Best bang for the buck?

[talrmn35]

Ok...I'm a guy with a large family, a tight budget and minimal experience. My birthday is in a couple days and I have managed to sock away a couple bucks for my B-day pipe. I really cannot justify most of the prices of A LOT of pipes out there, as much as I wish I could...So here's my question to you, my Brothers of Briar, if you had 100. to spend and could only buy 1 pipe...what would it be? And why? I realize that there are a ton of options with 100 bones, but there are also a lot of limitations.

Talk amongst yourselves...

 

[MisterE]

Well, probably no S. Bang for the buck anyway, jajaja.

Seriously, check out Peterson, Stanwell, and Savinelli to start. They´re all well made and you can find something very decent between the $60 to $100 range.

Almost every reputable etailer or tobacco shop will have a variety of one or all three even...

 

[PipePuffer]

I second Petersons, Stanwells and Savinellis. I would also throw Boswells in there. And don't forget estate pipes. There are some nice estate pipes to be had for less than $100 at Smokingpipes.com right now (kaywoodie, GBD, Dupont, Mastro de Paja, Brebbia, etc...)

 

[Frost]

You've actually got lots of options with $100, but your best bet for a new pipe will probably be Peterson, Stanwell and Savinelli as stated above if you want to remain within the realm of well known and reputable brand name pipes.

My preference would be for a Stanwell out of those three, but it's basically a toss up, more or less. Some would disagree..in fact I would disagree, but for the sake of avoiding argument I'll call it a draw between the three.

You could maybe get two of the above mentioned brands as estates, for the price you could pay for one of them new. Might take some patience and alot of ebay and/or forum trading post research, but would likely be worth it in the end.

If you are super duper patient and dilligent, you can very occasionally find a deal on an even higher grade pipe than your run of the mill stan, pete, or sav.

There are a couple of very good carvers who could make you a pipe for maybe $150 or so. I know when the budget is tight that extra $50 can really be hard to find, but it's worth it to my mind to get a "custom made" pipe, essentially designed and carved specifically for you.

The guys in the factories may not have the end user's satisfaction in mind at every step along the pipemaking process. whereas the guy who knows your name and has his reputation on the line has a little more incentive to put the best pipe he can in your hands and do what he can to make sure you are happy with it.

 

[Williamson]

I must say I have been very impressed with my Savinellis. Great smokers from the start. If you are looking in that price range they are an excellent choice and have a large selection of shapes and sizes.

 

[Rob_In_MO]

Another option (i've done this personally) is a good Basket Pipe from the local tobacco store. Many of these are actually 2nd's from better manufacturers - 2 of my 3 basket pipes smoke really well too.

With the extra savings (pipe costing 20-30 dollars) you could stock-up on your favorites tobaccos.

If you do want a better pipe though, i'd have to recommend Savinelli as well - i'm most impressed with mine!

 

[talrmn35]

I have a Savinelli and it is nice...picked it up on ebay. I think I paid 35 or 40 bucks for it. I also have a couple Nordings and a Mario Grandi. (along with a kaywoodie and a couple basket pipes). I have had my eye and a couple Stanwells and I know those are the brands (Sav, stan pete) that seem to be in my range...but I have yet to pay more than 50 bucks for anything. And knowing I could pick up any of the above brands "estate" for less does make it difficult to justify buying one new.


"There are a couple of very good carvers who could make you a pipe for maybe $150 or so. I know when the budget is tight that extra $50 can really be hard to find, but it's worth it to my mind to get a "custom made" pipe, essentially designed and carved specifically for you. "

Frost, Who would you recommend?

Thanks for all the input!

 

[pipedirector]

cupojoes.com has a couple of Stanwell Vario's (like the excellent #186) for under $50 new.

I say go with a Stanwell- you can't lose. Just my thoughts.

Matt

 

[shootist51]

I really recommend shopping the estate market. I learned to love Charatans back when I first started smoking briar and have picked up 25 or 30 over the years in different grades, but ALL have been great smokers and until a recent purchase of an unsmoked 284 in the box, never paid more than $85.

I think the high end, artisan pipes are great. I've even purchase a couple to mark special occassions, but over all, let's face it...a pipe is a tool, so functionality is what you look for.

With a limited budget($100) you can get 2 maybe 3 great smoking pipes on the estate market or 1 great smoker and some promo tobacco to enjoy in it. :lol!:

 

[Maiser]

Some people were talking about ebaying and buying some estates...

I would have to strongly second this notion. I have an Ardor that I bought as an estate on Ebay for under 60 dollars, it is an excellent pipe, and handmade to boot.

I say a little effort and patience can go a long way.

 

[Cody V]

"There are a couple of very good carvers who could make you a pipe for maybe $150 or so. I know when the budget is tight that extra $50 can really be hard to find, but it's worth it to my mind to get a "custom made" pipe, essentially designed and carved specifically for you. "

Frost, Who would you recommend?

Thanks for all the input!

If you wanted to support a pipe-maker on this board, you could go to Sasquatch. They look great, and smoke great from what I hear. You can see his work in the "Town Crier"

Otherwise, I'd say join the club and get a Savinelli 320

 

[Trout Bum]

Stanwell gets my vote! But that's probably because I like their shapes/finishes better than Petes and Savs. These are the three biggies, so to speak; any one of them would probably make you happy.

 

[Frost]

Frost, Who would you recommend?

As Cody state above...Sasquatch makes quite a good pipe. Good enough that I bought two of 'em. Shoot him a PM and see what he's got to say, I doubt you would be dissapointed.

Mike Brissett (pipemaker on this forum) also makes a damn fine pipe. I don't know how active he is anymore, but you could try e-mailing him. He made me a pipe a few months ago and it's simply an awesome smoker. Good pipe. His e-mail can be found on this site. Click the info tab at the top left:

http://my.execpc.com/~maddog92/Pipes2/pipes.html

You can also pick up one of Mark Tinksy's shapes in his coral carve finish for somewhere in the neighborhood of $165 from his site. The 2010 Christmas pipe is a fine shape...sort of an apple/author mix. I have one in sanblast.


Edit: I see you are also in Illinois. The Chicago pipe show is coming up in May and there will be a whole crapload of pipes of all kinds that you can actually pick up and look at there. Might want to save your money up for the time being and set aside that weekend for a visit to the pipe show...just a thought: http://www.chicagopipeshow.com/show_information/faqs.php#1

 

[talrmn35]

Already been chatting with Sas! We will see what he comes up with! Thanks for all the tips guys...I know its a pretty open ended subject...AND I see this same topic was brought up in a 2008 post (oops) so thanks for tolerating the new guy

Timm

 

[Frost]

Good call. Todd knows his way around a chunk of wood:

 

[Sasquatch]

Ugly.

Simply because it hasn't been mentioned I think both Mastro de Paja and Radice beat the hell out of Peterson, Sav et al if you push to 120 bucks or so. It can be a little tough to track them down in this price range, but it can be done, and you get crazy pipe for the money.

 

[Tim_Haggerty]

I'd second waiting for the pipe show. I've never been to Chicago, but the Columbus show always has a lot of nice pipes in the $100 range. You can also do a little horse trading, pick up some pipes -- both high ends and baskets -- and ask a lot of questions: spend 100 bucks on a pipe and get a lot of invaluable information and meet a lot of pipe makers. Of course, I'd leave my credit cards at home, just as a precaution.

 

[Tim_Haggerty]

And if you're looking to upgrade, I'd second the suggestion to look at Radices on eBay. I've just gotten my first Rind (rusticated); they tend to be a little cheaper than the Silk Cut (sandblasted) and clear (smooth) but it's already a favorite pipe. For some reason, they're not as popular as Ser Jacopos or Mastro de Pajas, but every bit as good, in my opinion.

 

[Frost]

Ugly.

Dangit man, why didn't you tell me these were ugly pipes? I distinctly asked for pretty ones.

 

[Sasquatch]

Ha ha you fool!

You fell victim to one of the classic blunders!