Cheap Pipes

[WVOldFart]

It's whatever you enjoy and what does the job for you. I have a range of pipes, but my MOLINAS provide me with a great smoke every time (price from $50 to 100). The pipe smoking experience is every bit as good as with a top dollar pipe. I believe that expensive pipes are worth it if you want it for whatever reason you desire. Everyone should enjoy what they want in life.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Funny you should mention skulls
There has been so much talk about them on here lately that I decided to take the plunge in my own weird inexpensive way. - This one is not “pretty” but I think it will look good On the shelf behind my bar.
View attachment 148631View attachment 148632

Got a bit of a tiki thing going on. I like it.

 

[Michigan_Bill]

As far as cheap pipes other than cobs, Morgan Bones get my vote.

$40-$50 bucks and they smoke great. I funnel the slot and open the draft in the tenon. If i was on an extremely tight budget and not hung up on aesthetics, that’s what I would buy. Of course, they have sort of an aesthetic appeal all their own. The stems are some sort of plastic (not acrylic as far as I can tell) but have some give sort of like vulcanite.

I just discovered two more that were stashed away. And the bent poker passes a cleaner with ease. Now how much would you pay…?

Morgan Bones are very nice. I find their (lack of?) finish quite appealing.

 

[didimauw]

My collection is a mixed bag. 20-30 pipes. I’ve got a handful of nice pipes. $100-$200 range. Most of my pipes are in the $65-$90 range I’d say. And then there’s a handful of them that are in the $0-$50 range.

Now, admittedly, I most regularly smoke the “upper middle class” pipes. And admittedly, sone of those el cheapos are downright unsmokeable. But there’s a few of them I just thoroughly enjoy. And I mean throughly!

They just always deliver a great smoke. No fuss. Taste great. Just do everything asked of them. I also suspect they rise to the occasion because I always approach them with lower expectations. But at the end of the day, a good smoke is what it’s mostly about.

Cheers to the budgets.

One of my best smokers is a Dr Grabow that is drilled very poorly. Way off to the right side of the bowl. But you'd never know it.

 

[reloader]

Most of my pipes are either estate purchases with a couple new thrown in, none over $50. I've purchased a few from fellow members here as well. I find they can all smoke well no matter the cost if I do my part. I've had to open the airway on a few stems and stummels to enhance the performance of those pipes. Even though my inexpensive pipes smoke well I really enjoy seeing the pictures of some of those high end pipes and appreciate the fit and finish that can be had for the money. I will continue to appreciate them from afar since I'm a cheap SOB.

 

[justscience]

A perennial well repeated topic. I like it because it gives me a chance to bash my only 2 gurgling pipes, a Castello and a Dunhill. Sacred cows make the best hamburger.

 

[reloader]

@dctune be sure to read this if you haven’t already.

‘The Myth of Brand and Maker in Pipesmoking’, by Dr. Fred Hanna.

https://www.greatnorthernpipeclub.org/_files/ugd/17b259_acdce5ca70354ca7a5f64775f95ae600.pdf

Good read, thanks for sharing.

 

[dctune]

Most of my pipes are either estate purchases with a couple new thrown in, none over $50. I've purchased a few from fellow members here as well. I find they can all smoke well no matter the cost if I do my part. I've had to open the airway on a few stems and stummels to enhance the performance of those pipes. Even though my inexpensive pipes smoke well I really enjoy seeing the pictures of some of those high end pipes and appreciate the fit and finish that can be had for the money. I will continue to appreciate them from afar since I'm a cheap SOB.

I have never opened up stem or stummel on any pipe. Would you mind explaining exactly how you do this? Bc I have two pipes in particular — my first pipe, the Grabow mentioned above; and a mystery churchwarden I bought who knows where — that I would love to smoke, but both are problematic. Very tight draw on the Grabow; and the churchwarden basically just gets clogged with every smoke.

 

[Ronv69]

I have over 200 pipes that cost from 5 to 475 dollars. Last night I smoked a 1950s Texaco gimme pipe that smokes as well as any of them. I grant that it doesn't have the pleasant hand feel of a Radice Underwood or a Becker blast, but I can't fault the smoke.

 

[Ronv69]

I have never opened up stem or stummel on any pipe. Would you mind explaining exactly how you do this? Bc I have two pipes in particular — my first pipe, the Grabow mentioned above; and a mystery churchwarden I bought who knows where — that I would love to smoke, but both are problematic. Very tight draw on the Grabow; and the churchwarden basically just gets clogged with every smoke.

I use a 4.5mm pit in a hand drill to open up shanks and a tapered drill bit for wood screws to taper and match the shank with the stem. I practiced on cheap pipes until I perfected my technique. I have been successful in fixing several gurgling pipes and none have been made worse.

 

[dctune]

I want to clarify: this thread is in no way meant to knock expensive pipes, or to elevate cheap pipes as somehow “just as good,” or “superior” to more expensive ones. I greatly admire the skill and expertise that goes into artisanal and “prosumer” level work. My background is in music after all. I’m not saying pipes and guitars are a one-to-one comparison, but there’s a world of difference between a $1,500 guitar and a $3,000(+) axe. My hands (and wallet) know this well.

Moreover, I am quite the fan of the “aesthetics of it all.” And I don’t mean just the look of a pipe. I mean the aesthetics of the whole experience: from selecting it off the rack, holding it in hand and feeling the weight, loading, lighting, feel in the mouth, taste, smell, even the peripheral views whilst smoking, to the very last tamp, to the very last satisfied draw, and etc. And I know that aesthetic experience is different for different folks, and if you’re like me, even at different times of the day and year.

That’s all.

So basically, if any of y’all wanna gift me a $1,000 pipe, you shouldn’t have any trouble getting my mailing address out of me. And I can assure it will be regularly enjoyed. ?

 

[Franco Pipenbeans]

I’ve got two cheap pipes - a Zulu and a Prince - one was £10 and the other was £14. No name on them, they both have “cool and sweet. Real briar” stamped on the shaft and they are two of my favourite pipes. They are light and they hang nicely in my chompers; both smoke incredibly well.
I’ve also got a couple of cobs and a tiny little nose warmer that cost about £7 I think.

 

[jmill208]

Morgan Bones are very nice. I find their (lack of?) finish quite appealing.

They don’t stay unfinished.

 

[Michigan_Bill]

Yes indeed! The patina is really nice.

 

[dunnyboy]

I want to clarify: this thread is in no way meant to knock expensive pipes, or to elevate cheap pipes as somehow “just as good,” or “superior” to more expensive ones. I greatly admire the skill and expertise that goes into artisanal and “prosumer” level work. My background is in music after all. I’m not saying pipes and guitars are a one-to-one comparison, but there’s a world of difference between a $1,500 guitar and a $3,000(+) axe. My hands (and wallet) know this well.

Moreover, I am quite the fan of the “aesthetics of it all.” And I don’t mean just the look of a pipe. I mean the aesthetics of the whole experience: from selecting it off the rack, holding it in hand and feeling the weight, loading, lighting, feel in the mouth, taste, smell, even the peripheral views whilst smoking, to the very last tamp, to the very last satisfied draw, and etc. And I know that aesthetic experience is different for different folks, and if you’re like me, even at different times of the day and year.

That’s all.

So basically, if any of y’all wanna gift me a $1,000 pipe, you shouldn’t have any trouble getting my mailing address out of me. And I can assure it will be regularly enjoyed. ?

Well put!

 

[dctune]

@dctune be sure to read this if you haven’t already.

‘The Myth of Brand and Maker in Pipesmoking’, by Dr. Fred Hanna.

https://www.greatnorthernpipeclub.org/_files/ugd/17b259_acdce5ca70354ca7a5f64775f95ae600.pdf

Finally carved out enough time to read this essay. Thank you for sharing. Fascinating stuff. Writings like Dr. Hanna’s here work my brain into a pensive froth. After reading, this one thought has lodged itself quite firmly in my mind this evening: We pipe smokers are a bit of a paradox. We have both found something we find entirely & uniquely satisfying, and are still always searching for some elusive, nuanced experience we call the perfect smoke.

I love pipes and pipe tobacco.

 

[chopper]

When I started to build a rotation of pipes I didn't have a lot of money to spend so I went after bargains on ebay.
Most of my pipes cost under $35usd.

A 100+yo German tobacconist closed and I was lucky to find the guy who bought all of their NOS.
Postage to Oz was only $12usd from Germany for up to 8 pipes [compared to $30+ from the U.S.]

One of the first pipes that I bought from this seller was an 80's NOS Venini that's well crafted, takes a pipe cleaner to the bowl and is a very good smoker. Few other bidders seemed interested in the Venini briars.
Out of curiosity I looked up Pipedia and all I could find was "Italian budget briars made for the German market" which surprised me because there's nothing cheap about them.

Now I own 7 Veninis and they're all really good smokers that cost me an average price of around $35usd.
Here's the sellers pic of an 80's Venini bent Apple.

I suspect that many buyers weren't interested because Venini is not a known brand and they equate a low price to mean cheap or poor quality.

Good luck to those who can afford to pay big money for briars but from my experience one does not have to splash out big bucks for a well crafted briar that smokes just as well as a brand name like Dunhill.
All of the pipes in my regular rotation cost no more than $35usd.

 

[Michigan_Bill]

Very nice!

 

[reloader]

I have never opened up stem or stummel on any pipe. Would you mind explaining exactly how you do this? Bc I have two pipes in particular — my first pipe, the Grabow mentioned above; and a mystery churchwarden I bought who knows where — that I would love to smoke, but both are problematic. Very tight draw on the Grabow; and the churchwarden basically just gets clogged with every smoke.

On the reaming tool I own it has a drill bit that unscrews from the back. I use that to drill the hole in the stummel and the stem. If the stem is bent I heat it slowly with a heat gun to straighten it, let it cool, then drill the airway. Heat it again and bend it back to its original shape. You've got to go slow and just keep clearing the debris as you drill. Never use a power drill just by hand. I don't have a drill bit long enough to do the churchwarden stem, but the one with that tool has worked on all the pipes I have that need opening.