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Northwood's Craftsman Lee Erck...
Handcrafted, one at a time in Negaunee Township, Michigan, the pipes of Lee Erck have been demanding attention throughout the Pipe Smoking Community worldwide.
The sudden interest in these pipes is a bit unexpected as their past marketbase has been targeted predominately at mid-America. Lee has been making pipes for just 25 years.
Pipe Smoking aficionados have claimed that the von Erck Classic Pipes have experienced sudden popularity largely due to their unique design, careful craftsmanship, and smooth smokeability.
Lee himself believes that his pipes appeal to smokers because he himself has been smoking pipes for 50 plus years and he personally knows what appeals to the dedicated pipesmoker. When he creates a pipe, he strives for one that is eyecatching, expresses the natural grain in the briar, feels good in the hand, and above all, smokes well. This is "the pipe with the worry stone effect", quoted Dennis Hills, Riegels, Fort Wayne, IN.
Each pipe created is a one-of-a-kind piece, being developed, based on the character of the briar itself. The personality of each particular piece of briar is what dictates to the craftsman, how each piece will develop, and become that one-of-a-kind pipe.
The von Erck Classics is a bit out of the ordinary. Boring, shaping, and polishing of the pipes is done in a small shop in the Northwoods of Michigan . The pipes are then put through a lengthy oil-curing and drying process before they are returned for crafting of a bit for each pipe. The bit for each pipe is as unique and individual as that of the pipe it is created for. The final step in the lengthy process is to assign and stamp each pipe with it's own individual Serial number and nomenclature. The von Erck pipes are being found in collections of many prominent collectors and are prized for their exceptional craftsmanship and smokeability.
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