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Grading the Pre World War II Dunhill Bruyere DR/fr: Difference between revisions

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Grading the Pre World War II Dunhill Bruyere DR/fr (view source)

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Created page with "== CONCLUSIONS == Bien que l’ensemble des "Bruyere DR" d’avant-guerre signalées soit fâcheusement réduit, on peut aisément conclure qu’il existait un système coh..."
(Created page with "Etant donné le prix élevé atteint par cette nouvelle quatrième gradation, je soupçonne fortement que la seconde hypothèse est la bonne et que si nous disposions des docu...")
(Created page with "== CONCLUSIONS == Bien que l’ensemble des "Bruyere DR" d’avant-guerre signalées soit fâcheusement réduit, on peut aisément conclure qu’il existait un système coh...")
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== CONCLUSIONS ==
== CONCLUSIONS ==
   
   
While the universe of reported pre WWII Bruyere DRs is regrettably small, one can comfortably conclude that there was a consistent system of stamping 'stops' on Bruyere DRs in place from the early 1910s through the early 1930s with the strong suggestion (but not a certainty) that these stops and stamping placements relate to the DR grading indicated in the then contemporary catalogs. It is probably also reasonably safe to suggest that stops stamped before or after the LONDON indicate the lower two catalog grades and that those stamped before or after DUNHILL indicate the higher one or two catalog grades.  
Bien que l’ensemble des "Bruyere DR" d’avant-guerre signalées soit fâcheusement réduit, on peut aisément conclure qu’il existait un système cohérent de marquage de « stops » sur les "Bruyere DR" du début de 1910 jusqu’au début de 1930, avec de bonnes raisons de penser (mais aucune certitude) que ces stops et l’emplacement de leur marquage se rapportent à la gradation des DR affichés dans les catalogues de l’époque. On peut aussi raisonnablement supposer que les stops marqués avant ou après LONDON indiquent les deux grades inférieurs et que ceux marqués avant ou après DUNHILL indiquent les deux plus hauts.  
   
   
Given the small number of pipes reported anything further must be considered speculation. However, noting (a) the dates of the two reported pipes with stops stamped before or after DUNHILL; (b) the apparent introduction of a 4th grade circa 1925; and (c) the comparative population of stop stampings before and after LONDON, it may be hypothesized that grade stamping from lowest (1) to highest (4) were:
Etant donné le petit nombre de pipes signalé, aller plus loin serait pure spéculation. Néanmoins, en tenant compte (a) des dates des deux pipes signalées avec un stop avant ou après DUNHILL, (b) de l’apparente introduction d’une quatrième gradation aux alentours de 1925, et (c), de la population comparée de stops marqués avant et après LONDON, on peut envisager que le marquage des grades du plus bas (1) au plus haut (4) étaient :  
 
(1)Après (et souvent légèrement en-dessous) le N de LONDON
 
(2) Avant (et souvent légèrement en-dessous) le L de LONDON
 
(3) Après (et souvent légèrement au-dessus) du L de DUNHILL
 
(4) Avant (et souvent légèrement au-dessus) du D de DUNHILL[†]
   
   
(1) after (and often slightly beneath) the N of LONDON
== note f de bas de page ==
[*] Les finitions "Bruyere" et Root finish, au moins avant la fin des années 1960, ne se différencient pas uniquement par une histoire de couleur. Dans les années 60 les Bruyere étaient faites d’une bruyère calabraise très dure, avec un beau grain mais pas particulièrement propice au grain droit. Dans ces mêmes années 1960, les finitions Root étaient faites de bruyère corse, pas aussi dure mais beaucoup plus propices au grain droit. Quelque part durant les années 60, Dunhill commença à changer ses sources d’approvisionnement en bruyère, tant pour les finitions Bruyere que Root, essentiellement à ce qu’on m’a dit par de la bruyère grecque qui est un peu plus tendre que la bruyère corse, mais encore plus propice au grain droit. Ces changements de bruyère sont sans doute parmi les principales raisons qui font qu’une Dunhill lisse « patent » typique possède un grain moins attrayant que ses plus récents équivalents et c’est pourquoi la « straight grain » est devenue une part de plus en plus importante de la gamme Dunhill.  
(2) before (and often slightly beneath) the L of LONDON
(3) after (and often slightly above) the L of DUNHILL
(4) before (and often slightly above) the D of DUNHILL[†]
== Footnotes ==
[*] The Bruyere & Root finishes at least prior to the late 1960s, are not simply a matter of color.  Into the 1960s the Bruyere finished pipe was made from very hard Calabrian briar, a well grained briar but not particularly conducive to straight graining. Again into the 1960s the Root finished pipe was made from Corsican briar, not quite as hard but much more conducive to straight graining. Sometime in the 1960s Dunhill began to shift to other briar sources for both the Bruyere and Root finishes, primarily I am told Grecian briar which is a bit softer then Corsican but even more prone to straight graining.   These changes in briar are probably among the principal reasons why the typical ‘patent’ Dunhill smooth finish pipe is less attractively grained then its more recent counterpart and why the ‘straight grained’ pipe has become an increasingly important part of the Dunhill line.  


[†] Information not reported here strongly indicates that  while stop stampings continued  after the early 1930s for Root DRs and into the post WWII period,  both the placement of stops  and grade system changed dramatically.
[†] Information not reported here strongly indicates that  while stop stampings continued  after the early 1930s for Root DRs and into the post WWII period,  both the placement of stops  and grade system changed dramatically.
In light of some inquiries and loose remarks on eBay it should also be noted that while one often sees stop stampings with standard Bruyeres (i.e. non DRs) of the 1910s and 1920s before either an A or a circled (A)  there is no indication from the catalogs that these stops were value indicators.  Undoubtedly whether a standard Bruyere  pipe during this period was stamped with a circled or uncircled A or followed by a stop was meaningful,  but that meaning  most probably related to production or distribution concerns as opposed to grading or value.
In light of some inquiries and loose remarks on eBay it should also be noted that while one often sees stop stampings with standard Bruyeres (i.e. non DRs) of the 1910s and 1920s before either an A or a circled (A)  there is no indication from the catalogs that these stops were value indicators.  Undoubtedly whether a standard Bruyere  pipe during this period was stamped with a circled or uncircled A or followed by a stop was meaningful,  but that meaning  most probably related to production or distribution concerns as opposed to grading or value.
[[Category:Dunhill]]
[[Category:Dunhill]]
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