A brief moment of silence please. . . .

[Just Jim]

Long ago, I was in a bike accident. Came out of it with a little road rash, but my favorite little amber-stemmed meerschaum pipe was smashed. I picked up a cheap clay cutty to tide me over til I found a replacement:then I never did replace it.

It became my go-to pipe, my traveling pipe, my hunting pipe. It traveled the world with me. It became the pipe I reach for when planning changes, mourning losses, remembering the good times--and bad. How it survived as long as it did, wrapped in a goatskin rollup or just dropped in a pocket, is a mystery to me.

But all things come to an end, and after more than 30 years the stem has finally broken too short to be used. Before I begin the search for an estate pipe to replace my little meerschaum of so long ago, I wanted to acknowledge my old cutty.

 

[Edward]

Given that clay pipes were, historically, semi-disposable, that's quite a lifetime for it - like a cat reaching thirty!

If you're looking for a replacement Briar, I would highly recommend a Peterson's. Alternatively, I am reliably informed that the Parker brand pipes are basically Dunhill 'seconds', at a vastly cheaper price - and a lovely smoke. I enjoy the chunky pipes I've acquired from Mr Grog on eBay / etsy - both briar and pearwood. Perhaps for something different you might consider the aluminium-stemmed Falcon pipes, a 1930s American invention now, I believe, made in the UK. Lovely smopkers, robust, and one of the optoins in the range of interchangeable bowls is Meerscham-lined.