Graco Talon D Rusticated Large Full Bent Billiard (Estate)

Graco is something of a “minor historic” make within the French pipe industry, with a long lineage that stretches back into the heyday of Saint-Claude and its prestigious French briars. As with most makes of that kind, it also appears to have changed hands variously over the decades. I have a feeling that this one bears some connection to Chapuis-Comoy, most famous today for their Chacom pipes, as the design of this one is very close to a Chacom line. And it’s a rather unique one at that, as it is a bent billiard whose curvature could only have been achieved using a specialized drilling technique with the aid of a flexible bit. In other words, the draft hole will have been bored using a “curved drill” of sorts, something today that’s very rarely used, and typically confined to certain high-end Italian workshop pipes.

The condition is very good. Some rim darkening and finish fading.

Details:

Length: 7″ / 177.8mm

Bowl Width: 0.82 / 20.82mm

Bowl Depth: 1.65″ / 41.91mm

Weight: 2.1oz / 62g