Yeti: Partially Sandblasted Paneled Saxophone (953) Tobacco Pipe

Micah Cryder of Yeti Pipes is an incredibly talented artisan, one of my favorites in fact, as he injects each of his pipes with a degree of whimsy and jocularity that reflects his own palpable passion for the craft, all while imbuing them with reverence toward his inspirations. Essentially an extremely deeply bent Dublin, the Saxophone is a shape we see very seldomly, however, iterations of the shape made by Yeti always deftly display the form's iconic, flaring curvature with conspicuous zeal. This particular paneled take on the shape showcases an incredible angularity about its build, especially at the transition, where the shank curls sharply upward to meet a long, smartly curved half-saddle stem of black vulcanite. The shank looks ovoid in profile, compressed vertically to offer some considerable thickness from the smoker's perspective, and its shape has been framed by a sextet of panels that continue through the length of the stem. This results in a massively crisp configuration of painstakingly carved facets that gently taper as they reach from the transition to the bit, enhancing the already pronounced outline of this pipe significantly. The half-saddle orientation of the stem lends this pipe's silhouette a consistent undercurve that naturally guides the eye to the bowl, and the ridges lining the shank and stem flow throughout this curve, lifting into the bowl at the fore and framing its walls' expressive flare to the rim. These ridges create a shape similar to that of the shank, though the bowl is extended at the fore and aft to more dramatically accentuate its dynamic, hexagonal paneling, and its high-set waist gives way to a finely rendered, Rhodesian-like taper to the rim that continues the walls' shaping. Tall, broad, and hearty, this Saxophone is a stunning example of the shape, replete with eminent sinuousness and a truly remarkable quality of gracile agility. Dressed in a crisp partial sandblast and a stunning contrast stain, this pipe boasts incredible grain: broad panels at the flanks and transition offering rippling growth rings that frame a vast ocean of fiery birdseye spreading out across the underside.