MPC Pipe of the Year

yearly club pipes i find are a great bargin, normally the pipe maker sales these cheaper then there normal price scale because they sale many pipes at one clip this way, as long as it is a good maker and a shape i like i for sure would buy one.

The only problem I see is getting everyone to agree on a shape/size. I know there are VERY different tastes in styles as far as pipes go.

But, lets see what we can do. I think its a great idea.

As long as we can agree on a billiard, an apple, a bulldog, a rhodesian, a belge, an author or a brandy I'm all for it as far as shape go. But the real question is: are there any cavers who are willing to invest the time in making a club pipe. We can discuss shapes for a year, but if nobody wants to make the damn thing, we just look more stupid than usual :)

there are a lot of carvers who do it often, tinsky and rad davis come to mind right away, not sure what pipe makers who are members here who might like to as well.

a pipe of the year have to be the same shape? Why not avoid the argument and it is enough to have it stamped MPC 2008 and let people get whatever shape they prefer?

I never thought of that... I guess old age does bring wisdom !!

=o)

Yea probably, and along with it loss of hair, vision, hearing and worst of all - farts you can't trust.

This sounds like a great idea, guys. I'm happy to handle the administrative end of things.

Here's a few questions that immediately spring to mind:

1. How many people would be interested beyond you 'hard cores'? I ask, because a My-Pipes.com stamp will cost between $250-$300 to create. To do two separate stamps ('My-Pipes Community' and '2008') would cost more, but we could reuse the MPC stamp. The main point being, will enough pipes be commissioned to defray the costs of the stamp? ie, better to add $10 to 50 pipes than $50 to 10 pipes.

2. Which carver would you suggest? We could go with someone well known. At the same time, we could use this opportunity to go with a lesser known carver. The benefits are two-fold: the pipes are likely to be cheaper, and this provides some exposure for the carver.

3. Do we all want the same shape? Or do we all want different? Or do we want to limit it to two or three shapes? I am not neccesarily sure letting people pick just any shape would be best... that removes the 'recognizability' of the pipe. At the same time I want everyone to have something they really, really like.

4. If we are limiting shapes, how do we narrow them down? We could rerun a shape poll like we have in the past (http://www.my-pipes....). However, all that poll told me last time is apart from billiards, freehands, and bulldogs, you are all a bunch of crazy edge cases.

I do think this is an excellent idea, though!

Well duh !

In regards to:

1)I would suggest a simple MPC within an oval ($85), a couple sets of numbers and something to hold and press them ($?.??). If there were a lot of participation we might consider upgrading the MPC stamp to incorporate the logo pipe.

3) If a bulldog was chosen it would look like many other bulldogs and likely only recognized as a MPC POY by its stamp. That is, unless the feelings are that a set of pipes for a given year should all be the same. I realize asp does it that way but it seems that as many drop out because of the shape as those that opt in.

4) I think we all are certifiable.

Umm... pardon me for asking... but what was your second thought? LOL

number is in reference Caydel's post. I have nothing to comment on for #2.

Thanks for clearing that up for me. I had a momentary brain fart and did not connect your numbers with Brians. Sorry !!!

Pretty flexible here.

I think offering any shape one wanted would be hard to manage - also it'd be hard to keep the price the same.

I also think that coming to agreement on one shape will be tough.

IMHO the idea of a limited choice of shapes with a simple MPC 08 stamp would get the most participationm

As far as carvers go, just the thought of a Tinsky or Rad Davis made me pee a little...but I'd be happy with any choice.

An MPC POY? Are you kidding me? I like where this site is heading!

I had to respond twice!!!

Curse this gol durn handheld...

Yep, and I deleted the double post before you had time to post this. And soon, I shall delete these two posts as well...

I thought I would comment on this. First off, please don't think me too forward, but I might very well be interested in making the pipe for the group, if the group would have me.

Now for some more general comments.

A POY for any group should be a consistent shape. Having multiple shapes for the POY seems to me to not be a POY but rather a potpourri or mishmash. It would also be impossible to get a good price. Since each pipe would be different, each pipe would come with a different price tag.

As for the shape, in the interest of keeping the cost down, it should be a fairly straightforward and simple design. Allowing the carver to make their own interpretation on it would garner a more interesting pipe.

Lastly, I think all the pipes should be ordered up front so that the carver knows how many pipes he/she will be making. Leaving it up in the air leaves the carver wondering if enough pipes will be sold to make the discounted price worthwhile.

Guess that's it for now.

You all haven't heard enough of my opinions, I like the idea of a MPC "native son" commissioned for the POY.

I know we have extremely talented carvers right in our midst as Joel for one has proven.

I mentioned this before in the other post, my concern for the multiple shapes seemed to defeat the purpose of a POY all together. I think the following would be a good course of action:

1. Lets see how the results of the poll turn out in so far as how many people are interested.

2. Lets get some discussion going on a shape/finish. Although I am biased, I think the more classic shapes are going to be softer on the pocket book. If need be, we narrow it down to a couple and pick the final out of a hat.

3. I think we should also get an idea for what we are looking for in a price-point, then when we approach a carver we can get a realistic answer if that price-point is possible based on the shape, finish and quantity. This doesnt have to be a "set in stone" price, but a general idea would be nice. IE- We dont want to go over $200 and is this possible with our choices.

I am certainly not opposed to Joel throwing his hat in as a potential carver. His work is an example of fine craftmanship, and he is obviously up for the challenge.

Thats my 2 cents.

with the response to the idea. I agree that Joel makes a mean pipe & it's more than appropriate that a member should be the maker. With regard to shape, I guess a poll will do it. In any event, after a decade or two, your favourite shape is sure to come up. Joel, what would constitute an economic minimum number to a carver? I agree with Sparky that $200 is a good ceiling.

My vote on shape: I will begin by leaning to the more bizarre (of course) & choose an African (of course) originated shape. OOM PAUL. With a large bowl. Hell, why be practical?

And, I share these sentiments. Other than the issue of the finish, I remain fairly flexible. And, for even the finish. As long as there's no rhinestone-encrusted fake leather covering, I'm good with the finish. No vinyl, either, or fur, please no fur!

setting a price of 200.00 that is a pretty high price. it will no stop me, but out of all the club pipes i have bought, never has one reached the 200 dollar mark. i think the highest one was like 175. that was for a von erck and also a rad davis was 175.

and yes get a poll about shapes going, the finish could be left up to the guy buying and reflect a price break for the rusticated or blasted one, as we all know when a maker is making pipes, not all of them will turn out to be smooth grade and those could be rusticated or blasted for the ones who prefer that finish.

just my thoughts.

now get that poll going for shape!!!

What's wrong with a Hungarian?

I agree that the $200 price limit is a little on the high side.

I think something in the $100-$150 range is more reasonable... Of course, keep in mind that this is coming from the guy who only has purchased estate pipes - Even at that price range I would have to wonder if the MPC POTY is worth as much to me as 7-10 decent estate pipes.

One more thing. I am not trying to head off discussion on the carver or trying to horn in on it (so to speak).

There are other carvers here on the board than me. I think all ought to be fairly considered.

Joel

All carvers interested should make themselves known, and I'll be happy to purchase a POY from each of them.

I don't know if this if going to happen.

The results of the poll so far show me that we are likely to only have 10-15 interested in this - and that's providing that all the people who voted 'yes' are willing to put their money where their mouth is. Assuming that some drop because they don't have the funds for whatever reason when the time comes, perhaps even less.

I think that if we do do this, we need to settle on a single pipe design. Why? Because that's what a pipe of the year is. Something we all (or many of us) have. Something special. If we lose that, it's not a POY anymore. It's just a pipe with an MPC stamp.

I will talk to a few carvers to get a sense of what we can get in terms of discounts etc. for a basic shape such as an apple or a billiard. I want to get a sense of the kind of deals we can get based on the number of pipes sold. However, there is a lot of administrative overhead in terms of my time investment into any coordination efforts. And I don't want to put tons of work into this if only 10 of you are interested in moving forward.

Not to be the gloomy Gus here, I just think it may not be practical given the number of interested people.

I will echo in agreement with Brian at this point.

I am all for this, but so far our 18 person poll isnt looking very promising.

Time will tell I guess.

up some of the clutter in my head regarding this POY thing and probably a lot of it may be against the grain so to speak, but here goes.

First a quick surf around I see 3 ASP POY's sitting on Kurt Huhn's site and 2 sitting on Joel's site. I wouldn't be real tickled myself sitting on custom shaped pipes made for a club. I certainly don't think it is unfair asking for a firm order before quoting any price.

The other thought that has crossed my mind is this being shoehorned into a single price range and that the volume of pipes ordered may effect a deeper discount. How many of us are looking for more work at a lower wage?

The other aspect of this price range is going to influence the choice of materials used. This is simply because the carver is being held to such a thin margin. So likely the starting point is going to be a cheap block of ebacheon, certainly not a high quality well grained plateau block. Just trying to point out that the same amount of labor and effort is put into a shape but the pipe from an $8 block of ebacheon or a $45 block of plateau is like an ice cream cone and a sundae.

It is very likely that an MPC POY would probably be the only pipe purchase I make for the year, so my viewpoint is also likely different from most here.

Is it possible the low numbers in "yea's" be that we have a large number of new membership and we haven't given them the time to get the full MPC effect that those of us who have been here a while have gotten?

It may be too soon for many to treasure an MPC POY as I would?

If this works out this year, fantastic!

If we need to give it a year or so to get more participation, then so be it.

As ckr noted, I'd hate to stick a carver with POY gathering dust.

Have a great morning guys!