Why are one piece pipes not as common and what are the drawbacks?

I'll speculate a little here with you. All are possible:

* Briar is expensive. Finding pieces to cover that much real estate would be pricey (and hard to accomplish).

* Breakage. Bust a one-piece pipe at the stem, it may be its death. Break a stem in a traditional briar, you can have it fixed. You might be able to salvage a one-piece pipe with a broken stem with a lucite/vulcanite one--then you wouldn't have to worry about this speculation. Hehehehe.

* Tooth damage (to the pipe, not the tooth). Again, easier to replace/refinish/refurbish a bit than chewing on a wood one. Ever see a bitten pencil?

* Moisture damage. Briar to be smoked needs to be dry. Slobbering on a wood bit would likely impart flavor and unintended interaction with the wood at a minimum, possibly swelling and cracking if the smoker is a real drooler.

* Mouth comfort. Bits are shaped the way they are for a reason--harder to do and keep structurally intact with wood. Also, pretty inconvenient to have a pipe unable to be held in the mouth very easily!

* Cleaning. Having a breakaway between the bowl and stem makes it easy to really give a proper scrub

* Tradition. The look and method of making these pipes has been developing for a long time, and for good reason: they're very functional, and can be very attractive. There's nothing finer than the craftsmanship of a pipe made by hands of a master (well, to a pipe smoker/collector, anyway... )

All things considered, there's no absolute way to make a pipe, but I think there's a good, informed reason why the system of pipe we know it today is in place--they're hardy, relatively easy to make (but hard to make well), easy to maintain and provide an excellent smoke. It's a tough act to improve upon, and boy, has it been tried.

Nice work on those. They have some nice color and grain! I have used Mulberry with good results. Have one I've been smoking for about 1 1/2 years. A lot of the pros use shellac,mostly on rusticated pipes. Makes it much easier to get a shine on the rustication,and it will breath. Pic is of my Mulberry,cheated on the stem--used a Grabow.

Nice pipes you guys are making.

Toxicity aside, the concerns about using other woods is that wood burns and imparts flavor to the smoke. I've never used anything but briar, so I can't tell how other woods are. Many years ago, there were debates on ASP about this. Some contended that if you smoke slowly, the tobacco burns at very low temperatures and wood type is not an issue anymore. Someone made a pipe of balsa wood and smoked it to prove his point. I think someone even used paper, but my recollection is a bit fuzzy. Perhaps others can shed more light on this issue.

All-wood pipes are around. At one time, the ukelele shape, all in wood, was more or less in fashion among some pipe makers. I've tried, but didn't like it. Found it too soft, easy to put teeth marks on, and didn't like the feel of it. But that's personal taste and there's no law against it. Use it if it works for you.

Personally, I'd have much more satisfaction smoking a pipe I made than smoking an expensive pipe made by someone else. Kudos to you.

Some of the major pipe makers,in the US anyway,have made all wood pipes. Kaywoodie made an all briar as did WDC and LHS- IIRC. D&P pipeworks of Sparta,NC. made pipes from Mt. Laurel and /or rhododendron with a wooden stem. D&P was bought out by HLT,their factory became the home of Sparta Pipes,makers of Dr. Grabow.

A side note, from makers who have handed this information down to me, shellac will not really let the pipe breathe, although it is indeed used on rusticated pipes. There are two things, however:

* Use a thinned shellac. Whether the liquid type at the store or the flakes, keep the recipe about half shellac than what is called for, or 2:1 (Denatured Alcohol:Shellac) or even 4:1. I found the mix I use to be almost watery in nature, and I use two coats.

* If you have parts of the pipe that aren't rusticated, don't shellac them, sand, buff and wax them.

Both of these tips used with briar will allow the breathing that the briar is known for. I'm not sure how it would translate to other woods, but I imagine it is similar.

Mulberry does display some nice grain and I love the natural color of it. Doesn't need a stain, only wax.

I agree! That's really how I feel about most woods too. Occasionally I like the look a stain can bring, but the natural color of a wood has always been a favorite of mine.