Another Dunhill Nomenclature Question

[aquadoc]

I am clueless with this stuff. How to interpret this :

From left to right -
53 F/T Dunhill over Root Briar

Made in over England with 9 over 0 at end of England

3 in a circle

R

 

[donjgiles]

Shape 53, bent billiard, F/T - Fishtail stem

Made in 1969, sold in 1970.

Group 3 size

R = Root Briar

 

[peregrinus]

From left to right -
53 F/T Dunhill over Root Briar

Shape number 53 indicates this is a bent billiard and F/T means a fishtail stem.

Made in over England with 9 over 0 at end of England

Due to the Dunhill’s guarantee
pipes are often found with a second date stamp to indicate year sold. As Don said, manufactured in 1969, sale was in 1970.

3 in a circle.

Group size 3.

R

An additional reference to this being a Root Briar finish.

Sounds like a nice pipe.

 

[aquadoc]

From left to right -
53 F/T Dunhill over Root Briar

Shape number 53 indicates this is a bent billiard and F/T means a fishtail stem.

Made in over England with 9 over 0 at end of England

Due to the Dunhill’s guarantee
pipes are often found with a second date stamp to indicate year sold. As Don said, manufactured in 1969, sale was in 1970.

3 in a circle.

Group size 3.

R

An additional reference to this being a Root Briar finish.

Sounds like a nice pipe.

Are 60's Dunhills considered good quality compared to newer pipes? What do you think is a good approx value for this pipe in good++ condition? I am considering buying one.

 

[alaskanpiper]

Great resource for future reference:

Dunhill dating key -- Logos & Markings

www.pipephil.eu

Dunhill: Markings

www.pipephil.eu

That second chart, u can click on the pipes and see an estimated estate value for each one. Which will of course vary with condition etc.

 

[aquadoc]

Great resource for future reference:

Dunhill dating key -- Logos & Markings

www.pipephil.eu

Dunhill: Markings

www.pipephil.eu

That second chart, u can click on the pipes and see an estimated estate value for each one. Which will of course vary with condition etc.

Excellent! Thank you.

 

[peregrinus]

Are 60's Dunhills considered good quality compared to newer pipes? What do you think is a good approx value for this pipe in good++ condition? I am considering buying one.

There is no absolute consensus on what were Dunhill’s best years. Also, you can find duds and superstars in any Dunhill decade.
My personal opinion is that the mid 50’s, the 60’s and early 70’s were excellent years for Dunhill pipes and there are those who believe these were the best years overall.
Good condition is an opinion and not a definitive grade so without seeing the pipe I could not confirm or disprove the seller’s claim. Better to evaluate the seller first, see how others have evaluated their purchases, or, roll the dice.
I haven’t been purchasing pipes for awhile so can’t say what current fair values are at this time. I would peruse eBay and some of this sites sponsors to get a feel for prices. Set a price you are comfortable with, and then pass if it is more valuable to the seller than to you.
Best of luck.

 

[americaman]

My wife got me a very good condition, clean 1964 Group 3 Root Briar for $160 (might have been $165ish). So that should give you a fair idea of a ballpark estimate as to what you should pay. Look to spend $150 to $300, but I would personally keep it around the $200 range or less unless the pipe pipe is mint or excellent. Places like Smoking Pipes, as much as I love them, oftentimes price their estate Dunhill pipes very high, so I wouldn’t use that as a reference.

The Dunhill Master of this forum, Foggymountain (who recently passed away), had hundreds of Dunhills, and he said that the best era for Dunhill was the 21st century. So essentially, the new Dunhill pipes. I have a small collection of Dunhill pipes, and from my limited experience I would agree with him. My 2014 Dunhill Shell is the best smoker. Now, when my Dunhill Patent comes in I may change my mind, but so far the 2014 Dunhill is superior to my 1960s Dunhills.

This is my novice Dunhill collector’s advice, and others may disagree with me.

 

[jguss]

There is no absolute consensus on what were Dunhill’s best years. Also, you can find duds and superstars in any Dunhill decade.

Agreed.

I personally prefer older Dunhills from the 1920s-1950s, but that’s more for the aesthetics of earlier sandblasts and the pleasure I get from smoking a pipe with that much history behind it. It is not, in my case, a commentary on the relative smoking merits of older vs newer pipes.