The Original Tinderbox on Wilshire in LA

[edwardbopp]

Gentlemen please feast your eyes on the beauty that is the Original Tinderbox on Wilshire Blvd in LA. I was lucky enough to have a chance to stop in a few weeks ago. Enjoy!









Jim leafing through the custom blend book for me. A real work of art. It belongs in a museum.







"The Old Man" Ed Koplin. The founding father of Tinderbox. Ed started Tinderbox on Wilshire when he was just 18. That was back in 1928. RIP Old Man.

 

[HCraven]

Great pics! What a rare treat to visit such a historic store.

 

[edwardbopp]

You said it Herb!

 

[the rev]

hey, that might be a good place for a BOB smoke out, or my house in Long Beach

or wherever

SoCal smokeout

woo hoo

yeah

rev

 

[edwardbopp]

hey, that might be a good place for a BOB smoke out, or my house in Long Beach

or wherever

SoCal smokeout

woo hoo

yeah

rev

Hey Rev!

Fine by me! Works kinda crazy right now so we'll have to get something together in the summer. I'm actually closer to long beach so maybe that'll work better. Either way, keep touch!

Ed

 

[the rev]

will do, would be great to have a bbq, some scotch, some pipes, would love to host

rev

 

[Briar Spirit]

will do, would be great to have a bbq, some scotch, some pipes, would love to host

rev

Hot damn, so sad I'm stuck over here in miserable Blighty, I'd scoot on over to your gaff in a flash Rev if I were able, I hope when you guys get it together you have a really fantastic time, will think on you all fondly when it happens.

 

[the rev]

maybe we can time it when Kyle is visiting so he can join us, that would be great.

rev

 

[the rev]

and maybe we can take up an offering and fly Kirk out, he will need some cheering up this summer. For one the sun doesn't actually come out in England... ever!!! and two, they are going to lose the ashes and the boys from down under will once again have the urn, go aussie

rev

 

[Harlock999]

Great pics!
I was just there last Friday to ogle the briars, and there was an interesting conversation about Jethro Tull and Led Zeppelin going on when I stepped in...
A real time warp!

And it seems like Jim always has a cigar in hand. 8)

 

[idbowman]

Very cool...well, except that the Toby Jugs creep me the hell out. Always have. My Mother-in-Law owns about 4 million of them, and I'm dreading the day they start making there way into my home.

 

[edwardbopp]

Great pics!
I was just there last Friday to ogle the briars, and there was an interesting conversation about Jethro Tull and Led Zeppelin going on when I stepped in...
A real time warp!

And it seems like Jim always has a cigar in hand. 8)

Oh definitely the time warp... Yeah good old Jim. He's good people.

 

[edwardbopp]

Very cool...well, except that the Toby Jugs creep me the hell out. Always have. My Mother-in-Law owns about 4 million of them, and I'm dreading the day they start making there way into my home.

Yeah there is definitely something odd about those things. A friend of mine told a story where her grandmother had several above her door and by the end of the month they would all be facing the wall. My friend thought they were haunted or something.

 

[docwatson]

Thanks for the photos and bringing back some good memories. I haven't been there in 15 years, and my last visit I sold Ed Kolpin a pipe!!! I'm glad to hear the shop is still in business as it's a landmark.

 

[Buckshot]

Seeing those pictures sure made me wish the Tinderbox that used to be in the Detroit area (Westland) was still there. Even though it was 70 miles away, I loved to go there. And I loved the catalog that they published each year.

 

[Kyle Weiss]

May that place NEVER close. :cheers:

...and may a west coast BoB gathering occur in the future!

 

[Harlock999]

May that place NEVER close. :cheers:

...and may a west coast BoB gathering occur in the future!

You coming down?
If so, I'm there!

 

[Rafael Romero]

Im from chatsworth and all for a gathering
I can show up any Tue or Wed eve. Let me know when its gonna happen.

 

[SteveMKentucky]

I hope it's not bad form to resurrect such an old thread but I woke up this morning thinking about my first pipe that I bought at the Tinderbox in Pensacola Florida.  I did a search on "The Tinderbox" and this thread was one of the search engine hits.  Pensacola was my first Navy duty station.  The closest mall was called Cordova Mall and had a Tinderbox.  It was my favorite shop in Pensacola.  My father was a lifelong pipe smoker and preferred Canadians, so my first pipe was a Canadian from that very Tinderbox.  Unfortunately, the Pensacola Tinderbox went out of business decades ago during the wave of Tinderbox closures.

Regretfully, the original Tinderbox in Santa Monica California that is the subject of this thread closed in 2017.  I found it using Googlemaps street view and it is not a pretty sight.   I started to do a screen capture to post but decided it was best not posted in its current state.  Better to remember it as it was.

The good news is that there a numerous franchises still open around the country.  The closest to me is probably 4.5 hours away so I probably won't be visiting soon.

Nonetheless it's sad to see another pipe smoker's B&M has gone.

 

[Fight'n Hampsters]

Sadly piping is a dying pastime.