Buckeye Hand Made Sandblasted Blowfish Briar Pipe, New

Premal Chheda’s Buckeye Pipes have undergone several significant changes since their debut in the mid-2000s. Chheda himself was one of the first major players in 21st century American artisan briars, having been taught the fundamentals of high-grade pipe making by Mike Butera, and having had plenty of students of his own in the time since. Though Buckeye started out as an sub-brand for pipes that did not quite meet the standard of a pipe stamped with the Chheda name, the two would ultimately become different projects entirely. Today’s Buckeye Pipes are, instead, high-quality briars produced by Premal Chheda and his apprentices. The difference between a Chheda Pipe, or one of the pipes made by Chheda’s apprentices under their own name, and a Buckeye pipe boils down to the level of detailing involved: Buckeye Pipes are precision engineered and expertly finished, while being more minimalist in design and less labor-intensive in execution than their counterparts.

In the most recent batch of Buckeyes made for us by Premal Chheda and his colleagues, there’s been a great mix of what I’d call “classic Buckeye” designs on the one hand, and designs that are a little outside of the norm for Chheda’s collaborative make on the other. Both groupings have been excellent, but this difference has highlighted a great versatility at play in the crafting of Buckeye Pipes. This is an example of the former, a decidedly stout and sturdy, take on the blowfish shape, complete with a teardrop shank and a flared, ruby-red mouthpiece. One thing that always impresses me about Buckeyes is the finishing, with this one’s craggy, bird’s-eye blast bursting through even a darker stain such as is seen here.

Details:

Length: 6.1″ / 154.9mm

Bowl Width: 0.92 / 23.36mm

Bowl Depth: 1.55″ / 39.37mm

Weight: 3.3oz / 94g