I kept the one my dad smoked but they're just too small for me to safely hold. Tossed them a few years ago.
Is There A Real Difference.
- Thread starter PApiper63
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All of this reminds me of a conversation I had with a friend, a Doctor of Pipes, who collected ultra high end pipes, like Bo Nordh.
I asked him if his Nordhs smoked remarkably better than other pipes.
His response was classic. “They smoke about as well as my Grabows.”
In my experience, a badly made pipe is pretty rare. It’s more about “operator error”.
I asked him if his Nordhs smoked remarkably better than other pipes.
His response was classic. “They smoke about as well as my Grabows.”
In my experience, a badly made pipe is pretty rare. It’s more about “operator error”.
And 92% tobacco. Great tobacco makes any pipe my favorite pipe.
Favorite pipe
He didn't smoke tobacco.
Ok, you are about to be shipped to a deserted island. You need to choose a new pipe to bring. It will be your only pipe. Don't worry, there will be plenty of tobacco.
But, your only choices are a lower priced Peterson or Savenelli.....under $100, or any high end handmade from a master carver.....Tom Eltang, S Bang, Brad Pollman, Teddy Knudsun.....any maker, any price.
Your odds of getting a fantastic smoking and tasting pipe will be much higher with the artisan pipe.
That said, my favorite pipes are older, mostly British pipes.....GBD, Comoys, Barling, Sassini.....
Years ago I bought a bunch of high end handmade pipes, most are sold off now.
But, your only choices are a lower priced Peterson or Savenelli.....under $100, or any high end handmade from a master carver.....Tom Eltang, S Bang, Brad Pollman, Teddy Knudsun.....any maker, any price.
Your odds of getting a fantastic smoking and tasting pipe will be much higher with the artisan pipe.
That said, my favorite pipes are older, mostly British pipes.....GBD, Comoys, Barling, Sassini.....
Years ago I bought a bunch of high end handmade pipes, most are sold off now.
I've got pipes from just a couple of dollars to four figures. Other than pretty packaging all pipes are little more than a straw. The experience is more user based than the equipment used. I'd probably take my giant Ali meerschaum just because it's easier for me to hold.
Ok so does Meerschaum provide a purer taste of the tobacco or is that also hype? I am starting to let my southern US Appalachian come out and realizing a good MM corncob is as good as anything.
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Stems are important to me. I want a high quality comfortable stem. That affects the smoking experience and how I feel about the pipe.
This is the 34th time this subject has come up since I started here. The phrasing is different, but the conclusion is the same:
The smoke from decent, broken-in, clean pipes is the same. All else is a result of attitude, aesthetics, stem, mood, etc.
The smoke from decent, broken-in, clean pipes is the same. All else is a result of attitude, aesthetics, stem, mood, etc.
@Sig Never smoked a Savinelli, so I'd go with what I know - a Peterson. As for an artisanal pipe, since I'd probably have a lot of time on my hands on that island, I'd have a go at making one of those myself. Or several... in time, I might get really good at it. Meanwhile, if you only have one pipe and can't get another it has to be, for you, the best pipe in the world - no?
They'll mute flavors until broken in but smoke like any other pipe once they are.
You lucky duck! If I were like you I could have saved a fortune over the years by just buying basket pipes.
OK, another thought: it might just be me, but - since I mostly have cheap estate pipes - some seem to suit flakes or rolls better than shag. crumble cake or whatever, and it occurs to me that it might just be down to design (or fortuitous aerodynamics). But I find it hard to isolate the objective physics of smoking from subjective and semi-conscious impressions, such as aesthetics or - going right out on a limb, here - the *psychometry* of an estate pipe: that is to say, the subtle electromagnetic record, held in the pipe's very molecules, of the experiences of a previous owner and subliminally 'read' by the new. Now howl with laughter, if you like. I don't care. 