Sorry, but the new dunhills are junk

Brothers of Briar

Help Support Brothers of Briar:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

Thomas Porculo

Active member
Joined
Oct 2, 2013
Messages
28
Reaction score
0
The title says it all. I have two of them, they are great. Perfect fit and finish... Just received one as a gift and:
1.- Finish is crap, reminds me of a cheap grabow
2.- Grain is mediocre, at best.
3.- Fit is poor, made by a moron
4.- hole is not centered.

I thought perhaps I got a fluke, which happens, so I went to pipesandcigars.com and had a look. WOW!!!! Seems the name Dunhil is being shit on left and right.


Aflred: Fork You

Never again.
 
don't hold back thomas. let us know what you REALLY think!

:cheers: 

i only own one - my birth year. built like a truck. smokes like a champ.

doody.
 
I'll trade you for it. Send me a PM with what series and shape number it is and I'll tell you the pipes I have I'd be willing to send you so we both end up with a pipe we like.
 
Thomas Porculo":1o9nn155 said:
The title says it all. I have two of them, they are great. Perfect fit and finish... Just received one as a gift and:
1.- Finish is crap, reminds me of a cheap grabow
2.- Grain is mediocre, at best.
3.- Fit is poor, made by a moron
4.- hole is not centered.

I thought perhaps I got a fluke, which happens, so I went to pipesandcigars.com and had a look. WOW!!!! Seems the name Dunhil is being shit on left and right.


Aflred: Fuck you

Never again.
Alfred's dead; don't blame him.
He would weep if he saw what they've done to his company. :twisted: 
 
sisyphus":m52u9uln said:
I'll trade you for it. Send me a PM with what series and shape number it is and I'll tell you the pipes I have I'd be willing to send you so we both end up with a pipe we like.
Brewdude":m52u9uln said:
This thread will not end well...........

:silent: 


Cheers,

RR
Then again..................


;) 


Cheers,

RR
 
I own 8 Dunhills ranging from 1952-2011. I too have noticed that the modern Dunhills (about mid 1990's on) don't have quite the same feel as the older ones. Certainly there are outliers, bad old Dunhills and good new Dunhills, but from the ones I have seen online, at shows, and that I own personally I'd say that quality has decreased.

Generally this has been evident is several things: thicker bits, occasional tool marks (especially on stems), and sloppier shaping.

I have a 4102 from 1972 and from 1999. While the profile is almost identical (kudos to them for maintaining that at least) the shank is much more defined in the 1972.

Decreasing quality aside, no one makes classics like Dunhill does these days. I would much rather own a Dunhill than a Pete or a Sav, but the rub is price. $150 will buy you an entry to mid grade Pete or Sav, but is hardly enough to pay for a glance at a Dunhill. Do they make good pipes? Yes for what they are. Should it cost me $800 for a group 4 smooth billiard. Hell no!!
 
Ocelot55":0mqgxax5 said:
Decreasing quality aside, no one makes classics like Dunhill does these days. I would much rather own a Dunhill than a Pete or a Sav, but the rub is price. $150 will buy you an entry to mid grade Pete or Sav, but is hardly enough to pay for a glance at a Dunhill. Do they make good pipes? Yes for what they are. Should it cost me $800 for a group 4 smooth billiard...
You can go to a custom pipe maker and get exactly what you want these days. This one was a gift though, so no $800 outlay on his part. When I lived in TN, we used to say, "Don't thump a free melon."
 
Thomas Porculo":9zgcya8k said:
,,, Aflred: Fork You,,,,
I edited your comment to conform with the rules of this forum. This isn't the rubber room.
 
Thomas Porculo":w54iqf06 said:
The title says it all. I have two of them, they are great. Perfect fit and finish... Just received one as a gift and:
1.- Finish is crap, reminds me of a cheap grabow
2.- Grain is mediocre, at best.
3.- Fit is poor, made by a moron
4.- hole is not centered.

I thought perhaps I got a fluke, which happens, so I went to pipesandcigars.com and had a look. WOW!!!! Seems the name Dunhil is being shit on left and right.


Aflred: Fork You

Never again.
First off, "Dunhill: pipes are NO MORE. Anything made by the former firm of Dunhill after 2010 is now stamped "White Spot" no Dunhill stamping is found on them anywhere. I have 6 Dunhills, 4 Patents from the 50's that were a friends whom passed away this past year, and two I have , one from 1970 and another made in 2002. ALL are excellently made and finished pipes so I cannot remark on the production as is made today, though as with many of the classical British pipe firms products are maybe not quite up to the standards of the past. That's life, things change. Onward thru the fog  :twisted:
 
My youngest Dunnie is a 1969. It's other dozen brothers (including my birthyear '46) are from the 1920's to the 1960's, covering all decades. All great pipes, though the '69 Tanshell billiard is a bit thin-walled. While I was still working in a large pipe & tobacco store in the late 60's, our Dunhill rep told us that changes were coming to the DH pipe production process. No specifics, but he didn't seem too happy about it. Years later I finally figured out "the changes!" Hence, no Dunnies past the late 60's for me! Sad end to great name and empire.:( FTRPLT
 
If the bowls were not turned in England, the stems not hand cut in England, the pipe is not a Dunhill IMO. And like Monbla days, they are not Dunhill anymore, they are White Spots. End of story IMO.
:( 
 
monbla256":nr3ajowi said:
First off, "Dunhill: pipes are NO MORE. Anything made by the former firm of Dunhill after 2010 is now stamped "White Spot" no Dunhill stamping is found on them anywhere.
This is not true. The new nomenclature started in late 2012, and you'll find 2012s with both the old oval Dunhill stamp and the new White Spot stamp. Most 2012s will be the old stamp, with all 2013s having the new nomenclature.
 
Interesting.  One of my NYC pipe friends is a huge Dunhill collector and he's bought 6-8 of the new White Spot pipes.  He's very pleased and is seemingly a very discerning Dunhill owner/purchaser.  He has bought all of his new "White Spot" stamped pipes from a European dealer, Al Pascia.  Where were yours acquired? (Stateside?).

Here's a Root Briar from AP's site. I won't say my eyes are that discerning, but I don't see anything that stands out in this picture. I'm open to get a little education, so don't be shy if this one is lacking design elements or execution.

getImageVar.asp
 
Shaping on that particular model looks good, but look at the bit thickness. Waaay too thick even for a group 2.
 
All newer Dunhill have a fat button. I don't know that it's anything I'd criticize anymore than I'd criticize Castello for having huge buttons. If it's the house cut, you like it or you don't. Yeah, they're big, but all my newer Dunhills with big buttons are comfortable in the mouth, so it's a non-issue for me.
 
Let's go after Les Woods' wife Dolly while we're at it. Ferndown have huge buttons too.

My point being, people just like to go after Dunhill. I bought a pipe I didn't like once. I didn't buy any more of that brand, and I don't recall starting any threads about them on pipe forums. It's a weird personality defect of the internet pipe forum, Dunhill hatred.
 
No Dunhill hatred here. I love my Dunhill pipes, all made in England.
:lol!: 
 
Top