Broken Pipe: R. Bear Graves, 1958-2024 It is not an overstatement to say that Bear Graves was a transformative figure in the world of smoking pipes. He was a true trailblazer in the brave new 21st century world of online pipe culture and commerce. Though he had experience working at brick and mortar stores, Bear…
In this interview, James sat down with R. Bear Graves to discuss his time in and around the tobacco pipe industry. How did you first get into pipes? It started when I was five years old. I was living in a living in Alaska and my father’s best friend smoked a pipe, and I just…
To see our currently available Stanwell pipes, click here. Stanwell is one of the most popular contemporary pipe-manufacturers, as well as being the oldest Danish-owned manufacturer still in operation at the time of writing (2024). As a result, Stanwell is one of the most common makes found on the contemporary estates market. If you’ve encountered…
Dating Barling Pipes: A Three Step Guide To see our currently available Barling and Barling’s Make pipes, click here. As MBSD sells many restored estate pipes, we often get questions as to when they were made. Many pipes, such as Castellos, Charatans or Custom-Bilts, have communities of collectors who prefer pipes made during one period…
Briar Pipe Finishes, Part 1: Smooths by CW Hawes Following its introduction as a pipe material in the middle 1800s, briar quickly became the dominant material for making pipes for the general pipe-smoking public. Briar is durable, and with reasonable care, a briar pipe will serve generations of pipe smokers. Another feature of briar is…
In this article, James takes a deep dive into the concept of the ‘freehand pipe.’ This is the first of a multi-part series exploring concepts like ‘freehand’ in and outside of pipe culture and history. Where possible, illustrations are included, but the reader is encouraged, if they are not already familiar with the pipes and…
THE CODGER By Doug Myers Anyone who knows me is well aware by now that I am a codger smoker. However, I bet if you asked any of those people what a codger was, you would get a range of answers as wide as the list of pipe blends on the market. So, I figured…
My Love Affair With GBDs: The Pipe with a Pedigree By: CW Hawes I first became aware of GBD pipes in the 1970s. My dad had two: a prince and a Canadian. Together, with a Peterson Canadian, they were the three pipes he constantly smoked. When he gave up smoking in the early 80s, I…
MBSD Pipes to Stock Morgan Pipes Rockmart GA – MBSD Pipes is excited to announce a significant enhancement to its ever-growing inventory with the inclusion of Morgan Pipes. This new addition reflects our ongoing commitment to providing our valued customers with an even broader selection of high-quality and premium pipes. Morgan Pipes is renowned for…
MBSD Pipes Featured On The Spurgeon Piper Introduction: At MBSD Pipes, we have always recognized the power of community and the role it plays in shaping our passions and hobbies. Recently, we had the privilege of being featured on Wilson’s, of The Spurgeon Piper, YouTube channel—an experience that not only brought our pipes into the…
