good (at least to me). Not sure what I paid back then, but I was poor so I know it was not much.
That's a great Kaywoodie Drinkless; I have a similar pipe, but in what I interpret as an author shape. Like yours, mine has a sort of reddish glow to it, but only having evolved from a matte gray-brown. Mine shines like it was buffed, but it wasn't. Mine has the screw-in stem-stinger and those same carved grooves. It's quick and easy to clean, and smokes well like yours.
I have a number of basket pipes from the 1980s. One of the advantages of managing three pipe stores is that I did a lot of the ordering. I would check through the basket pipes when an order came in and pick the ones I liked. I have several Chacom seconds that are among my best smoking pipes. They're not beautiful but they sure smoke great and add a lot of good flavor to a Virginia or VA/PER blend. I have a number of quality, high-end, name brand pipes that don't smoke as well as some of my basket pipes. Knowing what you're looking for and being able to spot a quality pipe in spite of the lack of markings is key to getting a quality basket pipe.
Back in the early 80's when I was struggling graduate student there was a shop in Athens, Georgia called Normal News and Tobacco that sold Charatan and Ben Wade pipes, among other items. They had basket pipes that were Charatan and Ben Wade seconds that were not stamped as such. You could tell that they were because the pipe shapes were identical to the shapes of the Charatan and Ben Wade pipes in the shop. I bought a bent bulldog and a Canadian and still have them today.
There was a damn handsome flame grain bulldog in the baskets yesterday. But I allowed the novices first pick. So I got this one. Which, Idunno, maybe I'll dedicate it to Virginias or Turkish or something.
Even when you are shopping at the low end of prices, it pays to have at least looked at and handled high end pipes, so you know quality points even in lower priced items.
The same strategy is suggested in buying suits. Look at a few that cost more than you'd spend to know what to look for in lower cost items.
That's the challenge with basket pipes. You can often spot the winners and enjoy a quality pipe that you bought for a song for years to come, as mentioned in posts above.
The same strategy is suggested in buying suits. Look at a few that cost more than you'd spend to know what to look for in lower cost items.
That's the challenge with basket pipes. You can often spot the winners and enjoy a quality pipe that you bought for a song for years to come, as mentioned in posts above.
Oh, dang. I would have loved to be a college-aged kid in Athens around that time, instead of a toddler in Iowa. I'll give 3 guesses why.
