Lane Limited Benchmade $10 Algerian

[Briar Lee]

Would they, though? Not all of the Mediterranean briar-having countries were ones Lane might've wanted to be associated with during that time.

They seem to have been proud of Corisican (Italian) briar, it seems like left over $10 London Made pipes.

Here is a page from the November 1942 Wally Frank catalog. Lane also had Corsican briar $10 English pipes.


By November 1942 Wally Frank had about ran out of pre war briar pipes to sell. There are cobs, Kristen’s, Calabashes, clays, and these “burl root pipes”.



During the war, although there were rationing and wage and price controls the burl root diggers in California and North Carolina probably were not controlled. Agricultural products were left to fluctuate and the tendency was higher.

For example it takes several years to increase beef supplies. You can have lots of chickens and hogs in a few months. And the Germans generally left fishing boats alone, as the Allies did theirs.

From reading the old magazines the domestic burl roots were beautifully grained, but not as fireproof as imported briar.

And France (Algeria) was an ally and Algerian briar seems to have been the last imported briar to get scarce.

Likely because it was the least desirable and it was aged longer.

 

[Briar Lee]

By April 1943 Wally Frank was extolling the virtues of “All American from bow to stern” North Carolina briar root pipes.

Note he discusses the scarcity of vulcanite, hard rubber, which is going towards the war effort.

And the All American featured a stinger made of bone, because aluminum had also gone to war.