James Upshall (1980s) P Grade Smooth Billiard Estate Briar Pipe, English Estates

Description

James Upshall was, along with Ferndown and Ashton, part of a new wave of British hand-made, high-grade pipes in the late 20th century, with their founders largely coming from previous positions in the factories of companies such as Dunhill and Charatan. James Upshall was founded in 1978 by Barry Jones and Ken Barnes, both of whom had previously worked for Charatan and who had worked their way up to being carvers Charatan’s higher-end, non-standard shapes. Jones and Barnes’ pipes quickly grew to being something of a status symbol, and were enjoyed by King Hussein of Jordan, Anwar Sadat, Bing Crosby, Yul Brynner, Robert Wagner and Tom Selleck. The company also made house-brand pipes for Astleys in London. James Upshall pipes are no longer made, but their reputation as some of the finest hand-turned British pipes continues to endure.

The “P” was the highest of James Upshall’s “standard” grades, and one notable for its excellent grain patterns. Taking its name from Charatan’s “Perfection” grade, the “P” was Barry and Ken’s attempt to create their own version of the warm, walnut contrast stain used by Charatan on such pipes. The Upshall boys were a little bolder when it came to comparing the “P” to Charatan in terms of quality, however. As Ken Barnes would later recount, the “P” was, rather, much closer to Charatan’s “Distinction,” presumably those of the quality Barnes and Jones saw first-hand when working there (under Reuben Charatan and Herman Lane, and Herman Lane, respectively). Personally, I would rank this billiard closer to a Charatan Executive at the very least, and in fact it does look remarkably close to the old Charatan 42 Giant/Outsize billiard, albeit with a saddle, rather than tapered or Double Comfort, stem. Based on the nomenclature, specifically the absence of a size stamp and the hallmark pantograph script, this P grade will have been made around 1984-89, before Ken’s departure from the pipe industry.

The condition is good. Some inner rim darkening and a few scratches on the bowl, though nothing major.

Details:

Length: 6.2″ / 157.4mm

Bowl Width: 0.93 / 23.62mm

Bowl Depth: 1.78″ / 45.21mm

Weight: 2.3oz / 66g