Thought I'd pass on a recommendation about shopping for pipes after having seen thousands "up close and personal" from working on them for over 50 years.
Because the convenience of sticking to certain manufacturers & brands is so high---especially in a smoker's early days where he is long on desire but short on experience---it's common to stick with a brand or two a la Ford or Chevrolet.
Like car companies who occasionally make models that are turkeys and have assembly plants with different build quality ratings, though, pipe producers also vary in their output.
Meaning, use a brand's reputation only as a starting point when shopping.
Even within the same line and production batch, there are always differences from specimen to specimen.
The pipe below was chosen because it's a Peterson---a company that catches a lot of QA grief from time to time on this board---and it was made in 1999, which is considered one of the company's low periods for paying attention to detail.
It is, however, perfect.
The stummel has 100% full and dense grain coverage with no flaws (not even a sand speck), every line is cut accurately, all silver is shrink-wrap tight, shank/stem alignment is spot-on, the nomenclature is straight and crisp, the color is beautiful and rich, and the airway enters the chamber perfectly on center and at the right height.
(Length is 5.9" and weight is 41 grams for anyone who might be curious. The model is X105.)
How did I manage to find it? The same way I found every pipe I own: by starting with a certain brand, then moving on to shape, then eyeballing the specimens on offer. If nothing looks good enough to buy, I don't. If it does, I jump on it.
Like nuking Alien hives from orbit, it's the only way to be sure.
Because the convenience of sticking to certain manufacturers & brands is so high---especially in a smoker's early days where he is long on desire but short on experience---it's common to stick with a brand or two a la Ford or Chevrolet.
Like car companies who occasionally make models that are turkeys and have assembly plants with different build quality ratings, though, pipe producers also vary in their output.
Meaning, use a brand's reputation only as a starting point when shopping.
Even within the same line and production batch, there are always differences from specimen to specimen.
The pipe below was chosen because it's a Peterson---a company that catches a lot of QA grief from time to time on this board---and it was made in 1999, which is considered one of the company's low periods for paying attention to detail.
It is, however, perfect.
The stummel has 100% full and dense grain coverage with no flaws (not even a sand speck), every line is cut accurately, all silver is shrink-wrap tight, shank/stem alignment is spot-on, the nomenclature is straight and crisp, the color is beautiful and rich, and the airway enters the chamber perfectly on center and at the right height.
(Length is 5.9" and weight is 41 grams for anyone who might be curious. The model is X105.)
How did I manage to find it? The same way I found every pipe I own: by starting with a certain brand, then moving on to shape, then eyeballing the specimens on offer. If nothing looks good enough to buy, I don't. If it does, I jump on it.
Like nuking Alien hives from orbit, it's the only way to be sure.
