Calibano (Mastro de Paja) 118 C2 Smooth Billiard Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

I have seen many references to Calibano pipes as a Mastro de Paja “second,” and while they were made by Mastro de Paja, to call them “seconds” is not entirely accurate. Instead, Calibano was a Mastro de Paja sub brand, and specifically one through which Mastro de Paja offered something more akin to a factory pipe. In other words, while just about every Mastro de Paja pipe is handmade in the Italian workshop tradition, with the typical result being that each has been unique, Calibano pipes were made with the use of fraising machines and, as such, were offered in a roster of set shapes and finishes. It’s a little like Savinelli’s establishment of the Autograph workshop, but in reverse; instead of starting out a factory make and branching out into freehand pipes, Calibano was a case of a freehand pipe workshop branching out into factory briars.

Mastro de Paja’s Calibano make appears to have had several, classic billiard renditions in its catalog, just like the classic, Anglo-French makes that Calibano sought to emulate. This is one of the more slender designs in that vein, with proportions around a group 4 size and a weight that should clench quite comfortably for many.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating.

Details:

Length: 6″ / 152.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.82 / 20.82mm

Bowl Depth: 1.63″ / 41.40mm

Weight: 1.3oz / 38g