If/Then, Parker/Dunhill

[flmason]

It is the name given to a higher quality and higher priced Dunhill pipe. Those grades are normally given to straight grain root briar pipes.
You might find some listed on www.alpascia.com
I have seen them there before. Others you might used on Ebay.
The NASPC publication The Pipe Collector has had articles in the past with prices on the higher grade Dunhill pipes

 

[mso489]

I have a Parker Cherrywood without a stinger. It's a good little smoker, and getting better. I don't have a Dunhill.

However, I don't think the Parker is a Dunhill second, at least not in the sense that it was shaped and drilled to be

a Dunhill and re-routed on the assembly line by quality control. It doesn't look like any Dunhill shape, nor any

Dunhill shape somewhat modified. If there was a selection made, it must have been at the level of selecting the briar,

and this one didn't make the grade and became a Parker pipe with a Parker design. Dunhill's are mostly handsome

pipes, and price is based partly on quality and partly on reputation. I must say, take any standard Dunhill Group 4

price, deduct $200, and go shopping artisan carver pipes, and I can find hundreds of pipes I'd rather own, for

design, originality, singularity, and maybe smoking characteristics (don't have a Dunhill, don't really know, but

think it's likely). Meanwhile, the Parker is quite satisfying, as good as my more (and much more) expensive pipes.

 

[andrew]

I've got 2 parker super bruyere's, I didn't even know they were Dunhill seconds until after I bought them, and I only paid 12$ each so I was really happy when I found out they were Dunhill seconds to boot. Neither of them have any fills, they're nice and lightweight and they smoke great. The only thing I can think of why it's a second is the grain of the biar used.

 

[jmd110]

drwatson: DR means 'dead root'.

Dunhill pipes are beauty in the mind of the beholder. They aren't for everyone. They range from good to sublime quality. "Facile Est Inventis Addere", meaning it is easier to add to things already invented.

 

[skapunk1]

I own 2 parkers and one dunhill, all panel pipes, all the same shape and size.....and they all smoke great. I bought the Dunhill to make sure, and cause it looked simply gorgeous.
Good topic.
Warren.

 

[uskthunder]

docudson has it spot on with the Yaris analogy. Like any premium merchandise, quite a bit of what you pay is for the cachet. And there is a certain assurance associated with luxury brands in terms of quality and service. Luxury marques that have been going for many years be they pipes, cars, suits or what have you have stayed around because the prices that they set are justified by their merchandise.
There will always be a certain number of detractors citing fatuous consumerism and snobbery. Not me though, I have a healthy envy of them that have the best toys.

 

[mso489]

The guy or gal who sells his or her software company for several hundred million needs some joy in life too,

in addition to good works, good investments, and a new career direction, so if they want to enjoy a super

ubber tobacco pipe, that's a good thing. That guy or gal or I get to smoke a Kaywoodie at the pipe show too,

without embarrassment.

 

[blendtobac]

When I wrote my blog post, what I was referring to is pipes that people buy because they want to round out a rotation. If you're not a collector, seconds are a good way to expand your rotation and usually get a decent smoke for less money. I own a Dunhill, so I can say I own a Dunhill. The other upside about a white spot pipe is that, if it's in good shape, you will probably get close to your investment back, if not more.
Russ