Inspired by Dai & Mr. Brog: Discussing non-briars...
Posted: Tue Apr 07, 2015 9:06 am
Although we think of briar and pipes...
...I believe it's fair to say that pipes have been made of all manner of materials. Some of the more familiar include corncob, clay, meerschaum and the Sherlock Holmes calabash style made from a gourd. Olive too is not unfamiliar. All these are respected materials.
But Dai's fave pipe has turned out to be a Mr. Brog, who appears to make pipes mostly from pear (but also briar), despite the fact that some of the Ebay ads show pipes alleged to be from cherrywood. Linked below is an article re alternate woods that may be of interest to you.
But a brief summary:
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http://pipedia.org/wiki/Pipes_in_Other_Woods
http://pipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_Woo ... Pipemaking
http://pipedia.org/wiki/Materials_and_Construction
How about high temperature pyrolitic graphite:
http://www.thepipe.info/#
...I believe it's fair to say that pipes have been made of all manner of materials. Some of the more familiar include corncob, clay, meerschaum and the Sherlock Holmes calabash style made from a gourd. Olive too is not unfamiliar. All these are respected materials.
But Dai's fave pipe has turned out to be a Mr. Brog, who appears to make pipes mostly from pear (but also briar), despite the fact that some of the Ebay ads show pipes alleged to be from cherrywood. Linked below is an article re alternate woods that may be of interest to you.
But a brief summary:
- Cherry: a hardwood that is alleged to smoke well.
Apple: a lighter wood that allows a nice thick-walled design that is still light in the mouth. Breaks in easily, will darken nicely with smoking.
Olive: highly sought by some, especially the Spanu Olivastros (I scored one). Early smokes alleged to taste of olive oil (!). One artisan had this to say "The grain to the olive is among the more remarkable I've ever seen; it has an intricacy and delicacy all its own that surpasses briar". Porous, needs a good break-in, but colors beautifully.
Hawthorn Root: one you'll probably never see, reputed to be perhaps heat-sensitive, subject to cracking. The jury is out.
Maple Burl: one to watch. The burl needs little or no break-in, and the smoker found it smokes brilliantly from the get-go, not to mention the beauty of burl grain.
Black Palm: stunning grain, but very heat-sensitive and cracked. Not suitable.
Myrtle: hard to carve, a softer hardwood that may be too porous to be effective.
Walnut: according to the author, a fine smoking pipe. Early on a subtle nutty taste added.
Curly Ash: heat sensitive, alleged to produce foul smoke. Not suitable.
Ebony: smokes well, looks well but is extremely dense (heavy) and some tiny surface cracks appeared.
"Briar is the king of pipe woods, but many other species will provide a handsome pipe that gives a good smoke. Given the excellent performance of cherry and apple, other fruit woods are probably a good bet for pipes. Walnut and maple can both exhibit some extraordinary grain. A pipe made from a piece of quilted maple or walnut burl would be striking. Hickory, elm, and locust would be worth a try, to name but a few species that might be suitable for pipes.
The softer hardwoods, such as quaking aspen and poplar, would likely perform similarly to pawlonia. Softwoods--the conifers, such as pine, spruce, tamarack, hemlock, and cedar--would probably not be satisfactory for pipes"
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http://pipedia.org/wiki/Pipes_in_Other_Woods
http://pipedia.org/wiki/Alternative_Woo ... Pipemaking
http://pipedia.org/wiki/Materials_and_Construction
How about high temperature pyrolitic graphite:
http://www.thepipe.info/#