Dunhill & Upshall Pipe Advice

[natibo]

Up until a few months ago, most of the pipes I owned were made by Peterson, Stanwell, Brebbia, and Jirsa. All of these pipes would easily pass an extra fluffy pipe cleanser through the stem and into the bowl with little difficulty (I smoke mostly straight pipes). I usually run one bristle and one extra fluffy through the pipe between smokes and do even more at the end of the day.
I recently bought some Dunhill group 4's and an Upshall (probably equivalent to a group 5). The airways on these pipes appear to be much smaller and it is somewhat difficult to pass an extra fluffy pipe cleaner therethrough. I will have to admit, I like a larger passageway.
I read Newcombe's book and wondered if I should have Walker Pipe enlarge the airway to 5/32". Has anyone done this? Is it recommended? FYI I am not trying to preserve the value of these pipes. I bought them because I got them for a good price and they look sharp.
Thanks for the advice.

 

[jgriff]

I have some that were widened and they smoke great. However, have you smoked them yet? If they draw nicely, then I wouldn't mess with them. If the draw is tight, then by all means, widen it - value be damned.
But I stock Falcon pipe cleaners for alot of my older pipes with smaller airways.

 

[sablebrush52]

I'm a bit surprised that the draft hole is that tight. All of my Dunhills can pass the extra fluffy cleaners. These were estates? Were the draft holes cleaned to the wood?
+1 with jgriff. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

 

[tbradsim1]

I"m with Sable,get someone to retort those pipes,shank is probably gummed up,all my Dunhills pass a big fluffy cleaner easily as do my Upshalls.Don't go drastic,try the simple fix you don't want to ruin good pipes,I know you will enjoy them for years to come.

 

[pitchfork]

Concur with the others -- Dunhill and Upshall usually have fairly wide airways, especially compared to Peterson and some, but not all, Stanwells.
To be clear, Upshalls aren't usually "wide open," but they have a fairly easy -- and smooth -- draft.

 

[bigvan]

I've always thought Dunhill airways were a bit tight compared to modern artisan pipes. A good friend collects the larger sizes and he says the first thing he does with a new Dunhill is send it off to his pipe guy to open it up.

 

[nsfisher]

My Dunhills also pass a large fluffy cleaner mate.

 

[ssjones]

A couple of my Upshalls will only pass a thin cleaner, and their draw is a little tight (say, compared to a Castello). But, they smoke great, so I don't mess with them. I'm guessing you have smoked them, and found them lacking. In that case, enlarging seems to be the way to go. I opened up a tight Ashton using Newcombe's specs and it went from a hot smoking pipe to a great smoking pipe. On this pipe, I'm glad that I did the work and it is on of my favorite smokers.