I own a couple meerschaum lined briars. I believe they are both block, but on one of them, which is 40 years old, I'm not really sure, TBH.
However, both these pipes have performed well over many bowls of many blends over many years. The best of both worlds (briar, meerschaum) with the as mentioned plus of being considerably more rugged than my all-meerschaum pipes.
I do remember buying an estate meer lined pipe on eBay which arrived with the meerschaum lining broken up in pieces inside the bowl, likely due to mishandling by the USPS. I returned it to the seller who credited me completely, including the cost of shipping.
I think it rather important, for reasons stated in this thread, that it's important to go with a block meerschaum lined pipe and I believe it's also better to buy it new to avoid issues.
However, both these pipes have performed well over many bowls of many blends over many years. The best of both worlds (briar, meerschaum) with the as mentioned plus of being considerably more rugged than my all-meerschaum pipes.
I do remember buying an estate meer lined pipe on eBay which arrived with the meerschaum lining broken up in pieces inside the bowl, likely due to mishandling by the USPS. I returned it to the seller who credited me completely, including the cost of shipping.
I think it rather important, for reasons stated in this thread, that it's important to go with a block meerschaum lined pipe and I believe it's also better to buy it new to avoid issues.
