Richards Sheffield pipe tamper

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stvalentine

Part of the Furniture Now
Jan 13, 2015
808
13
Northern Germany
I´ve giot this together with a lot of old pipes. It´s an old Richards Sheffield pipe tool and I gave it a quick and dirty polish tonight. Richards is one of the old traditional cutlery makers of England. They have been manufactoring cutlery since 1839 when in 2007 they got into financial trouble and were bought by the Dutch Amefa group. Meanwhile most of their products come from the far east.

As I collect traditional pocketknives the name Richards certainly rings a bell for me. This old and tired pipe tool should be made in Sheffield back in the "good ol´days". It´s pretty common so you should have one too anywhere in a drawer... :wink:



 

mikestanley

Lifer
May 10, 2009
1,698
1,126
Akron area of Ohio
I just recently picked one up for a wiener sandwich on eBay. My only complaint is its a touch large for most of my pipes. I smoke mainly 3.4" smoke chambers and it kinda bumps the rim when I go deep. Otherwise and for my pot shaped pipes, its great.
Mike S.

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
8
Topeka, KS
Stval:
I need another tamper like one more hole in my head but I've always loved that style.
Mike, what in the hell is a wiener sandwich? Urban Dictionary didn't help, but if you're talking about the kind of wiener sandwiches I ate as a kid I'm guessing you got it for a really low price.
Am I a little correct?
Fnord

 

daveinlax

Charter Member
May 5, 2009
1,989
2,651
WISCONSIN
I love tampers and wiener sandwiches! Boiled, grilled, fried or steamed but I'll pass on electrocuted (remember those things from the 70's) on a steamed white bun with just a swipe of yellow mustard.

It´s pretty common so you should have one too anywhere in a drawer... [:wink:]

Yeah, I have a couple of versions of the Richards including one branded Dunhill that is silver plate. Your tamper looks great. 8O

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,250
108,355
That is a sharp tamper. I have racked up a drawer full over the past couple of decades, but generally only use a Bringham pipe nail.

 

ejames

Lifer
Oct 6, 2009
3,916
22
I have one identical to yours in my collection of pipe tools but never use it. They just collect dust on a shelf.

 

jkrug

Lifer
Jan 23, 2015
2,867
8
I have a tamper at home that looks identical to the one you show there, had it for more than 25 years.

I will have to check it out when I get home from work and see what kind it is?

I rarely use it so it looks like new. :puffy:

 

jitterbugdude

Part of the Furniture Now
Mar 25, 2014
993
8
I still use my father's R. Sheffield tamper that he bought in the 50's. I like it so much that I've bought 3 more on Ebay.

 

jkrug

Lifer
Jan 23, 2015
2,867
8
I finally remembered to check my tamper for markings.

It is identical to the one posted but is marked Rodgers Sheffield England on one side of the blade and Stainless INOX on the other side.

 

oldreddog

Part of the Furniture Now
Sep 4, 2014
923
6
I have one of the newer ones, with plane scales,very serviceable but not as pretty as the ones shown.
As kids we used to buy these out of pocket money in the local shop and use them in all sorts of adventures.

 

mawnansmiff

Lifer
Oct 14, 2015
7,385
7,295
Sunny Cornwall, UK.
Stvalentine, I am originally from Sheffield and can tell you with certainty that Richards is one of the nastiest producers of cutlety ever to come from that great city. I personally collect Sheffield pocket and penknives and there are some top quality brands out there but Richards aint one of them.
As it happens I have an identical pipe tool to yours, but I only keep it as it was a gift from a well meaning pal.
Regards,
Jay.

 

aimlesswanderer

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 25, 2016
211
2
^^^ Yes, unfortunately Richards were probably the cheapest, worst, and most circulated pocket knife from the mass production era in Sheffield. Some were better than others, but they weren't the City's crowning glory. That said, I've only ever seen those made by Joseph Rodgers, so good catch all the same.
BTW just for your info, it was Richardson (not Richards) that was taken over by Amefa.

 
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