Has Peterson Quality Really Declined?
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I'm not certain those pits inside the shank are going to cause much if any problem other than a bit more use of a shank brush when cleaning the pipes.
Reading some of the Peterson slamming here, I don't doubt it (why would anyone lie?); my Petes were from the early 70's, latest one I bought was 2008, system pipe. Never had a bad one. Sure hope the newer ones really haven't all gone down the drain. When a Pete is right, it is good.
I've had no issues with Peterson, and mine have all been purchased after 2012 new. From what I understand, Peterson prides itself on quality. That being said, they pump out a ton of pipes. It only makes sense that a few bad apples will slip by inspection. It is unfortunate when it happens for sure. Yet in most cases when there was a quality issue, that I've heard of, Peterson has replaced the pipe themselves if not already done so by the place of business the pipe was purchased from. As it goes, though, it seems that whenever the word Peterson pops up, the Anti-Peterson people pipe up (pardon the pun). I recently purchased a St. Patrick's Day Peterson. I buy one every year. I'm expecting there will be no issues with it.
Petes have always been my go-to pipe, since the 1970s in Ireland when I first took up the hobby. In those days practically all university/college students who smoked a pipe smoked Petes because they were available and affordable.
At present I have six of them: two Kinsales, a pair of Mark Twains special edition, a Dracula, and a Fisherman. I'm currently wondering about getting one from the Atlantic series.
In other words, I'm a fan. Every single one of my Petes has smoked well straight out of the box and quality has never been an issue (allowing for the price point). I would quite happily recommend a Pete to any new pipe smoker.
At present I have six of them: two Kinsales, a pair of Mark Twains special edition, a Dracula, and a Fisherman. I'm currently wondering about getting one from the Atlantic series.
In other words, I'm a fan. Every single one of my Petes has smoked well straight out of the box and quality has never been an issue (allowing for the price point). I would quite happily recommend a Pete to any new pipe smoker.
I have 22 petes, 6 estate system pipes, 3 new system pipes and the rest non-system pipes new in the last year. They all smoke well. The draft holes are all centered, but all are slightly high in the bowl. I have not experienced any issues with the quality. Despite the draft holes being slightly high and they smoke fine. I can smoke them all down to the bottom with no issues. I typically don't smoke a bowl down to the last bit of tobacco, as the last bit to me always is less than stellar.
Being that my Peterson experiences are from pipes that are either 15 years old or less than a year old, I can't speak to the pipes from 3-15 years ago. Typically that is the 'window' of time I see the quality questioned.
In closing, I have heard a lot of both Peterson praise and bashing. But, to me there is just something about Petes that speak to me. The style, the variety, the look, the seasonal pipes. I'm hooked on Petes, that's for sure.
Being that my Peterson experiences are from pipes that are either 15 years old or less than a year old, I can't speak to the pipes from 3-15 years ago. Typically that is the 'window' of time I see the quality questioned.
In closing, I have heard a lot of both Peterson praise and bashing. But, to me there is just something about Petes that speak to me. The style, the variety, the look, the seasonal pipes. I'm hooked on Petes, that's for sure.
The number of posts on this thread illustrates the strength of the brand. I believe foggymountain and others who have known the brand for many years, that the quality has wavered, in some cases perilously. But my six or so Petes, bought new and mostly modestly priced, have demonstrated good quality and durability. I'm not a fan of the P-Lip, but I own one, a Rhody 999 Killarney, and enjoy it. The solidity of design on Petes has an undeniable appeal.
Besides the quality control issues the other problem is dip staining the entire stummel which is the sloppy quick way of doing it. This results in a coating in the bowl that makes them tough to break in. Some people wipe the inside of the bowl with alcohol to remove the stain from new pipes. I would prefer to spend my money elsewhere.
I don't think its a good idea to be wiping any solvents inside the bowl! But then, none of my Petes have needed it. Bowl coating should be specified by the maker or seller; I deal with most of them, prefer an uncoated bowl and just smoke my way through all the rest till submission.
I have had some problems with quality control, and everyone knows how much I favor Peterson. One of my 107 Irish Harps developed two huge cracks down the rim and I'm trying to decide what to do with it. However, Peterson is usually good about making up for problems--as a result of one series of problems they sent me a House pipe that I wasn't personally fond of, but I mangaged to sell it on eBay for $400. They are good about making up for problems. One of these days I hope to get a gray churchwarden with a finish that won't bubble off.
Maybe I'm just lucky but I have over thirty Peterson's and haven't had a drilling or misalignment issue yet. I love my Peterson's both in the way they look and the way they smoke. Some do seem to get out of the factory that shouldn't but the overall percentage is pretty low and Peterson will fix it if you bring it to their attention. But then again you sometimes have to bring a BMW back for warranty work too.
Ditto on the styling and smoking quality of the Petes. When I started looking for pipes on the internet and saw the Draculas, I was immediately drawn to it. Something about Petes simply grab me--the heavy thick shanks I think is what does it. The Peterson Pipe looks substantial, not wimpy. Half of my collection are Petes and they all are great smokers.
First pipe I ever bought was a Peterson. I didn't even know that's what it was. Never even heard of Peterson. I was 16 or 17 and walked by a tobacco shop that was right on the corner of the intersection and was curious at the stuff in the windows, I had been smoking cigarettes, so I walked in. There was this really cool, absolutely beautiful pipe on the wall. The size of the bowl, the shape, the curve of the stem was just perfect. I was in love. I bought it right there on the spot for $5, and a tin of Mac Barens. Wish I still had that pipe. Never saw another one like it since.
Used to buy cigars there as well. That is where I first started smoking cigars. One day I wanted the absolute best cigar experience, I wanted to know what the best cigar tasted like! It was really steep, I could not believe I was paying that much for a cigar, but I had to know what such an expensive cigar tasted like and so threw caution to the wind and went for it. It was 89¢
Used to take those cigars and pipes with me on the way to school. Used to smoke the cigarettes and pipes right there in the classroom. Don't remember if I smoked the cigars in class. No problem. Used to get jokes about the pipes. You know--- it was high school! I was the only student walking around who smoked a pipe. It was usually an Oom Paul. At least I had a little class. Hey. It was the 1970's.
That tiny little shop is long gone now. Sure wish it was still in business.
Used to buy cigars there as well. That is where I first started smoking cigars. One day I wanted the absolute best cigar experience, I wanted to know what the best cigar tasted like! It was really steep, I could not believe I was paying that much for a cigar, but I had to know what such an expensive cigar tasted like and so threw caution to the wind and went for it. It was 89¢
Used to take those cigars and pipes with me on the way to school. Used to smoke the cigarettes and pipes right there in the classroom. Don't remember if I smoked the cigars in class. No problem. Used to get jokes about the pipes. You know--- it was high school! I was the only student walking around who smoked a pipe. It was usually an Oom Paul. At least I had a little class. Hey. It was the 1970's.
That tiny little shop is long gone now. Sure wish it was still in business.
Just got a brand new pete Aran while the Briarwork was flawless the stem was not>it went dull losing the factory shine and i had hell of a time to have this shine restored back(micromesh pad did the trick)nevertheless,how they do allow pipes in this condition leaving their factory,,and this was not the first time this occured,always it was something odd with stem finish,moreover,I did learn today reading out the warranty slip and it reads:Peterson factory warranty does not cover stem issues they can be replaced at nominal cost'
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