Do Enjoy Your Mastercraft Pipes?

[telescopes]

Mastercraft didn't make the pipe, and they didn't make it better. But they did import pipes under their names and because of how they acquired their pipes, the Mastercraft line of pipes is varied and extremely differentiated.

I currently have two Mastercraft pipes. The first one is a rather small size 1 bowl with what looks like rusticated deep lines of longitude going around the pipe and rim. While this pipes smokes well, the rim was damaged and the damage needs to be repaired. Ah, but it is a cheap pipe and the cost for the repair is more than the worth of the pipe. But still, it is an interesting pipe and because it smokes well and looks to be a fine example of a Mastercraft pipe, I am thinking of repairing it.

The second one is a small billiard with a bakelite stem and stinger. This pipe was a mess when I got it. The stem simply could not be removed without breaking the stem. So, I broke the stem, removed the glue that some idiot felt the need to use to keep the stem on, and repaired the pipe stem to the best of my ability. This meant keeping the stinger's base to serve as a structure for he broke parts to attach . Actually, it doesn't look half bad and I may have a professional see if they can remove the slight fracture lines.

I have a third NOS Mastercraft on its way, hoping that third time is a charm.

I would love to hear your experiences owning Mastercrafts. Hopefully, the replies won't be things like:

1. Never had one, never will,
2. I only purchase artisan pipes,
3. Ah, not my thing.

LOL

 

[telescopes]

What, no one owns a MasterCraft Pipe?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I'm not falling for your marketing gimmick. I know that you own quite a few of these, and you're trying to jack up the Ebay pipe market in your favor.

If you'd only allow us to say that we prefer good pipes, more people might comment here.

 

[condorlover1]

It is a pricing 'Ramp' for MasterCraft pipes! Didn't we just a comment on meerschaum 'MasterCraft' pipes as well?

 

[telescopes]

It is a pricing 'Ramp' for MasterCraft pipes! Didn't we just a comment on meerschaum 'MasterCraft' pipes as well?

Right. A pricing ramp. Actually, I enjoy collecting older American brands and bringing them back to life. MasterCraft is seen a lot on line, but I know so little about the brands history and place in the American piping world.

 

[condorlover1]

@telescopes : A misplaced attempt at levity on my part! Have you seen the price of Lee pipes on Ebay? I can hardly talk since the price of meerschaum 'cutty' pipes have gone through the roof since myself and Weezell starting posting pictures.

 

[telescopes]

@telescopes : A misplaced attempt at levity on my part! Have you seen the price of Lee pipes on Ebay? I can hardly talk since the price of meerschaum 'cutty' pipes have gone through the roof since myself and Weezell starting posting pictures.

Thx. Actually, I was probably reacting more to the post preceding yours. The price of Lee Pipes is just wrong. They are in no way high quality pipes, although sometimes they do have merit. I saw a Lee second, a Gold Coast, going for $75 on eBay. WTF? Right. That’s a pipe that went for $1.00 when it was new. Personally, feel like Lee Pipes are second tier as it is. Their seconds from what I see are well below that.

Anyway, Mastercraft pipes are below Dr Grabow in quality. I am have been looking for one good smokable example for my Americana collection. So far all three that I have purchased have problems that need to be resolved. That said, all three are interesting looking pipes.

 

[sasquatch]

The oldest ones are better in my experience, and the more dressy the name, the worse the pipe. The ones boasting Algerian briar smoke pretty good, the ones I've had that were stamped "Italy" were less good as smokers, a very "ordinary" affordable pipe. So to pick one up, I'd look for the Master Craft Hand Made pipes with the Algerian Briar stamp.

 

[condorlover1]

@telescopes: I know so little about these pipes. I knew about Lee and my opinion sort of mirrors your own. I am more interested in the stinger shown in your opening picture of the pipe dismantled. How does that work for you? Bubbly water trap? Dry smokers? In my own experience I have found stingers tend to lead to crud build up. Even in old meerschaum pipes a 'stinger type' mechanism was fitted in the form or a duck or goose quill cemented into the end of the bone tenon. Often at the point you would get the most incredible crud build up that has to be drilled out since it is the meerschaum pipe equivalent of hardened plaque.

 

[telescopes]

@telescopes: I know so little about these pipes. I knew about Lee and my opinion sort of mirrors your own. I am more interested in the stinger shown in your opening picture of the pipe dismantled. How does that work for you? Bubbly water trap? Dry smokers? In my own experience I have found stingers tend to lead to crud build up. Even in old meerschaum pipes a 'stinger type' mechanism was fitted in the form or a duck or goose quill cemented into the end of the bone tenon. Often at the point you would get the most incredible crud build up that has to be drilled out since it is the meerschaum pipe equivalent of hardened plaque.

I agree that stingers are unnecessary to pipe construction. I leave them in to keep the pipe true to its original design. I have found that I avoid gurgling problems by using the so called German or Frank method to load the pipe and by also opening up the airway. The Lee pipes are such that the stinger is removable and the pipe is easy to reclock. MasterCraft seems to have a poorly designed and cheaply made stem for their pipes. Lee stems are at least vulcanite. All this talk about quality briar on Lees is simply not the case in my experience. They have fills and the staining work lacks the beauty of a Dunhill. However, a Lee is head and shoulders over a MasterCraft but not an early Kaywoodie. My early Kaywoodie pipes hold their own against my Dunhill pipes. A good Lee is about on the same level as an early Dr Grabow from the late 30s or 40s. Lees are better than Pipe Maker pipes and Marxman Pipes. A good Marxman, and I have a few, are decent pipes and rotation worthy, but just not as substantive in feel as the Lees. I should note that all of my Lees DO smoke well - @Briar Lee is absolutely correct in that assertion. However, he has most likely driven up the mark up on these pipes single handedly with all of his praise about their value.

 

[telescopes]

The oldest ones are better in my experience, and the more dressy the name, the worse the pipe. The ones boasting Algerian briar smoke pretty good, the ones I've had that were stamped "Italy" were less good as smokers, a very "ordinary" affordable pipe. So to pick one up, I'd look for the Master Craft Hand Made pipes with the Algerian Briar stamp.

Thank you. Very helpful.

 

[Red Leader]

I am an unexpected fan of Mastercraft pipes! I have gotten back into pipesmoking, mainly for the Americana/collecting appeal. Really enjoying going after American made pipes, and dabbling in the more grey waters of pipes sold in America (and also those labeled by pipe shops here, etc) but not necessarily made here.

I picked up a couple of Mastercraft pipes as some of my very first acquisitions before my knowledge set improved, but I'm glad I did, otherwise I might not have.

I have two - a larger, chunkier paneled pipe, and this one, a small straight (billiard? apple? Not good on shapes yet). And it is one of my best smokers! Incredibly smooth, cool, and just a lovely experience. Nothing to write home about, the stem isn't the tightest, etc. But it just has something going on. I will never turn my nose up at any of these Algerian Briar MCs, and they fly way, way under the radar. One of my very favorite non-(purely)-American pipes.

 

[driftedshank1]

Mastercraft pipes were largely made in French factories. The company imported huge quantities of these pipes and were targeted to appeal to the aveage pipe smoker. As with many French made factory pipes, some were made better than others and smoked well. I've had some MC or MC products, e.g., Custom Made or Colossal pipes that were good. I found that opening up the pipes made them smoke better.

There is some interesting history of Mastercraft to be found on the Pipedia site.
Bernard Hochstein, who owned the company for many years and whose family was involved with the Shalom factory in Israel evidently did very well. I understand that he was a deeply religious man, lived quite simply and gave a great deal of his fortune to philanthropic causes.

 

[mso489]

I like my American made briar factory pipes especially. It sounds like these were mostly French made, and I like my French brand pipes, finding them beyond their price points in quality. But American brand briar factory pipes like Dr. Grabow, Kaywoodie, Yello-Bole, Medico, Edwards (and their Benton brand and others) have a special luster for me, like well restored 1950's American automobiles, sometimes a little gawky and folky, but usually highly interesting with surprising touches of excellence. For French pipes, i'd rather go directly to the French. I have Chacom, Ropp, Genod, BC, and EWA.

 

[Donb1972]

I came THIS close to buying a Mastercraft cavalier...but I just didn't like the rustication.

 

[OzPiper]

The price of Lee Pipes is just wrong. They are in no way high quality pipes, although sometimes they do have merit. I saw a Lee second, a Gold Coast, going for $75 on eBay. WTF? Right. That’s a pipe that went for $1.00 when it was new. Personally, feel like Lee Pipes are second tier as it is. Their seconds from what I see are well below that.

A well-known member here may vociferously beg to differ
Not owning any Lee pipes, I cannot add to the above comment(s)

 

[Red Leader]

A well-known member here may vociferously beg to differ
Not owning any Lee pipes, I cannot add to the above comment(s)

I would very much like to add a Lee to the collection, seeing as how they are an American brand and so getting a sample would prove worthwhile, but they do seem to fall more in the $25-$50 range, and finding a clear example (without major fills or cracks) seems a little harder than other pipes for whatever reason. Still hoping to find one and like it as well.

 

[OzPiper]

I would very much like to add a Lee to the collection, seeing as how they are an American brand and so getting a sample would prove worthwhile, but they do seem to fall more in the $25-$50 range, and finding a clear example (without major fills or cracks) seems a little harder than other pipes for whatever reason. Still hoping to find one and like it as well.

I think said member @Briar Lee may have cornered that market ?

He may have intentionally or unintentionally sparked interest in those pipes, hence the resulting bun-fight for ones that come up on EBay recently.

 

[Briar Lee]

A week from now I’ll be at my farm and one of my favorite things to do there, is smoke my good straight pot Mastercraft sandblast. Along with Weber and Marxman, the Mastercraft is among the best of the old time luxury brands.

I should count all my Lee pipes. I know I have at least five dozen on display and rotation at my office, and the the total probably close to a hundred. Only one is about smoked up, and a couple more with rubber covers over busted buttons.

I used to own about a hundred and fifty post war Kaywoodies, Grabows, and other similar pipes, and I sold them.

I kept every Lee, every Marxman, every MasterCraft, and every pre war Kaywoodie. Also I’m partial to Pipe Maker, and I’m convinced they were linked with Lee. The shapes are identical and so are the stingers, even the screw stems.

The best pipe in my entire stash for showing off is my pre war large Dublin Flame Grain Kaywoodie. It’s also among the best smokers.

Yet this $35 brand new condition supposedly 55-60 year old (cough cough) SON I bought from a Serbian eBay seller last year is marvelous except for an obviously mounded stem.


It’s a magnificent smoker. It needed no break in. It could be that a young Eric Nording somehow made a perfect brandy snifter and because of a contact arrangement sold it stamped SON. Anything is possible.

Here, is an example of a hand made pipe.

Mr. Lee likely did not carve that, himself.

He hired it done.

A high grade Mastercraft is an excellent, top of the line, as good as can be made, bragging rights smoking pipe.

All briar pipes are simply a hunk of wood joined to a hard rubber stem.

Some of them, a few factory pipes only, deserve to be designated as a true luxury grade pipe, and the better Matercrafts are among that few.

 

[telescopes]

U

A week from now I’ll be at my farm and one of my favorite things to do there, is smoke my good straight pot Mastercraft sandblast. Along with Weber and Marxman, the Mastercraft is among the best of the old time luxury brands.

I should count all my Lee pipes. I know I have at least five dozen on display and rotation at my office, and the the total probably close to a hundred. Only one is about smoked up, and a couple more with rubber covers over busted buttons.

I used to own about a hundred and fifty post war Kaywoodies, Grabows, and other similar pipes, and I sold them.

I kept every Lee, every Marxman, every MasterCraft, and every pre war Kaywoodie. Also I’m partial to Pipe Maker, and I’m convinced they were linked with Lee. The shapes are identical and so are the stingers, even the screw stems.

The best pipe in my entire stash for showing off is my pre war large Dublin Flame Grain Kaywoodie. It’s also among the best smokers.

Yet this $35 brand new condition supposedly 55-60 year old (cough cough) SON I bought from a Serbian eBay seller last year is marvelous except for an obviously mounded stem.

View attachment 140257
It’s a magnificent smoker. It needed no break in. It could be that a young Eric Nording somehow made a perfect brandy snifter and because of a contact arrangement sold it stamped SON. Anything is possible.

Here, is an example of a hand made pipe.

View attachment 140258Mr. Lee likely did not carve that, himself.

He hired it done.

A high grade Mastercraft is an excellent, top of the line, as good as can be made, bragging rights smoking pipe.

All briar pipes are simply a hunk of wood joined to a hard rubber stem.

Some of them, a few factory pipes only, deserve to be designated as a true luxury grade pipe, and the better Matercrafts are among that few.

i have three MCs and they all suffer quality issues. Non of them are of the Algerian ilk. My Pipe Maker is a nice smoker and I do enjoy it. When I say Lee is a 2nd tier pipe, they simply don’t have the quality of my early Kaywoodie pipes or any of my Dunhills. However, the earlier ones are very well made, and yes, they truly do smoke top tier. You won’t hear me disagree with you on that point.

As of late, finding a good Lee at a reasonable price point has been challenging. Most of the ones I’ve seen are abused. Few are 1st or 2nd generation and I would encourage most to start with that era. 3rd Generation are hit or miss in terms of quality.