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Better than Briar? What History Tells!: Difference between revisions
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(Created page with "<center>'''Better than Briar? What History Tells!'''<br> '''By Ben Rapaport''', August 2022 <br> ''Exclusive to pipedia.org'' </center> Today, most every smoker would agree...") |
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Today, most every smoker would agree that the briar is the perfect wood for a tobacco pipe. (Perfect: having all the required or desirable elements, qualities, or characteristics; as good as it is possible to be.) For almost 175 years, briar, having been discovered quite accidentally, has been the standard against which all other woods have been compared. This is one attempt to explain briar to a lay person: “No real briar is ever used in pipe-making. The so-called briar is a mispronunciation of the French word bruyere, the name for heather” (“With the Retailer,” ''The Tobacco Leaf'', July 26, 1905). How about this: “The original briar pipe was made of a root or the stump and root of briar, whether wild rose, blackberry briar, or raspberry briar, or some other special type of briar is uncertain. Webster, under the head of briar root, says it is the root of the Southern Smilax laurifolia and S. Walteri that is used for tobacco pipes” (A. D. Webster, ''A Handbook of Forestry'', 1920). It’s hard to believe that in the early 20th Century, there were some who had yet to figure out what, precisely, is ''la bruyère''. And it’s even harder to accept this from a book published in this century: “Commonly used ''briar'' (my emphasis) woods are the Brazilian walnut, the manzanita, the myrtle, the mahogany, the walnut, the oak and the California redwood” (Massimo Gregori Grgic, ''Yacht Design Handbook'' (2015); the author could be excused because this is found in Chapter 17: The furniture materials. | Today, most every smoker would agree that the briar is the perfect wood for a tobacco pipe. (Perfect: having all the required or desirable elements, qualities, or characteristics; as good as it is possible to be.) For almost 175 years, briar, having been discovered quite accidentally, has been the standard against which all other woods have been compared. This is one attempt to explain briar to a lay person: “No real briar is ever used in pipe-making. The so-called briar is a mispronunciation of the French word bruyere, the name for heather” (“With the Retailer,” ''The Tobacco Leaf'', July 26, 1905). How about this: “The original briar pipe was made of a root or the stump and root of briar, whether wild rose, blackberry briar, or raspberry briar, or some other special type of briar is uncertain. Webster, under the head of briar root, says it is the root of the Southern Smilax laurifolia and S. Walteri that is used for tobacco pipes” (A. D. Webster, ''A Handbook of Forestry'', 1920). It’s hard to believe that in the early 20th Century, there were some who had yet to figure out what, precisely, is ''la bruyère''. And it’s even harder to accept this from a book published in this century: “Commonly used ''briar'' (my emphasis) woods are the Brazilian walnut, the manzanita, the myrtle, the mahogany, the walnut, the oak and the California redwood” (Massimo Gregori Grgic, ''Yacht Design Handbook'' (2015); the author could be excused because this is found in Chapter 17: The furniture materials. | ||
The most detailed scientific study of briar is G. Toumis et al., “Characteristics of Briarwood” (''Holzforschung'', Volume 42, 1988) to determine “…the characteristics that make it a preferred material for making smoking pipes, and perhaps suggest replacements.” | The most detailed scientific study of briar is G. Toumis et al., “Characteristics of Briarwood” (''Holzforschung'', Volume 42, 1988) to determine “…the characteristics that make it a preferred material for making smoking pipes, and perhaps suggest replacements.” | ||
Were there ever other woods that were better than briar, the most popular, commonly-used medium for a tobacco pipe today in performance, cost, and outward appearance? History tells that many woods were tested and compared with briar for hardness, tactility, and smokability. Unspooling this history reveals many disappointing tryouts and tests in the hope of finding suitable alternatives and substitutes. | Were there ever other woods that were better than briar, the most popular, commonly-used medium for a tobacco pipe today in performance, cost, and outward appearance? History tells that many woods were tested and compared with briar for hardness, tactility, and smokability. Unspooling this history reveals many disappointing tryouts and tests in the hope of finding suitable alternatives and substitutes. | ||
In 1876, ''Cope’s Tobacco Plant'' listed 27 different woods. | In 1876, ''Cope’s Tobacco Plant'' listed 27 different woods. | ||
{| class="wikitable | {| class="wikitable" | ||
|Acacia||Alder|||Ash | |Acacia||Alder|||Ash||Aspen | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Birch||Bird Cherry|||Box | |Birch||Bird Cherry|||Box||Buckthorn | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Campeachy||Cedar|||Elder | |Campeachy||Cedar|||Elder||Elm | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Hawthorn||Hazel|||Heath Root | |Hawthorn||Hazel|||Heath Root||Hornbeam | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Linden||Maple|||Mountain Ash | |Linden||Maple|||Mountain Ash||Mulberry | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Olive||Perfumed Cherry|||Plane Tree | |Olive||Perfumed Cherry|||Plane Tree||Poplar | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Tree of the Gods||Walnut|||Wild Service | |Tree of the Gods||Walnut|||Wild Service | ||
| Line 29: | Line 32: | ||
The list was expanded in an 1880 issue of ''Cope’s'' to 34 by adding barberry, cherry, chestnut, cornell, vine, wayfaring tree, and yew. Morta, or bog oak, was engaged by a number of English pipe makers in the last quarter of the 19th Century, yet it is not on this list. (Other woods, mentioned elsewhere, were boree, gorse-root, morello, myall, and pear.) The survivors were alder, birch, boxwood, cherry, maple, oak, pear, and walnut, but they suffered from two unforgiving defects: they all burned along with the tobacco that shortened their life, and their toxicity. (See “Wood Working Toxic Effects,” spacecoastwoodturners.com). See Tim Fuller, “Pipes in Other Woods” (naspc.org), or | The list was expanded in an 1880 issue of ''Cope’s'' to 34 by adding barberry, cherry, chestnut, cornell, vine, wayfaring tree, and yew. Morta, or bog oak, was engaged by a number of English pipe makers in the last quarter of the 19th Century, yet it is not on this list. (Other woods, mentioned elsewhere, were boree, gorse-root, morello, myall, and pear.) The survivors were alder, birch, boxwood, cherry, maple, oak, pear, and walnut, but they suffered from two unforgiving defects: they all burned along with the tobacco that shortened their life, and their toxicity. (See “Wood Working Toxic Effects,” spacecoastwoodturners.com). See Tim Fuller, “Pipes in Other Woods” (naspc.org), or “[[Alternative Woods Used For Pipemaking]]” (pipedia.org) for others. Experiments were conducted to determine if any were suitable for pipes. | ||
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{| class="wikitable | {| class="wikitable" | ||
|Applewood||Arbutus|||Beech | |Applewood||Arbutus|||Beech||Beef-wood | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Buxus||Chaparral|||Dogwood | |Buxus||Chaparral|||Dogwood||Ebony | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Hickory||Honey Locust|||Hydrangea paniculata | |Hickory||Honey Locust|||Hydrangea paniculata||Jichi-mu | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Jujube||Kalmia (ivy)|||Mahogany | |Jujube||Kalmia (ivy)|||Mahogany||Manzanita | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Mesquite||Mountain laurel|||Musk root | |Mesquite||Mountain laurel|||Musk root||Myrtle | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Needlewood||Orange|||Osage | |Needlewood||Orange|||Osage||Red gum | ||
|- | |- | ||
|Tulip wood||Violet wood|||Wenge | |Tulip wood||Violet wood|||Wenge||Wild lilac | ||
|} | |} | ||
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All things considered, briar is unquestionably the very best naturally dried and matured wood for a pipe. No other wood used in the past for pipes has ever matched its properties, undeniable qualities, and characteristics. It is resistant to heat, durable (nearly indestructible), dense, yet porous, has a neutral aroma, absorbs tar and moisture, and gives a sweet smoke. From straight-grain to cross-grained, to bird’s-eye, with so many different grades and prices—some say that there are as many as 16 classes of briar—the smoker has myriad choices, and he need not spend very much to buy a good-smoking pipe. Nature has provided this wood that surpasses all other woods in spite of many investigative efforts and attempts, through time, to find alternative or suitable woods. Marine scientists call the dugong, a species of the so-called sea cow, “functionally extinct,” and I say that’s also true for all those alternative woods today. Or maybe a better term for these woods might be what garment makers call unused fabrics: “deadstock.” (BTW: how about this unintentional mistranslation: “The Different Types of Briar Wood for Plumbing: A Comprehensive Guide,” muxiang.shop? | All things considered, briar is unquestionably the very best naturally dried and matured wood for a pipe. No other wood used in the past for pipes has ever matched its properties, undeniable qualities, and characteristics. It is resistant to heat, durable (nearly indestructible), dense, yet porous, has a neutral aroma, absorbs tar and moisture, and gives a sweet smoke. From straight-grain to cross-grained, to bird’s-eye, with so many different grades and prices—some say that there are as many as 16 classes of briar—the smoker has myriad choices, and he need not spend very much to buy a good-smoking pipe. Nature has provided this wood that surpasses all other woods in spite of many investigative efforts and attempts, through time, to find alternative or suitable woods. Marine scientists call the dugong, a species of the so-called sea cow, “functionally extinct,” and I say that’s also true for all those alternative woods today. Or maybe a better term for these woods might be what garment makers call unused fabrics: “deadstock.” (BTW: how about this unintentional mistranslation: “The Different Types of Briar Wood for Plumbing: A Comprehensive Guide,” muxiang.shop)? | ||
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[[Category:Ben Rapaport]] | [[Category:Ben Rapaport]] | ||
[[Category:Briar Alternatives]] | |||