Anyone know much about pipes?

moki

moki

el Presidente
Joined
Dec 16, 2003
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Rochester, NY USA
I picked up a pipe about a decade ago in Spain -- I'm not much of a pipe smoker, so I have rarely used it. All I remember is that it is made out of some special kind of stone/clay that is very light, and insulates from heat well.

Can anyone identify the type of stone/clay I'm speaking of? I know there is a word to describe it, but I can't recall what it is. It's definitely stone/clay of some kind, and it's so light that it floats. Here's a picture:

clawpipe.jpg
 
Wow, thanks for the quick and accurate responses!

from: http://www.meerschaum.com/

.....

Meerschaum is a very rare mineral, a kind of hard white clay. Light and porous structure of the pipe keeps the smoke cool and soft. The pipe itself is a natural filter which absorbs the nicotine. Because of this peculiarity, meerschaum pipes slowly change their colors to different tones of gold and dark brown. This adds an esthetic enjoyment to its great smoking pleasure. The longer a pipe is smoked the more valuable it becomes due to the color change. In the city of Eskisehir, where meerschaum pipes are originated, many very old, rare pipes are being kept under protection of laws due to their value.

AND pipes are made of high quality Eskisehir meerschaum which is very well known by experts. Unlike Briar, meerschaum does not burn. Meerschaum pipes do not need pre-smoking to have a good quality performance. You can get perfect satisfaction with the very first smoking.

Every pipe comes in a completely suitable case. All mouthpieces and pipe-cases are handmade individually after the production. Each pipe is a hand crafted art of the masters.

A meerschaum pipe is a valuable collector item and can be a perfect present.
 
That is a beautiful pipe!!

I only own one pipe. It's a Barling I bought brand new on eBay. I have a table somewhere with all the pipe manufacturer's symbols but I forgot where I got it from.

I've only smoked the pipe a few times. For some reason, I just can't get too excited about pipe smoking. Michael Cook, the CigarPool administrator is into pipes. This is a page on his personal website showing his pipes. He has a couple of meerschaums. He's the guy that got me interested in pipes about a year ago but again, I just never did much with the hobby.
 
Moki if you smoke that pipe hold onto it by the stem, not the bowl. Meerschaum is such a porous material that the moisture from your hand holding the bowl will stain it.
 
If you want to get more in depth about the actual pipe, you may want to check with the guys at Iwan Ries: Iwan Ries Chicago or I may be able to put you in touch with a guy I know from another message board who is huge (as in large collection, not big pipes, LMAO! pipe collector.
 
Shadow said:
Moki if you smoke that pipe hold onto it by the stem, not the bowl. Meerschaum is such a porous material that the moisture from your hand holding the bowl will stain it.
Click to expand...
Fortunately, I rarely smoke from it. Aren't the staining/aging of the bowls considered a good thing, though?
 
moki said:
Shadow said:
Moki if you smoke that pipe hold onto it by the stem, not the bowl. Meerschaum is such a porous material that the moisture from your hand holding the bowl will stain it.
Click to expand...
Fortunately, I rarely smoke from it. Aren't the staining/aging of the bowls considered a good thing, though?
Click to expand...
When the tobacco does it yes, you will leave your fingerprints stained on the bowl if you hold it, not a good thing.

I have several pipes that are 20-30 years old that have turned different colors, from a golden brown to an almost black.
 
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