Any Calabash pipe smokers out there?

[user 2027]

So a buddy of mine brought his brother to an afternoon of telling lies at the local B&M. First person I met that smoked a Calabash Pipe. He raved about it and I checked out the pipe after he smoked it. Looks like a great smoking pipe.

So I'm on the PAD hunt now. Any Calabash smokers out there got any tips, things to consider or watch out for when buying a Calabash pipe?

 

[Puff Daddy]

Big gourd calabash? Always wanted one, but the available funds and the pipe never met. Not yet anyhow. Strambach is supposed to be about the best there is. Not easy to get ahold of one though.

http://www.strambach.at/pipes-rahmen.html

 

[Dutch]

Geoff,I have 2 gourd calabash pipes, and functionally, they are super dry smoking pipes. I only paid around $75 each for mine, and they are the Pioneer brand.

Be aware, the larger the gourd, the more the pipe will mute your tobacco flavor.

This can be ideal with certain tobaccos, or it can totally weaken other tobaccos making them not to your liking in the calabash.

Being that the best gourd calabash pipes have meerschaum cups, I would recommend getting one of the smaller sized gourd designs, so that you can smoke a variety of tobaccos without muting your flavors.

This guy usually has the Strambach Austria gourd calabash pipes for around $180 to $225 depending on the size gourd. Right now it appears he has none in stock though. He also sometimes carries a higher priced model with a silver band. http://myworld.ebay.com/xerocracy/

If you want the ultimate gourd calabash, check out the Fikri Baki line. Unlike some meerschaum carvers, he has an excellent reputation on the boards with customer satisfaction. Here is a link to his site, as well as a video review by Astroman who scored a bangin Baki Calabash. http://bestmeerschaums.homestead.com/GOURDCALABASHPAGE.html

<iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/s_bqWLCPQjA" allowscriptaccess="always" allowfullscreen="true" frameborder="0" loading="lazy" allowfullscreen></iframe>

 

[Idlefellow]

The two on the left are meerschaum bowls, the upper right is a porcelain bowl.  All Pioneers as I recall.  Lower right is actually a double-walled clay.  Very cool smokes and best suited to the easy chair.  Have had mine forever so no real advice on acquiring one these days; have seen a few on the bay.

 

[monbla256]

I had a Bauer I bought years ago, but sadly it slipped out of my hand and fell to the wooden floor of my house and broke the meer bowl. I never got a replacement bowl as for me, it was a pipe one had to just sit and smoke and was what I felt was just too big. But it was a VERY cool and dry smoking pipe. It's put away in a box in a closet somewhere and I might see about getting a replacement bowl now that you've brought 'em up :twisted: 

 

[ftrplt]

I have one, a medium-sized gourd w/meer bowl. Great smoker, especially for my Latweed blends. Prices are all over the place; you might try eBay just to get an idea what the market will bear! The Strambachs, etc. will set you back a bit, but they are great pipes. FWIW, FTRPLT

P.S. Unless you just want a porcelain bowl, I strongly suggest a meer bowl. I personally don't care for porcelain bowls.

Should have added that many of the new calabashes are made from mahogany, not gourd. I have no idea what a mahogany 'bash smokes like.

 

[pepesdad1]

" />

I've got a medium to small gourd calabash with a meer cap. Everything you have just read about them is true. Fantastic smoke..taste flavors that normally you wouldn't notice. Bought mine 50 years ago, so  I can't tell you anything but GET ONE. You will never regret it.

You might check out this site. I know nothing about them.

http://calabashpipe.com/

 

[Fr_Tom]

I have a gourd calabash that has a cracked bowl. I had it when I was in college, so that has - ummm - been a while. You can't see it on the top, but when you take the bowl out, you can see it. It was a great smoker, and I have thought about trying to replace the bowl insert.

 

[Richard Burley]

What's the deal with gourds for these pipes? Are they scarce for some reason? Why the mahogany substitute? Anyone know?

 

[RDPipes]

What's the deal with gourds for these pipes? Are they scarce for some reason? Why the mahogany substitute? Anyone know?

I would assume being that the gourds have to be grown specially for them using any substitute is easier and cheaper.

 

[Richard Burley]

Just went to Baki's site. Apparently they come from South Africa. The country's recent history is suggestive. The photo on the site seems to indicate that the gourds are nothing special, just how you cut them. Would love to try one, but four bills is a bit much for what I would probably relegate to the curiosity rack.

 

[huffelpuff]

They are usually great smokers but are definitely a sit down and smoke it thing. Personally I miss mine as the plastic cap the bit goes into snapped off years ago and got lost. Keep your eyes open they show up in some strange places and sometimes for nearly nothing. I got mine in an antique shop for $25! Also be aware that there are sometimes issues with air leaks around the cork that holds the cup in place. They are no big deal to fix though, Elmer's glue and a sheet of cork are all you need. Cork grease doesn't hurt either. Especially if you're sensitive to certain sounds like nails on a chalk board.

Jim

 

[RDPipes]

Just went to Baki's site. Apparently they come from South Africa. The country's recent history is suggestive. The photo on the site seems to indicate that the gourds are nothing special, just how you cut them. Would love to try one, but four bills is a bit much for what I would probably relegate to the curiosity rack.  

I used the wrong word, I really didn't mean that there specially grown in anyway, just that they have to be grown and it's a certain type of gourd.
You wouldn't want to use a squash or pumpkin. I mean you could I reckon but, why?

 

[mark]

  Any Calabash smokers out there got any tips, things to consider or watch out for when buying a Calabash pipe?

A block meerschaum cup is preferable to a pressed meerschaum cup.
A gourd calabash is lighter than a mahogany bash, but from my experience both smoke equally cool and dry.
If you buy a used one pull the cup and check very carefully for minute hairline cracks and that there is no mold growing inside the gourd.
Clarinet/saxophone cork grease applied to the cups cork gasket once in a while will keep it flexible and sealing tight.
Enjoy

 

[ftrplt]

Just went to Baki's site. Apparently they come from South Africa. The country's recent history is suggestive. The photo on the site seems to indicate that the gourds are nothing special, just how you cut them. Would love to try one, but four bills is a bit much for what I would probably relegate to the curiosity rack.  

I used the wrong word, I really didn't mean that there specially grown in anyway, just that they have to be grown and it's a certain type of gourd.
You wouldn't want to use a squash or pumpkin. I mean you could I reckon but, why?

Not only a certain "type" of gourd, but each one has to have a considerable about of hands-on time in getting them to bend in a given pattern as they grow. Labor-intensive to say the least1 FTRPLT

 

[CharlG]

Indeed! Like ftrplt says, they are very labour intensive to grow. And it is a special type of pumpkin. They are really scarce, even for me living in SA. Normally, the guys cultivating them do so to make pipes themselves.

 

[CharlG]

Just per luck I read a very interesting article regarding calabashes at my local B&M today. Apparently planting is done in September (keep in mind that SA is southern hemisphere) and harvested in December, more or less 7 weeks. While growing, the pumpkin have to be turned day by day, little by little to get that bend right. This normally takes place at noon when the pumpkin will be more susceptible because of the heat. After harvest, the calabash is sundried for 3 days, then for a further 3 weeks indoors in a cool place, after which it is boiled to get it clean and get that that nice calabash colour. The drying especially is really difficult: if it dries to slow, it will get mouldy; if too fast, it cracks.

 

[ftrplt]

Just per luck I read a very interesting article regarding calabashes at my local B&M today. Apparently planting is done in September (keep in mind that SA is southern hemisphere) and harvested in December, more or less 7 weeks. While growing, the pumpkin have to be turned day by day, little by little to get that bend right. This normally takes place at noon when the pumpkin will be more susceptible because of the heat. After harvest, the calabash is sundried for 3 days, then for a further 3 weeks indoors in a cool place, after which it is boiled to get it clean and get that that nice calabash colour. The drying especially is really difficult: if it dries to slow, it will get mouldy; if too fast, it cracks.

CG...Is it true that there are fewer gourd growers in SA due to the labor-intensive effort, or some other reason???:?: FTRPLT

 

[Brewdude]

Just per luck I read a very interesting article regarding calabashes at my local B&M today. Apparently planting is done in September (keep in mind that SA is southern hemisphere) and harvested in December, more or less 7 weeks. While growing, the pumpkin have to be turned day by day, little by little to get that bend right. This normally takes place at noon when the pumpkin will be more susceptible because of the heat. After harvest, the calabash is sundried for 3 days, then for a further 3 weeks indoors in a cool place, after which it is boiled to get it clean and get that that nice calabash colour. The drying especially is really difficult: if it dries to slow, it will get mouldy; if too fast, it cracks.

Very interesting, Charl. Thanks for the info.

I've been casually interested in a calabash for some time now. Saw a nice one at Uhle's back around '97 or so when I was visiting my old cheesehead homeland.

Don't recall the brand, but it was med sized and discounted since it was  "1/2 price Tue" or some such promotion they ran back then.

Choked and didn't buy it, since the discounted price was still somewhat spendy for me at the time. But it was a beautiful pipe nonetheless.


Cheers,

RR

 

[scotties22]

Just curious......how would you all feel about a briar insert gourd calabash?