Blog by Steve Laug

Pipedia gives good background information on Vesz. The picture and the material is taken from this link: http://pipedia.org/wiki/Vesz_Pipes
“Born and raised in Hungary, Julius Vesz was first exposed to pipe making through his grandfather. Although his grandfather died when Julius was only 9 years old, he can still picture his grandfather making pipes. It made a lasting impression that matured years later.

After immigrating to Canada at age 23, Vesz worked as a mechanical draftsman, but ever since a child had wanted to do something on his own. Remembering his grandfather’s pipe making and repairing, he thought perhaps he should try his hand at that also. He sought out Charlie Dollack, who had a repair shop in downtown Toronto, but while Charlie encouraged the young Vesz, he did not offer any help or instruction.

Julius continued on his own, setting up a modest shop in his own home, and was soon fixing and making pipes for several department stores, as well as United Cigar, which later turned into his main source of work. He discovered he had a unique skill, which he practiced and nurtured on his own. Like his grandfather, Vesz is motivated by a desire to create pipes that approach perfection.”

Over the years I have followed Julius Vesz’ pipes and kept an eye out for one that caught my eye. Julius Vesz is a Canadian pipe maker who has been controversial in his claim to use dead root briar. Many have argued about his choice of terms regarding the briar that he uses. But regardless of your take on that issue he makes beautiful pipes that smoke exceptionally well. His unique raindrop shaped pipes may be how many people know him. He has a shop in the Royal York Hotel, 100 Front Street West in Toronto.

His Handcut pipes are crafted from his oldest and finest blocks of aged briar. They come in a variety of shapes and styles and no two are the same. Often personalized with beautiful ornamentation such as bone, silver and gold, these pipes have long been sought after by collectors all over the world. Julius has customized pipes for dignitaries and clients worldwide.

His early pipes bore the Craft Briar stamp, and though his company still is registered as Craft Briar his pipes are now stamped Julius Vesz. He carved every pipe that bears his name and though they may bear similarities to others that he has carved each one is one of a kind. His site says that “Every pipe is meticulously crafted from his personal supply of aged briar that he has been accumulating since the 1960s. The extremely old briar gives each pipe the exceptional smoking characteristics found only in a world famous Julius Vesz pipe.”

I have since picked up two of Julius’ pipes and found them to be very good smoking pipes. The first one I found was a beautiful little shape 76 Zulu Hand Made while the second was a Craft Briar shape 86 Volcano. In this review I will address the Zulu.My first Vesz is stamped on the left side of the shank Julius Vesz Hand Made Canada with a circle 4 stamp. I learned from correspondence with Julius’ son Rob that his dad’s Hand Made pipes were graded (in ascending order): 2 – 4 and this one is a grade 4 stamped pipe. It also bears a shape number of 76 which is the Zulu shape. The stem bears a white circle inlay that is common on his pipes. The vitals are as follows: length 5 ½ inches, height 1 7/8 inches, bore of the bowl 3/4 inches, outer diameter at the widest point 1 1/8 inches and depth of the chamber 1 1/4 inches.

In this review I want to look at the pipe from a more technical side and walk through its construction, feel and delivery of the smoke to me. The pipe came in a cloth pipe sock with no stamping. When the pipe arrived in the mail I was excited to see and hold my first Vesz pipe. I had read reviews and scrolled through many pictures of his work on his website but had never held one in hand. In taking this out of the sock I have to say that it is more than I expected from the photos that I had seen before I bought it. The shape was well executed and I liked the shape of the bowl, its cant and finish immediately. The finish was well done and the stain highlighted the beautiful grain. The weight of the pipe is light, I can only wish I had a scale because it is lighter in weight than I expected in a pipe of this size.Looking at the externals of the pipe. Julius use of stains makes the grain stand out on the pipe. The rich brown tones pick up both the birdseye and cross grain and makes them stand out against the back ground colour. He has laid out the cut of the briar to take advantage of the grain patterns. The top and bottom of the shank and the front and back of the bowl are predominantly cross grain. There are some slight mixed grain portions on the front and back of the bowl. The crossed grain pattern on the bowl is set slightly to the left of the bowl center. But the look of these portions is gorgeous. The birdseye grain on the sides of the bowl and shank are lovely to look at. I get lost in the grain patterns while I hold it in my hand. The centres of the birdseye are dark in colour and the ridges surrounding the eye are lighter. The bottom of the bowl is cross grain that flows up to the front of the bowl. The cross grain on the top of the shank also flows up the back of the bowl to the rim.The stamping on the pipe is on the left side of the shank. The shank is round, sitting at a 90 degree angle to the bowl. The hand cut ebonite stem is very well done and comfortable in the mouth. The saddle of the stem sits tightly against the shank that gently tapers into a thin blade. The taper of the blade is subtle and sporting a 1/8 bent to the stem. It has a thin oval shaped button that is sharply cut and catches well on the back of my teeth. The slot in the button is oval shaped and there is a smooth V slot that facilitates the movement of smoke across the mouth. The polish and smoothness of the finish is like glass. The overall appearance of the pipe and stem is beautiful and it fits my hand very well. The smooth finish gives the pipe a simple elegance that is a pleasure to look at while I smoke it.Moving from the externals of the pipe to the internal mechanics. The workmanship on this pipe is well done. The angle of the drilling is done in such a way that the bowl is of a uniform thickness throughout. The bowl bottom is relatively the same thickness as the walls of the pipe. The bowl is drilled at the same angle as the exterior of the pipe. The draught hole is precisely where it should be – centred at the back side bottom of the bowl. As the pipe came to me pre-smoked I cannot speak to whether there was a bowl coating originally. Holding the bowl to the light revealed a clean and smooth airway with no impediments. The drilling in the mortise is clean and smooth. The airway is centered in the back of the mortise. The tenon goes straight into the mortise and sits against the back of the mortise. The airway in the stem and in the mortise line up perfectly. The tenon appears to be integral to the ebonite stem material it is not an insert. The airway is not chamfered or funneled on the end of the tenon but is flat and centered in the end of the tenon. The inside of the stem is very smooth. There is no roughness or constriction from the tenon end to the slot in the button. The airway flattens out like a squeezed drinking straw so that the diameter does not change but is flattened and opened. I have been smoking this pipe for several years now and it smokes very well. Whenever I load a bowl of a favourite Virginia tobacco it delivers a flavourful and cool smoke. When I received the pipe it was already broken in and there was a thin cake already forming in the bowl. The pipe has always smoked dry and clean with no moisture build up or gurgle during the smoke. The ash and any remnants of tobacco in the bottom of the bowl are dry and easily dumped out at the end of the smoke. The draught on this pipe is very smooth – no whistling sound and no sense of having to suck or work to get the smoke to move through – it is effortless as it should be. It has been and will continue to be a pleasure to smoke, exactly what I look for in a pipe that keeps its place in my rotation.

I would highly recommend that you have a look at Vesz pipes. While many are quite high end his Handmade line still offers affordable pipes at a lower price. His pipes are available through Julius himself and through other online retailers such as Uptown’s Smoke Shop and Smokingpipes.com. Julius’ fine craftsmanship can be seen in the beauty of the pipes that are available on these sites. He carves both classic shapes and designs that are uniquely his own like the raindrop. His silver work and ornamentation are also beautiful additions to his pipes and give them look of fine art. They are beautiful to look at and explore. Have a look at the beautiful work that he does on his own website at http://www.juliusvesz.ca/. He can also be contacted directly at his shop at the Royal York Hotel in Toronto or by phone at 416-362-0581, fax at 416-306-9908 or email at juliusvesz@rogers.com.