How a Pipe Is Made

The answer to how a pipe is made lies in the decades-long journey of a root burl underground. Briar, the main raw material of the modern pipe, is the woody burl of the Erica arborea plant that grows in the Mediterranean basin; it's held to need at least 30-40 years to mature before it can be harvested, and much longer periods are cited for the best blocks. This entry covers the production stages that take a pipe from raw material to finished product, from both the factory and the craftsman tradition.

Preparing the Raw Material

Extracted root burls are kept continuously moist so they don't crack. The burls are sawn into pieces called "ebauchon" blocks, and boiled to draw out their sap; the duration varies by manufacturer, from 10-12 hours up to 24. The boiled blocks are then air-dried on racks for six months to a year; some manufacturers shorten this process with accelerated dryers. The dried blocks are sorted by size and quality. In handmade pipes, makers generally prefer top-grade blocks cut close to the burl's outer bark, called "plateau."

Drilling and Shaping

Essentially three holes are drilled in a pipe: the tobacco chamber, the smoke channel (draught hole), and the mortise where the mouthpiece is fitted. The names and functions of these sections are explained in detail in the pipe anatomy entry. The drilling order varies from maker to maker; one common approach is to drill the smoke channel first, then the mortise, and the chamber last. Whichever order is followed, the channel meeting the base of the chamber precisely is considered the key to smoking quality. On bent models, drilling is done in two stages so the channel can be properly aligned.

The body (stummel) is shaped either by hand or on a copy lathe. In hand craftsmanship, less briar is wasted, since the maker can adjust the shape according to flaws that emerge as work proceeds; in a factory, each step is divided into a separate station. The differences between these two approaches are examined in the artisan pipe versus factory pipe entry. In the Saint-Claude factory tradition, the process is divided into eight main steps:

• calibration (sizing the blocks),

• rough turning,

• milling (removing excess wood between body and shank),

• shank drilling,

• assembly (fitting the mouthpiece),

• polishing,

• staining and buffing,

• stamping.

Mouthpiece Work

The mouthpiece (stem) comes out of a ready mold on factory pipes; on handmade pipes, it's cut from ebonite or acrylic rod. In hand cutting, the tenon is turned on the lathe, the smoke channel is drilled, and the slot at the bit end is funneled open and polished; this craftsmanship is considered a marker of high quality. Material options and shape families are covered in the mouthpiece materials entry.

Finishing

Sanding is done with progressively finer grits, generally starting around 180-220 and going up to 600 and beyond. Alcohol-soluble aniline-based dyes are used for coloring. In the "contrast stain" technique, a black dye is applied first and set with a flame, then the top layer is wiped off with alcohol; because the dark dye stays in the grain, the pattern becomes more pronounced. Final buffing is typically done on a felt wheel, in sequence, with tripoli compound, White Diamond, and pure carnauba wax. Bodies not suited to a smooth finish are set aside for sandblasting or a rusticated surface; these options are described in the surface finishes entry. According to Chacom management, only one or two out of every hundred bodies come out flawless; small imperfections are filled with colored putty. The final step is stamping: the brand and model name are pressed into the shank, either with a classic stamp or a laser.