Good Ole Pipe

[agnosticpipe]

I'm sure most of you have a good ole pipe that you pull out once in a while. This is one of mine, I've had it forever it seems, only stamping on it "Imported Sterling Briar". So I assume it's an American made pipe, probably a basket pipe, but with an original sterling band. There used to be some info on the band at one time that I can vaguely see, but cannot make any of it out, even with a magnifying glass. The briar has a lot of patina, some dings and the bowl lines are chipped. The vulcanite is grainy and cannot be polished up very much but feels comfortable in the mouth and does not oxidize easily. There's some history here, but I have no idea what it would be, it's just a good ole pipe that smokes well and is always a comfort to smoke. What you got?

 

[rakovsky]

View attachment 375449

That looks like a Viscount Dr. Grabow.

https://www.mbsdpipes.com/product/dr-grabow-viscount-ajustomatic-82-straight-billiard-estate-briar-pipe/

Can you show the opposite side?
If it's a Grabow it probably has a white spade symbol.
My two best pipes are a Grabow Grand Duke and a Grabow Full Bent.

 

[agnosticpipe]

That looks like a Viscount Dr. Grabow.

https://www.mbsdpipes.com/product/dr-grabow-viscount-ajustomatic-82-straight-billiard-estate-briar-pipe/

Can you show the opposite side?
If it's a Grabow it probably has a white spade symbol.
My two best pipes are a Grabow Grand Duke and a Grabow Full Bent.

Well, I'm sure it's not a Dr. Grabow. Here's another pic of the other side of the pipe. No spade and not a replacement stem that I can tell. Also, Dr. Grabow had aluminum shank adornments rather than silver. It does look a little like one though as far as the shape is concerned.

 

[rakovsky]

Well, I'm sure it's not a Dr. Grabow. Here's another pic of the other side of the pipe. No spade and not a replacement stem that I can tell. Also, Dr. Grabow had aluminum shank adornments rather than silver. It does look a little like one though as far as the shape is concerned.

Maybe a Peterson Shamrock? There are a couple models with that shape.

Shamrock, Irish Pipe with a Silver Band 105 | eBay

Shamrock, Irish Pipe with a Silver Band 105

www.ebay.com

Vintage Peterson Shamrock 493 (Early Republic pre-1963 Manufacture) | eBay

(ubbasket).

www.ebay.com

@Ishmael93 on our forum uses a pipe like that as his avatar, and it says Peterson.

Ishmael93

pipesmagazine.com

Here is a "Parker":

Vintage Parker Smoking Pipe 73 | eBay

Vintage Parker Pipe 73 F? This pipe needs some TLC Cracked bowl and shabby stem Please refer to pictures for most accurate representation Estate find from family home SHIPPING- I will be on vacation 3/20-3/25. If purchased within this timeframe I will not be able to ship until 3/26.

www.ebay.com

It reminds me of some "Bulldog" models.

G. L. Pease - Pipe Shapes

 

[filmguerilla]

When I turned 18 I started smoking a pipe (it was a tradition in my family going back to my great grandfather and maybe further), so I went to a local B&M, Tobacco Lane, and bought two pipes: one of the house (basket) Christmas pipes and a CAO meerschaum of a hand holding the bowl. That was in 1988. I still love to break out the Xmas pipe. It is a prince shape, smooth, and says Christmas 1988 on the side. No other marking. But it has always smoked fantastically, never needed maintenance beyond the typical pipe cleaning, and looks great.

 

[newbroom]

I have the same shape in an LHS pipe. It is a screw in stem though. Surprising capacity for such a squat little bowl too. A princely bulldog.

 

[agnosticpipe]

Maybe a Peterson Shamrock? There are a couple models with that shape.

Shamrock, Irish Pipe with a Silver Band 105 | eBay

Shamrock, Irish Pipe with a Silver Band 105

www.ebay.com

Vintage Peterson Shamrock 493 (Early Republic pre-1963 Manufacture) | eBay

(ubbasket).

www.ebay.com

@Ishmael93 on our forum uses a pipe like that as his avatar, and it says Peterson.

Ishmael93

pipesmagazine.com

Here is a "Parker":

Vintage Parker Smoking Pipe 73 | eBay

Vintage Parker Pipe 73 F? This pipe needs some TLC Cracked bowl and shabby stem Please refer to pictures for most accurate representation Estate find from family home SHIPPING- I will be on vacation 3/20-3/25. If purchased within this timeframe I will not be able to ship until 3/26.

www.ebay.com

It reminds me of some "Bulldog" models.

G. L. Pease - Pipe Shapes

I'm pretty sure that the stamping that says Imported Briar means it's from the US. Also Petersons and Parkers would have a country of manufacture stamp on them, ie. Ireland, or England. I figure this could be any number of US pipe manufacturers from years past. No way to know for sure, but it really doesn't matter to me as it smokes just fine, and it makes it kind of an interesting mystery.

 

[rakovsky]

I'm pretty sure that the stamping that says Imported Briar means it's from the US.

The word "sterling" is noteworthy.

***What Are You Smoking, December 2020?*** :: Pipe Tobacco Discussion

MM 5th Avenue Diplo with some Solani 633.

pipesmagazine.com

Ashdigger posted a photo of a pipe with that marking and a similar silver band, and he wrote, "This is some kind of Comoy second based on the export Hallmark and Stem".

This pipe restorer gets into a pipe's identity with the same marking:

New Life for a Mystery Pipe – an Imported Sterling Briar Author

Blog by Steve Laug The next pipe in the queue is a ¼ Bent Author that Jeff picked up from an auction he follows in Michigan. It is a great looking pipe with some beautiful grain – swirls of birdsey…

rebornpipes.com

 

[agnosticpipe]

The word "sterling" is noteworthy.

***What Are You Smoking, December 2020?*** :: Pipe Tobacco Discussion

MM 5th Avenue Diplo with some Solani 633.

pipesmagazine.com

Ashdigger posted a photo of a pipe with that marking and a similar silver band, and he wrote, "This is some kind of Comoy second based on the export Hallmark and Stem".

This pipe restorer gets into a pipe's identity with the same marking:

New Life for a Mystery Pipe – an Imported Sterling Briar Author

Blog by Steve Laug The next pipe in the queue is a ¼ Bent Author that Jeff picked up from an auction he follows in Michigan. It is a great looking pipe with some beautiful grain – swirls of birdsey…

rebornpipes.com

Interesting reading. My stamping is pretty much the same as the pipes in those articles, but the hallmarks on the silver band are too far worn away to be identifiable. They could have been British sterling marks but I'll never know. But like the pipe reborn briars has but without any hallmarks that are identifiable, this one too will remain a mystery I guess. Thanks for doing all the research though!

 

[rakovsky]

Interesting reading. My stamping is pretty much the same as the pipes in those articles, but the hallmarks on the silver band are too far worn away to be identifiable. They could have been British sterling marks but I'll never know. But like the pipe reborn briars has but without any hallmarks that are identifiable, this one too will remain a mystery I guess. Thanks for doing all the research though!

Does the word "Sterling" in the mark mean Sterling silver, referring to the band?
I am guessing that the answer is YES, and that it doesn't mean "Sterling briar".
In that case, it can mean that the Sterling is imported.
In the article, the person wondered how the silver band could be from a UK company but the briar pipe could be made by a US company. The answer could be the "imported sterling" part.

Why did you think that Imported Briar means it's from the US? Is "Imported Briar" known to be a specific wording that just US pipes used?

 

[agnosticpipe]

Does the word "Sterling" in the mark mean Sterling silver, referring to the band?
I am guessing that the answer is YES, and that it doesn't mean "Sterling briar".
In that case, it can mean that the Sterling is imported.
In the article, the person wondered how the silver band could be from a UK company but the briar pipe could be made by a US company. The answer could be the "imported sterling" part.

Why did you think that Imported Briar means it's from the US? Is "Imported Briar" known to be a specific wording that just US pipes used?

Usually Sterling on a pipe or a band means that the band is indeed sterling silver. US pipe makers did buy sterling bands from the UK to put on their pipes, and that is why the bands sometimes have hallmarks from England. Also US pipe makers sometimes would put imported briar on the pipe to act as a guarantee that the wood was actually briar, but for some reason US pipes didn't always stamp their pipes "Made in USA". European pipe makers usually had the country that made the pipe stamped on the briar. I don't remember all the ins and outs of the stamping business but that is generally the rule.
Now just to muddy the water a little more here's this pipe I've had for a few years. Stamped Pickwick and Imported Briar. Sasieni had a sub-brand called Pickwick, but I don't think this is one of those because they would have been stamped Made in England rather than Imported Briar. Here again though is a sterling band with British Hallmarks but I can't remember what they refer to. Have fun!

 

[rakovsky]

Usually Sterling on a pipe or a band means that the band is indeed sterling silver. US pipe makers did buy sterling bands from the UK to put on their pipes, and that is why the bands sometimes have hallmarks from England. Also US pipe makers sometimes would put imported briar on the pipe to act as a guarantee that the wood was actually briar, but for some reason US pipes didn't always stamp their pipes "Made in USA". European pipe makers usually had the country that made the pipe stamped on the briar. I don't remember all the ins and outs of the stamping business but that is generally the rule.

My Grabows say Imported Briar. I'm guessing they figured less words were better, so they didnt write Made in USA
For comparison about classic continental European pipes, I saw a Soviet pipe on Ebay saying
"Java Moscow Vs"
Java is the factory name, the factory was in Moscow, Bc is Cyrillic for Vs, which I took to mean Vereska (briar).
But another page takes it to mean Vysshiy Sort (Highest grade), which works well as a translation.

Трубка курительная "Ява Москва Высший сорт", дерево, бакелит, Московская табачная фабрика «Ява», СССР, 1960-1980 гг.

Купите Трубка курительная "Ява Москва Высший сорт", дерево, бакелит, Московская табачная фабрика «Ява», СССР, 1960-1980 гг. за 5200 рублей. Доставка по РФ с возможностью оплаты наложенным платежом.

www.monetnik.ru

I saw an instruction sheet years ago breaking Java pipes into sorts/grades, and saying pipes should be made of briar (Vereska).

 

[rakovsky]

Here again though is a sterling band with British Hallmarks but I can't remember what they refer to. Have fun!

View attachment 375681

That page I linked to explained what the symbols on the silver band meant.
They referred to years of production I recall.

 

[rakovsky]

Here again though is a sterling band with British Hallmarks but I can't remember what they refer to. Have fun!

View attachment 375681

Rightward Anchor - T - Lion doesnt come up exactly.
The author on the blog has a downward anchor, lion, and T and it comes to 1943.