Lighter Collection

Happy Saturday  Pipemen! The first week of school is over, as is a rather difficult Summer. Happily, my wife is now cancer free and the Summer cold that turned into bronchitis (and left me looking sadly at my pipes and unable to use them) is gone! Today I wanted to share with you my little collection of pipes. I have been fascinated with petrol lighters since childhood when I would happily spark my aunt and uncle’s Zippo and Ronson. I love my lighters and I hope you enjoy this post!

First up is a pair of Zippos, on the right is my daily use pipe lighter purchased in 2017. On the left, is my trusty lighter that I bought the week I left home at eighteen in 1989. That Zippo and a swiss army knife saw me through my bachelors degree, working, then backpacking through Europe, returning to school and beginning my career, then living in Russia from 1997-2004, and back to the States again. I quit cigarettes in 2009, so It now enjoys a happy retirement cleaned up and with a place of honor on the shelf where my lighters live. By the way, the swiss army knife had to be replaced for everyday carry with a new one in 2015 when the red handles finally fell off. It lives in my tool box and still sees regular use.

Here’s a Zippo Varga Girl lighter I received as a gift in the 90s. You’ve got to love Varga’s art!

A pair of Zippo slims. On the right, a well-loved example that I found for a couple of bucks in a rummage bin. This lighter obviously got a lot of use and you can see where the hinge pin was replaced by the owner. On the left is a souvenir lighter from the  ocean liner America. I also collect postcards from passenger ships 1900-1971. I believe I have cards for all of the liners and cargo liners of the United States lines so this was an exciting find for me.

These are two Ronson standard lighters of different vintages. The one on the right is engraved with a serial number, but I can’t find anything that it might refer to. Any ideas pipemen?

Here we have a Japanese made Craftsman Trilite and a Nimrod Admiral that I love using now and again! I keep hoping that I’ll finally come across a Nimrod Sportsman that I can afford!

Here we have a pair of IMCO Austria lighters. On the right, a model 6600 Junior, and on the left, a model  6700 Super. IMCO lighters are absolutely terrific and deserve their good reputation. The 6700 is actually the second I’ve owned. The first took a fall from a 21st floor balcony where I had absconded from a party to smoke and flirt. In the light of day the lighter was found, and although dented a bit, snapped open firmly and burned bright. Unfortunately over the years and a few moves, that one disappeared. Wherever you are, keep burning brightly old friend.

Here is a Regens side squeeze lighter. I wish I knew more about it, like the manufacture date. All the same, it is a really cool piece of American engineering!

This is a bit of a mystery! Another rummage bin find, this well used, thin petrol lighter sparks and lights well. However there are no markings on it at all except for “Automatic First Quality Lighter” on the bottom.

Although I’m mostly interested in petrol lighters, I do have two butane lighters that have found a home in my collection. On the left is Flamex Pipelighter. I just love the space age, mid-century look. It’s a mighty fine lighter too! On the right is a Chinese lighter with built in pipe tools. I like that it has pipe shapes stamped on both sides.

This lighter is not part of my personal collection, but has a very special place in our home. This Zippo pipe lighter was gifted to my wife’s grandfather, Grandad Damewood on the last Father’s Day that he was with us. Today this lighter, along with a portrait of him with his ever-present pipe stays on our bookshelf with other treasured family items.

Well, that’s it for today Pipemen! What’s your favorite lighter? Until next time!

Bob's Chocolate Flake

Good morning, Gents! Today I’m writing about a relatively new discovery for me - Bob’s Chocolate Flake.

Bob’s Chocolate Flake is produced in England by Gawith, Hoggarth and company. The flake itself is a blend of virginia, burley, and latakia with cocoa and vanilla flavorings added. It’s available in 50 gram tins from your favorite online retailer or B&M tobacconist.

I first became acquainted with Bob’s Chocolate Flake when my May 2018 box from the Tin Society (www.tinsociety.com) arrived. The sample packet contained broken flakes of dark brown, lighter brown, and a few flecks of almost black tobacco. I opened it up and and was greeted with the scent of good quality tobacco with a whiff of latakia smokiness. Among the delicious tobacco scent was just a hint of cocoa. I passed it over to the Mrs. for the smell test and Bob’s was approved for indoor use - very unusual as blends with latakia are, with the exception of Lane’s HGL, relegated to the porch and garage (which reminds me - be on the lookout for my “Dogfight” review - Junkyard Dawg vs. John Bull - coming soon!).

I loaded up my trusty Kaywoodie author with the expectation that I was in for a treat. (insert sad trombone sound here) The first bowl was very disappointing. I found it difficult to keep lit, a bit harsh, and the flavor was nothing to write home about. I definitely didn’t get any hints of cocoa. The bowl wasn’t bad, just bland and I didn’t care for it. I put the sample aside and moved on to the other tobaccos that were included in the box. Something told me not to give up on old Bob however, and I decided to treat it like I do Dunhill’s Dark Flake. I took some of the broken flakes and rubbed them out completely then let the tobacco sit for about fifteen to twenty minutes to dry a bit. With a little trepidation, I loaded up my Forseti rusticated bent egg (my Father’s Day 2017 gift from the Mrs. and kiddo) giving the tobacco a light pack. The afternoon wasn’t terribly hot for Houston, so I went out to the porch to read and give Bob’s another go. The charring light went well, and after a very light tamping, the true light. Oh how wrong was my first impression…

Puffing slowly, almost sipping, I got a delicious flavor of good tobacco and began to taste a little sweetness from the virginias on my lips. Suddenly, the terrific pipe tobacco flavor was replaced in my mouth with the creamy taste of cocoa and vanilla, almost like hot chocolate, but not the instant or Hershey’s flavored kind - think homemade hot cocoa made with cream, Dutch cocoa powder, vanilla, and a little sugar. The flavor was that good. The Mrs. got a similar feeling form the room note when she stepped out. The cocoa flavor receded and the tobacco flavor came to the fore again. The flavors slowly alternated as the bowl burned lower, fading into each other and becoming more concentrated as the bottom of the bowl approached and the tobacco combusted into fine grey-white ash, leaving no dottle behind other than a pleasant memory. The reliable Zippo pipe lighter didn’t get much of a workout with this bowl. I only had to relight it twice.

Over the next few days I experimented a bit more with rubbing out and packing Bob’s Chocolate Flake and found that rubbing it out completely, letting it dry a bit, and packing it lightly gives the best results for me - your mileage may vary though. Interestingly, I’ve not picked up on the floral or Lakeland notes that some reviewers have mentioned. I’ve also not found any whisky flavor. That’s not to say that the floral and alcohol notes aren’t there, just that my sniffer and tastebuds aren’t picking up on them.

I am now a true fan of BCF and am actively adding it to my cellar  I would heartily encourage any piper to give this blend a try!

On another note, Padre Piper’s (@PadrePiper) recent vlog on codger blends got me thinking - what are my top codger blends?

5. Captain Black Dark

4. Lane HGL

3. Granger (a tip of the hat to Granddad Damewood)

2. Friends (what will I do when my stash is gone???)

1.  Velvet (My favorite everyday pipe tobacco)

I love the smell of cherry pipe tobacco, and at 47 I’m old enough to remember sitting in the stands at high school football games and catching whiffs of cherry tobacco in the Autumn air. My grandfather, L.J. James was also a cherry blend piper, so I have very happy memories there. Unfortunately I’ve never found a cherry blend that agrees with me.

Until next time,. Keep the fires burning!

     Greetings gents! Hope all is well! With this post (which has been waiting patiently in my drive for some time)  I’m starting to get caught up after a hectic 2nd semester! Be on the lookout for fresh posts soon!

    Here are two more gems from the estate lot box – an unmarked vest pocket pipe, and a sitter simply stamped “Imported Briar.” The vest pocket briar is a bit of a mystery, but I believe the sitter is one of the Dr. Grabow Continental line of pipes that was produced for a time in the early 60s. Based on what I’ve seen online, I think this example has a replacement stem. In the near future I will have to bend the stem into the correct configuration for this model.

    Other than a cobweb in the chamber of the sitter, both pipes were exceptionally clean! First, I dropped the stems into a warm oxyclean solution to loosen up any grime. The VPP was very clean and the sitter’s stem had just a bit of oxidation and mineral deposits. While the stems were in the bath, I cleared the airways of the stummels of just a bit of goop and gave the stummels a scrubbing with Murphy’s oil soap and a soft toothbrush. I touched up a nick on the surface of the VPP then gave both stummels a coat of oil and left them to soak it in.

    The stems were a very easy job. The VPP’s stem was almost immaculate and just needed a bit of polishing. The stem of the sitter required a little elbow grease to remove the light oxidation and mineral deposits. The airways of each needed just a little attention and a couple of pipe cleaners to bring them up to spec.

    After a couple of rounds on the buffer, both pipes were shined up and ready to go! I’ll be holding onto these two and I imagine that the vest pocket briar will come in very handy and see some good use during the holiday season as we go to visit various relations!

    Until next time, keep the fires lit, pipemen!  

Today’s LP: Bartok “Concerto for Viola and Orchestra” b/w Hindemith “Der Schwanendreher for Viola and Orchestra” Nonesuch H-71239

The Big Briar

    Greetings Pipemen! Today I have another repair from the estate box of briars.

    This is a large, pot-shaped, straight stem briar. The only marking on it is the stamp “made in London, England.”

The Big Briar. © 2017 James Hill

Made in London. © 2017 James Hill

Man, is this thing big! The Mrs. imagines that this was a sailor’s pipe. He didn’t have time to reload very often, hence the huge bowl. He apparently didn’t have the time to clean it either - this pipe was filthy!

    The stummel was smokey and sticky and very little grain was visible through the grime. There were also some flecks of green paint on one side. The rim was encrusted and the chamber was incredibly caked up, as you can see in the photo.

The Big Briar Chamber. © 2017 James Hill

The oxidized stem, once I was able to free it, I found was quite plugged up. The stem went into a warm solution of Oxyclean while I got to work on the stummel.

    The first order of business was to clean out the chamber. Once the first layer of cake (and wow, was this stuff sticky! I wonder what the previous owner smoked.)  had been removed, I found that my reamer wasn’t able to reach the sides of the chamber. After some elbow grease, a dowel, sandpaper, and lots of time, the chamber was clear - you can see how much goop came out in the photo.

The Big Briar Cake Removal. © 2017 James Hill

Next stop, the airway, which was completely plugged. Between a small, hand-turned drill bit, and lots of cotton swabs and pipe cleaners, the airway was finally free.

Some of the cleaning supplies. © 2017 James Hill

    Next, the stummel got a scrubbing with a soft toothbrush and Murphy’s Oil Soap. After a couple of rounds, I could see the true form of this briar emerging from under the grunge. Happily the paint flecks came right off with a little help from my thumbnail. I rinsed and dried the stummel then headed back out to the workshop. With a light sanding of the rim, a few scorch marks were removed then I touched up the finish, oiled the stummel and set it aside to tackle the stem.

    Cleaning the airway took time, patience, and lots of pipe cleaners. With that accomplished I began sanding and polishing the stem to remove the oxidation and some mineral deposits. I decided to revisit a couple tooth marks later.

    WIth the pipe cleaned and reassembled, I gave the works a once over with white diamond, then two coats of carnauba. As I was working the pipe on the buffer I could see the beautiful grain of the briar. This really is a lovely pipe and is ready to be put back into service in my collection!

    Thanks for reading, and until next time, keep the fires lit, pipemen!

The Big Briar, Cleaned. © 2017 James Hill

The Box o' Briars

The Box O' Briars (c) 2017 James Hill

Good Afternoon fellow Pipemen! 

I recently won a box lot of briars on ebay and the postman delivered them this weekend! They are in various states of repair, but all are quite mendable and I'm looking forward to sharing my repairs with all of you as I bring these veterans back into smoking condition! I'm really excited about the large pot briar - it's going to be a challenge to recondition but I think it will be a great smoker! From the size of the bowl, I'm guessing it will give a good 1 - 1.5 hours. 

I've also recently received a shipment of Ratttray's Bagpiper's Dream and Sutliff's Maple Street. I'll be posting my thoughts on them soon. 

Until next time, keep the briars lit, pipemen! 

Barking Dog Pipe Tobacco Review

Barking Dog tin with Forseti Bent Egg Briar. © 2017 James Hill

   Happy Sunday, Pipesmen! Today we’ll be trying out a classic - Barking Dog. Light ‘em if you’ve got ‘em!

    Barking Dog is a venerable drugstore American-English cube cut blend of burley, latakia, virginia, and perique. This pooch poses a problem to ponder, however. Just what is the topping? Is it rum? Is it molasses? A combination of the two? I believe it to be rum primarily. The rum almost certainly combines with something sweet, either molasses or a natural sweetness from one of the tobaccos, to make a butterscotch-like flavor. Barking Dog was produced by Phillip Morris and later by the House of Windsor. The original is now unavailable, but a match by Sutliff can be obtained from Pipes and Cigars. (https://www.pipesandcigars.com/p/match-barking-dog-pipe-tobacco/1473107/)

    The sad looking boxer on the tin seemed so forlorn that I had to give him a home. I wrote to pipestud (www.pipestud.com) and soon the doggy was winging his way to my home in Houston. Upon his arrival I chose my Forseti bent egg briar - my gift from the Mrs. and daughter for Father’s Day 2017 (thanks again, ladies!)  for the initial tasting.  The tin note is intriguing. Due to the mysterious alchemy of fermentation and aging, no one scent jumps right out. There is some smokiness from the latakia, a hint of spiciness, and an overall rich, beefy (for lack of a better word) aroma. Perhaps pipe tobacco umami is a good description. The topping is not apparent in the tin note. The Mrs. took a whiff of the tin and pronounced it “Beef Jerky”. With that I gathered my pipe, lighter, tamper, and tobacco and headed out to the back porch to take Barking Dog for a walk.

    The leaf was fairly dry, but not so much as to require rehydration. After the char light and tamp, I needed a few more lights to get the bowl going, then a few relights over the course of the bowl. This may very well be a result of my inexperience with cube cut tobacco rather than anything to do with the tobacco itself. Once burning, the flavor is very even. As with the tin note, no one tobacco stands out. Rather, the blend is well orchestrated with a firm foundation of burley and virginia, pleasant overtones of smoky latakia, and occasional trills of spiciness from  the perique. The mysterious sweetness/butterscotch flavor weaves in and out like a refrain. The room note is also even, but with a bit more smokiness from the latakia. This smokiness relegates it to a porch or workshop blend at my house. Thus far, the only English or American English blend that has been deemed “allowed in the house” is Lane’s HGL. As the tin says, this dog does not bite. I wanted a second opinion on the flavor so I got on the phone and rang up my partner in crime - an aficionado of blends such as Wild Atlantic and Orlik’s Golden Slices, who for the sake of privacy will be called Smoking Buddy. We lit up and chewed the fat over a pair of bowls, solving the problems of the world, and discussing the ups and downs of teaching High Schools. His impressions were much the same as mine in the flavor department, though he picked up more of a general undefined sweetness rather than an identifiable butterscotch flavor.

    I enjoyed Barking Dog, even with the frustration of keeping it lit. I’m slowly working my way through the two ounce tin and still hoping to find my groove with it. Overall, it’s a nice blend, but I don’t think that it will find a place in my permanent rotation. If you’re a fan of English or American-English blends, then Barking Dog, or its Sutliff match, may be something you’ll want to try! Until next time, keep the fires lit Pipemen!

Today’s LP - Rachmaninoff Sonata in G minor, op. 19  and Kodaly Sonata, op. 4

Nonesuch H-7155

Old Barking Dog advertisement

Friends Pipe Tobacco Review

   

Friends Tobacco tin with Bendetto Shamrock Briar. © 2017 James Hill

     Salutations fellow Pipemen! Today I will be reviewing an old-time American pipe blend, Friends. Light up and let’s get started!

    Friends, a combination of burley and virgina topped with rum (rum cured according to old ad copy) was produced by the United States Tobacco Company of Richmond, Virginia, and later, the House of Windsor of Yoe, Pennsylvania, from at least the early 1940s through the 1990s. Unfortunately, this blend is no longer available. The eye-catching yellow tin features a charming illustration of a man and his dog - best friends to be sure! I obtained a 30-40 year old factory sealed 12 ounce tin from the esteemed Steve Fallon - the pipestud (www.pipestud.com), In short order the tin arrived on my doorstep and my acquaintance with Friends began.

    When I broke the seal and unscrewed the lid I was greeted with the scent of dark chocolate with just a hint of alcohol - this stuff smells fantastic in the tin! I removed the paper insert, which has an ad for a ballpoint pen on a chain with a sticky base plate. The typeface and design appears to be totally 80s. Underneath the insert I found a full bag of lovely, dark brown leaf. Opening the bag, I found that the leaf was at an ideal moisture level. The years have been very good to this tin. Have I mentioned that the tin note is very chocolatey? WIth the bag open, the chocolate aroma became even more pronounced. Friends definitely passed my smell test! The Mrs. and daughter (chocolate lovers both) were also quite impressed with the tin note. An auspicious beginning to this friendship!

    For the first smoke I chose my Benedetto Shamrock - an Italian copy of a Peterson bent military mount briar. Based on my experience with other burley blends, I used a lighter pack. After a charring light and tamp, Friends lit easily and stayed lit, with only one relight, through a 30-40 minute bowl. The smoke was silky smooth and deliciously chocolatey, as was the room note. There was not a bite to be found.  Pipestud wrote that smoking Friends just naturally made a fellow want to pet his dog. Well, we don’t have a dog but the family cat -  as true blue a buddy as any dog - joined me in my chair as I smoked for quality lap time!

    Friends is flavorful, smooth, and satisfying, You could even say that it’s Chocolate Rum Cake in a briar! I will definitely be ordering more unopened tins to add to my cellar. Thanks again to pipestud for making these wonderful (and sometimes head scratch worthy - Greenbriar, anyone?) vintage tobaccos available.

    Until next time, keep the fires burning, pipemen!

Today’s LP - Jorg Demus and the Schubert Quartet playing Schubert’s Trout Quintet  and Sonatina in A Minor for Violin and Piano. Deutsche Grammophon/Privelege Stereo  2535 225

Friends tin insert. © 2017 James Hill

Granger Pipe Tobacco Review

    

Granger tobacco tin with Kaywoodie 13B Briar. © 2017 James Hill

    Greetings Pipemen! In today’s post I’m continuing my survey of three classic American burley blends. Up today is Granger. Let’s enter the lodge and light up!

    

    Granger pipe tobacco has been available at least since the 1930s. It was first produced by the American Tobacco Company and is now manufactured by the Scandinavian Tobacco Group/Lane Limited of Tucker, Georgia. Granger, “A Pointer on Fine Tobacco”, is a semi-aromatic, rough cut burley blend. At the time of its introduction, Granger was advertised as being for pipes only. This set the brand apart from many of its competitors that were sold as being for pipes or roll-your-own (I believe this dual use claim was a means to keep sales going during the depression and a bit beyond).

    Granger is currently sold in 12oz tins and is readily available. I placed an order with Pipes and Cigars (www.pipesandcigars.com) and waited patiently for my shipment to arrive. This was my wife’s grandfather’s blend of choice, so I was eagerly anticipating cracking the tin open! When my tin arrived, I opened it up and took a whiff. The tin note is cocoa, some nuttiness, and an unidentifiable fruit aroma. The Mrs. and daughter suggested fig newtons and raisins respectively. I’m not sure what the scent is, but I wonder if this could be the aroma of the mysterious “Wellman’s Process”. We have one of the wife’s grandfather’s classic Granger tins on the shelf, so we put a bit of of the tobacco in it to revive the tin’s aroma and remember Granddad Damewood. The tobacco has an almost ideal moisture level and is not sticky at all. I’ve found that this blend packs very easily with the scoop and tamp method and prefers a lighter packing. Lighting was a breeze and Granger stayed lit quite well, with only a couple of relights over a 40 minute bowl.

    For my first bowl I chose my trusty Kaywoodie 13B. The aroma is pleasant and one hundred percent “Old Time Pipey”. The family has classified it as an indoor blend - everyone enjoyed the room note, except perhaps the family cat, who walked by and sneezed. The flavor is richer and not as sweet as Granger’s cousin, Velvet. The tastes of tobacco, cocoa and that very mild fruit-like topping come through and become deeper and mellower as the bowl passes the halfway point. I didn’t get bit throughout the initial bowl and those that followed. You might get a bite out of that pointer if you push him too hard, but I think he’s pretty forgiving.

    I have really enjoyed Granger and have added a couple of tins to my cellar and plan on acquiring at least a few more. If you enjoy almost unadulterated burley, let me “point” you towards Granger. You really can’t go wrong with this classic.

Early Granger advertisement

Opening the Pipeman's Lodge

“Nowhere in the world will such a brotherly feeling of confidence be experienced as amongst those who sit together smoking their pipes.”

– Doctor Barnstein, The Results and Merits of Tobacco, 1844

Velvet advertisement, 1922

Welcome to the Pipeman’s Lodge, a blog on pipes, tobacco, books, music, and other topics of interest. I’m looking forward to chatting with you about all of these topics without the politics, partisanship, general nastiness, and ungentlemanly discourse that has become so sadly common these days. Let’s open the door, light up, and relax in the Pipeman’s Lodge!