Best Pipe for Your Buck

[UB 40]

Maybe you transferred the tone of the car forum to that one.

Most of my pipes I drew out of junk shops and flea markets for about ten bucks. It’s so easy to get them shiny and going.

Recently I got there a Stanwell pipe of the year shape of the 1990s for 5. Another one was a handcrafted 70s Georg Jensen Chimney.

Most are no names or nowadays unknown brands, they all smoke well to really well, to some I’ll have to adjust the smoking technique to to the moreover restricted draw. And there are some new MM seconds.

Some of my pipes are homemade, a logical consequence if you’re restoring pipes. Those are the most expensive pipes respectively to new materials like briar, ebonite rods, tools. All of them drilled to get a satisfying smoke.

I’d rather buy a used VW, as I did often in my live, there are so many pipes out there.

 

[mso489]

Plenty of suggestions have been offered. I'd suggest you shop widely, in your chosen price range, winnow it down to five or six candidates, study them closely listing plusses and minuses, and then select one.

This will sharpen your selection, to your own tastes, and will likely result in a choice pleasing to you. No one can pick your pipes to your satisfaction. It's too intensely subjective. Good luck.

 

[dsturg369]

Another vote for MM Cobs!

 

[K.E. Powell]

If it helps you, I largely agree that Peterson is one of the best values among the factory-made pipes manufacturers. They've stunning variety in terms of finishes, shapes, etc. They have several pipes available in an army mounts, which offers the advantages of durability, ease of cleaning and maintenance, and ease of replacing the stem should it be damaged. They're popular enough that it is easy to find additional peripheral and community support for them. And, ever since Laudisi got involved, their QC has improved greatly. I'm a fan of them.

Other factory pipe makers that are of great quality and good price would include Stanwell, Neerup, and Nording. I can't speak to brands whose pipes are exclusively (or close to it) filtered, though; I just generally avoid filtered pipes altogether.

 

[AJL67]

Since OP said he isn't looking for cobs i will go with a Rossi or even a Ben Wake / Danish pipe on fleabay for under 100 bucks, some nice pipes in that range, also check smoking pipes.com

 

[Davy]

Charatan's current production, available in a few online UK shops. Their Grosvenor and Trafalgar lines are extremely affordable pipes and offer exceptional quality overall.

Winslow, even their basic line (Crown) offers great quality pipes. I don't know about the current production, I bought mine back in 2017 and 2018.

 

[Searock Fan]

I'm not going to quote any one, but I can't believe these guys who think that all pipes smoke the same. Anyone with a sense of taste and any experience with pipes should know better.

 

[Lucashly]

I'm not going to quote any one, but I can't believe these guys who think that all pipes smoke the same. Anyone with a sense of taste and any experience with pipes should know better.

This

 

[PipeIT]

In my opinion a well made pipe in general made by a well known artisan smokes better than a well made pipe by a factory.

There are many well known Artisian Carvers all over the world, carving pipes at various levels of quality and prices, but that doesn’t always mean they are better, or worse, sometimes no different.

There’s a problem with this understanding, it’s called the ‘Briar’, if we are talking about Briar.

Sure, typically speaking, we all assume most small artistan carvers are going to be better, then a factory pipe.

But there are factories putting out very end, high quality pipes.

Have you looked at or smoked high-end pipes from Castello, Peterson, Dunhill and Savinelli?

Don’t ever think for one second, that every artisian pipe bought will always be better than a lower cost pipe, or factory pipe, this isn’t true.

The briar is the problem, and even though a professional artisian carver, used, supposedly good briar, aged, cured and cut to so called perfection, you will never know how great it truly is, till it’s smoked.

I am certainly one that does prefer buying from an artisian carver, but, I also would like to own a Castello pipe, and there aren’t to many people here putting them down because they are a factory made pipe.

One last thing, Best is very subjective, what’s best for one, isn’t always best for another.

Best is whatever suits your needs and no one else’s.

P.S. Did you read the article by Dr. Fred Hanna?

 

[Briarpuffin]

some of the best prices on briar pipes is Dr. Grabow out of Sparta NC.
I bought a Grand Duke $39.00 a couple months ago and it smokes great, looks great I’m very happy with it.
I also found out if you buy from the factory the shipping is free.
I would not hesitate To buy another.
they are slow to respond to email so I would call the factory to order.

 

[TheIronMonkey]

I did not mean to offend any one. I belong to a car forum and the question was asked what is the best bang for your buck. There were a lot of answers. What came up most was Porsche. There were a lot of people that cannot afford one but never the less that was what forum members choice. The reasons was mass produced, high numbers sold, the beauty, solid German engineering and so forth. As they make so many cars per year they can keep the price down even though the cars should cost more.

Best bang for your buck equates with best value. My choice is a Peterson. In my opinion it has the best value. Mass produced so they can keep the price down, hand finished, well engineered, beautiful briar that be straight grain, birds eye, and flame grain. Consistently well made. They make a lot of pipes so they can get the best aesthetic briar if they want. The hole at the end of the stem prevents tung bite. Whether I can afford a Peterson doesn't matter.

If you like less or more expensive pipes like I would like to hear from you. Or forget it. It is just a pipe. I thought it would be fun to explore people's choices. Radice was brought up and that is a close second for me.

When you initially asked your question, it seemed under the guise of asking advice for a budget pipe for you to purchase with the implication of you being a novice; as the thread went on and you said there was no budget and you made a pretty funny pun about Former pipes, it became clear that you were relatively well versed in the pipe world—you then came across as a troll who came here to stir up shit while members here continued to offer earnest suggestions to help you. As a result, your post came across as disingenuous to some of us and a waste of time of well meaning members here. You may not have intended to offend anyone, but you did.

 

[PipeIT]

some of the best prices on briar pipes is Dr. Grabow out of Sparta NC.
I bought a Grand Duke $39.00 a couple months ago and it smokes great, looks great I’m very happy with it.
I also found out if you buy from the factory the shipping is free.
I would not hesitate To buy another.
they are slow to respond to email so I would call the factory to order.

I have a Dr. Grabow: Commodore 65 Zulu, dated from 1967-1969, with a vulcanite stem, metal screw-in tenon, there’s no stinger when I bought it.

This thing smokes like a dream.

The chamber was quite nice when I got it, but it had a musty ghost in it that wouldn’t go away.

So I did cottonballs soaked in Everclear, afterwards I sanded the chamber out.

Now, it’s turned into one hell of a smoker, and I’m sure it was in the beginning.

This was certainly not a pipe back then with a high price tag on it.



And it also has a really amazing blast to it as well.







Pipedia has this on the pipe.

• COMMODORE (c1964) -- First appears in a magazine ad for $7.95 as early as 1964. Like the Sculptura, later models were sandblasted in a "big" blast circa 1967-69 (See "Sculptura" for details.)

 

[anotherbob]

A Lamborghini is a better car than a V W. They both chug gas and blow exhaust but they are not the same vehicle.

and a car is magnitudes more complex then a pipe. Generally although pipes and pipe brands are going to be different... There isn't the same kind of consensus about quality that you would find with a car. Generally most pipes you can buy from places like the type that are sponsors here are going to be good pipes. It's a very personal taste thing. I prefer a tighter narrow stem hole for example, many prefer more open stem holes. Neither is better just different.

 

[anotherbob]

I'm not going to quote any one, but I can't believe these guys who think that all pipes smoke the same. Anyone with a sense of taste and any experience with pipes should know better.

might be because they have hundreds of pipes and don't spend enough time with each to really get to know them.

 

[PipeIT]

I know one thing that’s true, I’m sure we can all agree on.

We all wish that when it comes to buying a pipe, they all turned out to be great smokers, and it didn’t matter what you smoked in them, they shined with any blend.

So much for dreaming! LOL

P.S Hmm why am I thinking of Indian Jones and Briar?

 

[Lucashly]

Give me

When you initially asked your question, it seemed under the guise of asking advice for a budget pipe for you to purchase with the implication of you being a novice; as the thread went on and you said there was no budget and you made a pretty funny pun about Former pipes, it became clear that you were relatively well versed in the pipe world—you then came across as a troll who came here to stir up shit while members here continued to offer earnest suggestions to help you. As a result, your post came across as disingenuous to some of us and a waste of time of well meaning members here. You may not have intended to offend anyone, but you did.

 

[Lucashly]

Give me a break. Talk about reading into things. Looks like I only offended you. Paranoia? There is always one bad apple.

 

[crashthegrey]

In my opinion a well made pipe in general made by a well known artisan smokes better than a well made pipe by a factory. The artisan will take the extra time to do it right. The tolerances are better because they can afford to take the time, and charge more for it. There is less room for error and typically a better smoke. These guys do not get known because their stems are cool.

It's funny you say that. All of the Kaywoodie pipes are made in a "factory" but by one man, Bill Feuerbach, who has over thirty years of experience. Is it an artisan pipe if only he ever touches it and puts that care into his pipes? Or is it a factory pipe because he made it using 100 year old equipment in a warehouse?

 

[HawkeyeLinus]

Give me a break. Talk about reading into things. Looks like I only offended you. Paranoia? There is always one bad apple.

I think he hit the nail on the head. Thought you’d kind of turned this around for the better until I read this one. IMO, of course.

 

[Lucashly]

I think he hit the nail on the head. Thought you’d kind of turned this around for the better until I read this one. IMO, of course.

He did not hit the nail on the head. Agreed I went off topic. But to extrapolate beyond that is uncalled for. I asked a simple question because I was interested what the forum members would say. That’s it.