Dunhill Pipes

One of the most successful marketing campaigns geared to the Jones' in the house on the hill.
I have one. It smokes as good as any briar pipe in my rotation, but no better.

"Dunhill" has become a name something along the lines of "Tiffany" or "Hermes"... a "luxury" item that demands an exorbitant price. Not for me.

I own two Dunhill pipes that belonged to my grandfather. One is from the mid 30’s, the other from the early 40’s. Only smoked on special occasions with no rubber bit on the stem. I smoke them as my grandfather did, lip clenching and no chatter on the stems. I’m not interested in any others, not even my birth year....way overpriced!!!

I have had 3 and sold them. Not worth smoking when you get the $$ people are paying (hello China and Japan). Of course I enjoy Grabow pipes so that is probably enough of my opinions on them.

I have two Dunhills. The first is a 1926 which I was given as a gift. The second is a 1976 Red Bark I bought at an antique shop for $54. I thought that was a good price for it.

Dunhill isn't a brand so much as an iconic symbol. I still have a dozen or so of them that I rarely smoke because I have much better pipes that I prefer to smoke. I recently bought a small group of pre-War Leeds era Ben Wades. The large billiard is a fabulous performer with a wide open draw. All of these pre-War Ben Wades have wide open draws and all smoke well, but this large billiard is one of those magic pipes. And, it didn't cost much more than a Grabow.
Dunhill made a lot of excellent pipes, but they were never better than anyone else. Once I started smoking Barlings the Dunhills went in the drawer. The top end Comoy's can't be beat for looks as well as quality of materials.
And any of my Brebbia Avanti pipes run circles around all but two of my Dunhills.

GBD and their sub-brands quickly filled the Brit wood spot in my collection.

I’ve had 2. One I stumbled on at an estate sale, they didn’t know what they had. Pre war with gold band. It was a smoked a lot, repair to the bowl (looked like a professional fix). The stamping was worn but enough to see it and date it.
Bought for 5 bucks, had it cleaned and had about 25 bucks invested. Smoked fine but sold it for a small (very small) profit.
2nd one was a 1966 Bruyere Billiard. Smoked ok, but not any better than anything else. Sold that for what I paid.
Overall, at least the 2 I had, were ok, but not anything special. But to have one just to say “yeah, I have a Dunhill” eh, not for me.
To each their own.

I have 4 Dunhills, all acquired new since 2000. All of them at the lower end of the Dunhill price spectrum, but they are all exceptional smokers. I certainly would not sell them and I smoke them often. I smoke other pipes I have as well and enjoy them all. I have few (if any ) pipes I would say are bad smokers. The Dunhills are made with quality aged briar, are manufactured with precision and yes, bear the iconic Dunhill brand. Are they pre-60's Dunhills? No. Are they collectable Dunhills? Not for another 50 years I would guess. But I don't buy to collect, I buy to smoke. I care for them as I care for the rest of my pipes so that they will last me a long time. Do they smoke better than a $300 pipe? Not necessarily, just depends on the quality of the $300 pipe. Are you paying a premium for the name? Yes, of course you are.
They are part of my collection and I love all the pipes in my collection. My collection includes a variety of different brands. I wouldn't want 30 Dunhills, just as I wouldn't want 30 Castellos or Comoys or 30 Grabows. The point (to me) of having a SMOKING pipe collection is to be able to smoke a variety of pipes and enjoy the unique pleasure each one offers. I only just got introduced to cobs here on the Patch. I now own 4 of those and after smoking a variety of tobaccos in them have found there are certain tobaccos that take on a unique and pleasant taste in the cob. They are part of that treasured collection just as the Dunhill or the Castello is, or the 1970 Sven Lar or the Meerschaum.
Everyone here on the Patch seems to enjoy tobacco variety; I think we all enjoy pipe variety as well.
I admire Dunhill for doing what few pipe makers have done: to create and sustain a luxury brand of pipes and other products for over more than 100 years. I give credit where credit is due.

I recently stumbled onto a Dunhill Shell LB 1942, I think, in a lot of 15 old pipes purchased from a non pipe smoking friend. He acquired them from an old friend who obviously smoked a lot. The pipes were smoked hard but not abused.
While I’ve not intentionally chased a Dunhill, I won’t look a gift horse in the mouth. This pipe is headed to Anthony Cook for some TLC. I think I could probably do a halfway decent job of restoring it, but “probably” isn’t good enough. This old pipe deserves a professional job. I’ll practice on the other pipes.

I am grateful for the handful of Dunnies I own, but they are just pipes, all of them estates. Don't see ever springing for a new one, and not due to just price. They are in regular rotation. 

At the same time, I don't think anyone's missing anything by not having smoked one. Owning one, though, makes you an elite, super-kinda-genius pipe smoker. 

Well if I would have known that, I would have been on the Dunhill train long before now!  E, s-k-g pipe smoker statue is my new goal.