My first pipe was a French made (probably) St. Ives Tinder Box, a full bent pot that I still have, an excellent smoker; it's now about 40 years old. Several things about bent pipes. You have to somewhat define what you mean, since many pipes are bent, but only slightly or somewhat. Full bent is a special category. The advantage of full bent is that the bend takes a lot of leverage off the pipe stem, so they ride a lot easier on your teeth and jaw. A heavier full bent pipe feels lighter. More than half of my full bent pipes will not take a pipe cleaner all the way to the bowl. The pipe cleaner goes down into the shank, but can't make that abrupt turn. I consider it a special quality when a full bent pipe will take a pipe cleaner all the way to the bowl. Otherwise, you just take off the stem from time to time and clean out the shank.
Now to the subjective part. How does a full bent pipe make you or me look? Since I bought my first pipe in my thirties, I don't associate a full bent pipe with being elderly. They do look somewhat mature -- scholarly, stogy, or sophisticated, depending on how you think about it. Zulu's are somewhat bent but look as jaunty or more so than many straight pipes. I think much depends on the pipes shaping, style, finish, and of course, how you act with it. Finally, of course, pipe smoking is so confined around public places and social occasions, the impression pipes give is rarely beheld or appreciated, so the effect is entirely among your household and close friends who have so much other input about how they feel about you and what they know about you, the pipe's impact is pretty much incidental. I think if you act young and lively for your age, the pipe will support that, whatever its shape.
