Il Duca Barone B3 Natural Lovat

[layinpipe]

Here's the latest addition to my stable, a Il Duca Barone B3 Lovat sandblast with a natural bleached briar finish and a cumberland stem. I've been looking at Massimiliano's Il Duca pipes for quite a while and have greatly admired his work. I love this pipe. It is right up my alley in terms of the blast, natural finish, dimensions and very light weight. The bowl was left naked with no pre-coating, which i prefer over the coated ones. I received the pipe a couple days ago and just finished a bowl of the new Tsuge's Ryujin: God of Dragon english blend i picked up this afternoon at my local b&m. It is a great english with a good nic kick, smooth complex flavor and no bite whatsoever. The pipe performs just as good as i thought it would, with an effortless draw and the bowl stayed luke warm all the way to the white ashes left at the bottom. Stoked on this one, should be a great burner for a long time to come.
Here's a few pics:

 

[maxpeters]

Beautiful pipe. I like the natural finish look on that one. Especially with the Cumberland stem. Very nice.

 

[mrenglish]

I want one of his pipes in a bad way. Nice lovat!!

 

[jah76]

I really have come to like the Il Duca brand. They got some of the best Italian "billiards" I've seen. They have a simplicity about them but there's always a bit of flair somehow.
And the natural finish? Can't go wrong with that.
Enjoy that pipe, its a beauty!

 

[wyfbane]

Congratulations on a great looking smoker. I love Duca pipes.

 

[lonestar]

That is a real nice Lovat Sir !

 

[mso489]

Looks like an extra ample bowl on that one. Great looking pipe.

 

[layinpipe]

Thanks for the kind words, gentlemen, glad i could provide some pipe porn for fellow friends of the forum fold! After i was finished with the virgin smoke of the Tsuge's Ryujin, i let the pipe cool down for a little while then fired up a bowl of my go to and trusted Irish Flake and i kid you not, i was blown away. It was one of those "blissful smokes" we all search for and savor every minute of when we find. The naked uncoated bowl along with the overall fantastic engineering and smoking qualities of the pipe came together with the freshly opened tin of Irish Flake to remind me why i smoke a pipe and really appreciate a high quality handmade briar. That bowl was an hour and 15 minutes of enjoyment and i look forward to many more. I'm considering dedicating the Il Duca to purely Irish Flake if it continues to smoke like it did with that bowl. I'd highly recommend pulling the trigger on an Il Duca if you are on the fence about owning one and PAD should strike, they are worth the money, IMHO.
@maxpeters/jah76, i think cumberland stems is the best combination along with the natural finish and that they really both compliment each other very nicely and tastefully. There is a simplistic but at the same time sophisticated beauty created by pairing the two. And jah76, i agree, you would be hard pressed to find a better italian made example of the billiard shape variety. The stemwork with the rounded edges of the button really provide a unique perspective and look. The fantail opening at the button of the stem in my opinion is the optimal design for an open, cool and effortless draw/smoke.
@mso, you are correct it is a bulbous bowl indeed but not overbearing and cumbersome. I think it fits the size and dimensions of the pipe perfectly. Not too big, not too small and the bore is drilled just right to smoke either ribbon cut or flake tobaccos (the Tsuge blend is ribbon cut and the IF is flake, so i have tried both already). The briar is incredibly light for its size, which is what i prefer. It also allow massimiliano to fit a lot of texture and ring grain around the bowl with his great blast. The virgin finish tells the story in the quality of the briar he selected with the absence of any flaws/pits. It's also a great clencher.
Here are the dimensions of the pipe:

5 1/4" L

1 15/16 " H

13/16 Chamber Diameter

42 grams/ 1.4-1.5 Weight

 

[papipeguy]

Lovely pipe. That has it all going on. congrats and Happy Smoke Rings.

 

[jkrug]

That pipe is a "natural" beauty! Enjoy.

 

[misterlowercase]

Stunning pipe!
Love it.
I also had my eye on it,

but at the same time a coveted WDC was up and that took all my resources.
You got a great deal,

enjoy it well!
Be sure to post some update pictures after a while when it starts to color!
::

 

[layinpipe]

Thanks again, gentlemen!!
Troy, thank you for passing it up for that WDC! I definitely got it for a fraction of its value, as the B3 Barone's are currently priced at $350 so you can do the math there, lol. I really didn't think i was going to get it for that, but i guess it was my day. Knowing the pipe market really helps in getting the best deal possible and allowing you to bid on the right listings and pass on the ones that get out of the desired price range or are not worth the money. It has definitely helped me score an insane deal on both unsmoked and smoked pipes more than a few times!
I'll be sure to post some updated pics after i run a few dozen bowls through it. It has already darkened a little bit from the two bowls i have run through it, mostly from my hands i assume.

 

[peckinpahhombre]

Sweet. I love a natural pipe and that is a beauty. Max at Il Duca turns out some nice stuff - I have one that is a brilliant burner.

 

[saltedplug]

I've been impressed by a number of Il Duca pipes. I was so impressed by a billiard with a cant on Marty Pulvers' site that I thought about how to afford it for a couple of days. Only $470.00. I could have gotten it if I swindled my landlord on the next month's rent, but that would have only worked for awhile. Then there is the hospital to whom I owed money. I could have continued to not pay that bill, but they were murmuring about collections, and I have no desire to talk to them. A friend had told me how to swindle old ladies over the phone, but after weighing the pros and cons, one of the cons of which was having to dodge well-aimed hits from their canes or toppling each walkered wave of the aged walking dead spouting feminine ire, I thought better of it.
Sometimes the price to be paid to pay for the pricey pipe is just too much.

 

[layinpipe]

Mike, i look at Marty's site all the time and love his brutal honesty that he uses for the descriptions of the pipes he sells, as well as in the little articles/essays he writes from time to time on the site. He's definitely a straight shooter and sounds like a hell of a guy with a vast knowledge of the pipe industry, both handmade and factory. I also drool over the Il Duca's he has for sale more than i care to admit. I was doing the same thing you described with figuring out how to shrug more important financial responsibilities to afford a pipe, particularly that beautiful Rad Davis billiard he had sitting up there for so long. In the end, i couldn't afford it and i hate paying retail for pipes unless they are commissions. That said, i have never paid more than $300 for any pipe, but i own more than a few that were worth that or more at the time that i bought them and even worth that or more now. I saved hundreds being patient and being lucky or whatever you want to call it scoring damn good deals on ebay. I also am always on the lookout for up and coming carvers like Jason Cochey and Clark Layton and take a chance on their skills before they get established and the prices are no longer in my realm of affordability. This has so far worked out successfully and to my fortunate advantage. It pays to be a dilligent and informed consumer, regardless of the product.

 

[voorhees]

Lovely Lovat. I have been drawn the shape more as time goes. I currently only have one of that shape but it was part of a group estate purchase. Its a Medico Casino and doesn't smoke that well.

My first commission will be a Lovat will be in the near future.