Ryan Alden Made A Pipe And I Bought It

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May 31, 2012
4,295
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...and I forgot to take a pic with its pristine uncoated virgin bowl unmolested, because I immediately packed it full of Peterson's Perfect Plug and started chugging away, then suddenly remembered that I should snap a couple of shots at least, in memory of our white wedding, because baby, the honeymoon is just starting!
Somewhat unusual for me to so quickly light a brand new pipe up, in most cases I wait until a pipe "speaks to me" and continue to admire the way it looks in the brand new state, but Ryan's pipe, as soon as I slipped 'er outta the bag, absolutely screamed to me JOLLY SMOGGO! and before I knew it I was full tilt boogie woogie, totally jazzed and smack dab in the middle of blissful delight.
There's a bit more I'd like to say, but I'll wait a minute and let the pictures speak for themselves...
...oh, waitaminnit,

there is actually something I need to say here and now, and that's that this pipe fits like a glove in hand, almost as if I had known it my whole life, strangely intimate and familiar, and that's what a really good pipemaker can do,

make a pipe feel like home.
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Don't make fun of my surplus Swedish military kit, it's too damn cold here and these undershirts keep me warm all winter and since the first one I ever got already had monkey-thumbs cut in it I did the same to all my others just because it's comfy and actually protective in harsh wind etc... 8)
...now,

let the pictures speak for themselves:
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There's still a little more I'd like to comment upon, most especially regarding the subtle refinements that Ryan has been working hard to put into his work, but again, I'll save that for a little downstream --- right here I must mention his pipe-bags.
I love his bags because they are stout, thick and protective. This is important to me because I always take my little pipe friends out on the road while I'm working and effective protection is a must have. There are no worries with these. Ryan handcrafts them himself out of Bison leather and he builds 'em bulletproof!
I really do appreciate such the warm touches like that, as if it ain't already got enough soul, he yet still adds a good heaping more and the overall experience is amplified by such attention to those small details,

methinks.
I really dig this pipe!
:puffy: THANKS RYAN!
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bungee

Can't Leave
Oct 31, 2015
372
5
Gorgeous pipe! I love the blast, the stain and the shape! Fantastic!!!
Enjoy,
J

 

georged

Lifer
Mar 7, 2013
5,491
13,920
I keep tellin' people that while his pipes are great, dealin' with Mr. Alden is a dicey business. He's so, well, disagreeable is the word, I suppose. Cranky, argumentative, ill-tempered, and unpredictable. Mean as a snake. And he puts on airs, too. Like that Downton Abbey butler guy, all snooty 'n' shit.
Glad to hear you survived your encounter, MLC.

 

glpease

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 17, 2010
239
96
California
Ryan makes a very nice pipe. I've been impressed by the ones I've seen, and the lovat that I have is a stellar smoker. And, he's a hell of a nice guy, besides. Congratulations on a wonderful new acquisition!

 

bigpond

Lifer
Oct 14, 2014
2,019
13
Skateboard, painting and monkey thumbs....when did you get cool MLC? If you've got a beard and skinny jeans you just might be a....you know what
Good form with the descriptive and titillating titling, btw.
Fine pipe! Beautiful, organic shape.

 

shaintiques

Lifer
Jul 13, 2011
3,615
227
Georgia
Very nice. I custom ordered a pipe and it is almost finished. Hope to have it in hand soon, I'm already thrilled. He does such beautiful work.

 
May 31, 2012
4,295
34
You'll undoubtedly love your pipe Shain,

he makes a damn fine smoking instrument.
AND NOW

...Bigpond's comment about the skateboard, heh heh, sadly forlorn and reduced to photo props nowadays, it's been so long since I've actually skated. The one with blue wheels any real skater could look at it and tell it's been barely used, it's my "old man cruiser" board but I haven't been cruising much and they could call me a poser and it wouldn't bother me a bit, unlike when I was younger and such would be an insult to immediately disprove with utmost vigor.
The other board that's slightly roughed up is my actual riding board, to do tricks 'n stuff, and sometimes it's the most simple things that provide the most fun, like backside slappies on a yellow curb, or high speed slides while zooming down a big hill...when I was young I was a sponsored amateur, but it was much different than it is today, more underground, then suddenly grunge went mainstream and punk had got broke and cultural demarcations largely disappeared and you couldn't tell a redneck from a deathrocker anymore, which all eventually led to the whole hipster thing where someone might look cool and then you talk to them and discover that they are clueless fashion mannequins...
...etc, I'm offtopic and on a ramble.

I was sponsored by Triple X, who was originally Brand X but another company named Toxic sued them in court over the use of the letter X and won, thus Brand X changed to XXX to sort of give the finger or whatever, they were a great company:

http://skately.com/library/brands/brand-x-skateboards

Note at that site was listed Ed Gein as one of their riders :P

They released a pro model from Eddy Gein, which was hilarious when you think of some little kid riding around on their Eddy Gein skateboard, with no idea who Ed Gein was... 8O

(skateboard graphics ever since the Dogtown days had had skulls 'n gore galore, so it wasn't anything out of the ordinary)

here's the ad for it:

http://skately.com/library/ads/brand-x-skateboards-xxx-decks-1989
I still sometimes look at the old skate stuff, I wish a pipester would start a blog similar to this:

http://skateandannoy.com/features/ebaywatch/

It's interesting.

(you think pipes are expensive? browse those archives and feel vindicated!)
Anyway,

getting back to the pipe, I should have linked to Ryan's site:

http://www.aldenpipes.com/​
He saved me from buying a Russian pipe because the prior several days I was absorbed by looking at a few makers and came close to pulling the trigger on one and if such did happen then I'd have to live with a pipe by a maker whose name I couldn't even barely pronounce!
And it all went down while reading Cigrmaster's thread when I checked Ryan's site and saw this pipe...

http://pipesmagazine.com/forums/topic/my-first-ryan-alden-pipe
A pipe in some ways is similar to a skateboard in my eyes, an instrument which provides a metaphysical aspect way beyond their material sum, and can help make magic happen, and can greatly enhance the living of a life.
I still ain't made the commentary as per Ryan's evolutionary jumps, but I got sidetracked and it'll still be downstream a bit...
:puffy:

 

georged

Lifer
Mar 7, 2013
5,491
13,920
So. You have a dog that goes by the name "Cat", then.
That's some serious Ryanesque humor, right there. :clap:

 

georged

Lifer
Mar 7, 2013
5,491
13,920
Ah. I thought he name was Catahoula, but that's the breed. (I must learn to read one day)
Her name is actually Sassaffras. "Sass", then. Or "Sassy". That's almost as good. :D
Not too many strangers bother you, I'll bet.

 

lonestar

Lifer
Mar 22, 2011
2,854
161
Edgewood Texas
She prefers "The Sassinator" or "Sassmanian Devil" but comes to Sassi if she likes you. If she doesn't like you she just sits and watches every move you make... for hours.... without blinking.

But you weren't too far off George. I don't have a dog named Cat but I do have a Cat named Chicken :D

 
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