James Upshall A Grade EXL Smooth Dublin Estate Briar Pipe, Unsmoked

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 “Ex.L,” or “Extra Large” was the second largest size designation accorded to James Upshall pipes, though it should be noted that the only James Upshall pipes that exceeded their stature were the very rare, magnum-sized Empire Series. One could think of the James Upshall Extra Large as comparable to a Charatan Extra Large freehand, for example, with the Empire Series being more like if there was a such thing as a Charatan Extra, Extra Large. This one is certainly comparable to a Charatan Extra Large, and not just in size. Taking the form of a hefty, hand-turned Dublin, it is in many ways the Platonic ideal of an English freehand pipe. Keeping one foot firmly in the conventions of classic, Anglo-French design, it is, nonetheless, the product of much more modern shaping techniques, techniques utilized in this instance to ensure remarkably consistent flame grain and bird’s-eye patterning.

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

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.83 / 21.08mm

Bowl Depth: 1.55″ / 39.37mm

Weight: 2.6oz / 76g