Most and Least Favourite Carvers and Why

[wyfbane]

Favorites in no particular order:
Clark Layton, his precision and sense of aesthetics are just terrific

Paulo Becker, my becker is beautiful and an amazing smoker

Massimiliano Rimensi, Love his pipes, particularly his morta pipes

JT Cooke, his finishes are awesome and the pipes smoke. so. good.

Rad Davis, I only have one of his earlier pieces, but it looks great and smokes like a champ.
Not favorites,

Haven't found a Tinsky that floated my boat, but I love quite a few of Jack Weinbergers designs (So add him up above. lol)

 

[pipesmoker66]

I'd like to add a few comments too. It should be noted that I love artisan pipes but am a bit swayed by pricing. Some people's prices are just stupid in my opinion. I tend to gravitate to the semi-affordable stuff that's not too far off the path in terms of design. I really hate the modern art / sculpture looking stuff, so that weighs in to my thoughts as well.
Favorites:

-J. Cochey / Briar Bird pipes: I absolutely love his work! He rarely puts out a pipe that I don't care for. His Albatross line is very affordable and are great pipes. His higher end "numbered" pipes of the year are fantastic as well. I have two of his and they smoke perfectly.

-Mark Balkovec: I think Mark Balkovec's pipes are some of the best I have ever seen. His pipes are perfection.

-Grant Batson: Love his work but... $$$$

-Rex Walden: I love the look of Rex's pipes and they are quite affordable as well.

-Eric Gainey: Beautiful pipes! He rarely makes one I don't love the look of.

-Daniel Mustran: Some very cool pipes. A bit of a stretch for my tastes but some are magnificent.
Least Favorite:

-Olie Sylvester / Monstrosity Pipes: I just don't get it.

-Werner Mummert: If I wanted a modern art sculpture I'd buy a modern art sculpture.

-Joe Case: Don't understand the hype and pricing.

-Rick Black: Just can't get in to his pipes.

 

[lordofthepiperings]

Favorites
Walt Cannoy- He truly has an eye for what shape the briar wants to be. On top of that his suede blast is, in my opinion, unmatched on the market. I love the white stems as well by the way.
Nate King- Nate is really good at doing some outstanding classic shapes as well as some innovative out of the box ones like his Microphone Pipe. I don't own one, but I got to see and handle a few in person at the West Coast Show and his engineering is done very well.
Don Warren- He's new to the carving world, but the two pipes I have from him are wonderful. I think his engineering of the pipe is beyond a lot of people who have only been carving pipes as long as he has, around four or five years. He has a tremendous talent for carving the old school Danish style freehands which I love.
Least Favorite
Joe Case and Rick Black- I'm lumping them together because all I've typically seen from them are pokers pokers and more pokers. They seem to have over killed the shape to try and cash in on that market since it's hot right now.
Werner Mummert- I have to say I like his creativity. Personally I call him the Picasso of the pipe world. When it comes to pipes though I want something I'm going to smoke often and I just can't see myself smoking the pipes he carves often. He's very talented, I just can't see myself reaching for a rubix cube pipe very often.

 

[foggymountain]

Most Favorite is Lasse Skovgaard. Wonderful pipes made of top quality briar, no stain taste.

Least Favorite is Peter Heeschen. Also beautifully carved, but both pipes I had by him smoked badly because of an obnoxious red stain. It tasted and looked like the awful stain Charatan used in the 1950s.

 

[mindovermatter]

Good forum, bumping it for more opinions!

 

[mso489]

The late Bob Hayes, an award winning North Carolina pipe carver, is well worth remembering, and watching for his pipes as estates. Also, a salute should go out to the industrial designers who give us the shapes and styles of thousands of factory pipes, and some of the all-time master carvers who also supplied designs for factory pipes, such as those done for Stanwell by Sixten Iverrson. Nording similarly does original designs and factory pipe designs.
My least favorite carvers are those I have not yet learned to appreciate.

 

[peckinpahhombre]

Holy Necrothread, Batman!

 

[jpmcwjr]

From the graveyard: I'd have to say this tidbit is worth reading the whole thread for.

A whole crapload of young carvers whose fussy little confections are priced to bilk the suckers.

My feelings but said better than I could.
None of the freehand carvers cited above are among my favorites, though I admire much of their work. I can't stand metal parts of a pipe other than bands. I.e., no metal stems, bowls, even stingers, but then real carvers don't do that shit, do they??
Favorite carvers among the pipes I have: Ryan Alden, Gustavo Cunha, Scotty Pierson.

 

[seacaptain]

I'm not really into custom pipes. I did have an Axmacher pipe once. Nothing wrong with it, but I guess I'm not sophisticated enough to understand it's supposed to be 5x better than a Savinelli.
I will say though, that I really dislike the Mummert modern art nonsense. There was an epic thread a few years ago discussing one of his $600 children's block pipes.
Here's an example of a Mummert gauche lint roller disguised as a pipe.

 

[thomasw]

This is a fantastic necro-thread filled with a lot of information to consider.
After reading through this thread back in September of last year (as well as a few other threads) I decided to order a dream pipe: a Michael Parks for Christmas of 2018. Michael has been so thorough in his correspondence. Even though my order is likely a smaller commission in the World of Michael Parks' Pipes, he has taken great care with me nonetheless. it is that kind of attention to detail which makes him the finest carver with which I have made a commission.

 

[Chasing Embers]

After reading back through it, my likes and dislikes are still holding up.

 

[philipa4]

Resurrecting a great thread here.

My favorite pipe makers so far:

Michael Parks:
I have had the honor of purchasing several Parks pipes over the last few years, as well as working with Michael on commissioned pipes. His pipes IMHO are nothing short of AMAZING! His smooth and blasting work is just STUNNING. Every Parks I have smokes like a dream. Amazing stem work. He is also just about the nicest guy you could ever talk to or work with. This guy is just on another level.

Viktor Yashtylov:
Also makes stunning pieces, tries to accommodate the buyers requests in the designs, and love his magnetic stem work.

Jeramiah Sandahl:
Here is a great up and coming pipe maker who is starting to produce some very high quality pipes. I have owned several and they have all been fantastic smoking machines. Wonderful stem work and another absolutely fantastic guy to work with.

Larry Roush:
All around great pipes. I don't love all his shapes, but if you find the one you are looking for, He does amazing work!

 

[cigrmaster]

Rad Davis is still my favorite with 22 pipes of his in my collection.

 

[briarbuda48]

Based upon the pipes I own/owned.

Favorites:

Brian Ruthenberg, I have seven and they all smoke fantastic.

Bill Walther, I have two. A bent Rhodesian is my favorite Virginia Pipe.

Jesse Jones, the one I own is a great smoker. I smoke primarily Virginias in it.

Ryan Alden another great smoker used for latakia forward blends (thanks to whomever put this up for sale!).

Steve Morrisette, I have two I am getting familiar with. They are beautiful, light and elegant. One is a Virginia pipe and the other is for blends with latakia. Both smoke superbly.

Those I found lacking:

Dunhill, I had a group two Zulu that smoked okay. I traded it for a lot of tobacco. I struggle seeing the value.

Ardor, visually, the pipe was beautiful. Engineering wise it was mediocre at best. It was the worst smoking pipe I ever had. Nothing I tried kept it from gurgling or scorching my tongue. And, every tobacco I smoked behaved as above. Traded it for a bunch of tobacco.

I hope the new owners fair better than I did.

 

[mso489]

Mostly, even if I wouldn't care to smoke pipes by various carvers, I still enjoy them as works of craft and art. One common turn-off for me is simply using too much material to create a work of art that make the pipes bulky and unwieldy though they may be beautiful. In some cases, the finish and metal or work in other materials may be so striking and special that I cannot visualize how it would bear real wear. It seems patina would only make it shabby rather than vibrant. Some artisan pipes look made for the pipe stand or the display case, not the hand, not the ember. But some of those Beckers, etc., have it just right, form and function. They seem to want to jump into your pocket and come along for the ride.

 

[shanez]

There are so many amazingly talented artists out there right now I can't/wouldn't choose just one. That being said my favorite new artist is Doug Finlay. I bought one of his pipes (posted here: Doug Finlay ) and I absolutely love it. His work is elegant and his geometry inside and out is impeccable.

I'm also admiring artists who add a whimiscal dimension to their work. I would love to have this Constantino Maccarone pipe (even though it's out of my range):

A nice looking pipe to be sure, but it's the holder/display that brings the whimsy:

All of the artists are so good, even if they carve a particular pipe that's not to my liking, that I don't think saying "least favorite" is applicable. The only thing I don't care for is when an artist keeps making the same derivative pipe over and over. Pokers over and over by the same artist was mentioned earlier in this thread and I agree with the sentiment. Talented artist, nice pokers, but carve something else for a change.

 

[voorhees]

Since this topic in 2015 I still don’t have many artisan pipes, I can without a doubt mention Ryan Alden as a current favorite of mine. And while Brian Rowley made a fantastic Growley that I love he is now making fine leather goods. But will still turn out a commission if requested. Scottie Piersel has fantastic wood turning ability. And the recent acquisition of a Mimmo Provenzano ranks quite high as well. And little known maker Walt Hettinger.

Makers that didn’t quite turn my fancy?
Elena Doroshenko. Only due to balance. Pipe is a bit forward heavy, even with the use of bamboo.
Tsuge Ikebana. I only have a small gripe. It’s narrow stem. Smokes wonderfully, but a fantail stem would make a world of difference.

 

[bluegrassbrian]

I’ll only mention makers who’s pipes I’ve smoked.
My top 5 in no real order is Martelo (Gus Cunha), Scottie Piersel, Michail Kyriazanos, Konstantinos Anastasopoulos, and Max Capps.

There’s quite a few makers who’s style I don’t care for at all and for that reason I’ve never owned any of their pipes. I’m not in to the American/neo-danish feel of 1/8 bent bulbous teardrop shanked apples and such.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Ryan Alden, Martelo (Gus Cunha), Scottie Piersel, Michail Kyriazanos, and Kenny Barnes. Not in any ranking order. All fine folk and great carvers. There are some who put out huge pipes, can't recall names. Overly fancy stuff, too, again, no name. The Maccaronne above would be an exception. That one is fantastic.

I've omitted specifics as to what I don't like as they are all factory bits, and my take is that this thread is about artisans.

 

[hauntedmyst]

Favorites
Dunhill - classic English pipes.
Bill Taylor - Took his Dunhill experience and made his own way with it, injecting his own style.
Castello- Wonderfully practical but artistic twist to pipes.
Caminetto - Italian pipes at a reasonable price.
Larry Roush - Defined his own style. You can recognise his pipes across a room
Jim Cooke - Jim could sandblast a dog turd and make it look amazing.
MIchael Park - when he lets himself go wild he make amazing things
Trever Talbert - Halloween pipes.

Least
Tinsky - Worst smoking pipe I ever had and worst customer service experience.
Most American boutique carvers - They look like Danish pipes that never tried to find their own style. 30% of them look like briar carved into sperm. No. Just no.