Any knowledgeable Ser Jacopo owners?

[crazyhog]

I recently came across a Delecta L2 Leonardo. I was surprised to read about the history behind the Leonardo and its "special" engineering. Is there any substance to what is stated? "Twin rolled terraccota cooled by air circulating in the cavity. The pipe that does not get hot". Thanks

 

[pepesdad1]

Whatever...it is a good looking pipe!

 

[mso489]

I don't have experience with this pipe. I do own one Ser Jacopo that I bought new, and I was and am impressed with the quality. It does not have the terra cotta feature, and in fact is the soul of simplicity, but is beautifully designed and crafted, with a square serpentine shank and saddle stem, and an excellent blast finish on a subtly Dublin bowl, with a wide-open draw. After four or five years it is finally showing a little wear, which is truly flattering to it, to my view.

 

[alexnc]

Sorry, cannot clarify anything regarding that pipe. But, I have several other Ser J’s. They’re all excellent pipes and great smokers.

 

[cortezattic]

This looks and sounds gimmicky to me, and I can't make sense of the terra cotta thing. I guess the airspace would keep the bowl cooler to the touch, but that may produce long term unanticipated consequences, like giving the impression that you're smoking slower and cooler than is actually the case. And keeping the gap in the wood clear of ash and debris might be a big PITA.

 

[the85boro]

I just purchased a ser jacopo apple billiard S2 in 9mm and it is a fantastic smoke.

 

[cortezattic]

OK, a quick visit to Al Pascia cleared up a few things. Leonardo invented this pipe in terra cotta; Ser Jacopo reproduces it in briar. The rim of the pipe is a metal inlay(overlay?), perforated by several draft holes, which might reduce the amount of debris that can work its way into the air gap. IMO, gimmicky.

 

[bnichols23]

Slightly off beat as it is, I actually like this one (too many gimmick pipes generally turn me off). I can see it perhaps ultimately becoming a maintenance pain, but it looks OK for at least the medium-term, & I really like the bit architecture!
Bill

 

[mso489]

Anyone who occasionally visits the Ser Jacopo pipes online will be familiar with some of the way-out designs they offer, along with their somewhat more traditional but still unique versions. They make some truly odd designs, but that's part of SJ. My straightforward pipe is just what I like.

 

[bnichols23]

Well, you know me -- I like some of the screwy stuff, but get right down to it? Bent bulldog, Canadian, a big fat Lorenzo clone billiard like my IRC? Yeah, truly hard to beat that.

 

[madox07]

This reminds me of a Bentley pipe that I have seen a few years back. That one was perversely over priced.. I will look up a picture if I can find it. Nice bugger though ..

 

[madox07]

there just a stock image, not exactly the one I saw on ebay.de I am guessing that the Ser Jacopo is more price friendly,and quite frankly it looks nicer too.

 

[hauntedmyst]

I've owned several Ser Jacopo pipes and they all smoked well with one that burned out. A burn out can happen to any pipe but damn, this one is gorgeous. I've kept the pipe just because it's a beautiful blast. I think Ser Jacopo pipes have some of the best metal, mortise work in the business.

 

[mso489]

It seems to me that SJ prices have really increased in the last five years. I couldn't get an estate SJ of any kind for what I paid for my SJ new, on a great sale at smokingpipes.com. I had a little windfall on a project and decided to celebrate. A whimsical thought and as comic relief, I always wondered if the manufacturers of Brylon pipes (the synthetic material in the 1960's until recently) could be made to smoke cooler and be lighter with air chambers molded in, but I presume the material did not accommodate that kind of molding.