20th February,2011- International Pipe Smoking Day.

20th February,2011- International Pipe Smoking Day.

What is it all about? apart from the flyers and other publicity material floating about the great ether.It is a focusing of like minded individuals on our great hobby, on a particular dedicated day each year .
It also allows us to publicly celebrate our pleasurable pastime openly and extol the  benefits to others.Flying in the face of the erroneous perception of being included with cigarette smoking and its particular unhealthy addictive image.

So how can we the Pete Nuts get involved in this great International event,if we are so inclined?
Well I will ask you, the regular blog followers, to mark the day by logging in here,on the day(20th) and leaving a brief note/comment below on this post, to show your support and your affirmation for the event and what it means to us.
Simples! Thank you.

Peterson at its best.

As most of the Blog followers know,I have a very large number of Peterson pipes in my collection. As it continues to grow in tandem with my ongoing Odyssey of experiencing the fruits of the never ending Peterson production.It never fails to surprise me when I come across a real stunning and outstanding pipe that pushes all of my buttons.
My local Peterson supplier (Brucciani) contacted me a few weeks ago as he knows I am always on the lookout for 'special' Petes.He said that this particular pipe was another of these one - off, trade show specials.I was intrigued and knowing that such pipes when presented previously did not fail to please,I bought it immediately without seeing it!!
Well the pipe arrived this morning, it is a silver spigot XL23 with a very tasteful chestnut colour stain.I have a thing for this particular shape,it is one of my favourites,made famous as the Sherlock Holmes series Lestrade.
This particular example is absolutely stunning,the briar is excellent quality with no obvious fills to detract from the wonderful grain.Hereare some photos I am sure you will agree that it exemplifies 'Peterson at its very best'.




 

The Peterson Grafton Series.

The Grafton Series:- Peterson state that “Only about 5% of our bowls are good enough to make this selection of pipes. These special pipes, all of which are silver mounted, are rare and only a limited number are available each year. Shapes can vary depending on availability of suitable raw materials”.

I have rarely seen this series of pipes for sale previously, it has been a complete mystery as to the quality of briar, finish and smoking qualities. Rarely is it mentioned on pipe forums.

So as is my want, I set out to acquire a couple.

The Grafton is rated by Peterson as one of their Higher Grades along with the Royal Irish and the Rosslare Royal Irish. I would also place it along with that other higher grade rarity the Celtic series.

My first impression of them is that the briar quality is superb,with gorgeous graining. The pipes are not what I would call stand out stunner's, they ooze quality and are reservedly handsome,enhanced by the acrylic Cumberland stem. The bowl finish is tending toward a matt finish and not shiny like the recent trend. The natural Walnut finish harkens back to the comparable pre-Republic bowls. The bottom pipe an 03 shape ,looks darker in real life!The Dublin bent is more typical of the darker stain.

Title: Peterson Grafton 80s 

			^_^ Type the name of a friend, friend list, or email address Ok

Title: Peterson Grafton B11

Dating Headache!

Dating headaches!

As most followers who have older Pre-Republic Petes in their collection will be aware,the dating of them can either be a pleasant experience or a real pain in the head.

It is all part of the unique Peterson ownership experience! When in doubt, study my late, great, old friend Mike Leverette's marvellous reference work, The Peterson Pipe Project, “A Peterson Dating Guide; A Rule of Thumb.”

Unfortunately the Peterson historical records are not very good for the Pre Republic period. So Mike's great reference piece is invaluable to collectors.

I recently started to focus on doing some long overdue cataloguing on my older Pets's. One of these is a very good lightly smoked 1928 made in Ireland 356.System 3. Photo below.

The "Made in Ireland" block format evident on this pipe can be a headache in dating Peterson pipes, since this same stamp was used in the late Patent Era as well as the late 1940s. So for a guide we must take into consideration the style of lettering Peterson used on their pipes. From the start of the Patent Era until somewhere in the early 1930s, Peterson used the "Old Style" lettering that used a forked tail "P" in Peterson. Fortunately this one had a hallmark (n)on the silver collar dating it to 1928.

The International Peterson Pipe Club.

The International Peterson Pipe Club.


 I thought it would be appropriate to let the blog follower's know that the newly formed International Peterson Pipe Club is progressing well.
We now have nearly seventy members registered from all over the world.
As can be seen we now have the club banner and Logo which allows us to give the club greater publicity, throughout the various media and internet resources available, to International pipe enthusiasts.
The club has already been recognised by Peterson of Dublin who have listed the club on their website, as a replacement and alternative, for the former Peterson Smokers Guild.


So to those who have never known or visited the Club ,please feel free to drop in and join us in my favourite pastime,discussing all things Peterson.
Here is the link to the site:-

Please click on the I.P.P.C link in the Links column on right side of the page.

Pipe focus - Dunmore B11

Pipe focus - Dunmore B11.

I am currently suffering from B11 shape fever! I just cannot get enough of that unique, bent brandy shape,Peterson do it so well. It is so bad, that I now have around 10 pipes of that shape.
Well here is the latest addition,a rare Dunmore.It's rare because it appears to be only on sale in the European market and not available elsewhere?I would imagine that is because of the 9mm filter, which appears to be a particular favourite with the German sales.
I managed to source this one from that fine German e-tailer Andreas Harm, at Esterval's pipe shop.I just could not pass on both its good looks and its price of $85.
Well the pipe duly arrived and has not disappointed,I was expecting a much lower quality of briar and finish for that price.It is quite a bargain and I would highly recommend them for value for money.The one I have has an acrylic large bore fishtail stem with the filter removed.It has an excellent draw.To early to comment on its long term smoking qualities,but hey! for that money it has got to be a good deal.Here are a couple of photo shots.

Darwin - Sub Species?

 Darwin - Sub Species?

Peterson never fail to amaze me with their diversity of Pipe issues.I am a great fan of the Darwin series and currently have seven different variants within my collection.What is the big deal you might think,well it is this,Peterson only officially issued four variants in the series.It all surrounds the new B42 bowl shape.
To complicate the situation further,I have just discovered another variant.This one however is not being sold as a Darwin, but as a Rock of Cashel?No publicity ,no prior announcement.It has a Cumberland stem.A very nice alternative. Here are a couple of photos.