I picked up a small Mario Grandi pipe on eBay last week and thought I'd do a quick review. Before I bought the pipe I searched this forum for some information and also ran across a few reviews on YouTube.
Most of the reviews said roughly the same thing, that Mario Grandi's are a decent pipe for the price, they smoke well, but that there were often fit and finish issues. There were several people complaining that the stem didn't connect to the body of the pipe well, leaving gaps, or that the stem wasn't drilled or centered correctly.
Knowing that feedback I looked over their eBay listings closely, looking for any gaps where the stem connects or any other obvious issues. Although I saw quite a few of their pipes with issues at the stem, the pipe I purchased looked good and I thought it was worth the $50 opening bid.
Here are some images from the pipe I received yesterday:
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Looks good from this side
Looks good from this side
You can start to see that the stem isn't totally lined up with the body of the pipe
You can see the angle on this picture as well
The picture may not show it well, but the top of the stem is angled and the tip is pointed 15 degrees to the right.
Here's a little better shot of that angle
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It's a good looking pipe with nice grain which is what attracted me to it. The carving was good, the pipe was stained and polished nicely and the stem fit well. There were only two issues with it, the size and the angle of the stem.
The first issue was my own fault, I knew the pipe was to be small as their description was accurate. I just didn't quite expect it to be as small as it was when it arrived. Most of the inexpensive Mario Grandi pipes range from 25gr to 80gr. The pipe I purchased is a 46gr pipe. I don't have a scale but I'd guess my "normal" Peterson and Savinelli pipes are 120 gr or more (just a guess).
The second issue is the angle of the stem. It seems that it was carved a bit off-center. I may not have noticed it if there wasn't an angled edge at the top of the stem. Being a bit OCD it bothers me a bit to look down and see a crooked stem.
That being said I am pretty happy with the pipe. This pipe is definitely a lip-hanger...no biting is required to keep it in your mouth. I enjoyed my first smoke last night while snow-plowing my driveway on my ATV. I almost forgot the pipe was in my mouth the entire time. It is well-balanced and comfortable. It will definitely make a good "work" pipe and should be pretty comfortable to use while putzing around my wood shop.
I would probably purchase from Mario Grandi again, but only to pick up a few more small pipes. Their small pipes range from $20 to $60 pretty consistently on eBay. If I were to make another purchase I'd probably purchase 2 or 3 as they will ship up to 3 pipes for $18. I'd be a little hesitant to spend more than $100 on one of the larger Mario Grandi pipes as it appears that they also have some fit and finish issues which I wouldn't expect in that price range.
Sorry for the wordy write-up. Just wanted to share my experience.
Most of the reviews said roughly the same thing, that Mario Grandi's are a decent pipe for the price, they smoke well, but that there were often fit and finish issues. There were several people complaining that the stem didn't connect to the body of the pipe well, leaving gaps, or that the stem wasn't drilled or centered correctly.
Knowing that feedback I looked over their eBay listings closely, looking for any gaps where the stem connects or any other obvious issues. Although I saw quite a few of their pipes with issues at the stem, the pipe I purchased looked good and I thought it was worth the $50 opening bid.
Here are some images from the pipe I received yesterday:
================================================
Looks good from this side
Looks good from this side
You can start to see that the stem isn't totally lined up with the body of the pipe
You can see the angle on this picture as well
The picture may not show it well, but the top of the stem is angled and the tip is pointed 15 degrees to the right.
Here's a little better shot of that angle
================================================
It's a good looking pipe with nice grain which is what attracted me to it. The carving was good, the pipe was stained and polished nicely and the stem fit well. There were only two issues with it, the size and the angle of the stem.
The first issue was my own fault, I knew the pipe was to be small as their description was accurate. I just didn't quite expect it to be as small as it was when it arrived. Most of the inexpensive Mario Grandi pipes range from 25gr to 80gr. The pipe I purchased is a 46gr pipe. I don't have a scale but I'd guess my "normal" Peterson and Savinelli pipes are 120 gr or more (just a guess).
The second issue is the angle of the stem. It seems that it was carved a bit off-center. I may not have noticed it if there wasn't an angled edge at the top of the stem. Being a bit OCD it bothers me a bit to look down and see a crooked stem.
That being said I am pretty happy with the pipe. This pipe is definitely a lip-hanger...no biting is required to keep it in your mouth. I enjoyed my first smoke last night while snow-plowing my driveway on my ATV. I almost forgot the pipe was in my mouth the entire time. It is well-balanced and comfortable. It will definitely make a good "work" pipe and should be pretty comfortable to use while putzing around my wood shop.
I would probably purchase from Mario Grandi again, but only to pick up a few more small pipes. Their small pipes range from $20 to $60 pretty consistently on eBay. If I were to make another purchase I'd probably purchase 2 or 3 as they will ship up to 3 pipes for $18. I'd be a little hesitant to spend more than $100 on one of the larger Mario Grandi pipes as it appears that they also have some fit and finish issues which I wouldn't expect in that price range.
Sorry for the wordy write-up. Just wanted to share my experience.
