Since I began smoking a pipe, I've made it a tradition to purchase one of these every year in an XL90 shape. So when this years pipes were released, I was disappointed by a couple things. First, I wasn't a fan of the orange and nickel band. It just didn't look very pleasing to my eye. It wasn't the combination of shape and band. No shape released (and we'll get to that in a moment) looked good with that band in my opinion. The stain was nice and some of the pipes I looked at had some great grain as well. Maybe it was the photos from a particular site? Most of you know the photos from say... smokingpipes.com and pipesandcigars.com are quite different. I suppose that could be a factor. But every site I went to, regardless of the photo technique, had me disappointed in these pipes. That band just didn't work on the pipes. Second, and thank you very much Peterson (dripping with sarcasm, by the way), my beloved shape, the shape that offered such a perfect hand feel, and is just so pleasing to my eye with promises of a thick walled bowl and a perfect smoke... my XL90 was not included in this years line up! I tried so hard to look past these two disappointments. I very nearly ended my yearly tradition early on. But for some reason, I just couldn't bring myself to do it. I didn't want to end my yearly tradition. I'm stubborn like that sometimes. I started looking at pipes based on grain as opposed to shape, as I am a grain junkie, hoping that something would pop out at me. Finally the grain caught my eye in a 999.... oh boy. Now I like Rhodesians, but I'm no fan of factory Rhodesians that have that bead or crease (that indented line thingy... whatever you call it) going around the outside of the bowl. Why's it there? What purpose does it offer? Other than making the pipe look like a UFO from some 1950's science fiction film? Well nothing else was doing it for me and I figured if I was going to keep with tradition, then I better just hurry up and buy a pipe... so I clicked that little button on my screen that says "Add To Cart" or whatever. Yeah I just bought the dang thing regardless of whether I liked it much or not... weird, perhaps unwise, irresponsible, senseless... definitely foolish. But I did it anyway. Take that Peterson! Leaving out my favorite shape... putting that stupid band on the pipes. I don't care. I'm buying one anyway! How do you like that?!?
Ok.... now I humble myself. Perhaps for some reason the band color along with the shapes they chose and the stain made the pipes very un-photogenic. I don't know. I opened the box, took the pipe out of that all too familiar green sock, and fell in love. A Peterson shape I don't like, a band I don't like on the shape I don't like, a 999 instead of my beloved XL90, and I fell in love anyway. Basically these pipes are not done any justice by photos. In hand and in person, they are actually quite nice! Still the 999 is a bit smaller bowled than what I prefer, but I could see the benefit in that. It doesn't look like it would be a good clencher (which I don't do often anyway) but I stuck in my teeth and let it hang a bit anyway, and it was actually quite comfortable. I didn't want to like it... "I hope it smokes terribly!" I said to myself. So instead of waiting until St. Patty's Day to light it up, I decided to try a bowl in it. I loaded up some Maricoxi, an aromatic from Cup'o Joes and put flame to tobacco... and the CURSED THING SMOKED LIKE A CHAMP! CRAP! Everything about the pipe, in person, as opposed to in photos, is actually quite nice. Even the shape. Even that stupid orange and nickel band.
So everyone, if you're kind of hung up on this years pipes and can't decide if you want one or not, I would suggest perhaps going to a B&M and perhaps looking at one in person. Because the photos just don't do them justice at all.
And Peterson.... If you don't bring back my beloved XL90 for next year's St Patty's Day pipe, I'm going to be pissed! But I might choose a 999. I'm not sure. Maybe.
Ok.... now I humble myself. Perhaps for some reason the band color along with the shapes they chose and the stain made the pipes very un-photogenic. I don't know. I opened the box, took the pipe out of that all too familiar green sock, and fell in love. A Peterson shape I don't like, a band I don't like on the shape I don't like, a 999 instead of my beloved XL90, and I fell in love anyway. Basically these pipes are not done any justice by photos. In hand and in person, they are actually quite nice! Still the 999 is a bit smaller bowled than what I prefer, but I could see the benefit in that. It doesn't look like it would be a good clencher (which I don't do often anyway) but I stuck in my teeth and let it hang a bit anyway, and it was actually quite comfortable. I didn't want to like it... "I hope it smokes terribly!" I said to myself. So instead of waiting until St. Patty's Day to light it up, I decided to try a bowl in it. I loaded up some Maricoxi, an aromatic from Cup'o Joes and put flame to tobacco... and the CURSED THING SMOKED LIKE A CHAMP! CRAP! Everything about the pipe, in person, as opposed to in photos, is actually quite nice. Even the shape. Even that stupid orange and nickel band.
So everyone, if you're kind of hung up on this years pipes and can't decide if you want one or not, I would suggest perhaps going to a B&M and perhaps looking at one in person. Because the photos just don't do them justice at all.
And Peterson.... If you don't bring back my beloved XL90 for next year's St Patty's Day pipe, I'm going to be pissed! But I might choose a 999. I'm not sure. Maybe.
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