April 2004

Club Info & Events

I'd like to start off by saying "unbelievable turnout last month!" It was great seeing those of you who can't always make it to the meetings, thanks for making the effort. You guys should definitely plan on making it a habit. We have a great club with a great group of people and as the saying goes... "The more the merrier!"  I hope many of you (and other MIAs) will return again this month.

Points to Ponder:

"The one who throws the stone forgets; the one who is hit remembers forever." -- Angolan Proverb.

"Respect your fellow human being, treat them fairly, disagree with them honestly, enjoy their friendship, explore your thoughts about one another candidly, work together for a common goal and help one another achieve it." -- Bill Bradley.

R.D Field at SHPC
As mentioned in last month's newsletter and a great reason for a return visit to the club, Peretti's and RD Field will be visiting us this month. If you've read the latest edition of P&T then you know of RD Fields's reputation in the pipe smoking community. Unfortunately, I don't think he'll be bringing 3 truckloads of pipes like they mentioned in the article but he should be bring a nice selection with a variety of price and style. For those of you who weren't able to attend the NY Show last month, this is a great chance for you to pick up a nice pipe. Speaking of the NY Show, while we were there we had a chance to talk with R. David Field and his wife Janice (who also smokes a pipe) and they are both looking forward to joining us. Let's be sure to give them a warm SHPC welcome with a nice turnout.

On behalf of the entire club I would like to extend a note of thanks to Steve Willet and the guys at Peretti's for keeping us in mind and being the gateway to many opportunities that we may otherwise be unable to take advantage of. In the past Peretti's has sponsored visits from Bill Taylor of Ashton Pipes, Savanelli, James Norman, Ltd., Aston/Peterson and Peter Stokkebye. Steve himself, also paid us a visit last year to do a presentation on tobacco and tobacco blending and introduced to us the "Baskerville" blend which was specially blended and packaged for our club . We appreciate the efforts you've made in helping to keep the Sherlock Holmes Pipe Club in the mainstream of our favorite hobby and pastime. Thanks guys.

Watch City Cigar - June 9th
I made my first visit to Watch City Cigar in Framingham on St. Patty's Day and was extremely impressed. The manager Ernie Quintiliani made me feel right at home while I was there and we set a date for his visit to the club. He will be attending the June meeting and has promised to bring with him a nice selection of pipes in a variety of price ranges and with the club's discount of 25% off (25% off pipes and 10% off tobacco is also available to all SHPC members when visiting Watch City Cigar ). This shop has a great assortment of pipes, tobacco, cigars and accessories. They even have an open sample tin of every blend they sell to help make our quest for the perfect tobacco a little easier while taking the strain off our wallets. That way you only buy what you like. In addition, they have a members club in the attached building where Watch City members can smoke and relax in soft leather chairs and sofas while conversing with other smokers, watching their 50+ inch TV or playing a game of poker. It was an enjoyable time and I look forward to a return visit. Anyone interested in joining me???

James Norman, Ltd.
It has been decided that we would like to have Kem Mecklenberg of James Norman, Ltd. back for another visit. Don Powers has informed me that Mr. Mecklenberg will most likely be coming to the October meeting when he will be in our area. I'll keep you posted on any new developments.

5th Annual Meeting of the Mindless aka MOTM5
Unfortunately an official date has
not been finalized for this year's
Meeting of the Mindless. Right now
we are looking at a possible date in
early June. I'll let you know when we
have something definite.

Ahh New Jersey... The way life should be.

Another Man's Trash Could be a Pipe Smoker's Treasure
                                                                                    by Dock J. Perry
With Spring just around the corner soon starts the outdoor market and tag sale season. As many of you know I've sure had some great luck finding pipes at them over the years! A half dozen Dunhills and many other high grades just to name a few. When many of you are still dreaming in you beds on Sunday mornings I can be found attending every major Flea market and Tag Sale within fifty miles of my home in Western Mass. Most of the time I find nothing at all! Sometimes I find the "usual suspects" including Grabows, Medicos and Wally Franks. Then there's the good days when GOLD is struck! One Sunday last Winter I had the biggest find thus far! On a very ordinary table surrounded by junk I found a huge Mastro De Paja, Three Elliott Nachwalters and a Pre Republic Petersons Oom-Paul along with several others all for Forty Dollars! When attending these sales it's important to spend a bit of time really looking at all the wares the vendor has. Ask them if they have any pipes. It's possible that they have a large rack at home just waiting to be bought up by you! Stop at every Tag Sale you see wherever you are. Plan family outings to flea markets far away. Make a day of it! Also check out thrift and even antique stores too. I've found many a sealed tin of tobacco at these spots. The bottom line here is, the first time you get that rush of buying a high grade pipe for pocket change, you'll be instantly hooked on the hunt for estate pipes at Flea Markets forever!
Good Luck and happy hunting......Dock J.Perry

Adventures in Pipe Repairs - by Steve Gutz
I recently won two very old pipes on Ebay which were sorely in need of restoration. They were very old (1920's), small and heavily used but had nice silver work. I took my normal approach of first reaming the inside of the bowl with the smallest of the reamers in my PIPNET set. The reamer went into the bowl rather snugly and as I made my first twist I heard a sickening crack and the bowl burst open like a tulip. When I examined the broken pieces it seems that the bowl was charred from the inner to outer sides and only a thin veneer of wood was intact. I was grateful that this was my pipe and not a customers pipe. I now was determined to restore the second pipe. In my younger days I watched pipes being restored by an old-timer in a N.Y. pipe shop. He used two methods to remove the cake build-up. The first method was drill the char out on a horizontal drill with the correct sized drill bit that he chose by fitting the bowl onto a jig which had all his drill bits standing upright. In fact, he instinctively chose the right size without really measuring. The second method he used was to scrape the bowl with a very sharp knife that was rounded at the end. I decided to use a sharp knife whose end I rounded to remove the cake on the second pipe. I found that I had to use a lot of pressure in certain places because the cake was so hard. However it did work, I had no gouge marks and the pipe didn't break. So, the lesson for me is that in the future if the pipe looks brittle I will use a sharp rounded knife to remove the cake.

I'm always looking for new items for this Newsletter. If you have an interesting article, or would like to share
your knowledge on a particular pipes and tobacco related subject, please send it along (preferably in email).