James Upshall A Grade Group 6 Smooth Cavalier 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.

James Upshall’s size system can appear a little odd at times. Since pipes were grouped into sizes based primarily on bowl height, it is not entirely uncommon to come across one that, for all intents and purposes, is an an extra large pipe, without being an Extra Large (or “Ex.L”) size. This is especially the case for the workshop’s group “6” size pipes, as James Upshall’s pipes were already rather large compared to its late 20th century English contemporaries, such as those of Comoy’s, Dunhill, or GBD. This “A” grade is an example of a group 6, and it is certainly a big pipe. Very much in keeping with the English freehand tradition, it presents itself as a long, “footed” Dublin, to the extent that it borders on a cavalier of sorts (though sans the reservoir and plug typical of its historical progenitors). This curious arrangement of form allows the bowl to have been shaped in a fuller, more rounded manner, which has worked wonders as far as expressing its natural, straight grain patterning. Slightly less “English” is the inclusion of live plateaux edge at the bowl’s rim, adding an enjoyable dash of the rustic to an otherwise highly elegant figure.

This pipe is completely unsmoked. Some slight scratches on the bowl a small, natural imperfection on its right side, though nothing major.

Details:

Length: 6.5″ / 165.1mm

Bowl Width: 0.84 / 21.33mm

Bowl Depth: 1.70″ / 43.18mm

Weight: 2.1oz / 62g