CAMINETTO stamping help, please

[Zeno Marx]

two questions. The first is what I'm most curious to answer because I can't find anything with my searches.

Smooth Caminetto. cross-cut with some nice, tight birdseye.

#1: "HG" stamping on the bottom of the shank. The H is over the G, so they're intertwined. My guess is that it means High Grade, but it is only a guess. I also don't know which grade or series that would make it (Business, etc). Or, if that makes it an especially rare pipe? I've never seen it before now.

#2: "Made in Italy Cucciago [Cantu']" I find conflicting information, dating this pipe to be made anywhere between 1969 and 1979. The other side of the shank is simply marked with "Caminetto". I haven't taken a jeweler's loop to it yet, but the thin mustache logo in the stem appears to be made with either silver or white ink. Any more exact ideas of when this stamping would date this pipe?

any help is greatly appreciated. or maybe you know an expert someone I should ask these questions? Private message me if you'd rather not reveal their name publicly.

thanks again

 

[mark]

I poked around for about two hours but came up with squat for specific information,,,maybe Richard Hackers "the Ultimate Pipe Book" would cover Caminetto stampings.

 

[Zeno Marx]

thanks for that solid effort. I appreciate it. I don't remember Hacker covering stampings with any great degree, but I haven't even seen a copy of the book for years and years. I might have to call to St.Louis to get to the bottom of this.

 

[jacko]

I am very far from an authority on this subject however its my understanding that a Gold Moustache is 69-79 and white is post 80s. Is the moustache etched or stamped on the shank? Can you post a pick??

 

[Zeno Marx]

I am very far from an authority on this subject however its my understanding that a Gold Moustache is 69-79 and white is post 80s. Is the moustache etched or stamped on the shank? Can you post a pick??

stamped, and the mustache is thin, not the fat gold stamped type. This is definitely not a pipe from the 80s, 90s, or 00s. All reports for the "Made in Italy..." stamping point to the '69-'79 era. My camera takes horrendous nomenclature closeups. I might be able to scan the pipe and get something useful.

 

[jacko]

Have you seen this page: http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-c1.html

If you scroll down to Caminetto it has a tiny bit of info with pics. Probably nothing enlightening but its a good reference. Keep us posted on what you find out.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Have you seen this page: http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-c1.html

I have. One of those pages only as useful as those who contribute to it. Not much specificness there.

I found an interview with Harvey Greif from a 1987 Koplin International issue. It offers some detailed, yet still frustratingly ambiguous, information on Caminetto stamping. I'll try to scan that sometime soon and share it. Doesn't have any mention of the "HG" mark, and it doesn't supply any further aid in dating. Still, some good information in there and a fun read.

I'm beginning to realize how poorly documented we are in the pipe world. So much history and information is buried somewhere in basements, in attics, and in memories. Again, our information is only as good, and as thorough, as our efforts encourage it to be.

 

[Zeno Marx]

Here's the Harvey Greif interview with good information about Caminetto.

"Caminetto gains Recognition as Collectible Pipe." Pipe Smoker July/August/September 1987: 09-18. Print.

5.14mb
http://www.megaupload.com/?d=OQTYOSPW

 

[jacko]

Thanks for posting, very interesting!

 

[Zeno Marx]

 

[joshoowah]

I don't mean any harm by reviving this old thread, but perhaps the HG stamped on your pipe is a special collected piece by Harvey Grief himself. Though I am not sure if he stamped his collection, it does not seem outrageous to think so seeing as he was an extreme Caminetto collector. I think you might have a special piece indeed, especially if it was Harvey's.

 

[Zeno Marx]

No harm at all. Thank you.

 

[joshoowah]

No harm at all. Thank you.

If you don't mind me asking, how many Caminetto's do you own? Just curious as I am a Caminetto collector too.

 

[Boulder]

What style is the pipe?

 

[Zeno Marx]

What style is the pipe?

Smooth. Cross-cut. 3/4 bent egg. Black stem saddle Caminetto style. It isn't marked a KS, but it probably should have been.

 

[Anonymous]

the thin mustache logo in the stem appears to be made with either silver or white ink.

It likely is. The early thin, gold moustaches weren't secured very well, and a lot of them have come loose & been lost, leaving moustache-shaped indentations in the stems where they were. You see a lot of them like that.

Nobody makes replacements, and it would be easy to envision somebody not content with that to use a little paint to make it "look nice" again.

FWIW

:face:

 

[Zeno Marx]

I only own a handful of Caminettos at this point, but over the years, I've maybe had 75-100 roll through my stable. That's a generous estimate. I really don't know, but it seems like an awful lot of them. Same for Ascorti, though I own none at the moment.

I thought I came back to this thread to report what I found. The "HG" stamp in question is a Swiss tobacconist's mark (I think I'm remembering this correctly). My guess would be that they stamped hand-picked pipes at the factory for export to this specific shop, and I'm not sure if it is a single shop or a franchise of shops. What's the name of the shop? I can't remember right now. So, while unique to Caminetto, the stamp isn't all that interesting or special (IMO).

Now, the reason I'm reviving this old thread is this: does anyone know when, why, or possibly for whom, Caminetto put a high-gloss, lacquer-esqe finish on their pipes? I believe it is from late 70s or the early 80s, because most of the ones I've seen are of the thin mustache period. Another assumption is that they did it for the US market, but that's a gut thing. I have no solid reason for thinking that. I do know the shiny finish is a pain in the butt to thoroughly remove, and I've seen plenty with it that spot flaked. You get that spotty wear, and you have the inclination to remove it all. It's not an easy thing to do. I personally think it looks terrible anyway, even when perfect. It's a furniture type finish that makes the pipes look rather cheap. So, anyone have the scoop on this?

 

[Ozark Wizard]

I love the digging up of old posts......

In my experience with woodworking, my first guess would be it's a lacquer, and when moisture wicks through the bowl, it lifts the finish. Something a walking library once told me, "Water on wood, uh uh, no good".

I understand the idea of using it, as it really makes the character of the briar pop!

Or, I could be off base. But I have heard of lacquer finishes being used on briars.

 

[Puff Daddy]

I know Castello will stamp a letter/number designation on certain pipes destined for specific shops in Europe, I owned a couple, and some reliable sources confirmed this. It wouldn't seem odd that Caminetto would have done the same. As to varnish, could have been a request on a run of pipes at one time or could have just been another experiment by the maker they tried and then dropped. You might ask some of the old guard who deal in these and were around back then selling them. Marty Pulvers comes to mind.

 

[ftrplt]

I love the digging up of old posts......

In my experience with woodworking, my first guess would be it's a lacquer, and when moisture wicks through the bowl, it lifts the finish. Something a walking library once told me, "Water on wood, uh uh, no good".

I understand the idea of using it, as it really makes the character of the briar pop!

Or, I could be off base. But I have heard of lacquer finishes being used on briars.  

I had one pipe with a lacquer finish, my very first one, a Dr. Grabow. Smoked hotter than hell, but that "might" have been me!! How some ever, tis always been my understanding that finishing a briar pipe with lacquer "seals" the wood not allowing the briar to "breathe." Howz about you woodworkers/pipe makers edgejewkateing me/us on this, please!! :cheers: FTRPLT

Plus I apologize for hijacking the thread subject. I didn't know the gun was loaded and I'll never, never do it again :no: