I have on several occasions. I have received back pipes with stems that resemble Xmas candy canes, urban camouflage to name a few examples. So I tend to be more a victim of 'Horror-fic' bits as opposed to 'Orific' bits!
Collectible Pipes Replaced Stems
- Thread starter Pipeoff
- Start date
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Ronnie Bikascan of Night Owl Pipeworks was the go to guy for top collectors internationally for many years. He retired about 7-8 years ago, though I understand that he will once in a while still take on a restoration for a former client. The guy was an absolute magician and did completely invisible repairs on several of my pipes. Ronnie was also very generous with his knowledge and helped me a couple of times when I was addressing a difficult problem with a clean up.
George Dibos is absolutely in the same league as Ronnie, and from what I've seen, so is Ryan Alden.
The thing about these guys is that they do far more than clean up a pipe and make it look pretty. They repair any structural damage they can, sometimes leaving the pipe in better structural condition than it was when it was first made. In my book it takes a lot more skill to do what they do, at the level they do it, than it does to carve a pipe.
I never met him, but recall he was famous for his "bullet-proof" pipe repair. Here's a NASPC article on Ronnie. I think he used to be active on the old SmokersForums.uk board. Coincidentally, he used a car tire reference here.
I'd only ever pick up an unsmoked birth year Dunhill.
If I were into collecting pre-smoked vintage D's I'd almost prefer if it had a new stem by GD.
I think Dilbos's contribution to the restoration of some Dunhill could make a pipe more valuable.
Occasionally a 3rd party fixup can increase a pipe's value.
If I were into collecting pre-smoked vintage D's I'd almost prefer if it had a new stem by GD.
I think Dilbos's contribution to the restoration of some Dunhill could make a pipe more valuable.
Occasionally a 3rd party fixup can increase a pipe's value.
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Did you know that Kevin has an army of bot-droid-observer-creatures that keep track of how long it's been since your last board visit, and tap you on the shoulder (electronically) when they get impatient?
Me neither.
To keep them from escalating the matter and coming to my door RoboCop style, though, I figured I'd make a final attempt to explain the (apparently) never-ending collectable pipe / stem replacement situation.
First, if a stem is obviously not original, of course it affects value. Both monetary and emotional.
Second, if legit experts---including the maker of the original---declare a stem to be original, that's the end of it. It makes no difference WHO made it. (We're not talking multi-million dollar paintings, sculpture, coins, or etc., but tobacco pipes.)
Why did I mention "the maker of the original"? Because that challenge has been made several times, and the bet lost.
It's not interesting technically at all. Making stems is a wholly subtractive exercise. You start with a chunk of material and remove however much is necessary to make an exact dimensional duplicate of another object that's made of the same material. The end.
It's not even interesting philosophically. All the inspiration and artistry that was present in the original is, by definition, present in the copy.
A useful way to think about the situation is if magic wands were real, and someone reversed the breaking of their pipe's stem with a wave of it... would that constitute a "replacement"?
Would it even matter?
Here are some pix to illustrate, starting with a couple links:
And some paste-ins:
Me neither.
To keep them from escalating the matter and coming to my door RoboCop style, though, I figured I'd make a final attempt to explain the (apparently) never-ending collectable pipe / stem replacement situation.
First, if a stem is obviously not original, of course it affects value. Both monetary and emotional.
Second, if legit experts---including the maker of the original---declare a stem to be original, that's the end of it. It makes no difference WHO made it. (We're not talking multi-million dollar paintings, sculpture, coins, or etc., but tobacco pipes.)
Why did I mention "the maker of the original"? Because that challenge has been made several times, and the bet lost.
It's not interesting technically at all. Making stems is a wholly subtractive exercise. You start with a chunk of material and remove however much is necessary to make an exact dimensional duplicate of another object that's made of the same material. The end.
It's not even interesting philosophically. All the inspiration and artistry that was present in the original is, by definition, present in the copy.
A useful way to think about the situation is if magic wands were real, and someone reversed the breaking of their pipe's stem with a wave of it... would that constitute a "replacement"?
Would it even matter?
Here are some pix to illustrate, starting with a couple links:
Example of "Invisible Repair" (Dunhill EC) :: Pipe Repair and Maintenance
Something that gets brought up occasionally around here is that so-called "pipe repair" is a spectrum that runs from only restoring functionality without regard for appearance, to making a pipe look literally new again. Meaning, if the repaired pipe was sent back in time and dropped onto the...
pipesmagazine.com
And some paste-ins:
This is very similar to what I believe Michelangelo is credited as saying, that he starts with a block of marble and takes away the excess.
What happened with the last stem? Did a dog chew it up?Did you know that Kevin has an army of bot-droid-observer-creatures that keep track of how long it's been since your last board visit, and tap you on the shoulder (electronically) when they get impatient?
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Me neither.
To keep them from escalating the matter and coming to my door RoboCop style, though, I figured I'd make a final attempt to explain the (apparently) never-ending collectable pipe / stem replacement situation.
First, if a stem is obviously not original, of course it affects value. Both monetary and emotional.
Second, if legit experts---including the maker of the original---declare a stem to be original, that's the end of it. It makes no difference WHO made it. (We're not talking multi-million dollar paintings, sculpture, coins, or etc., but tobacco pipes.)
Why did I mention "the maker of the original"? Because that challenge has been made several times, and the bet lost.
It's not interesting technically at all. Making stems is a wholly subtractive exercise. You start with a chunk of material and remove however much is necessary to make an exact dimensional duplicate of another object that's made of the same material. The end.
It's not even interesting philosophically. All the inspiration and artistry that was present in the original is, by definition, present in the copy.
A useful way to think about the situation is if magic wands were real, and someone reversed the breaking of their pipe's stem with a wave of it... would that constitute a "replacement"?
Would it even matter?
Here are some pix to illustrate, starting with a couple links:
Example of "Invisible Repair" (Dunhill EC) :: Pipe Repair and Maintenance
Something that gets brought up occasionally around here is that so-called "pipe repair" is a spectrum that runs from only restoring functionality without regard for appearance, to making a pipe look literally new again. Meaning, if the repaired pipe was sent back in time and dropped onto the...pipesmagazine.com
And some paste-ins:
View attachment 290930
View attachment 290931
View attachment 290932
View attachment 290933
View attachment 290934
View attachment 290935