Wally Frank White Bar

[fnord]

When I laid aside the nails and started smoking a pipe again - almost 11 years ago - I was budget conscious and picked up a number of Wally Frank pipes. Some were good, some were bad. Two of the better smokers were labeled White Bar.
I read somewhere or was told that most White Bars were seconds from Comoy's but others chimed in that White Bars were also made by Weber,(one of the great American production houses) and Jobey,(boasting a lineage as twisted as GBD).
Would somebody knowledgeable please weigh in?
Did the White Bar throw an umbrella over better grained WF pipes, (WF bought from everybody with a bin of seconds) or was it maker specific?
Thanks!
Fnord

 

[mikethompson]

Would somebody knowledgeable please weigh in?

Well that certainly isn't me. But if you'd post some pictures of the pipe, I'm sure someone more knowledgeable than me (virtually anyone at this point) could tell you about its maker, or from what makes its a second if it is.

 

[buckaroo]

I like White Bars. The one's I've had always seemed to be similar in both shape & finish to Comoy's, but I bet WF would would have anyone make them, given how they operated. Not sure anyone is going to be able to nail this one down.

 

[fnord]

Mikethompson: My old Wally Frank Whiter Bars are long gone - sold/traded off or given away as I upgraded my pipe collection. Back then I was buying seconds from well known production companies and had read that the White Bars were a bit more desirable than his other catalog offerings. Fortunately, they were great "easy entry" pipes in the ten to fifteen buck range a decade ago. I don't know when Wally Frank bellied up but I have vague memories of seeing his catalogs into the mid-70's.
Fnord