Billiard Or Pot, Shape Shifting

[mso489]

When does a billiard become a pot on the shape chart? An undeniable pot is truncated so it almost yells its name, but many such pipes hover between the two. Is it a short-bowled billiard or a tall pot? Shapes are often hybrids and arguable, but the billiard versus pot question, in many cases, is almost the owner's call. I have both cylindrical and panel pipes that call the question. I usually call them billiards unless the pipe makes a liar out of me just looking at it.

 

[JMcQ]

I think it's the ratio of bowl depth to bowl diameter

 

[olkofri]

Alas, they don't provide a dimensions guideline.

For instance, in terms of shank length, the formula is: if shank length >= bowl heigth --> Canadian family, else Billiard.

 

[mso489]

I think I have two pipes that are unquestionably pots. All the rest are billiards to me, if a little short in the bowl.

 

[seldom]

I've a couple of pots that are undeniably pots. On the other hand I've got a tall billiard that may or may not be a stack/chimney. It's either a tall classic billiard or a shorter stack.

 

[olkofri]

"Taking the same shaping characteristics as the Billiard, then simply removing the top half of the bowl so that the walls are about half as tall and do not taper, leaves you with a Pot. " *

*Smoking Pipe Shapes Guide

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Like a Bulldog is a pipe shape that has subcategories... Rhodesians and calabashes, etc... they are all bulldogs, just some are different types of bulldogs.

Or, Dublins... yachts, woodstocks, etc... all are Dublins, just some are different types of Dublins.

I think of Pots, lovats, canadians, etc... are all billiards, just different types of billiards.

 

[sisyphus]

I disagree with the bowl height rule of thumb. OD/ID of bowl. An ideal group 4 pot is about 5 1/2 inches long but as little as 5 1/4 or as long as 6 (like a gr4 billiard), with a bore of 22-24mm (vs 17-19mm for a billiard) and a chamber depth of 1 1/8 to 1 1/2 inches (vs 1 3/8-1 5/8 for a billiard). The pot has thicker walls than a billiard. Classic English conventions and not every pipe, much less English pipes, adheres to them. Look at any of the classic English makes from ww2 to the 60s, and all their pots are roughly the same dimensions.

It's the best shape for Burley IMO. I have a bunch of pots.