Ropp Briar Pipes - worth the buy?

[sparrowhawk]

By the bye, this is the first time I've seen negative criticism aimed at a pipe manufacturer, which is extememly rare on this site. That alone should give you pause. Apparently Ropp makes both good and occassionally poor pipes. So my advice (which is difficult and sometimes dangerous to listen to!) is check the Ropp out carefully before you smoke it so you have the option of returning it. Does it have a stinger, and does that interfere with airflow? Any flow problem without the stinger? And definitely check out the thickness of the briar: is it very thin or light? A thin pipe is simply going to overheat too much to be held. I once got a Peterson that posed the same problem and gave it away. So that doesn't necessarily disqualify Ropp as a pipe making company. The majority of Peterson pipes are superb, and this might be the same for Ropp, but given that there have been some negative comments, not just me, tread with caution.

 

[takeshikong]

I have a classic ropp, and it's satisfying to have one. Ropp is a great deal

 

[hiplainsdrifter]

I have only ever held one, but I sent it back. I liked the look of it in the photo on SP.com, but finish was pretty crappy, worse than most basket pipes. Drill was significantly off center too. Too bad, as I love the llok and feel of the horn stems.

 

[fitzy]

So the Ropp Etudiant J12 I bought for $47.50 from Smoking Pipes is fantastic. Drilling is great. The rustication isn't the best looking but it smokes great.
There's no stinger and the draw is much more open than the Chacom I've got. I would say about 3mm which is the same as the Savinelli's without the filter. (It smokes as good as my Sav's and better than the Chacom I have)
Unlike my Chacom I have no problem running a fluffy pipe cleaner through it and I will definitely be buying a few more. In fact I may buy a couple of that exact same pipe.
The walls were just thick enough to meet my .25" requirement. (.5" total size difference between chamber diameter and outside diameter)
I would buy one of the Vintage models but I'm afraid of breaking the horn stem. I may at some point buy one of their Algerian Superior models.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

I had this Ropp vintage canadian from SPC, and I was pretty happy with.nevertheless it had a bit narrow air flow to my likings,not too much tough,) based on my experience this narrower drill is common occurence with made in France pipes)the main reason I got rid of it(though, I perhaps shouldn't)was the clumsy and hard mouth feel of the horn stem, yet the stem itself was a bit off line, other than that,no complains whatsoever,the briarwork'itself was very nice, no pitts or fills to be seen.

for aficinados of French made pipes (St Claude)I'd like to recommed to take a look at pipe.fr // nice folks and ships to where you want

 

[fitzy]

Paulie I hear the draft on the vintage isn't as open as their non vintage pipes.
The Chacom I have has a very tight draw compared to my Ropp.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

Fitzy, Yes assumably this is true,lately I'm coming to realize French make pipes offer very good value, though sometimes with newer ones final bowl shaping/modeling and stem bit zone leave something to be desired