Nope. Those are some mighty terrible Marxman pipes for sale. Pass on most. However-
This
pipe I believe fits your standards. Yes?
MARXMAN Pipes, anyone?
- Thread starter shermnatman
- Start date
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This
pipe I believe fits your standards. Yes?
@didimauw , stay away from any Marxman that has Marxman written in straight block letters and says imported from... These pipes came after the sale to MasterCraft and are not true Marxman pipes made by the old carvers. I have one. It is my six panel, and it smokes very well. But, it is not the real thing. The two above are indeed the real thing.
If I were still looking for Marxman Pipes that one might have gone off the market. As well as the other one, the straight billiard. Properly cleaned and sanitized, that briar is some sweet smoking briar. I have all of my older Algerian pipes ozone treated to destroy all existing odors. The last one isn't heavily rusticated so for more classic looks that one might appeal more than other Marxmans.
I’m beginning to form a theory about what made a 400 a $25 pipe and that Royal a $15 pipe and my beloved “Old Speedy” a $10 Benchmade.
We read where the genuine 400 was so fancy it had a lifetime guarantee and the lucky owner’s name was entered in a book, and before Lee’s $25 Five Star it was the most expensive factory pipe on earth.
So first, there had to be just an extraordinary block of Algerian briar, maybe one in four hundred, on average.
Then one artisan took a 400 stem out of a bin and went to work.
No Jumbo, Super Grain or regular Benchmade ever got these high grade stems:
The 400 attempts were all hand made. If it came out perfect, it was a 400.
If somehow not so perfect, a Royal.
If it had a bunch of fills, it was either firewood or a Benchmade.
The stem on your Royal is a factory 400 grade stem, not a replacement.
I really like the one that’s in the Mail from Blueroom Briars- it’s a bench made but it’s stuck in customs today (that’s what UPS.com says). At least I like the picture. I can’t afford any more. I wanted to try this outlet as I’ve never bought anything from them before.
The folks that don’t believe in the superior smoking qualities of Algerian briar haven’t smoked a few high condition Marxman pipes.
Bob Marx was selling his cheapest pipe for a bit more than a week’s wages of a farm hand at fifty cents a day during the deepest depths of the Great Depression.
My mother’s decent, reliable Model A Ford her family bought her in 1942 cost $20, ready to run.
My father quit high school in 1937 to earn three dollars a day during the Kansas wheat harvest. Then after the harvest it was a dollar a day at most, often less.
Marxman sold luxury pipes.
Today they sell almost for nothing, but in their day they were among the very best.
I look forward to seeing some pictures. I know you will enjoy it.
Completed the refurb on this unique looking pipe. The internals were cleaned out, bowl coated, stem sanded and buffed, chamfered the airway Another application of wax. Been quite a while since I’ve worked on an estate.
Look at the quality of that stem!
Production Marxman pipes had a vulcanite stem, but like this one.
Higher end Marxman pipes got a variation of this stem.
To carve that alligator, the master had to select a certain piece of briar long enough to carve the big lizard.
He couldn’t know until it was done if sand pits were going to ruin it.
It’s not a big stretch to imagine him cutting out a hand made stem from a special stash of vulcanite.
Okay, you win. That's so cool. Congratulations on what I think is the finest example of what Marxman carvers did with their pipes. I could kick myself for ignoring that pipe. I hope it smokes as well as it looks.
That's a nice one! Quickly becoming a favorite shape of mine. Also, even between the wierd carvings, there's lots of beautiful briar!
I think I lucked out. It’s just a bench made.
I would love to own one of those old chunky squat pipes I see in auction now and again. Neat looking pipes.
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I picked this up last week. Neptune. Because I needed a pipe with nipples, abs and a TRIDENT!
You didn't luck out. You scored a beautiful Marxman. That is the ultimate contradiction in terms. LOL.
On an important note to anyone collecting these pipes, DON'T PURCHASE IF THE PIPE'S LOGO IS IN BLOCK LETTERS AND IT MENTIONS THE NAME OF A EUROPEAN COUNTRY. That is, if you are looking for pipe made by Marx. The pipes made by MasterCraft and use the Marxman name have block lettering logos and use a lesser quality vulcanite by a few degrees.
I own one of these pipes. It smokes just fine, but the finish is cheaper and the stem is a much lower grade. I've noted that other MC knockoffs are similar in quality and build.
Just my two cents. Take it for what it's worth.
Fired “The Alligator” this afternoon…
I choose some SG 1792 Flake from 2012. Seemed like a good choice, as the chamber on this is about 11/16” wide by 1.25” or so deep.
This pipe performs well. Smokes effortlessly. Nice even burn. It was obviously smoked quite a bit before I got it, but not abused.
Smoking at a leisurely pace, it yielded a 50 minute smoke. So good I gotta have another.
Is that plume? Bloom? Mold? DILLLIGAF?
LET’S GO!
I choose some SG 1792 Flake from 2012. Seemed like a good choice, as the chamber on this is about 11/16” wide by 1.25” or so deep.
This pipe performs well. Smokes effortlessly. Nice even burn. It was obviously smoked quite a bit before I got it, but not abused.
Smoking at a leisurely pace, it yielded a 50 minute smoke. So good I gotta have another.
Is that plume? Bloom? Mold? DILLLIGAF?
LET’S GO!