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Other makers

At various times, I have owned pipes by the following makers, who are no longer represented in my collection. I offer the following brief evaluations of their work, but caution that I do not neccesarily follow their progress closely.

Armellini

Mauro Armellini is known as a machine wizard, having designed much of his own equipment. He's reputed to own a large stock of old briar. According to Hacker, production was once up to 20,000 pipes a year, which were mostly sold in Italy or exported to the USA. To my mind, Armellinis are superior to most competitors among the Italian factory pipes.

Ascorti

Ascorti and Caminetto are sister brands - decent Italian semi-handmades, but slightly pricey for their quality/design bracket. However, they do retain their value rather well on the estate market. Craggy rustication of the less expensive grades continues to contribute to these pipes' popularity.

Bari

A Danish brand of affordable briars founded (but no longer owned) by Viggo Nielsen. Output is reportedly quite low (1500 a year), facilitating excellent quality for the money. Expect to pay a little more than for a Stanwell.

Klaus-Dieter Billerbeck

A German freehand artisan with a very rustic style. He views his pipes as works of art and rarely repeats a shape. Formerly a policeman, Billerbeck includes a tamper made from a pistol cartridge with each piece he carves.

Brebbia

Savinelli's biggest competitor in the market for affordable Italians. Brebbia's reputation is not as good as its rival's, which profits from high-end lines like the Autographs and Guibileo d´oros. However, buyers on a budget should keep an eye out for Brebbias, which sometimes boast great grain for the money. Like Savinelli's cheaper pipes, they often end up in baskets - which is where the best deals can be found.

Butz-Choquin

230,000 pipes annually are shipped from this firm's factory in St. Claude, France. The quality range is broad, but BCs almost always smoke well. Some of the hand-made higher grades deliver collectible pipes at a fair price. The only reason I sold my last Butz-Choquin was my farewell to the 'highly possessive' blend I had smoked in it (RB Plug). The buyer was an RB smoker and therefore unconcerned about crossover.

Caminetto

Sister brand of Ascorti - good quality semi-handmades from Italy. Very comfortable bits, though generally acrylic. Early Caminettos were among the first Italian artisan pipes to impress American collectors.

Gracco

An old French make, possibly discontinued, but renowned for good smoking quality. The best pipes had a gold-colour logo on the stem. But even top pieces could contain fills.

HHB

Mystery brand - they were available in Germany in the mid-1970s and occasionally still appear on German Ebay. The pipes were almost always well made, of medium size and conservative shape. I and others have made several attempts to trace their maker and background, but have invariably failed totally.

Jensen

Pipes from Georg Jensen's Copenhagen factory are still widely available in European stores. They are moderately priced, though sometimes a little more expensive than Stanwells (the chief competition). Higher grades are usually well made and good value.

Peter Klein

A German mid-grade artisan, quite popular in his own region of the country. His prices are relatively low, but there have been complaints about finish and details. In my opinion, his lower grades offer reasonably good value for money. His more ambitious work fails to impress me, lacking true originality.

Lorenzo

An Italian firm that produced decent, affordable pipes in the 1970s and early 1980s - usually rather huge and rustic pieces. Their reputation has suffered of late.

Lund

I cannot say whether Svend Lund is still alive and active. If so, he is now well over 80. At one time, he produced about 100 Danish hand mades a year - at factory prices! Mine was a very light piece with tight straight grain and a Cumberland stem. It smoked somewhat hot, but was rather nicely made.

Masta

A Dunhill/Parker/Hardcastle offshoot, primarily for the Scandinavian market. The brand no longer appears to exist. In my opinion, a Masta is rarely the equal of a Parker.

Nording

A famous Danish brand with a broad price and quality range. Over 20,000 pipes are produced annually. The affordable pieces sometimes constitute very good value for money. Top pipes command true high-grade prices.

Orlik

This firm built a new factory in Southend-on-Sea, but was then fully taken over by the Cadogan group. The factory subsequently became the birthplace of all Cadogan-made pipes from about 1980 onwards. Formerly a good make, but not as exclusive as Loewe or Comoy's. Collectors usually ignore post-1980 Orliks, but estates from the firm's glory days are sometimes available and normally inexpensive.

Ropp

Another French brand once famous for excellent smoking properties at a very decent price. The grain was frequently quite stunning.

Vauen

A German factory brand, not normally attractive to international buyers - since all pipes are made for 9mm filters. Fairly decent quality, though somewhat inconistent and slightly expensive. Several grades of hand-made pipes form the top of the range. In Germany, these are marked with a white spot on the stem. Elsewhere, due to an agreement with Dunhill, the spot is grey.

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