February 2011
1 post
4 tags
Cornell & Diehl Autumn Evening
I’m admittedly not a huge fan of aromatic pipe tobacco. I know there are a lot of good aromatics out there, but I’ve been jaded by a few that I’ve tried that burn hot, bite the tongue, and just don’t taste nearly as pleasant as they smell. Instead I tend to gravitate toward English latakia bombs, the pure grassy, citrus, and sweet tastes of Virginias, and variations of all...
January 2011
1 post
2 tags
Review: Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Flake
Today I finished up the last of a sample of Samuel Gawith Full Virginia Flake an online friend sent to me for Christmas. At first I was a little skeptical about this blend, because I haven’t really been a huge fan of Virginia flakes before. I’ve tried a few that were just too strong for me to handle as everyday smokes, or they had flavor profiles that I didn’t thoroughly enjoy....
November 2010
1 post
4 tags
First Carved Pipe
I finally broke down and decided to carve my own pipe. I don’t have a lathe or a drill press so I decided to go with a pre-bored kit, which I ordered from Mark Tinsky. It was quite a learning process but I was ultimately satisfied with the results of the carving. Here are some pictures of the final product:
If you want a blow-by-blow pictorial essay of the carving process, check...
October 2010
1 post
3 tags
Review: Peterson University Flake
Recently I found myself in the mood to celebrate Irish heritage, so I broke out some of Ireland’s finest fare: Peterson University Flake in a Peterson colored meerschaum. It’s like the two were made specifically for each other.
University Flake is a Virginia tobacco with a bit of burley to fill it out. It comes pressed in flake form and is topped with a very subtle plum flavoring.
...
September 2010
2 posts
2 tags
Review: Balkan Sasieni
I’ve just been introduced to a neat blend called Balkan Sasieni. It is blended by Peter Stokkebye Tobaksfabrik A/S, and most believe it is an attempt to re-create an old blend called Balkan Sobranie which is no longer in production. Well, I don’t know anything about that so I’m going to forego any such comparisons and rate the tobacco on its own merit.
The description on the...
4 tags
Pipe Smoking 101: Getting Started
On multiple occasions I’ve had to field the question on why I chose to pick up pipe smoking. “Isn’t it obvious that it’s bad for you?” some well-meaning person will ask as they sip their favorite alcoholic beverage.
To me it isn’t about the nicotine. I don’t inhale when I smoke a pipe. For me the draw with pipe smoking (pun intended) is the sense of...
July 2010
2 posts
3 tags
Mario Grandi Giant Freehand
I broke down and bought a Mario Grandi pipe from the futurepipes store on ebay. Mario Grandi is a line of pipes made in Rome, Italy. They are not your father’s pipes. The pipes are very artistic, focusing on larger shapes and modern takes on classic pipe designs instead of sticking to the “tried and true” shapes a lot of manufacturers rely on. You can see videos of the Mario...
6 tags
Review: Rattray's Red Rapparee
The second tobacco in the Pipe Smoker’s Forum “2t2m” review is Rattray’s Red Rapparee. Originally produced in Scotland, this tinned pipe tobacco is now made in Germany and sold round the world.
It is a “medium English” blend. Cracking it open and giving it a smell really shows this off as you get the smokiness of latakia balanced well with the smell of...
June 2010
4 posts
6 tags
Review: Presbyterian Mixture
On the Pipe Smoker’s Forum for July and August we’re reviewing a couple of oriental-heavy tobaccos, so I decided to throw in my own review of the first blend and tell the world what I think about it.
I cracked open a 50g tin of William P. Solomon’s Presbyterian Mixture, a blend created before World War I by the Very Reverend Dr. John White. The 1st Earl Baldwin of Bewdley liked...
4 tags
New Poker -- The Tornado
I really wanted to take one of these pokers and sand down the stain and let the natural wood grains shine through. I found one that looked really promising, sanded it down, and quickly discovered why these pipes were originally stained so dark: the quality of the briar is pretty low and they are covered in pits.
I tried sanding down the pits to get past them, but some were pretty deep and I...
2 tags
Rusticated Poker
I rusticated another poker today, this one I decided to keep the entire bowl rusticated with exception of the rim. The base pipe was sanded down completely, stained blood red, rusticated with a dremel tool using engraving bits, then stained jet black (except on the rim).
Between buffing the pipe with tripoli and white diamond, I re-applied the black stain to keep it nice and dark. The rim ended...
2 tags
Rusticated Bulldog
Recently I decided to fully rusticate one of the Archer’s M bulldog pipes I was going to restore. I decided to leave the base stain nice and dark, attacked it with some dremel engraving bits, and then stained it jet black. After buffing/polishing, I was left with a stunning copper look to the pipe. I haven’t decided if I’m going to give this away to a friend or just keep it, as...
May 2010
4 posts
4 tags
Staining and Rusticating
I recently came across a lot of plain pot and bulldog pipes from a local shop. All were unused, cheap, and uninteresting. So I decided to use these cheap pipes as a way to practice sanding, staining, and rusticating pipes to make them look a lot better. My second attempt was on one of the pots.
I sanded off all the original to find reasonable grain and a few pits that the dark stain was hiding....
4 tags
A brand new pipe
I splurged and decided to buy myself a brand new pipe, instead of limiting myself to cleaning up and refurbishing estate pipes.
The process was very involved for me. I trekked to the local pipe shop and gazed at their large selection, wishing I could blow $400 on a nice Savinelli but mentally chastising myself for even considering that.
Choosing a brand new pipe speaks a lot of a person’s...
5 tags
Newest Pipe: Hilson Fantasia
The newest pipe in my collection is a rather unique find: a Hilson Fantasia with a bent stem. What makes it unique is the stummel material: instead of the traditional briar, meerschaum, or corn cob it is made of a bakelite plastic with a meerschaum inner liner. The result is a very shiny-looking bowl with a cool-burning inside.
This took a lot of care to clean up. The bowl was very nasty and...
1 tag
Cleaning up estate pipes
All the pipes I own are estate pipes, which is a fancy way of saying they are used. I’ve found most of them at local antique shops, where you can find some gems for really nice prices. However, they’re usually in varying states of cleanliness. One pipe I bought recently still had a quarter of a bowl’s worth of unsmoked tobacco in it, and a thick cake on the meerschaum (yeah, I...