Pipes and Tobaccos Magazine 2009 Pipe of the Year

While at the Chicago pipe show in 2007 , Chuck Stanion shared with me his new vision for the "P&T Pipes of the Year" . They would be a smaller number of artisan made pipes , rather than the much larger number of factory made pipes that they had done in the past . He went on to explain that he had commissioned J.T. Cooke to make fifty pipes for 2008 , and that he would like me to make the pipes for 2009. Needless to say, I was excited. This was a grea

t honor for me . I started learning to make pipes about the time P&T Magazine released it's inaugural issue , and it has always been a source of inspiration and enjoyment for me . Not to mention the honor of being chosen behind my long time friend and mentor Jim Cooke . I couldn't wait to get started on what was sure to be an interesting ch

allenge over the next year and half .

Pipe factories have a lot of briar on hand for m

aking pipes.... I mean a lot . If an individual pipe maker has a few hundred blocks of wood at any given time.... a fact

ory has thousands , even tens of thousands of blocks . So, when a factory is commissioned to do a certain number of specifically shaped pipes , they have plenty of wood on hand that will accommodate the shape . This is not necessarily true for the individual artisan . So the first challenge was to find a shape that would be pleasing to the readers of P&T, and be able to be made from most blocks of briar . I settled on a classic freehand with a modern edge....a kind of "Calabash" meets "bent Dublin

" sort of thing . I felt It should also incorporate some of my signature design features such as exotic hard woods or Ivory , and be available in a variety of finishes .

In June of 2007, I finished the first prototype for approval from P&T . It had an Amberblast finish and a Cocobolo wood end-cap that features the beautiful contrast between the heart wood and the sap wood . The idea was that the "Cocobolo end-cap" would be on all of the pipes , except the highest grade "Saints" which would have Ivory . The shape was approved and I was ready for action ! Only forty nine m

ore pipes to go...... that's a hal

f a years production..... what was I thinking!

The original prototype for the P&T 2009 pipe of

the year .

Selecting blocks and roughing out shapes

.

Finished shapes ready to be sandblasted or stained .

Finished bowls with end-caps ready for stems .

Fifty finished pipes ready for stamping !

After working a few pieces into my normal production , I quickly realized that it would be much more efficient to work on these pipes in batches of 3 to 5 pipes at a time . Allowing me to set up each step and repeat it several times, rather than have to set up for every step on every pipe . This was different for me because I have always liked to start a pipe and work on it until it is finished . I think I like the feeling of closure .

You would think that twenty months might be plenty of time to fit in fifty additional pipes..... or at least it should have been . I still found myself scrambling at the last minute to take care of all the final details; stamping , waxing , buffing stems . It took me a day and a half just to do the stamping , which by the way is the most nerve racking part of pipe making . Here you have... say.... a $1500 pipe that you have put hours into , carefully and meticulously hand crafting every detail of it's delicate beauty..... then you take a steel handle with sharp little letters on it , and roll it across the shank of that pipe while pressing down on it with all of your might ! This can be a recipe for disaster , or at least impotence and high blood presser . Repairing a slip with a stamp can take hours, and with the sheer amount of stamping that had to be done , there would be plenty of opportunity for things to go south.

Fortunately , I finished the pipes ( and was still able to bare children ) on the tenth of January 2009 . This was a proud and happy day for me , and I thank Chuck , Dayton and everyone at P&T magazine for giving me the opportunity to be a part of the legacy of this great publication .

I would like to encourage you to also be a part of this legacy , and follow this link to the P&T website where you can purchase one of the few remaining 2009 Pipes of the Year.

Thanks,

Jody

Link to P&T Magazine;

https://www.pt-magazine.com/store/home.php?cat=282

An interview with Jody, by Keith Moore

I love Arizona. The desert landscape is intriguing, beautiful, even haunting. This is my third trip out to see Jody. It was over five years ago that I flew out for the first interview and a lot has changed since then. Jody has remarried and he and his wife, Laurie, are expecting a child in the summer. He seems invigorated by this and he is excited to show me his new home and workshop.

I walked in to the new shop and was amazed at how clean it was. It smelled of briar and coffee. He made me a cup of Espresso from his newly acquired espresso machine he found on eBay and refurbished himself. It looked like a piece of art.

Keith: This espresso is incredible.

Jody: Thanks, I am roasting the beans myself now.

K: Wow, what got you into roasting your own beans?

J: I've always loved coffee since I was a kid. It's a little like pipe tobacco in that its origin, the processing and the blending have everything to do with the flavor . The more I started learning about coffee , the more I realized that most of what we get around here is stale, low quality and often over roasted beans... even in the coffee shops and cafe's . So I started learning how to roast it myself... and how to obtain good quality beans. Now I'm spoiled! I can't drink coffee anywhere else! Going to Starbucks is like buying pipe tobacco from a drugstore. You still can't beat the cafe experience, but unless you have a local roaster, it's likely that your not getting freshly roasted coffee.... and there is a difference.

K: It's been over five years since we did the last interview, what has changed for you since then, regarding your craft?

J: Mostly I would say that experience has been a great teacher. By "experiencing" more briar , I've learned more about seeing the possibilities in every block... and how to allow a design to stay fluid as new options or obstacles open up as I'm shaping the wood . There is hardly a day that goes by that I don't learn something I can carry with me and use on a future pipe.

K: Is there one thing that "experience" has taught you that a collector of your pipes would be glad to hear?

J: Well... experience can make you better in every way... if you let it. You can see it in the Danes and with Bo Nordh. The pipes that Bo, Jess, and Lars made in the early seventies were great, but their later works were even better. Their personal style and design became even more refined while maintaining... or even improving their quality. My hope is that someday the same can be said about me.

K: Let's talk about shapes, what is your "desert island" shape?

J: A straight Billiard or a Dublin... no question. Probably a sandblast because they're a little more rugged. Since I would be on a deserted Island I would have to cultivate my own tobacco...

K: .... not to mention grow your own food...

J: yea... but thats secondary .

K: It's hard keeping a smooth pipe looking good doing such hard manual labor.

J: Right..... Actually that is true. I do ninety percent of my smoking in the shop , so I don't want to be handling a pipe with " kid gloves " ..... So I like Sandblast. Also... The straight classics are almost purely about function. Sure, they can be esthetically beautiful too... but it's hard to beat a properly drilled, straight Billiard for smokability. That's why I have such a commitment to making the classics.... or at least my own interpretations of the classics. Even the old standard shapes should have a little of the pipe makers own flair to them.

K: Do you think the "Classics" will ever be as popular or in demand as the more "Creative" design pipes?

J: They already are. I make as many classics as I do freehand pieces.

K: Has that always been the case or is this new?

J: For me it has pretty much always been that way. I've always loved making classics and freehands.... fortunately I've always had plenty of customers for both.... but I will say that it looks like the trend may be moving a little more toward classic shapes.

K: What would you like your customers to know right now about Jody as a pipe maker..?

J: I don't know......... in the end it's not about me.... hopefully the pipes can speak for themselves.

K: Is there a pipe shape you have never attempted and would like to?

J: I have lots of sketches of ideas that I haven't done yet. The thing is, you can have something on paper but you can't really impose a design on a block of wood.... not if you're trying to maximize the beauty of the grain . If you just shape a pipe and ignore the grain... then you should carve meerschaum. That's why the briar pipe has stayed fairly simple and elegant in its design through the years... as opposed to the often more elaborately carved meerschaums. Briar is not an empty canvas.

K: Well Jody, this is a good start to our ongoing interview. We will continue this conversation at a later date. Until then, I sure am looking forward to my special order from you. I have been wanting a J.Davis Zulu for a long time. Get to work!

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