Hi, I'm Alex, a pipe maker living in Denmark… Originally from California.
This site is about my pipe making venture, and my pipe smoking hobby.
Pipe making is not a full time job for me, but I make pipes professionally. I can make
around 20 pipes per month, on a good month.
I don't think the act of pipe making is that difficult, but making them look good, and smoke good, can be challenging and time consuming at times. To me it is more important that a pipe smokes well, rather than looks good. However I try to make them visually pleasing as well. After all, what's the use of having a shiny Ferrari if it drives like crap?
I don't use a lathe for anything. All my pipes, and stems are hand shaped, freehand, using as few automated tools as possible. I think in order to call them hand made, even using a lathe would be somewhat cheating. I don't make museum pieces, (even thought some of them may look like it sometimes) I make pipes that function and are visually pleasing. But I am a slight perfectionist, so If I like them, chances are you will like them too. I have done extensive testing with hole sizes, to find the optimum smoking combination and bowl size. Needless to say they ALL smoke like champs.
Most of my pipes are made from Italian briar, and I don't fill the pits, if any, ever. I think the pits and flaws are a natural part of the wood and should be left alone. If the wood is too damaged to work with, it becomes scrap, expensive scrap. You can identify my pipes by my stamp, and a red (my birth stone color) dot on the stem, which also indicates which way the stem should face, up.
My bigger pipes are sometimes made from black cherry wood, since big pieces of briar are harder to get, and can be quite expensive, black cherry works great, in most cases even better than briar. Cherry wood is less denser than briar, so bigger pipes are really light. Smaller ones are feather weight. Cherry wood also has some great looking straight grains, and is easier to work with, and is more forgiving than briar. However since cherry wood is less dense, it needs a bit more care when you are breaking it in. You need to smoke it cool, until you have a nice layer of cake (carbon) formed in the bowl. Recently it has become harder for me to obtain cherry wood, so soon I will be discontinuing my cherry wood pipes. Unless I can secure a good supplier.
Having lived in many parts of the world, but mainly Europe, and mostly Denmark. I think sub consciously my pipe making style is influenced by many pipe makers. However I have developed my own style, with the big poker and billiard shapes being my favorite. It takes me anywhere from 5 to 8 hours to compete a pipe. Even though I do not charge by the hour (I wish), my prices are competitive, and a fraction of what you would normally pay for quality handmade pipes.
I really love making pipes, and love when people enjoy my pipes. Hopefully, I can continue my pipe making passion for some time to come.
Please feel free to roam the site… Drop me a line if you have any questions. Oh... and don't forget to buy a pipe, or two… or three. ; )
P.S. I also make custom pipes! Please email me if you don't see what you like.
Visit my "Shop" page to see what is available. Or you can custom order a pipe if none are readily available. ; )
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