This evening was more OJK in an Altinay Canadian.
March Meerschaum Madness - Let the Madness Begin!
- Thread starter metalheadycigarguy
- Start date
When did you find out it was translucent?
Post in thread 'Show off Your Meerschaum Claws Here!' Show off Your Meerschaum Claws Here! :: Pipes: Show Us Your (fill in the blank) Pipes - https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/show-off-your-meerschaum-claws-here.95086/post-36708419
My big skull did something similar in less than 50 smokes, isn't an Altinay, nor appears translucent. A couple of translucent owners here have hundreds of smokes through theirs with little to no coloring.
Do you have a picture of the banana meerschaum? Id love to see that.Both Sutliff D55 and Kendal Gold Banana! I got it just for banana blends.
It's a panel horn, but the shaping and the textured rim were all I needed to make the association. I had looked for a banana blend pipe for several years and this one conveniently dropped into my lap.
Thats fantastic, and its even better that you smoke banana blends out of it, ha.
Always figured it had been, seeing from its original cost, its look, and my previous experience with an Altinay translucent-grade Rhodesian. It might not have been titled as one, but the price and look matched.
Their newest,
And my own,
Both shared visible translucency whether or not the pipe was labeled as an Altinay Translucent
.Before purchase and after and from its very arrival, I took note of the white-amber and splotchiness within and below. If that’s not translucent, I don’t know what is.
That being “Said”, I’ve seen many of their Translucent
pipes come and go that had less visible translucency than their non-titled, “normal grade” pipes. That Translucent bent Dublin floating around in the forums with hundreds of bowls smoked with little to show for instance, beautiful pipe, but when up on the site, it didn’t look like it would really do anything, so I avoided it. The grading system is what it is, and it affects me very little. But because my pipe wasn’t listed as a translucent, does that mean it’s not? I don’t think so. Besides, it’s just a title tacked on by someone. If the image of my pipe above does not earn the title, I’d be both bamboozled and still unaffected all the same. Either way, it doesn’t matter.But in no way do I think that pipes of such quality are only made by Altinay, in fact, I’ve seen many with the hues or speckles that denote a translucent pipe all over the web, hell, often for cheaper. Meerschaum colors wildly and differently, and I’ll call it translucent if it is by definition.
But the title doesn’t really matter. All meers are wonderful, and whether or not the carver notes it as one, if a pipe is translucent in some way, it simply is.
As for your pipe, I’m guessing the block was a very good one, and while perhaps not speckled, it was probably just rich in whatever it is that helps it suck the tars to the surface. I believe one can tell the difference between a stale white meer that won’t color as well and one that will. Do you have any up close images of your skull that we all haven’t seen from before it was smoked?
I posted some when it arrived three years ago, this is the only one I can find. Hopefully not translucent as I don't care for the appearance of it but it did color much faster than many of the translucents I've seen posted and without the application of more wax.
Ah, if it is, I’d imagine only lightly so, but it’s hard to tell. I get spooked out by extremely “translucent” pipes, reminds me too much of tooth translucency, and I don’t need more of that worry in my life regardless of whether or not it’s in my mouth or on my pricey pipe. That and they don’t color that neatly, at least in my experience. It’s a different beast as is to be expected as such. I believe it was my first translucent that had a small hairline crack on the bottom of the bowl near the shank, and while it couldn’t have been more than a mm and a half, it always freaked me out. Unluckily, I only noticed it late into coloring it, and with it, the surrounding area was coloring more than the area around the crack, which reminded me of the first meer I ever had that had developed a hole, and colored much more darkly around it as well.
Either way, that’s a splendid pipe, and I wouldn’t worry about whatever translucency it has, as it seems to be only just surface level around the forehead region, and maybe tucked away in a few of the nooks and crannies.
Perhaps the meershcaum surrounding a rather more translucent chunk of the mineral isn’t fully translucent itself, but perhaps shares the chemical variance that allows it to have an easier time coloring due to some molecular difference in the silicate. Who knows.
I believe I was looking at that one. I'd love to know how it smokes. Is it a typical system internally? I'm familiar with Pete systems...
Essentially yes. This one has a plastic insert in the shank for the tenon to insert into. If this meerschaum Peterson is like my others, it’ll be a good smoker. It’s hard to get a decent picture of shank area.
Attachments
Today's Meerschaum is this SMS bent billiard.
This is what I’ve been smoking the past couple of days. I got this pipe in Nov and have run close to 200 bowls through it. It’s barely colored at all. I have the while paper towel behind as reference. There have been many days where I’ve smoked 3-5 bowls outta this thing. It’s an excellent smoker though so I’m cool with it.
….and yet you continue
I keep considering sending it in for a brown, green, or yellow stem.
Enjoying my Peterson Sherlock Holmes Deerstalker today with some Rory Gallagher in the background.
Happy St. Patricks Day.
Happy St. Patricks Day.
I'm a big Rory Gallagher fan. Enjoy the pipe and the music.
Rory is an amazing songwriter and guitarist. It's a shame he isn't more popular here in the US. He should definitely be in the Rock'N Roll Hall of Fame. With as many great guitarists he inspired and his music he definitely deserves it. I love watching his live performances. Such an amazing talent on stage. Gerry McAvoy is a beast on the bass as well.
I heard a story once where a reporter asked Jimi Hendrix what it felt like to be the best guitarist in the world. His response was "I don't know, go ask Rory Gallagher."