Limited Edition Lee Star Grades

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craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
5,765
47,541
Minnesota USA
Nope.

Kaywoodie during the war utilized high grade but flawed briar, and hand carved the “Hand Made” series.

Lee pipes were assembly line made.

Let’s go over the unique parts Lee used.

Kaywoodie used a glued in mortise that left an aluminum ring.

Lee Star Grades had a recessed, hidden and invisible when assembled screwed in and glued mortise. A Lee mortise might come unscrewed, but the owner can repair it.

View attachment 163035
The very first? Lees sometimes come unscrewed, but it’s not a problem a few drops of super glue won’t fix.

Kaywoodie had a one piece stinger and screw tenon, that was glued in. Adjustment is often impossible or can only be done by heating.

The Lee stinger is detachable from the screw tenon by the user, near universal pipe to pipe, and the screw tenon on a Lee can easily be re-clocked by the user with a pair of common pliers. It’s better.

Every factory pipe is hand finished.

All Lee Star grades were finished not to a glossy shine, but a warm glow of quality.

If they were not oil cured like a Dunhill was in 1946, Lee did something to make them taste incredibly, indescribably sweet from the first puff. They cake easily.

There are lots of very high condition Lee Star Grades offered online, at a lot lower prices than comparable Kaywoodie pipes and a mere fraction of old Dunhill pipes.

But the fact is that in 1946 the most expensive regularly cataloged pipe on earth was the $25 Five Star grade Lee.

It’s a David versus Goliath story, in post war America.

David didn’t win, but he gave it one hell of a try.:)
 

beefeater33

Lifer
Apr 14, 2014
4,063
6,119
Central Ohio
The pipe! You had it listed as a 1977 Group 4 fishtail. I bought it around November of 2021 (your seller name was similar to your username here). At least I think it was most likely you.
Damn!.............. it probably was me, my E-bay name is the same as here..........
I have sold quite a few pipes over the years............. I wish my memory was as sharp as it was when I was in my 20's.................
 
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Briar Lee

Lifer
Sep 4, 2021
4,760
13,785
Humansville Missouri
@Briar Lee

Still waiting for you to post all your lee pictures in the show off thread!
I need to photograph and display my Lee Star Grades.

It might help dispel any misinformation they were not the world’s best pipe in 1946.

Here’s three I found hiding in my car’s console, not my best, by any means.

B45F4221-435A-4BA6-88A9-C4F3D34AB817.jpeg83B4A14C-8366-4F3C-9CDD-59495DFC72FA.jpegFCAC0111-7059-4538-B77A-6029A390427C.jpegAfter the war, Lee had the best briar selection in the world for a short period of time.

Jguss will tell us more about it.
 

canucklehead

Lifer
Aug 1, 2018
2,863
15,323
Alberta
I need to photograph and display my Lee Star Grades.

It might help dispel any misinformation they were not the world’s best pipe in 1946.

Here’s three I found hiding in my car’s console, not my best, by any means.

View attachment 163144View attachment 163145View attachment 163146After the war, Lee had the best briar selection in the world for a short period of time.

Jguss will tell us more about it.
Do you have any ruminations about the Lord Davenport connection?

Screenshot_20220816-113524_Chrome.jpg
 

telescopes

Pipe Dreamer and Star Gazer
Do you have any ruminations about the Lord Davenport connection?

View attachment 163166
One of those Lee patent pipes showed up on eBay a week ago. I was going to place a bid on it and it disappeared from the site. It appeared to have a very unusual stem and mortise connection. I wish I had a picture of it as it had a parent number on its stummel and looked very unusual.


hF752463E-85FC-47CA-BDAA-8B49503817F4.png

It looked a bit like this.
 
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bassbug

Lifer
Dec 29, 2016
1,112
905
One of those Lee patent pipes showed up on eBay a week ago. I was going to place a bid on it and it disappeared from the site. It appeared to have a very unusual stem and mortise connection. I wish I had a picture of it as it had a parent number on its stummel and looked very unusual.


hView attachment 163170

It looked a bit like this.
How the actual F can anyone take a piece of wood with two holes drilled in it this seriously?
 

canucklehead

Lifer
Aug 1, 2018
2,863
15,323
Alberta
One of those Lee patent pipes showed up on eBay a week ago. I was going to place a bid on it and it disappeared from the site. It appeared to have a very unusual stem and mortise connection. I wish I had a picture of it as it had a parent number on its stummel and looked very unusual.


hView attachment 163170

It looked a bit like this.
I have a Lord Davenport pipe but it has a simple low-class "Dunhill-style" push tenon.