El Morjane Algerian Briar Pipe Score

[Briar Lee]

In the last month or so I’ve gotten incensed over Algerian briar pipes, and bought a bunch of em’ for $15, $20, even $25 for a fancy one.

Imagine my glee to score three unsmoked El Morjane pipes for only $30. I’ve never heard of the brand, but brand new ten dollar Algerian pipes ought to sell out quick.

Anybody ever heard of these?

 

[Cornell D. Cavendish]

I saw some of them on ebay have p-lips as well. I am intrigued but have my fingers in too many pies (and pipes).

Cheers

 

[Briar Lee]

My three brand new Algerian made pipes arrived today. One has a p-lip bit, the other two normal bits.

These have to be the crudest, cheapest looking machine made briar pipes I’ve ever seen.

That being said, you want at least one of these pipes.

The oil used to cure these still seeps out.

These are just dynamite good smokers. Brand new and they don’t need any break in. They are so soft I can scratch one with a fingernail. They don’t get hot, and the taste is incredibly rich and savory.

Algeria still produces the best smoking briar on the earth. They aren’t good at making pipes, but the pipes smoke better than anybody can imagine.

Only $10 each, delivered.

 

[fMf Piper]

My three brand new Algerian made pipes arrived today. One has a p-lip bit, the other two normal bits.

These have to be the crudest, cheapest looking machine made briar pipes I’ve ever seen.

That being said, you want at least one of these pipes.

The oil used to cure these still seeps out.

These are just dynamite good smokers. Brand new and they don’t need any break in. They are so soft I can scratch one with a fingernail. They don’t get hot, and the taste is incredibly rich and savory.

Algeria still produces the best smoking briar on the earth. They aren’t good at making pipes, but the pipes smoke better than anybody can imagine.

Only $10 each, delivered.

They look great and sound like a good deal. I may have to look into these as my first non-cob pipe. The price is certainly right.

 

[Briar Lee]

They look great and sound like a good deal. I may have to look into these as my first non-cob pipe. The price is certainly right.

Compared to any other briar pipe you’ve owned or seen these look like they were made by drunken high school kids in a garage. They are as rough and ready as a factory finished pipe can be made.

Strangely, I can’t see the littlest fill in any of the three.

They are still greasy from being oil cured. Maybe after the oil cure burns away they’ll lose some of their goodie, but brand new these pipes are among the best smokers I own.

Brand new, and not a hint of burning briar taste during break in.

The stems fit perfectly, too.

Don’t buy them for looks.

These are to smoke.

 

[GatorElGato]

Looks like we purchased from the same eBay seller. Feel the same way about mine, cheap pipes that smoke great. Will definitely be looking for more.

 

[FurCoat]

Cool find. As long as they smoke good that 30 bucks well spent.

 

[bullet08]

That's not a P-lip. The exit hole is at wrong place.

 

[Briar Lee]

That's not a P-lip. The exit hole is at wrong place.

It’s actually upside down to be a P lip.

But it’s an attempt.

Remember these folks were making these pipes in one of the most repressive, poor, isolated places on this earth outside North Korea or Cuba, and there’s no French or English or American advisors or technicians.

My guess is, the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria ordered these made to sell to tourists visiting El Kala.

 

[Lumbridge]

Look like good beater/workhorse pipes. I'm finding that the more I smoke, the less I am caring about what my pipe looks like. There's something to be said for a pipe that smokes well but you don't mind dinging and scratching up.
I've been curious to try an Algerian briar, might pick one up.

 

[Briar Lee]

Look like good beater/workhorse pipes. I'm finding that the more I smoke, the less I am caring about what my pipe looks like. There's something to be said for a pipe that smokes well but you don't mind dinging and scratching up.
I've been curious to try an Algerian briar, might pick one up.

I found out from a friend here tonight these pipes are from a stash made up about fifty years ago.

When they are gone, there won’t be any more.

Aged Billiard Algerian briar wood

Aged Algerian Briar Wood Billiard Morjane El Kafa Algerie Unfiltered Unsmoked

rnatreasures.com

I have four now, and that’s plenty.

They run small. My guess is the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria made an attempt to operate the left over factories from before the revolution to make tourist trinkets to peddle to visitors to El Kala.

El Kala - Wikipedia

en.m.wikipedia.org

I can’t imagine too many wives have ever put up a howl to go vacation wearing a bedsheet in beautiful El Kala in the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria, but Wikipedia says it’s a tourist attraction for people inside and out of Algeria.

 

[Lumbridge]

@Briar Lee
Well, you got me. I put in a bid on a dark rusticated one and an offer on one of the panels. If/when they come in I'll try to post pictures. Now to ponder what tobacco to christen them with.

 

[canucklehead]

How many do you want?

Judd's Lot of 10 New Old Stock Unsmoked El Morjane Algerian Briar Pipes - Lot #1 | eBay

Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Judd's Lot of 10 New Old Stock Unsmoked El Morjane Algerian Briar Pipes - Lot #1 at the best online prices at eBay! Free shipping for many products!

www.ebay.ca

 

[Lumbridge]

My two El Cheapo pipes came in today.

The black one is in good shape. Both pipes needed quite a bit of cleaning as they were filthy inside and out despite being unsmoked. Full of wood, greasy grime, and vulcanite dust, and what looked like stain and possibly reddish polishing compound. I gave them a swab with a bit of cheap Scotch, as it was all I had. It took a little over an hour to get them both cleaned to my liking.

Unfortunately, the shank on the panel developed a good crack when I put the stem on it. It also has a sizeable crack in the rear wall of the bowl that goes all the way through, which I'm pretty sure was already there. The fills, while ugly, I would overlook seeing as I only paid $10 for the pipe, but the cracks make me sad. I messaged the seller to see what he'd do for me on that one.

Besides that, the pipes feel good in the hand and look to be drilled straight.

If I end up stuck with the cracked one, I'm going to try smoking it anyway just to see how it performs even with the split in the bowl. I plan on trying out the black one on the morrow to see how it smokes.

 

[canucklehead]

My two El Cheapo pipes came in today.

The black one is in good shape. Both pipes needed quite a bit of cleaning as they were filthy inside and out despite being unsmoked. Full of wood, greasy grime, and vulcanite dust, and what looked like stain and possibly reddish polishing compound. I gave them a swab with a bit of cheap Scotch, as it was all I had. It took a little over an hour to get them both cleaned to my liking.

Unfortunately, the shank on the panel developed a good crack when I put the stem on it. It also has a sizeable crack in the rear wall of the bowl that goes all the way through, which I'm pretty sure was already there. The fills, while ugly, I would overlook seeing as I only paid $10 for the pipe, but the cracks make me sad. I messaged the seller to see what he'd do for me on that one.

Besides that, the pipes feel good in the hand and look to be drilled straight.

If I end up stuck with the cracked one, I'm going to try smoking it anyway just to see how it performs even with the split in the bowl. I plan on trying out the black one on the morrow to see how it smokes.
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Man they must have had strict time limits for their rustication... "Here is your off-brand dremel and one burr, you have 25 seconds per pipe, you get a caning if you don't meet your quota!"

 

[Lumbridge]

Man they must have had strict time limits for their rustication... "Here is your off-brand dremel and one burr, you have 25 seconds per pipe, you get a caning if you don't meet your quota!"

Yeah, it's weird - there are tiny fill spots, yet I thought the main point of rusticating was to hide pitted spots and scratches in the briar. I think 25 seconds would be generous for an electropencil doodle like that... almost hard to call it rustication, really.

The compound used to do the fills is a reddish color. I wonder if it used to be a closer match but changed color over time. Kind of surprised the vulcanite on these isn't totally oxidized considering how old they are. It's still pretty black, especially after I gave them a once over with jojoba (my vulcanite polish of choice).

 

[Lumbridge]

They look great and sound like a good deal. I may have to look into these as my first non-cob pipe. The price is certainly right.

You will have to put in a good amount of time cleaning it up before smoking it if you do buy one, and it's a bit of a dice roll (see the pics of mine above).

For an ultra-budget first briar, I would suggest taking a look at some of Lorenzo's offerings such as the Garden series. I bought five Gardens not long ago from The Right Pipe and I'm very happy with how they look, feel, and smoke, and they come in a variety of shapes and finishes.

 

[Lumbridge]

You will have to put in a good amount of time cleaning it up before smoking it if you do buy one, and it's a bit of a dice roll (see the pics of mine above).

For an ultra-budget first briar, I would suggest taking a look at some of Lorenzo's offerings such as the Garden series. I bought five Gardens not long ago from The Right Pipe and I'm very happy with how they look, feel, and smoke, and they come in a variety of shapes and finishes.

I guess I should clarify that I have only smoked two of them, but they both smoke very well. The other three I bought as gifts. Very nice pipes for the price.

 

[fMf Piper]

guess I should clarify that I have only smoked two of them, but they both smoke very well. The other three I bought as gifts. Very nice pipes for the price.

Good info, thanks for sharing, I will check out Lorenzo's pipes.

 

[Briar Lee]

Of my four the only kinda, sorta problem is the paneled author is very small. I cleaned all of them with Everclear. None have any visible fills, but are crude.

Sixty years have passed since Algeria became a corrupt and isolated authoritarian state. The wonder is these were made at all.

Another mystery is who bought this stash of tourist pipes?