A Pictorial Step-by-Step Guide of How a Pipe is Made
Robert Vacher takes us through his process of how he makes a pipe and doesn’t need a single word to do so.
The Ashton Pipe Story
Let’s start at the beginning- the real beginning. I’ve liked briar smoking pipes since I was a kid- and not necessarily to smoke either; but to possess and to work with (or fool with). I was twelve when I went to a nearby drug store and spied something special- two packs of Holiday pipe tobacco and a briar pipe, all for 79 cents. I had to have that pipe, and so I bought the package. I smoked the pipe of course, but didn’t like it much. Taste was rather rough. And I really didn’t like the shiny surface of that pipe. So grabbed some sandpaper and took that shine right off. Looked much better then- but not good enough. After all it was a pipe, and to my twelve year old mind pipes should look old. So I went back to work with various tools and made that pipe look- different. Not at all satisfied with my workmanship I went out and bought another pipe- this time without the tobacco. Didn’t even smoke this one before I started in changing its appearance. And I think I did a damn good job. Made that pipe look as if it had gone through all sorts of catastrophes and come out sort of all right. I was pleased.
Jess Chonowitsch
Jess Chonowitsch grew up in Copenhagen where his father, Emil, was a tobacconist and pipe maker working for Poul Rasmussen (husband to Anne Julie).
Pressed Tobaccos and Flake Pipes
As a lot of pipe smokers out there, when I first started smoking a pipe, I opted for flavored tobaccos (Borkum Riff, for example), and later, thanks to master blender Hans Schürch, I was introduced to natural mixtures with Latakia. After a few years of total dedication to the Latakia baccy, I got a little bored and I decided it was time to wade my way into different waters. So, naturally, I started to try and experiment with natural pressed Virginias, in all their possible forms. Once, I found my own technique and got over the tongue-bite and the frustration with combustion, I never looked back.
Nanna Ivarsson: Next Generation in the Pipeline
Nanna Ivarsson was born on the fifth of April 1974. She was the youngest of Lars Ivarsson’s two daughters and the one to pick up the family interest in pipes almost from the very beginning. At that point the family lived in the countryside well away from the city, and there was nothing the toddler loved better than to spend the time together with her father in his workshop watching him at work and occasionally trying to wrestle the hidden figure from a chunk of wood herself. From a very early age she showed a remarkable and highly imaginative talent for the shape of things.
Grain
Over the years I’ve overheard and taken part in many discussions concerning the part played by grain (or the lack thereof) in the enjoyment of pipe smoking. Some have argued that grain plays the most important part in a pipe’s ability to convey the true taste of tobacco while also adding something to that taste; others (very much in the minority) have pooh-poohed this as being utter nonsense. I will attempt in this article, as far as my experience allows, to look upon the issue in all its facets. However I can not claim that I will be able to lead anyone to the definitive answer.