Miniature Pipes by Lee

[Briar Lee]

One of the cheap thrills associated with accumulating Pipes by Lee is that occasionally miniatures turn up for sale on eBay.

O opened a desk drawer and these two wee little pipes were inside, needing smoked.

The Two Star miniature bent pot is 1950’s production, and the miniature Pipe Maker Dublin has one tiny fill, or it looks like at least Three Star grade briar.

Note how Lee used a Kaywoodie style front shank ring on the cheaper Pipe Maker, but each stem fits all other Lee production, except they aren’t aligned.

While very much nose warmers, these are well constructed, excellent smokers, cured by some process where they didn’t need break in and smoke extremely cool and sweet.

 

[mso489]

Nifty little pipes. I don't know the Lee brand. Are they a UK product? That screw-in stem and stinger are like the Kaywoodie Drinkless series; I have come to like my one example of that series, which smokes well and is easier to clean than I thought.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I'm really happy that you enjoy your pipes. That's awesome.

I really like that lighter.

 

[Briar Lee]

Nifty little pipes. I don't know the Lee brand. Are they a UK product? That screw-in stem and stinger are like the Kaywoodie Drinkless series; I have come to like my one example of that series, which smokes well and is easier to clean than I thought.

Lee pipes were distributed by the Stuart Allen Company, in New York City, from 1946 until perhaps the early 1970s.

Although early literature lists a $3.50 One Star Grade (same as Kaywoodie Drinkless) I’ve never seen one.

What you’ll find are a few Two Star Grades, a bunch of Three Star Grades, occasionally a rare Four Star, and more Five Star Grades than Four Stars.

At first, Lee pipes had inlaid seven pointed gold stars, and were $5 Two Star, $10 Three Star, $15 Four Star, and $25 Five Star, in the late forties.

It probably was a mail order operation bthere could have been dealers.

About 1950 the seven pointed star becomes a five pointed star, no loss of quality, and the price is now $5 per Star.

In the 1960’s the stars are stamped and gold foil filled, which soon rubs off.

In the late 1960s or early 1970’s, Lee pipes become all push stems.

A $25 Lee Five Star was likely the most expensive series production cataloged pipe in the world, for many years from 1946 until Lee finally disappears, or Dunhill raised prices.

Briarlee and Stroller were advertised sub brands. A Pipe Maker is obviously a Lee production pipe, but I’ve not seen any advertising for them.

Lee pipes are the same as a Kaywoodie Syncro Stem in construction except:

1. The stinger is removable. Lee made many, many variations on the same little stinger, likely so he could call each pipe “A Limited Edition”

2. A Lee has an improved, recessed, threaded, front fitting for the screw stem, and the read portion is threaded, and not pressed in the stem like a Kaywoodie. The Lee system is fully adjustable, plus a Star Grade Lee appears to be a push stem.

3. Lee had to oil cure his briar, because every Lee pipe smokes great the first smoke on.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

I must say, you are our fore most expert of Briar Lees. You are the big daddy pimp of the Lees. You are to Briar Lees, what Sablebrush is to Chargrins, Chartrans, or was it Bartings, seasanies dots, Bartlets... :::cough cough::: Lesser known British pipes.

I put forth the suggestion that we replace your member with a Briar Lee Expert..,,. No no, that doesn't sound right... I mean, replace the word "member" under your avatar with the title "Briar Lee Expert." Mods, talk this over amongst yourselves. The big guy and you all can make that happen, but if I am not mistaken.... Ooooo, what about making him the "Lee Pimp" it sounds French.

 

[kcghost]

Nose warmers just send the smoke straight to my sinuses. Not good.

 

[Briar Lee]

I must say, you are our fore most expert of Briar Lees. You are the big daddy pimp of the Lees. You are to Briar Lees, what Sablebrush is to Chargrins, Chartrans, or was it Bartings, seasanies dots, Bartlets... :::cough cough::: Lesser known British pipes.

I put forth the suggestion that we replace your member with a Briar Lee Expert..,,. No no, that doesn't sound right... I mean, replace the word "member" under your avatar with the title "Briar Lee Expert." Mods, talk this over amongst yourselves. The big guy and you all can make that happen, but if I am not mistaken.... Ooooo, what about making him the "Lee Pimp" it sounds French.

Please understand that where I live, the tobacco stores don’t carry a Royalton because nobody would pay extra for the lucite stem.

A new Dr Grabow is about forty dollars in the local stores.

Forty bucks is more than this perfect late 1940’s Three Star is worth.



What I don’t understand about Lee pipes, is two things most of all:

1. That Three Star Lee sold for exactly the same $10 as a Kaywoodie Flame Grain. The 1940s customer could select a Flame Grain Kaywoodie in thousands of stores, in every small and big town, handle the pipe, and why did he trust Lee to select his ten dollar briar?


2. Why are there still so many Lee pipes almost new or unsmoked, in boxes? When I buy a new high dollar top of the line pipe I smoke it the day, I get it.

I have a theory.

I own a beautiful Cutco knife, made by Kabar, a very expensive and wonderful thing.

My first wife bought it at a Tupperware party, as a present for me.

Lee sold a bunch of mail order pipes to wives.

What else explains it?

And another nagging suspicion I have, is what if Lee contracted all his pipes from Kaywoodie?

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Please understand that where I live, the tobacco stores don’t carry a Royalton because nobody would pay extra for the lucite stem.

A new Dr Grabow is about forty dollars in the local stores.

Forty bucks is more than this perfect late 1940’s Three Star is worth.

View attachment 101353

What I don’t understand about Lee pipes, is two things most of all:

1. That Three Star Lee sold for exactly the same $10 as a Kaywoodie Flame Grain. The 1940s customer could select a Flame Grain Kaywoodie in thousands of stores, in every small and big town, handle the pipe, and why did he trust Lee to select his ten dollar briar?


2. Why are there still so many Lee pipes almost new or unsmoked, in boxes? When I buy a new high dollar top of the line pipe I smoke it the day, I get it.

I have a theory.

I own a beautiful Cutco knife, made by Kabar, a very expensive and wonderful thing.

My first wife bought it at a Tupperware party, as a present for me.

Lee sold a bunch of mail order pipes to wives.

What else explains it?

Ha ha, I knew that this would trigger another dissertation. Are you sure that you aren't related to my wife's family. I swear you are so much like my brother in law. I love it.

Why are there still so many Lee pipes almost new or unsmoked, in boxes?

What else explains it?

I pose another theory. They didn't sell. No one was buying them. I mean, it's just a guess. But just as viable as Tupperware's impact on the current pipe market, no?

 

[Briar Lee]

Ha ha, I knew that this would trigger another dissertation. Are you sure that you aren't related to my wife's family. I swear you are so much like my brother in law. I love it.



I pose another theory. They didn't sell. No one was buying them. I mean, it's just a guess. But just as viable as Tupperware's impact on the current pipe market, no?

Another desirable plaything i accumulate are Winchester Super X Model On shotguns. I’ve seen four and bought all four.

It was, and is, the absolute best gas operated semi automatic shotgun ever made. All four of mine look nearly new.

The SX1 came out to great fanfare in the 1973 Recession as a 1974 model.

A field grade vent rib cost $350 and a Skeet or Trap grade cost $450.

Trouble was, a beautiful Winchester Model 1400 cost $175 and a Remington 1100 cost $195.

Legend has it some bean counters at Winchester did an inventory in 1978 and discovered warehouses full of unsold SX1 shotguns. So they quit right then, making them. It was cataloged until 1982 and the last one was sold through the custom shop in 1992.

But 85,000 were sold.

Until the recent buying frenzy of everything that goes bang, $400-500 bought a perfect field model and twice that for a perfect Skeet or Trap.

Are they the best?

By far, the best.

Would people pay for the best?

Reluctantly and over many years, yes.

Maybe that explains Lee pipes.

 

[alaskanpiper]

Very cool! The only truly "Mini" pipe I have is an Eltang "mini-mini" or "2x mini" that I just picked up. It's on it's way here now. This colossus comes in at a whopping 3.77 inches and 0.5oz.

 

[Briar Lee]

Nifty little pipes. I don't know the Lee brand. Are they a UK product? That screw-in stem and stinger are like the Kaywoodie Drinkless series; I have come to like my one example of that series, which smokes well and is easier to clean than I thought.

Even more mysterious than Star Grade Lee pipes are the Briar Lee seconds.

No mention is made of dealers, or other sources than the Lee catalog I’ve ever seen.

The catalog page I posted is from early 1946 (because it lists a One Star) and all it says about Briar Lee is

Available at $1.00, $1.50, and $2.50.

Remember in 1946 our customer can go to any grocery store, drug store, general store, even gas stations carried pipes.

On the Star Grades, the customer picked out a shape, then number of stars to determine the price.

More stars, more money, and better briar,,,,but he could pick a shape.

For a Briarlee he just sent money, for Lee’s pick of Briarlee. A dollar, dollar and a half, or two and a half dollars.

Briarlee pipes are not as common on eBay as any Star Grade Lee of Two or Three Star grade.

But they do exist.

I’d put this one at the lowest grade.

But under that stain and carvings are top shelf briar.

 

[didimauw]

@Briar Lee

How's that look under your name???

 

[beefeater33]

Another desirable plaything i accumulate are Winchester Super X Model On shotguns. I’ve seen four and bought all four.

It was, and is, the absolute best gas operated semi automatic shotgun ever made. All four of mine look nearly new.

The SX1 came out to great fanfare in the 1973 Recession as a 1974 model.

A field grade vent rib cost $350 and a Skeet or Trap grade cost $450.

Trouble was, a beautiful Winchester Model 1400 cost $175 and a Remington 1100 cost $195.

Legend has it some bean counters at Winchester did an inventory in 1978 and discovered warehouses full of unsold SX1 shotguns. So they quit right then, making them. It was cataloged until 1982 and the last one was sold through the custom shop in 1992.

But 85,000 were sold.

Until the recent buying frenzy of everything that goes bang, $400-500 bought a perfect field model and twice that for a perfect Skeet or Trap.

Are they the best?

By far, the best.

Would people pay for the best?

Reluctantly and over many years, yes.

Maybe that explains Lee pipes.

View attachment 101366

I collect Winchester model 12's............... Idon't think there's a finer shotgun ever made...........

 

[didimauw]

Oh I have a mini pipe too. It's the stupidest pipe I ever bought. Nothing like it looked in pictures. Smokes like crap too. However, it's a grabow so I'll keep it.

 

[Briar Lee]

I collect Winchester model 12's............... Idon't think there's a finer shotgun ever made...........

There are four, and not five, American market repeating shotguns worthy of engraving, and those are the pre 65 Belgian Browning Auto Five, the pre 64 Winchester Model 12, any Ithaca Model 37, and any Winchester Super X Model One. All four are extremely righteous.

Only an Ithaca Model 37 survived, to have choke tubes and 3” chambers.

But the SX1 was born as an automatic Model 12.

 

[telescopes]

I mean, replace the word "member" under your avatar with the title "Briar Lee Expert." Mods, talk this over amongst yourselves. The big guy and you all can make that happen, but if I am not mistaken....

Well now you've gone and done did it. You've just about gone and made Lawyer Lee a Kentucky Colonel in the eyes of Pipesmagazine.com.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Congrats Lee, they replaced your member.

 

[Briar Lee]

Congrats Lee, they replaced your member.

Remember I’m a great grandson of United States Missouri Volunteer Cavalrymen (plural, all fought mounted under the red, white and blue for Father Abraham) so perhaps Mr. Lee named his pipes after his wife, or dog, or something American. He was, a New York City Yankee, after all.

But poor Lee, lost the race. His pipes are only found on eBay and at yard sales.

He was a brazen soul.

He kept his prices the highest in the world for production pipes.

And usually, the Lee customer could have any finish he wanted on a Lee Star Grade so long as it wasn’t rusticated or carved, and was smooth, and not overly polished.

But sometime in the early fifties, Lee doubled the price of his cheapest Two Star to $10 and made his Three Star $15.

I do not consider a five pointed gold inlaid star Lee less quality than the first seven pointed star series.

For one thing, a five pointed star (actually they are scarcer than earlier and later pipes) gains very shiny stems, and some like this Two Star are fancy carved.

This is on eBay now, for $32. It would likely clean up, but I’m a hard sell over $30.

I’d call that a bent Bull Moose.

I have a Five Star bent Bull Moose of the same five point star era.

This one cost $10, mine cost $25, from the Lee catalog.

 

[bassbug]

@cosmicfolklore....I'm not sure whether you're naturally evil or if you have work at it

 

[cosmicfolklore]

@cosmicfolklore....I'm not sure whether you're naturally evil or if you have work at it

Hey he is a great grandson of United States Missouri Volunteer Cavalrymen, and he likes obscure "highest priced production pipes in the world." And, Mr Lee here can spin a yarn that makes MSO sound like a spring chicken. Love ya, Tom!! I wager that when Mr Lee approaches the bench for his opening statements, that his legal opposition sighs and trembles.
But, if there is anywhere in the world that should embrace this man, we are his people.