Chris Morgan Signature Sandblasted Long Shank Countryman Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

Description

Chris Morgan is an American artisan pipe-maker based in California. Beginning his pipe-making career in 2006, Morgan has managed to carve a distinct niche for himself in the contemporary pipe scene – or, rather, many niches. For example, Morgan creates high-grade pipes both as part of his Signature line and as part of his Workshop line. Morgan is also responsible for the BlackJack and Briar Cigar pipe series, the latter coming from a partnership with Italian artisan and briar cutter Mimmo Romeo. Finally, as the creator of the rough and rugged Bones series, Morgan has become even more of a cult figure in the pipe community than most other artisans of his stature.

While Chris Morgan’s BlackJack, Bones, and Briar Cigar pipes are made in partnership with other craftsmen in Italy, his Signature series pipes are crafted solely by Morgan himself. These pipes are handmade from start to finish in Morgan’s workshop and were what first brought him acclaim within the international smoking pipe scene. As with many of Morgan’s Signature series, this one is resolutely unorthodox, though it does have one very interesting precedent: the Countryman. The Countryman was a design first conceived by Barry Jones and Dan Tennison during their time in Charatan’s freehand workshop, during the make’s famous “Lane era.” With close parallels to the traditional Rhodesian shape, the Countryman accentuated certain of the former’s defining lines to create something that almost looked like it was wearing a brimmed “hat.” The Jones/Tennison/Charatan version was a rather wide and stout design, however, whereas this rendition from Chris Morgan blends it with the “long shank” shapes found in late 20th century Danish pipe making. It also incorporates a color palette far more modern than either traditions, mixing a dark, near-black sandblast with an amber-like mouthpiece (possibly Bakelite, though I’m not 100% sure).

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

 

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.77 / 19.55mm

Bowl Depth: 1.67″ / 42.41mm

Weight: 1.9oz / 54g