Abe Herbaugh: Partially Sandblasted Micke Bent Apple Sitter Tobacco Pipe

Abe Herbaugh is one of the most accomplished young artisans in America, and is one of my absolute favorites in the pipe making world, not the least because of his start in the craft. For much of his adult life, ten years to be more specific, Herbaugh built electric guitars, though he was inspired to begin carving pipes early in his childhood, thanks to pipe-smoking members of his family. Music runs in his family too: His first several pipes were carved in his father's fiddle workshop.

This piece is based on and made in tribute to design cues developed by the legendary Jørn Micke. Micke was among the most highly respected artisans in the history of Danish pipe making, and also a progenitor of the distinctive Erotique shape, among other innovations. A supple bent Apple, the bowl is quite plump, with a broad midriff and flat, sure-sitting heel, which sweeps back suddenly into a distinctive lenticular shank that twists to the left. This feature, borrowed from Micke, creates an organic silhouette, as well as a particularly comfortable feel in hand, as the shank provides firm outcroppings for the fingers to index with easily. Out back, a hand-cut vulcanite saddle stem offers a touch of sleekness to the profile, as well as an easy clench. Dressed in a crisp sandblast and deep chestnut stain, the stummel showcases a fantastic array of rippling growth rings, while the smooth shank face, rim, and heel offer textural contrast and display even more handsome grain.