First Good Pipe

[throbinson]

Well... not really. That ROPP was a nice pipe, name brand, new... sold for I think end price was $58. So, my budget isn't too bad I don't think, it just takes looking and patience. That being said, I'm not spending $300 on a pipe that's kinda boring looking simply because it's a better brand. I'm a new smoker, and, like with just about any 'hobby' it's crazy to run out and immediately spend a tonne of money on it. I'm learning how to rebuild a motorcycle... I spent $800 on a bike, I didn't rush out and pay $10k for something to learn on. :D
Start small, go big. If I rush out and pay a lot for a pipe and 2 months from now I don't smoke anymore... well... that would suck. I'd rather spend $60, and if 6 months from now I feel that I'm going to keep doing it, then I'll move up the budget and get a $150 pipe.
Research wise, been doing that, it's in another thread. Not really why I started this thread though, it was more of a passing mention. That being said we have 1 mounted grinder, and 1 in a box that was never mounted after we moved here a few years ago. I understand what you mean about the speed, I just hadn't the chance to check the ratings on them. Cost wise for the pads and compounds, again, been looking at getting the stuff for my motorcycle for a while now so, I'm not really spending $70 on pads/compounds for 'the pipes', I'm spending it on the motorcycle and using it on the pipes.
Not a professional though... I'll work on 14 of the 18 pipes I got as a learning experience and probably never do it again. Research is great, but the best way to learn is to also 'do'. I'll start with the damaged junk, and work towards the better ones. Even if I only get 2 good pipes, it was worth it for me. Rest of the stuff I bought will be used for the motorbike so no loss there, the reamer is $20 and will use on my smoking pipes so, will probably last for years.
Stain wise... I'm sure different stains for different woods and such... I'm making a general comment that I don't like dark brown or cherry red. But... they do stain them... photo from GDB, applying the stain, and oh joy, it's cherry.... :?
:D

 

[throbinson]

Few sites I saw for the metal suggested using that Diamond White compound, which was on a few of the pipe videos I saw as well. Also mention of the red compound for heavier work, but the tutorials were 50/50 about using anything more abrasive than the white. Also talked about carnauba wax for the final stage. Pads aren't too expensive so will likely buy a pipe set and a bike set and just write on the side in sharpie which is which.
Stain wise, again... was more or less saying I'd rather a nice grained natural wood than red/brown. Restoration wise, I won't be getting too in depth with it. Bowl wise, just the basics to ream/salt/clean/polish. Not repairing or anything like that. Baby steps basically. Get the basics sorted out and go from there.
But back to the OP...
What makes the expensive pipes better? I keep seeing posts saying I'll enjoy a pricier pipe more... but how/why is skipped.
... I'm starting to think there is no difference, it's just a status thing having an expensive pipe. :D
How about this... I'm sure everyone here has a range of pipes from cheap to expensive. When you sit down and have a smoke, why do you enjoy your expensive pipe more? or if you were blind-folded, would you know the difference?

 

[okiescout]

I understand your reluctance to spend too much for a pipe. It doesn't necessarily follow that you have to spend a fortune for a good smoke. "You get what you pay for" isn't necessarily true! I have some moderately expensive pipes. I have some that cost far less but that smoke just as well. Expensive, cheap, inexpensive, these terms are relative.
If you don't want to spend 100 or 150 dollars on a pipe yet, keep smoking a cob. I don't mean this in a bad way. Cobs are great pipes.

I believe, when you spend more time in the hobby you will start developing some thoughts of your own about what looks good to you. That is really what art appreciation is all about. Looking at good art over time helps you know what you like. It sounds like you might not be there yet. Trying to say...( in my opinion) unless it is a good name in an estate pipe, I would start out with a good name brand in the $100-$200 range.

The guys have already listed many so I'll leave it at that.
When you make a commitment you will grow in your feelings about what you like. Size, weight, design etc. In time your taste may even change from what you have bought in your earlier years in the hobby.
My favorite pipe is a Mastro De Paja, purchased from Iwan Reis for $99 new. I like to smoke that pipe better than estate pipes that originally brought prices many times $99. That pipe just really sings for me.

 

[mso489]

On the side issue of reamers, several of us on Forums avoid reamers by wiping out a pipe bowl after each smoke

and maintaining a thin carbon film rather than building cake. Some folks really love to build cake, so it's your

choice. If you go the reamer route, just be cautious. It's easy for an inexperienced pipe smoker to ruin pipes with

a reamer, to get irregular wear going and help a pipe burn out or wear badly. I have pipes more than 30 years old

that are still going strong. I don't own a reamer, and I don't build cake.

 

[warren]

I'll bet you've also seen posts that state good smoking pipes can be found at less than a $100.00. A lot less if you enjoy a cob. Price is an indicator of briar quality, the reputation of the marque, and the build quality (fit and finish).
Your chances of getting a "great" smoker is probably increased as the cost goes up, but that's not guaranteed. Just look at the posts from all of the perfectly satisfied cob smokers. Some smokers consider a great pipe only by its smoking quality. Others factor in shape, lack of fills, how the pipe fits the hand, how extinguished the pipe makes them look. Sorry, distinguished was the word I was looking for. Many use the pipe as an affectation, only infrequently smoking it.
I wouldn't smoke blindfolded as the "visual" part of smoking is very much an important part of the experience. When I smoke for pure enjoyment, as while working, all of my senses, smell, taste, touch and sight contribute. Omit one and the pipe is not as enjoyable.

 

[cortezattic]

newbie said

IMHO when you start getting over $200-$250 your into the beauty, aesthetics and the name

Ya, I'm prone to hyperbole when I'm making a point.
But from hindsight, I have a rack full of "under $100 pipes" -- all of which I would now trade for one Castello.

But at this point in time, they wouldn't bring enough on the eBay market to meet the Castello price.

I realize the situation is a bit different for someone starting out, and in need of a serviceable rotation.

 

[pitchfork]

Generally speaking a $300 or $500 pipe will have a thinner, more comfortable stem and will have a more precisely made airway than a $70 Peterson or a $50 Baragaspatini or whatever. Plus, the stem and shank will fit together more precisely. And the briar will be close to perfect (if smooth) or be a really nice sandblast or rustication. I have a Peterson Donegal Rocky (rusticated) that cost about $85 -- the rustication isn't nearly as nice to hold or look at as the hand rustication on a Castello or Radice.
In any case, if you want nice grain and a light stain, you won't get it for $60. The darker stains make flaws in the briar (sand pits, fissures, blemishes, etc.) less noticeable. Or the dark stain covers small putty fills. Flawless smooth pipes with decent grain are rare and expensive. That Ropp you have posted is some kind of layered wood, like plywood, with a briar chamber. That's why it's fairly inexpensive.

 

[throbinson]

Ya that Ropp definitely was a ply of some sorts but aside from materials used, it probably smoked as well as a more expensive pipe. Also looked cool. Next one I see for sale I'll buy without hesitation.
Reamer, well, I have that lot of old pipes here to clean that are so caked, a few I doubt would fit any tobacco anymore. :D
What was the verdict on Stanwell again? See that the Night & Day's are on sale around $80, though USD prices and sadly some sites don't ship to Canada, which is also a buying factor.
EDIT - sigh, of course, no shipping to Canada.

 

[throbinson]

Yup... Canadian... seems every time I find a nice pipe with a good deal, like that Stanwell, I click to see shipping costs and just flat out rejects me for being in Canada. Sigh.
Though I was talking USD since even on eBay.ca everything shows as USD, and I figured most people here were from the US. That Stanwell was I think $79USD which I was willing to pay because looks really nice, depending what the shipping costs were, but, international shipping excludes Canada. :x
I gotta say, that was exactly the type of answer I was after though... to simply say a $300 pipe is a better experience than a $50 pipe and offer absolutely nothing to back the statement up, wasn't helping me at all with looking at pipes.
But again... will I be smoking in 6 months? no idea... that's why I wanted to go in steps... $10 corn cob, $60 pipe, and if I still smoke jump up to $120, and so on.
USA is lucky for the prices of this stuff... I bought about 8oz worth of samplers from 4noggins for less than what I paid for a tin of Peterson's here, which I had to drive 50min to get because no one locally sells pipe tobacco. :?

 

[fnord]

Ugly Green Avatar:
I really get where you're coming from and have worked my way up through the ranks of burners slowly.
I started out with my dad's Over the Counter burners from the late fifties and early sixties: drugstore Dr. Grabows and Medicos. By the time I got to college in the late seventies I scraped up enough coin to buy a few lower echelon GBDs that are prized collectors today.
I set my few pipes aside for thirty years and when I picked them up again I was looking for champagne on a beer budget. Fortunately, I ran across the following link:
http://www.pipes.org/wp-content/uploads/Articles/Seconds.html
Most of the smokers here will agree that the companies listed in the left hand column made or make good to pretty damned wonderful production pipes. But, they also run into hunks of briar that don't measure up. Ergo, the "seconds" line.
Those seconds won't be the prettiest pigs in the pen but they'll still be worthy of a damned decent smoke. I can also guarantee they won't have the aesthetic qualities you seek - those dark stains cover a multitudes of fills - but you'll get a solid smoke from a chunk of briar stout enough to pass the first couple of quality control checkpoints from a respected manufacturer.
I have several Charatan pipes, but two of the "Tinder Box Unique" burners are in my weekly rotation. I have five Savinellis, but the two Estellas are in my weekly rotation and my GBD seconds get smoked several times a month. (Each pipe was purchased off the Bay or from an antique shop for less than thirty bucks.)
Also, you posted a nice selection of used burners and every one of those pipes - save the Meerschaums - could be brought back to life with a set of micromesh pads, several oz. of bleach, an alcohol retort, a pot of Halcyon II, that GBD pigtail style reamer depicted and a shitload of elbow grease. Total expenditure? Maybe fifty bucks U.S. and a a lot of sweat equity. (If you'd like a "how-to" just shoot me a PM.)
Cheers,
Fnord

 

[throbinson]

When I looked online for info about the pipes, I saw the GBD Reamer listed as a hedgehog reamer and though, wow... poor hedgehog.
Few pipes I want to keep, well 2 for certain... a couple of them though have issues. 2 look like they were reamed out really harshly, the chamber is very uneven and in some spots at the rim are almost touching the bowl. The chamber walls are so thin in spots, one is cracked. Those are the 'test' pipes for my first few restoration attempts.
A couple have some stem issues... one is missing a piece of the lip so I guess needs a new stem, another... not sure what the part is called. Nice pipe, so hoping to fix it with glue but before I do I'll research it a bit more. I have 2 but one is nicer. The tenon (?) is broke. Looks like it and the stem are in 2 pieces, the one piece stays in the pipe, a filter attaches to it and the stem slides over. I think the filter and the piece it slides over snapped and is stuck in the stem.
The churchwarden has a very warped stem that curves back like it should, but also curves to the left.
But again, $2.50 each... few for testing, and hopefully do a decent job on the rest.
Meerschaum though I'm selling... even if I could restore them, I don't want to. Not a fan of the look at all.
Dr. Gabow and Medico, I think I have 3 total of those. 3 are Brighams. I think tonight I'll have to get the bright light out and magnifier and try to decipher the names... can see where they've been stamped but, very very faded.
In the meanwhile, I still hope to get a pipe like that Stanwell, simply because it may be months before I get those pipes done.

 

[fnord]

Ugly Green Avatar:
The churchwarden stem can be made whole again by one of our resident experts and your Meers, depending on the maker, could be two of your best smokers and best sellers if you decide to unload.
Sight unseen, those vintage Brighams are keepers.
Do you here me, pard?
Keepers.
Fnord

 

[boilermakerandy]

IMHO, I think you are focusing too much on the appearance of the pipe. Just buy a quality briar and some good tobacco and start enjoying smoking a pipe. There will be plenty of time later to find the "perfect" pipe. Personally, I wouldn't be interested in that laminated plywood Ropp you're obsessed with if someone gave it to me for free, it offers nothing to suggest it would be a good smoker. I can virtually guarantee a five dollar MM corncob will smoke better.

 

[throbinson]

Well, again, 'smoke better' doesn't make sense to me, given what a pipe basically is... if you're saying that a $60 pipe won't smoke better than a $10 pipe... then I'm saying a $300 pipe won't smoke any better than a $60 pipe and were back to my OP again. :D
Also, you said I'm focusing too much on the appearance, then you dismissed the ROPP based on it's appearance. :D
If it really is the 'engineering' (as someone mentioned) that determines whether or not it's a good pipe, then having a plywood exterior wouldn't affect anything. From what I've read ROPP made a decent pipe when still in business. It's my 'unicorn' pipe.
But, I hear what you mean about quality vs appearance, which is why I started the thread, because a lot of nice looking eBay pipes for way cheaper and wanted to know the difference between cheap/good. At the same time though, I don't have a lot of money, and when I do spend it on a quality pipe, I want to make sure I like the looks of it.
@Fnord - Ya a few here are not bad, and Canadian made like me! But I have no real interest in having dozens of pipes laying around. Maybe 3-6 pipes at most and that's all. I don't have the space or need for a large collection. I have a few Carey Magic Inch's and 1 I want to keep once the inside of the stem is fixed, a Dr Grabow Savoy that looks nice as well (despite the spots where they obviously used filler). And the Chruchwarden, that says Longfellow Real Briar on it... though I find the bowl very small, smaller than any of the other 17 pipes.
The rest, if anyone wants one before I try cleaning them up, let me know else when done they go on eBay.

 

[pitchfork]

Well, again, 'smoke better' doesn't make sense to me, given what a pipe basically is... if you're saying that a $60 pipe won't smoke better than a $10 pipe... then I'm saying a $300 pipe won't smoke any better than a $60 pipe and were back to my OP again. :D

Curious, how long have you been smoking a pipe? "Smoke better" makes sense to most people. The short answer is, if you spend $80-100 on a Stanwell, you can get a fantastic pipe that will give you most of what you want. You won't have a thin and comfortable stem, but if you haven't smoked a lot, you won't notice. Anything above about $100 and you're paying for small niceties in design or in fit and finish. The "smoke" itself won't be much different from a less expensive pipe, all things being equal.
PS, don't buy a briar pipe for $10.

 

[tobyducote]

Ok Throbinson, if you haven't gone back to earlier, archived podcasts, I strongly recommend it. Brian does a great job reviewing different brands of estate pipes that will be excellent smokes, and can be found on eBay, mostly at very reasonable prices. He goes through, Danish, American, and English brands. Brian covers them over the course of 6 or 7 podcasts. If for no other reason, it's a great educational opportunity to learn about other estate options.

 

[freakiefrog]

Well, again, 'smoke better' doesn't make sense to me, given what a pipe basically is... if you're saying that a $60 pipe won't smoke better than a $10 pipe... then I'm saying a $300 pipe won't smoke any better than a $60 pipe and were back to my OP again.

I have 60.00-80.00 pipes that smoke like a dream and I have some the the stems got loose, they have hot spots because of Briar imperfections, the draft holes is a little off. When you buy a $100.00+ pipe what you're getting is experience and consistency. The carver who knows his craft will knows how to shape the Briar or Meerschaum to give you the smoker a long lived enjoyable experience with everyone of his pipes. I'm not saying you cant find that with sub $100.00 pipes because I have and love them.what I am saying is that when you buy a good quality "higher-end" pipe from someone, you're paying for the carvers knowledge as much as the wood in your hand.

Also, you said I'm focusing too much on the appearance, then you dismissed the ROPP based on it's appearance.

The look of a pipe is nothing more than the smokers preference.
I hope this helps you see how a more expensive in fact smoke better. Better briar, grain to bowl direction, stem and draft hole alignment, stem quality. All these things are on every pipe some makers just do a better job of putting the pieces together.

 

[throbinson]

Pipe smoking, like I said, been smoking a corncob for almost a month... $8.99 corncob. I don't have anything to compare with with regards to how well something smokes, and to be honest I like my pipe... tobacco goes in, smoke comes out... but, the way the shank protrudes into the chamber makes it harder to clean, the metal ring fell off after a day, and well, looks a bit hillbilly.
I'd like to get something better, but trying to figure out the 'curve'... there has to be a point (roughly) where the $ amount paid for a pipe stops beings about quality/smokability, and starts becoming about brand/status. Like you said, over $100 it's probably about the niceties.
Same as anything really... a watch having gold plating and diamonds, doesn't make the watch any better just costs more, but, a $100 watch will likely keep time better than a $5 watch.
$80-$100 on a Stanwell, is a bit more than I wanted to spend but, I really do like that Night&Day I posted previously, and if I can find it in Canada, or on a site that sells to Canada I might get it. On sale for $77 on one site, like $33 off... but no Canadian shipping. :S
A few of the 18 estates I have would be good, but, will probably be Feb when I have the stuff (polish, wax, pads etc from eBay) and time to get them done. Be nice to have something good to puff on while I work.
I'll check out the podcasts... never even looked at that section. Joined for the forum and typically dislike podcasts, but... 6-7 podcasts don't sound too bad.

 

[freakiefrog]

The other thing I might suggest is find you a local pipe shop and just see what they have. I saw some awesome estate Petersons and such for 40-60.00 US so that might be an option.

 

[pitchfork]

'd like to get something better, but trying to figure out the 'curve'... there has to be a point (roughly) where the $ amount paid for a pipe stops beings about quality/smokability, and starts becoming about brand/status. Like you said, over $100 it's probably about the niceties.

Absolutely. I'd say $80-100 is where the curve starts to go flat. I've never smoked them, but lots of folks swear by Savinelli, which I know makes some pipes closer to your price range. Also, as others have said, you can find Stanwell estates for around $65. Try smokingpipes for those. Also Sebastian Beo makes an inexpensive, but high quality pipe for about $85. They use pre-molded stems and then finish them by hand, so it's a compromise between cost and quality. But I hear the airways are nicely done.