James Upshall

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TJDiesel

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Anyone here have any experience with Upshall pipes? Most of the pipes i own are either italian or american, with the exception of a dunhill, and i was looking to acquire an english pipe, and ive read a lot of good stuff bout Upshalls
 
Ask Al (riff raff) about his Upshall. From what I remember of our meeting at Boswell's he spoke very highly of it.
 
Upshall is a fine quality English pipe. I have one and it is a great smoker. Very good craftmanship on all the ones that I have seen
 
Excellent pipes and my favorite English brand. I have 11 of them. They are high quality pipes made from good briar, and expertly engineered. MSRP on them is quite high, but you can get estates on the bay at very reasonable prices.
 
Yea ive been browsing around and the prices on estate Upshalls look pretty sweet. Not to mention that they are very fine looking pipes, im definetly goin to jump on one soon
 
I have two, bought new years ago. They are among the best and have that old English look to them, referring to the shapes, grain, and classic simplicity. They are great smoking pipes now and are permanent keepers, but I have to say that they were difficult to "break in." It took forever. Perhaps it was just me, but both were the same.
 
I only have one Upshall, about a size 4 that I reserve for VAs. The pipe is ok and I smoke it more or less regularly. The reason I don't have more is because of the stain, which comes off and leaves the fingers red; and because of the mouthpiece, which oxidates more easily than most other vulcanite mouthpieces. I don't know how typical this is in Upshall pipes, but perhaps others could say.
 
Wet Dottle":3a58ynjg said:
I only have one Upshall, about a size 4 that I reserve for VAs. The pipe is ok and I smoke it more or less regularly. The reason I don't have more is because of the stain, which comes off and leaves the fingers red; and because of the mouthpiece, which oxidates more easily than most other vulcanite mouthpieces. I don't know how typical this is in Upshall pipes, but perhaps others could say.
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I have never experienced this, but mine are three decades old, so I don't know what's out there now. Sounds weird. Mine have little more than carnauba wax on them, and have colored and aged rather well. Patinized, actually--is that a word?
 
Wet Dottle":lxc2i6p6 said:
I only have one Upshall, about a size 4 that I reserve for VAs. The pipe is ok and I smoke it more or less regularly. The reason I don't have more is because of the stain, which comes off and leaves the fingers red; and because of the mouthpiece, which oxidates more easily than most other vulcanite mouthpieces. I don't know how typical this is in Upshall pipes, but perhaps others could say.
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I have new ones and a few from near the inception of the brand, no problems with stem or stain on any of them.
 
I ve noticed a few of them on Ebay from the factory New old stock for under $200 so that may be worth looking into. I was tempted but the old billfold is a bit light of late. Says the American Lad of British decent.
 
I'm a confirmed Upshall-a-holic for sure. I have three, a S-grade Rhodesian, and two P-grade pipes. One bent Dublin in XL and a huge bent billiard. All three smoke wonderfully. I find the Upshall draw is just right, a little tighter than my wide-open Castello. Drill work and craftsmanship is first rate and they can be found at reasonable prices.

Mine are all estates I've found. Mr. Ezrati, the new owner of Upshall sells a lot of new and older NOS at very reasonable prices on Ebay.

I love the feel of the vulcanite stems, but they do oxidize, so a little upkeep is required.

My three:





 
I added another estate Upshall to the rack last week. It arrived in time to take on vacation, so it rec'd a thorough breaking in. It appears to be a model from the 80's, at least by comments from other owners of a similar vintage. The briar stamping and stem logo are quite different than my more current models (form the 90's). It also does not have a grade stamp. The pipe smokes superbly, with just the right balance, shape and bend. The stem took a little work, but had no teeth damage and only to brighten the shine. The briar was in fine shape, just requiring a light white diamond than carnuba buff (after a light ream and salt/everclear soak). Another Upshall winner!

Before:


After:



 
I have to say, that is one style of Upshall I've ALWAYS wanted :) I've 3 of them, and all were from the 80's and they were oil cured as were the Dunhill's of that time and I've not found a style of 'bac that they won't smoke well !!! Enjoy it, you may need some more after you smoke that one :p
 
I have a Tilshead which is an Upshall second ("poor man's Upshall"). Bought it as an estate about 10 yrs ago. It’s a straight billiard with a narrow chamber and thick walls. I love it. The vulcanite does tend to oxidize more easily than others.
 
Sorry to thread hijack, but what pipe rests are those in the 2nd and 3rd pics Al?
 
TheSmokeamater":72bxu4dt said:
The vulcanite does tend to oxidize more easily than others.
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I've heard that from other folks. I finish all of my vulcanite stems with "Blue Magic Plastic Polish". I think besides giving the vulcanite a great shine, keeps oxidation at bay as my Upshalls don't seem to oxidize at all, that can be the only explanation.
 
Fishfuzz":3c4b7sci said:
Sorry to thread hijack, but what pipe rests are those in the 2nd and 3rd pics Al?
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Like the one in my signature, holding an Upshall Rhodesian? That is just a simple folding rest. The Dublin style pipe is held by a bent pipe cleaner, works for taller pipes.
 
The owner of the company as mentioned earlier does have very nice Upshalls for sale on ebay...i recently purchased an Astleys oompaul from him, his prices are quite good and the shipping is fast
 
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