Ferndown REO 1 Star Smooth Hungarian Estate Briar Pipe

About this pipe:

Ferndown pipes were made by the legendary British pipe-maker Leslie ‘Les’ John Wood, along with his wife Dolly. Both Les and Dolly previously worked for Dunhill, where Les developed his skills and reputation as Britain’s premier pipe silversmith, as well as one of its premier pipe carvers. Ferndown pipes are highly coveted by pipe-smokers due to their superlative craftsman(and woman!)ship, whose bowls are oil-cured and which typically feature beautiful silverwork. Sadly, Les and Dolly retired from pipe-making in 2019, making Ferndown pipes rather scarce – especially given how difficult it is to get their owners to part with them.

Those who are familiar with English pipe shapes may recognize this one not only as a full-bent saddle billiard, but as very close to Dunhill’s mid-century Hungarian designs. This makes perfect sense, as Les and Dolly Wood worked for Dunhill for many years before leaving to found L&JS and Ferndown. The pipe itself is rendered in Ferndown’s red-brown Reo finish and includes silverwork by Les. It is also comparatively smaller and lighter than many of Les & Dolly’s pipes, though its tall bowl nevertheless houses a healthy chamber capacity.

The condition is excellent. There are one or two very minor handling marks, and there’s a little finish fading on the rim, but these are purely superficial imperfections.

Details:

Length: 5.4″ / 137.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.78 / 19.81mm

Bowl Depth: 1.56″ / 39.62mm

Weight: 1.4oz / 40g