Hate to Be That Guy, But...
- Thread starter donjgiles
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No worries. The Cob guys always get upset :puffpipe:
These posts always (always) have the same conclusions. There will never be a right answer.
This weeks podcast featuring Alan Schwartz offering some of the BEST discussion on pipe pricing and lore that I heard. IMHO it is a fantastic episode. The discussion of how and why pipe smokers make purchases is brilliant and Alan distilled it down wonderfully.
I will tune in, thank you Neal.
I will admit, the reason I bought the Castello was due to such high praise sung here and almost universally. I expected the flavors to pour out of it effortlessly. It is freshly cleaned and reamed. Perhaps I am just tasting the sharpness I have heard comes along with these pipes when "young" or the ghost of latakia I taste from the previous owner. I think I am just a mid level pipe guy.
I will admit, the reason I bought the Castello was due to such high praise sung here and almost universally. I expected the flavors to pour out of it effortlessly. It is freshly cleaned and reamed. Perhaps I am just tasting the sharpness I have heard comes along with these pipes when "young" or the ghost of latakia I taste from the previous owner. I think I am just a mid level pipe guy.
No worries, great advice here from the members - I purchased a new Castello Sea Rock (KK) and from first smoke it was an out of this world smoker - first dozen or so smokes where very bright, then after that it tuned in and now delivers sweet/rich flavors of the blends.
- Sablebrush posted earlier.
This is one of those times when I'm in full agreement with Sable. Despite their best efforts, you sometime find a "higher" brand pipe where the drilling is just not where its supposed to be. Occasionally, you find a less expensive pipe where it's drilled perfectly.
eggrollpiper - You say you're off estates for awhile. Do you buy your estates only on eBay by any chance? I stopped buying on eBay a couple of years ago because even with pictures there are no guarantee as to what you are getting problem wise. I buy my estates at antique/collectible shops and malls and antique street fairs. You never know for sure what you are going to find but I've found some nice pipes. I'm currently smoking an Ascorti I found. I also have a rare Peterson Kapp-Royal, a Savinelli Giubileo d'Oro bulldog and a Savinelli Non Pareil Oom Paul. All of these are pipes I smoke once or twice a month and paid less that $30 for.
edit: I forgot to mention my oldest pipe. It's a Salmon & Gluckstein silver banded pipe made between 1890 and 1920. The stamping on the band is for 1890.
I ONLY buy estate pipes from SmokingPipes. They have an entire department that goes through and evaluates them and then goes through and restores them. They do a great job of reaming the cake back and doing alcohol treatments to get as much of the ghost out of it as possible.
I agree with Per Jensen, you shouldn't rub out a flake or coin cut. Personally I've had better experiences with them using the fold and stuff method. The flavors are more pronounced and they evolve and dance so to speak more when I fold and stuff as opposed to rubbing out the flake/coin. With LBF I just take 2-3 coins depending on the bowl that I'm using and fold them over left to right to keep them tall and then just gently work it into the bowl. It typically leaves a good air pocket in the heel of the bowl and keeps the leaf together as the blender intended. This gets better ratios in my opinion and a more clearer picture of what the blender intended the flavor profile to be.
I agree, you can find a really good smoker in a $60 Stanwell sometimes and sometimes you can find a dud in a $200 Savinelli. I think overall however, your chances of getting a dud goes down as the price goes up with pipes, especially when you get into the handmade artisan carvers. I also would second having more bowls before you declare the $160 Castello a dud. Maybe it wants a straight Virginia maybe it wants a Balkan or English blend. Maybe it works better with a ribbon cut than a coin cut.
I hope you find the right blend and packing for the Castello. I hear they're typically some really good pipes and they do have some incredible aesthetic looks.
I agree with Per Jensen, you shouldn't rub out a flake or coin cut. Personally I've had better experiences with them using the fold and stuff method. The flavors are more pronounced and they evolve and dance so to speak more when I fold and stuff as opposed to rubbing out the flake/coin. With LBF I just take 2-3 coins depending on the bowl that I'm using and fold them over left to right to keep them tall and then just gently work it into the bowl. It typically leaves a good air pocket in the heel of the bowl and keeps the leaf together as the blender intended. This gets better ratios in my opinion and a more clearer picture of what the blender intended the flavor profile to be.
I agree, you can find a really good smoker in a $60 Stanwell sometimes and sometimes you can find a dud in a $200 Savinelli. I think overall however, your chances of getting a dud goes down as the price goes up with pipes, especially when you get into the handmade artisan carvers. I also would second having more bowls before you declare the $160 Castello a dud. Maybe it wants a straight Virginia maybe it wants a Balkan or English blend. Maybe it works better with a ribbon cut than a coin cut.
I hope you find the right blend and packing for the Castello. I hear they're typically some really good pipes and they do have some incredible aesthetic looks.
There are so many variables with pipes that you can't predict whether you've picked a winner or a loser. I have a Dunhill that smokes horribly and one of the best pipes I own, and have smoked for 40+ years, is a meerschaum-lined Canadian that was a $20 basket pipe.
Russ
Russ
Indeed. And it's way too early to pronounce the Castello (or Savinelli, or Stanwell, or.....) a dud or anything.
It is one of the pipe community's most popular tropes, the cheap pipe VS the expensive pipe. We like it for so many reasons, how smart we were to buy that cheap pipe, how stupid people are who buy an expensive pipe, what a lie it is to say that you have to spend a lot of money to get a good pipe, pipe snobs are clearly idiots, that it doesn't matter that we can't afford an expensive pipe, etc, etc. It's the class struggle of the piping world, and it's always largely framed in simplistic limited terms. Smoking two different pipes, once, with different blends, proves absolutely nothing, couldn't possibly be a weaker case made, and we're all over it because we LOVE this kind of stuff. 
Sable,
I shall repent, for my wrong doings. For I am but a humble youngster to the serious pipe world.
I completely understand the ongoing debate as I am a photographer, a very gear oriented profession. I have learned that the finer equipment can and will more often,enable more predictable and pleasing results.
I shall repent, for my wrong doings. For I am but a humble youngster to the serious pipe world.
I completely understand the ongoing debate as I am a photographer, a very gear oriented profession. I have learned that the finer equipment can and will more often,enable more predictable and pleasing results.
For me it isn't so much that the cheap pipes I have are better than expensive ones. I simply can not afford very expensive pipes. I would love to buy some of the beautiful pipes I see but can't. It isn't even sour grapes. It's just pleasure in discovering that a cheap pipe is serving me well. Sort of like vehicles I suppose. I'm happy that the cheap vehicle I have spins just like a top. I would love to have a nice BMW. I appreciate the handling and engineering in those vehicles but am delighted that my cheap-o car serves its function for me. I don't think people who have expensive pipes are stupid or foolish. On the contrary I am happy that someone is enjoying those nice pipes. In the meantime I delight in acquiring a cheap pipe that smokes better than expected.
Nothing to repent! Glad you are looking, experimenting, positing.
Now, what do you think of the changes in Lightroom between version 17 and 19?? Or in PS?
OK, kidding, they don't label them that way, but there sure have been a lot of versions. And kidding anyway.
Now, what do you think of the changes in Lightroom between version 17 and 19?? Or in PS?
OK, kidding, they don't label them that way, but there sure have been a lot of versions. And kidding anyway.
No repentance required. I'm with you about photo gear. iPhones take very good pix, but compared to a quality camera and lens set up, they're very limited.
As far as the airway ("engineering") goes, my recently bought Stanwells are nearly as good or better than many of my more expensive pipes. I'm not surprised that yours smokes particularly well. My Stanwells don't have the same mellow taste that many of my other pipes do, but as fair as having a straight, well-drilled airway from bowl to button, Stanwells are consistently very good in my experience.
To be sure, they're not quite as good as most of the artisan/handmade pipes I own (like my Ryan Alden pipes, for instance).
To be sure, they're not quite as good as most of the artisan/handmade pipes I own (like my Ryan Alden pipes, for instance).
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