I finally was able to win a author shape Silver Duke on ebay. These seem to be very much sought after pipes. It was in really bad shape but cleaned up satisfactorily.
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Nice one, I've got six of them now, a Royal and Golden but no Silver Duke. My favorite shape of all my Grabows :clap:
As you have found out Grabow made many different lines--Duke,Viscount Starfire etc. Each of those lines has it's own finish -on the older pipes anyway, or some may share a finish and color,such as the Silver Duke and the older Regals.The Regal was a stinger equipped pipe while the Silver Duke was a filter pipe-both have the Ajustomatic feature. Each line was available in smooth or rusticated versions and each line was available in MANY different shapes.
If you were to collect only one line,say the Viscount, you could end up with approximately 150 different pipes if you get one in each of the available shapes and in the two available finishes.In other words 75 shapes in two finishes.
Do not confuse line names with shapes. A Savoy is not a Savoy because it is a full bent billiard,it can be a Dublin (small or large) an Apple (small or large) or a pot--small or large and it can be smooth or rusticated.
If you were to collect only one line,say the Viscount, you could end up with approximately 150 different pipes if you get one in each of the available shapes and in the two available finishes.In other words 75 shapes in two finishes.
Do not confuse line names with shapes. A Savoy is not a Savoy because it is a full bent billiard,it can be a Dublin (small or large) an Apple (small or large) or a pot--small or large and it can be smooth or rusticated.
Not entirely. Think of it like cars-- Dodge Coronet,Dodge Charger,Ford Mustang. Dodge and Ford are brand names, while Charger,Mustang and Coronet are model ( or line) names. Dr. Grabow is a brand and Viscount,Starfire,Golden Duke and a dozen (or two) others are models- or LINES.
Each line generally has it own color but sometimes the colors was shared with other lines. Starfire and Berwyck,Eldorado and Emperor for example. The Berwyck and Emperor were coupon pipes made for RJ Reynolds. Some lines share the same rustication,such as the double carving seen on Viscount,Starfire,early Golden Dukes,and Westbrooks,but they are differently stained. Also the colors and rustication used on some lines has changed over the years.The Golden Dukes produced today look much different than the first generation Golden Dukes.
It can be quite confusing but the main thing that determines what line a pipe is-- the name stamped on it. Just remember that each line is available in two finishes--smooth and rusticated.
And just to make it more confusing,some shapes have changed over the years. There are three distinct versions of the 81( Author) shape. You have to look closely but there are differences.
My latest acquisitions, 3 Golden Dukes and a Royal Duke. I'll post some pics after clean up. Nasty dirty but they are in good shape.
The top one in the picture is in unbelievable shape, the others are in pretty good shape and are cleaning up nicely. This makes 8 Authors and a dozen Bulldogs. :crazy:
I also added a Grand Duke and yet another Viking to my collection. These came out of a lot of nine pipes from ebay. More to come.
The Grand Duke has an Ajustomatic stem but accommodates a 6mm filter.
The Grand Duke has an Ajustomatic stem but accommodates a 6mm filter.
I like those Vikings, never interested me before but I've got a couple and they're growing on me. Nice score
If you look at the charts Grabow never made that Grand Duke!! My guess would be that it is a "Lane era" pipe,during which a lot of weird Grabows were made. The color says top of the line Eldorado and while the Eldorado (most of them anyway) had the Ajustomatic they did not take a filter. Looks like they took a pipe that should have been a Golden or Silver Duke,finished it like an Eldorado--and stamped it Grand Duke.
For some reason (it seems to me) they did a lot of strange things with the Grand Duke. I have a Grand Duke Canadian-not on the charts,also a sandblasted Grand Duke--again,not on the charts and a weird half bent sitter that ain't on the charts.
great score !
Not your average drugstore pipe.
The Emperor was a coupon mail order pipe and the highest grade Dr. Grabow made. This is also a Continental shaped Emperor so it's double rare. These don't show up very often and I was happy to add another Emperor to the Grabow family. Ed, please chime in if I bungled any details.
Dr. Grabow Ajustomatic Emperor X40.
The Emperor was a coupon mail order pipe and the highest grade Dr. Grabow made. This is also a Continental shaped Emperor so it's double rare. These don't show up very often and I was happy to add another Emperor to the Grabow family. Ed, please chime in if I bungled any details.
Dr. Grabow Ajustomatic Emperor X40.
Very nice, I've got a rusticated Duke posted above that's a similar shape, is it a Continental as well? I've been calling it an acorn :crazy:
As always, very nice work.
As always, very nice work.
DaveT you're not crazy. It is an acorn. Grabow made 12 or more specialty shapes that they called Continentals. I have 3 of the 12.
This just came in. I think it's a Continental No 22....maybe in a Starfire configuration? It's only stamped "Dr Grabow" on the bottom. It's a little beaten up but I think I make it presentable.
Here's a No 23 I just added to the collection today. It's in mint condition. No stamping or branding on it other than "Imported Briar". It could probably use a minute on the wheel. Maybe later.
I have gotten away from restorations and refurbs lately even though I have approximately 100 pipes (my own) that need to be shined up. This one was sent to me by a friend in Florida. He buys and sell a lot of pipes on Ebay and when he gets an old Linkmans in he sends them to me for my collection.
This is an example of the earliest Dr. Grabows-- a 9254 paneled Dublin, and was made in 1932-33.Back then they were just simply Linkmans Dr. Grabows--no line name as the later pipes had. What makes these different from the pipes made just a year or so later is that the female threads in the shank are cut directly into the wood and the very crude looking stinger. Looks like it was cut with a hatchet or something !
It had three problems-all stem related. The stem was stuck and also had a v shaped crack in the button-lip area and it was slightly under clocked. After filling it alcohol and letting it soak for a few hours the stem came out. I corrected the under clocking by carefully sanding the end of the shank. A bit of CA glue took care of the cracks. Other than than all I did was strip the lacquer which wasn't in very good shape,sanded the stem then buffed and waxed it.
This is an example of the earliest Dr. Grabows-- a 9254 paneled Dublin, and was made in 1932-33.Back then they were just simply Linkmans Dr. Grabows--no line name as the later pipes had. What makes these different from the pipes made just a year or so later is that the female threads in the shank are cut directly into the wood and the very crude looking stinger. Looks like it was cut with a hatchet or something !
It had three problems-all stem related. The stem was stuck and also had a v shaped crack in the button-lip area and it was slightly under clocked. After filling it alcohol and letting it soak for a few hours the stem came out. I corrected the under clocking by carefully sanding the end of the shank. A bit of CA glue took care of the cracks. Other than than all I did was strip the lacquer which wasn't in very good shape,sanded the stem then buffed and waxed it.
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