Favorite Factory Pipes?

[petes03]

I figured it was about time to bring this one up again, you know, just for $#!+s and giggles.
So here it goes, what's your top 3 favorite brands of factory pipes in the price range of $50-200? I think that should provide plenty of room for a lot of different brands.
For me;

1) Peterson. I have 14 Petersons, more than any other brand. Not that they smoke that much better, although they do smoke good, but I really dig their shapes.
2) Savinelli. I have several Savs, and they are excellent smokers!
3) Stanwell. Although I only have 1 Stanwell, it is very well made and smokes incredibly well! I already have my eye on another one!
I almost said Nording for my third choice. I have a couple of them, they're very well made, affordable and they smoke very well!

 

[warren]

Speaking only to briars as to me meers are a whole different proposition. I buy meers mostly on impulse and am drawn to the craftsmanship shown by the carver more than shape, etc.
1. Peterson

2. Peterson

3. Peterson
The last few briars, 8 or 9, I've purchased have all been Peterson, excepting the Falcon. All I want from a pipe is that it is constructed well, the briar is clean, the finish well done, it must be bent, feel good in the fist, and rest gently in the jaw. Of course, it must smoke well. I've never had a Peterson that let me down on any of those points.
Bowl shape and size is of little concern as long it doesn't "jar" my eye. The pip[e has to look "balanced."

 

[petes03]

Warren, I'd say those are plenty good enough reasons to be a Pete fan!
I'll also add that about 85-90% of my pipes fall into this price range, with only my MMs and a few briars under that range, and two over that range. Out of the cheap ones, there are a couple (excluding the MMs) that smoke well above their cost, and a couple that really reflect their price tags! My two that are above that range are excellent smokers and are of top notch construction!

 

[nsfisher]

Brighams, all the way mate.

 

[philobeddoe]

Based on current production pipes I have seen at pipe shops recently I believe that Stanwell make the best new factory pipe in the under $200.00 range. That being said, I would not and would not advise anyone to spend $200.00 on a new factory pipe. Two hundred dollars buys you a lot of pipe on the estate market, you should be able to purchase a pipe that retailed for $400 -$500 dollars new for that kind of money. There is a great deal of difference between new pipes that retail for $200.00 and $500.00, be smart and buy used!

 

[petes03]

@philo, that's good advice for sure! My highest dollar value pipe is a Caminetto, which retails for around $375-400, I bought it as an estate for a fraction of that cost! It's one of my best smokers!

 

[sablebrush52]

I'm going to cheat.
1. Talbert Ligne Bretagne pipes. Okay, so they're not exactly factory pipes, they're a kind of hybrid. Trever bought out a warehouse full of French turned stummels. That's the factory part. But then he finishes the stummels, supplying them with extremely comfortable bits made from a variety of materials, sandblasts some and contrast stains others. The result is a pipe that has one of a kind artisan craftsmanship starting at $139. You get a piece of quality briar that has air cured for decades before being finished. They are a wonderfully dry smoke. And they get snapped up in minutes. Occasionally they appear on ebay, but if you want to buy one new, you have to be on the mailing list and act fast.
2. Stanwell - Very well constructed and engineered pipes. I've yet to encounter a bad Stanwell.
3. Kaywoodie - I like the old pre-war Kaywoodies. In their day they were high grade pipes that outsold Dunhill and at higher prices. Collectors still think of them as drugstore pipes, which is good since you can snap them up for peanuts. 100 year old briar that was properly air cured.

 

[ssjones]

Pre-Cadogan Comoys. The stem work alone is impressive.

 

[jkenp]

I am with Philo. You can pick up something like a GBD estate for a fraction of the prices you are allowing. You can pick up good French pipes for even less with Algerian briar. Charatan pipes can be found under $100. If you shop a bit, you can actually build a rotation for that $200 you're willing to spend for one pipe and smoke some sublime pipes in the process.

 

[brdavidson]

1. Brigham

2. Stanwell

3. Savinelli
Brigham by far being my favourite, the rock maple filter sets them apart in my opinion

 

[kashmir]

I only buy well seasoned estates these days. So, my top factory turned pipes would be all pre-late 70s pieces from: Comoys, Charatan, Dunhill. BBB and GBD would be in the next tier down. In that order.

 

[gray4lines]

I don't have experience with many pipes, but I have a luciano that smokes very well. They are factory made and hand finished. I like the look of them too!
Never had a savinelli, but would not hesitate to buy one.

 

[ssjones]

Yep, how could I forget GBD. Several of mine were less than $30. One, a "Seventy-Six" Diplomat was in a three pipe lot that cost me $25. I restoerd and re-sold the other for $40.....

 

[tbradsim1]

Bertram!

 

[jeepnewbie]

I don't have a lot of pipes that cost over 50. So I will go with what I do have and like.
Savinelli, Peterson, and new favorite that I just got BBB.

 

[docwatson]

Too difficult a decision to choose just one. Besides, many of the so called factory pipes have custom ordered and high grade hand made pipes as well. For example, hand made Peterson Specials, Kaywoodie Handmade, Savinelli Autographs etc.

If you are calling a factory pipe something that was a frazed bowl with a molded stem, then Kaywoodie is my choice.

 

[eaglerico]

1. Chacom (Their higher end American lines or any Europen lines. Seems, from a lot of feedback here, most of their entry level stuff in North America is just junk, but all I have I have gotten as Estates From European Lines or New Higher End American Lines and they are wonderful. Got a 2013 Pipe of the Year with cumberland stem and silver shank application for under $200)
2. Mario Grandi (This is a factory brand. It is not an Itilian Artisinal Carver as some might think. It is the entry level brand of some smaller high end lesser known itilian brand that escapes my mind at the moment. They brought it to the US several years back for an expanded market and have done well. They do some amazing pipes all for under the $200 mark. I have one I got for $50, the grain that is on it, if it were any other better known brand, it would have easily been $200+ and smokes just amazing)
3. Savinelli (Nuff said. I have a 8 Savs and I collect their old Goliath brand. It was replaced by their current Hercules brand, except has cumberland shank applications and cumberland stems. Also has round instead of square / recutangular shanks. I have had several Autogprahs as well. Great pipes and plenty both new and estate under $200)
I would like to add an honerable mention as well. I think Grabow should mentioned. Regardless of the stigma it and other drygstore brands may have. This is part of the history of pipe smoking in the US and there is several reasons there are so many on the estate market.

 

[peckinpahhombre]

Castello by a mile

 

[ssjones]

Good point Doc. I would call a Factory pipe as one with a frazed bowl.

 

[mso489]

All of the above, the usual suspects. But I would add Butz-Chocom, Chapuis-Comoy, Britannia, Parker, Benton

available as house pipes as Iwan Ries Exclusives, Tinder Box from various manufacturers, second the motion

on Luciano. Also, in the Peterson line I would recommend the under-appreciated bent brandy B11 shape, which

is mid-level but a superior pipe. There are actually many other first rate machine pipes, but many are small

brands or seconds. Machine pipes -- maybe understandably -- tend to get upstaged by higher priced hand carved

pipes, but may provide the best smoking you'll enjoy. I'll chime in on Savenelli, but everyone does. I like their

unfiltered pipes -- my 601 churchwarden, Oscar Lucite Prince, and unfinished billiard and 404 zulu/yacht.