James Upshall A Grade Group 5 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.

When the Tilshead Pipe Company—the outfit behind the James Upshall make—was first making waves in the US, their distributor, Pete Siegel, suggested a tagline for their pipes: “The tradition continues.” Siegel considered James Upshall to be the rightful heir to Charatan, which, despite still very much existing, had by that point had been acquired by Dunhill. Many did not have high hopes for Dunhill’s stewardship of F. Charatan & Son, and as the founders of James Upshall had worked at Charatan during its now-revered Reuben and Lane eras, the task fell on them to spirit of the latter alive. Barnes and Jones did not disappoint and, as one might expect, it was not just the quality of Charatan that continued through James Upshall, but also much of the design philosophy. And if there is one shape that Charatan held dominion over for much of the 20th century, it is the Dublin. From the “Bell” Dublin renditions favored by Reuben Charatan to the towering freehands of the Lane years, it’s hard to think of another pipe maker in the Anglo-French mold more closely associated with the Dublin as Charatan. Or it would be, if not for James Upshall. Just like F. Charatan & Son, the Tilshead Pipe Company excelled at Dublin shapes, and one could even find expressed tributes by the latter to the former in some of those designs. This one I would file under “squat Bell,” given its strong resemblance to Reuben’s favorite Dublins, but with a slightly shorter bowl and wider chamber.

This pipe is completely unsmoked, with an original bowl coating. A couple of small, superficial scratches on the bowl, though nothing major.

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.89 / 22.60mm

Bowl Depth: 1.38″ / 35.05mm

Weight: 2.0oz / 58g