Decent Briar for under $50?

[ryeguy]

Is it possible to get a decent briar pipe for under $50?
I'm not trying to be too picky (I know I can't be at this range), but I want to quickly build up a little bit of a rotation and I'm on a budget.
All I'm really looking for is

(1) real briar (do not want cobs--tried them, not my thing),
(2) well-drilled (as in, the air hole is centered and not 1/4 inch above the bottom of the bowl)
(3) will pass a pipe cleaner.
Aesthetics are of secondary concern.
At smokingpipes I see a bunch of P. Piazzolla and Ropp Etudiant pipes in that range that look okay to me (but I can't see the drilling from the pictures). There are also a couple Genod pieces--though I'm more skeptical of them.
Does anyone know anything about these pipes? Are my expectations too high for this price range? Is there something else I should be looking for?
Again, I'm not looking for cobs. I've tried them, and don't like the taste.
Also, I'm not looking for a restoration project. So most estate pipes in this range are out, as far as I can tell.
Thanks in advance for any insights!

 

[fitzy]

Ropp's are decent pipes. Better than the cheap Chacom USA's.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Yep, look HERE.

 

[Chasing Embers]

And HERE.

 

[nevadablue]

I have tens of working briars, and many more waiting to be restored. I have only one briar I bought new, for 40 bucks about 10 years ago. It was actually purchased for me by another person, otherwise, I would have zero pipes that cost over 15 or 20 bucks. Look at estate pipes. Members and vendors here offer them, and they can be had on ebay by the hundreds... cleaned and ready to smoke or not.

Good luck!

 

[vokaa]

Dr. Grabow pipes aren't that bad, not the best, but I like the one I have. Dr. Grabow on Pipes and Cigars

 

[Chasing Embers]

Nope, not a thing wrong with a Grabow. Though I personally prefer their war era Linkman's pipes, the modern iterations make great smokers.

 

[jzbdano]

Cigarbid.com has pipes in the merchandise section. I grabbed a nice Hilson and a couple Peterson's for under $50. It is something you need to check every day or two because some auctions only last 1 day.

 

[ben88]

Rossi 320

 

[metalheadycigarguy]

Take advantage of a sale and buy a nice Savinelli pipe.

I picked up my 320 Trevi for $52, my 645 bent apple for $60, and my 616 Trevi for $70.

 

[ben88]

Or for $50 you could pick up couple LHS pipes on Ebay. As I recently found out Sterncrest LHS are great smokers. Plus classifieds here, on the forum.

 

[ryeguy]

Thanks, all.
Glad to hear there are some options.
Does anyone know anything about the cheap Piazzollas?

 

[bassbug]

I"m surprised no one has mentioned the "for sale" section on this very forum.
I've bought two pipes from members here and both are great smokers. The first was a pre republic Pete 307 and although it was $70, which does not fit the $50 limit of the OP, in my mind, it was worth every penny. I'd rather have a few good pipes than a lot of mediocre ones.
The second is a dandy little Pete 317 that arrived in the mail a couple of days ago from another forum member for the "outrageous" sum of $35 It's proven to be a fantastic smoker and will live in my pocket whenever I go out now.

 

[mikethompson]

Yup, check the classifieds on here. Lots of interesting pipes for not a lot of money

 

[uperepik]

Rossi is a great option

 

[mawnansmiff]

"Again, I'm not looking for cobs. I've tried them, and don't like the taste."
For what it's worth, that sweet 'corn' taste soon disappears. I would say persevere with the cobs.
Regards,
Jay.

 

[ryeguy]

Jay, I had expected some break-in period, but based on reading I'd thought the taste of burnt popcorn would go away after about 5 bowls. I passed that mark a while ago and the taste keeps coming out pretty early in the smoke. I'll keep at it, but I hate ruining my tobacco.
After further reading: I've found the speculation that Rossis are just Savanelli seconds (they even have the same model numbers, just with an extra '8'), and at least some people who own both report they smoke the same--which would make sense if they both start life with the same drilling. So, that makes sense of the Rossi recommendations.
I've also learned a little about Pascal Piazzolla. Apparently he was a pretty decent French pipemaker active in the second-half of the 20th century. After retirement, he decided to liquidate everything he still had, including thousands of pipes, at firesale prices. Someone was saying that prior to the liquidation his pipes retailed around $80. Based on this story, which I've seen reported in a couple different places, it seems reasonable to suppose they are actually decent pipes and a steal for the money. I'm not sure what to do with this though, a dozen assorted P. Piazzolla pipes for $150. Maybe those are just the least desirable of his shapes (the picture doesn't make them look terribly impressive, to my eye at least), the stuff that still hadn't sold at the end of his closeout sale (apparently the sale went on for something like a decade). I still haven't found anyone that has smoked one though. But for those prices, it might be worth the risk.

I'd rather have a few good pipes than a lot of mediocre ones.

I know people will swear that more expensive pipes smoke better than cheap pipes. But I can't help be skeptical because, a) the same people also say you can get duds, that just smoke terribly no matter how much you spend b) those same people also say that sometimes you get a great smoking pipe at a cheap price c) no one has been able to offer to me a very good explanation of what exactly it is about $250 pipes that makes them smoke better than cheap pipes, d) I hear stories all the time from the same sorts about how they had a pipe that smoked like a dog until they put just the right tobacco in it--and they have no idea what it is about that specific tobacco in that specific pipe that made it sing.
The opinion I've formed (and I know it is not informed by much personal experience, more from analyzing lots of other people's reports) is that beyond the basics (like good drilling which I would think should be solved problems in mass-produced pipes at least past some pretty low price point), we really have no idea what makes a good smoke. Further it seems to me that a lot of the anecdotes that make us think there is some linear relationship between the retail price of the pipe and how good the smoke is can be explained by a combination of wishful thinking (if you drop $200 on a pipe you really want it to smoke better than a basket pipe), selective interpretation of data (we dismiss expensive duds or exceptional cheapies as anomalies), and unscientific sampling (I am under the impression that relatively few smokers really have enough pipes from enough makers to do meaningful A/B testing--some certainly do, but it's not my impression that it is the norm--, and when they do, it is of course not blind testings, so see the prior points). See some of the nonsense that "audiophiles" adamantly believe that has been positively disproven by real audio engineers to see just how far lay wisdom among hobbyists can drift from science.
I may of course just be being pig-headed. And maybe at some point I will regret dismissing the reports that high end pipes consistently smoke better. But sometimes people just have to learn by making their own mistakes.

 

[twangthang]

I have 2 Piazolla pipes. The first I bought with a p lip. I was curious to see how the p lip smoked and for the price I figured it was not much to gamble.

The pipe is good quality and drilled perfectly. It also came with a stinger. I smoked a few bowls as it came and it broke in well and smokes well. I eventually ditched the stinger. The p lip is not an issue with smoking, but it takes a little finesse to get a pipe cleaner through.

Since I was reasonably happy with that pipe I bought another straight billiard. This pipe is also well made, drilled properly, and came with a really oddly shaped stinger which I removed before I smoked it.

The pipe is smallish and the stem on both is a bit tight. Otherwise not bad.

 

[tbradsim1]

In my experience Dave Neeb has pipes under 50$ and are really good bargains, have bought quite a few for vets in nurseing homes. Even bought one for myself, now several independent shops have formed a website called Estate Pipes Central, give it a try.

 

[nevadablue]

Warning, newbie opinion follows...
This seems the same as the tobacco preference issue. Some of us stuff tobacco in a pipe and smoke it, AND enjoy it. I haven't smoked a pipe yet that didn't work. Some seem more pleasant than others, but that is entirely opinion.
Don't over analyze the issue. Why would you expect a 200 dollar pipe to smoke better than a nicely refurbished estate? I have no idea. A diamond with some inclusions can be as pretty as a 'perfect' diamond (which don't exist). IMO, price of a pipe is based on demand, looks and name of a maker, AND what the market (buyer) will bear.
Try some pipes and sit back and enjoy them.