The Northern Briar Sea Urchin is the coolest pipe I'll never own.
What Kind of Pipes do you Like and Why?
- Thread starter milk
- Start date
SmokingPipes.com Updates
Watch for Updates Twice a Week
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
Site Sponsors
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
PipesMagazine Approved Sponsor
I guess you would have to define bizarre. While I enjoy, smoke, and collect classically shaped pipes, I have a number of pipes that fall outside that definition, but I’m not sure they would qualify as “bizarre”—unusual or unconventional, perhaps. They appear in WAYS threads when I smoke them.
I just started smoking again in January after a 20-year hiatus from pipe smoking. I have about 80 pipes left over when I smoked before. I collected them over about 30 years and most are straight Billiards. There is variation among them, a few Canadians, three or four Dublin, and two or three bents.
My collection is dominated by Comoys, GBDs, Chacoms, and a few Stanwells. I have a few English pipes like an Upshaw and a Tillshead, both smoke well and I wish I had more of them. I have a few nice Danish pipes, a Larson, a Bjorn and a couple others beside the Stanwells. The one thing they have in common is that they smoke Virginias and VA/PER well.
I had a few Costello's that I sold or traded because they didn't smoke Virginia as well, in my opinion.
Since I have started smoking my pipes again, I have found that there is a much greater choice of tobacco's available now when I stopped smoking around 2021. I am experimenting with new blends and I'm even open to trying a few new shapes. I'm currently on the lookout for a nice full bent billiard.
Perhaps an old dog can learn new tricks, or at least a variation of an old one!
My collection is dominated by Comoys, GBDs, Chacoms, and a few Stanwells. I have a few English pipes like an Upshaw and a Tillshead, both smoke well and I wish I had more of them. I have a few nice Danish pipes, a Larson, a Bjorn and a couple others beside the Stanwells. The one thing they have in common is that they smoke Virginias and VA/PER well.
I had a few Costello's that I sold or traded because they didn't smoke Virginia as well, in my opinion.
Since I have started smoking my pipes again, I have found that there is a much greater choice of tobacco's available now when I stopped smoking around 2021. I am experimenting with new blends and I'm even open to trying a few new shapes. I'm currently on the lookout for a nice full bent billiard.
Perhaps an old dog can learn new tricks, or at least a variation of an old one!
Yes. I could be more precise. I’d say pipes that divert sharply from traditional shapes but there has to be something even much more than that. Is it like that famous definition of pornography? You know it when you see it? Maybe Danish freehands seemed very weird at the time so these things change. I think it was a podcast wherein Richard Esserman (though forgive me if it was someone else, it could have been another person) who described them, when they were new on the scene, as something like, and I’m paraphrasing, “these ugly new pipes from Denmark.” These pipes aren’t really considered weird anymore. But I’m thinking of Mummert, and and others who really see pipes as works of art and push the limits of what’s possible and useful. Art transcends so it might be enjoyable to have them, if you’ve got the money to play with. I’m not very attracted but I still admire the craftsmanship and inventiveness (of some more than others).
I don’t know how you get the pipe cleaner through this thing. Not my cup of tea but it’s a marvelous piece art and someone is going to love it a lot. It’s beautiful in a way maybe many do not find Anne Julie pipes to be. Perhaps. This is Liu Zifeng BTW.
I like pipes that smoke well. My modest collection is pretty eclectic with a variety of shapes, finishes, new, estate, expensive, cheap, manufacturers, and artisans. Briar, clay, cob, meerschaum, morta, have-em all and have no preference. If I have a preference (and it's a small one) it's for Italian brands: Castello, Radice, Ser Jacopo, etc.
my go to shape is a bent billard especially if you are not 100 percent sure it's not a bent brandy. Also very fond of Lumbermen (and that's how you start an out of context quote thread).
Brand wise I prefer Savinelli, not an artisan guy at all, too cheap and would rather spend the money on tobaccos. I do enjoy my too many cobs as well. Shape wise on briars Canadians, Pots, 320 Author and big Tomatoes.
My favorite color is green. So I have quite a few pipes with green bowls, greens stems, and one with both
AbsolutelyWeird.
But way cooler than the Castello Shape 55
Castello should have named it the Jay Leno.Weird.
But way cooler than the Castello Shape 55
I like Rhodesian/bulldog. I think they look great. But enjoy full bent pipes the most. End up smoking what I reach first.
My collection is definitely a mishmash, I don’t know how many but at this point between 120 and 150 is a guess. 80% briar, 15% cob, 5% meer and getting ever closer to pulling the trigger on that first clay.
While the first thing I want in a pipe is that it will smoke well there are many things that determine if I like it.
I’m not necessarily restricted to certain brands or carvers but Brighams, Dunhills, Petersons, BBB, Blatter & Blatter, Nordings, Savinelli and Tsuge are pipes I sought out by brand as they were known to be reliable smokers. Vesz, Trypis, Preben Holm, and Viprati were carvers I sought out due to their body of work and its appeal to me. Some others like Josh Ronish it was the unique appeal of the shape, grain and accent materials.
There are many other brands that entered the collection for different reasons. Some were the history, the shape, the grain, a unique aspect (to my thinking)or the value, etc. I do like the Canadian family of shapes and have several examples being particularly fond of lovats. I also have a lot of billiards. Hewing close to this the Apple and Dublin are also favorites. I sound very conservative here but I also have some freehands and unique shapes that I really like
I do prefer slight to medium bent pipes. I am okay with acrylic or vulcanite stems but the bit is important, among other things I don’t want it too wide and flat. I prefer straight grain but can appreciate nice examples of birdseye and other striking grain.
Finally, I am also thinking of getting my first morta pipe. No wonder my collection is such a hodgepodge. I have really slowed my pace of pipe purchases but I don’t think that means the PAD is less. I keep thinking I am getting more focussed in my PAD but reading this post makes me wonder.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading.
While the first thing I want in a pipe is that it will smoke well there are many things that determine if I like it.
I’m not necessarily restricted to certain brands or carvers but Brighams, Dunhills, Petersons, BBB, Blatter & Blatter, Nordings, Savinelli and Tsuge are pipes I sought out by brand as they were known to be reliable smokers. Vesz, Trypis, Preben Holm, and Viprati were carvers I sought out due to their body of work and its appeal to me. Some others like Josh Ronish it was the unique appeal of the shape, grain and accent materials.
There are many other brands that entered the collection for different reasons. Some were the history, the shape, the grain, a unique aspect (to my thinking)or the value, etc. I do like the Canadian family of shapes and have several examples being particularly fond of lovats. I also have a lot of billiards. Hewing close to this the Apple and Dublin are also favorites. I sound very conservative here but I also have some freehands and unique shapes that I really like
I do prefer slight to medium bent pipes. I am okay with acrylic or vulcanite stems but the bit is important, among other things I don’t want it too wide and flat. I prefer straight grain but can appreciate nice examples of birdseye and other striking grain.
Finally, I am also thinking of getting my first morta pipe. No wonder my collection is such a hodgepodge. I have really slowed my pace of pipe purchases but I don’t think that means the PAD is less. I keep thinking I am getting more focussed in my PAD but reading this post makes me wonder.
If you made it this far, thanks for reading.