I rescued a Kirsten

PappyJoe

Mentioned this pipe in the thread "Falcons and such". 

This is the pipe I rescued. I sent pictures of it to Kirsten Pipes in Seattle and spoke to Stacy up there this afternoon.

She said this pipe is a Companion and they were made in the 40s and 50s. The one the are now producing that looks like it is called the Mariner.

Pretty good find for $35.

xDutchx

Sweet! I would much rather have an older model, than a brand new one. I wonder what their briar source was back then?

PappyJoe

I'll have to ask. The website doesn't specify but the are selling Factory Seconds in either smooth or sandblast for $19.95

PappyJoe

Dealing with Kirsten Pipes on line can be a challenge if you are not a patient man. My dealing with them this week has been challenging for someone like me who values immediate responses to queries. My overall perception is that they are a very small operation and are dealing with the onerous laws and regulations in Washington State the best they can. Stacey is fun to talk to and she almost makes me miss living in Seattle. I regret that I never found their shop when I was stationed in Seattle for 6 years back in the 1970s.

She related one recent story to me about an old customer who was a military veteran who got harassed by the local police for smoking his pipe near the door while a couple of pot smokers were standing just a few feet away from him.

I have placed an order for two replacement bowls, a new mouthpiece and some O-rings for my Kirsten Companion that I rescued. I opted for factory seconds on the bowls which are sold at half the price of the bowls sold with their new pipes. I look forward to smoking the pipe as soon as I get the parts (the O-rings currently on it are too hard and have shrunk to where they don't provide a tight fit.)

PappyJoe

Update time!

Finally got the new O-rings, additional bowls and a new mouthpiece for the Kirsten. 

The Meerschaum bowl fits great. The screw that came with the briar bowl I ordered is too short though. I did finish cleaning the original bowl though, so I was able to give the pipe a good smoke test today - twice! Once with the meerschaum and one with the old briar. They both smoked great.

In honor of the pipe being manufactured in Seattle, I opened a time of Seattle Pipe Club's Pike Place which I purchased last year. 

Damn fine choice for the first two smokes in my Kirsten.

Woodsman

Best of luck with it Pappy.

motie2

@PappyJoe -- Perhaps you might be interested in this:

"Since 1936 There’s Been No Match For a Kirsten"

Kirsten 1980s Era Catalog

https://rebornpipes.com/2017/03/09/since-1936-theres-been-no-match-for-a-kirsten-1980s-era-catalog/