Traditional tobacco pipes

Used to -l ast smoked it about 40 years ago, when I wanted to look Seriously Academic. Or Academically Serious. Or whatever. ;-)

I'm a lifelong non-smoker but when I was a kid there was shop down the road which specialised in selling briar pipes. I *think* it was owned by Dunhill the lighter people. Does that make any sense? Does anyone here older than me remember something like that?

It was actually one of a row of shops in the same building known as the "Enteprise Variety Stores". If memory serves me right there was a shop selling brass stencils (to paint signs with), the pipe shop, a model shop (no railway models except for Kitmaster and Airfix), a freshground coffee shop, a café of the kind which has steam heated food in the window and a newsagent/confectioners on the corner. At one time there was also a shop which sold secondhand magazines and novels from tables on the pavement with the sleaziest covers you could imagine. This was all opposite a cinema which specialised in continental movies which thus had no BBFC certificate. It's all gone now, replaced by a traffic island and complex system of road junctions.

(kim)

When I did my National Service and for several years thereafter I smoked a Sherlock Holmes pipe (very affected) I bought in Gib. - it had a silver spit bowl under the pipe bowl. Unscrew, turn upside down, there you go, all(?) those nasty tars gone. Mike, a non-smoker for almost 20years - still love the smell of pipe tobacco though!

"Dragon Heart" wrote

Not me guv, tried one once, but after turning a quaint shade of green I returned to cigarettes, although I've not touched one of those either since

1990.

John.

I smoked a pipe from when I was 14 in 1957 until about 6 years ago and still have a rack of assorted ones on the bookcase. A couple are the metal stemmed Falcons, with the spiral centre tube, and the others are various briars. My favourite was a Lovett which had a square stem that reduced to a thin stem halfway along its length. Nearly forgot, I have a couple of American corn cob pipes, they were an excellent smoke. Years ago I got hold of some clay bubble pipes. They smoked nicely and, if they lasted long enough before you broke them, turned from the original white to a beautiful golden brown.

Only once tried a pipe, having been bought some pipe tabacco by as a gift by mistake. Tried it in the Rizlas - yeesh! The got hold of a pipe, burned a couple of fingers and my hand, nearly imploded my head sucking on the dammed thing, and eventually got one puff out of it! Went back to the roll-ups!

Cheers Richard

I do! I smoke cigars more often though.

My pipe was made by a friend of mine. His website is at

Tell him I sent you :-)

Ah, here's my pipe ...

he also made this one which I gave to someone for a birthday present: Oh, and while I might have a beard, I'M NOT OLD! I pluck out the grey hairs not because I'm getting old, but because I'm getting VAIN!

}How many of you own / smoke a traditional tobacco pipe ?

I do - but I don't know anyone else that does :(

{R}

Just as I thought ! One more 'factual' survey / report that paints this stereotypical picture of model railway enthusiasts.

Many of the model railway enthusiasts in knew in my late teen's were ex railway or aircraft engine apprentices. Many of them never got to build a complete loco or engine from start to finish and I always felt they saw model railways as a way of being able to complete a whole project.

My dad used to smoke a Falcon Straight pipe, one of those with a metal shaft. Like 'Kim' I am a lifelong non-smoker, but worked in and around people who did.

Our local tobacco specialist shop has now turned into a van hire office. At least pipe tobacco is normally of decent quality and not like the 'wood chip' or 'old chair lags' some people smoke as cigarettes these days.

Many of the people I knew who did 'smoke' a pipe never actually had them lit ..... but sucked enthusiastically for effect. I guess a psychiatrist would tell us is that it's a throw back to our days as a baby.

I will not even venture onto the habit of snuff :-(