I am not sure why, but most of the old Tanshells that have come across my hands have always had some of the most dramatic sandblasts, exceeding even old Shell Briars in some cases.

This straight Apple 6K is no exception — you can see how much more organic the blast looks compared to modern Dunhills. You won’t find perfect ring grain here, but here is my hot take on grain: if the pipe is smooth, I love straight and flame grain as much as the next person, but when it comes to sandblasts I like variety and chaos way more than a “clinical” ring grain.

I like it when different viewing angles tell a completely different story, and that is exactly what we get with this one. It almost looks as if it was stranded at the bottom of the ocean for centuries and the patterns were carved into it by the strong currents.

The Tanshell itself was introduced in the early 1950s and, during this period, Dunhill was using Sardinian briar for the finish. The harder, denser wood gave the Tanshell a character quite different from the Algerian briar traditionally associated with the Shell.

In addition to the looks, this pipe comes from one of the greatest Dunhill decades, when oil curing was still a thing. As a reminder, the golden decades for Dunhill in my opinion are the 20s, 30s and the 60s being the last one. The 10s also produced some of the best Dunhill pipes, but most of those were not actually made by Dunhill, so I decided to exclude them from that list.

Condition note: this is a proper A4 pipe because it has been smoked for more than 60 years, and will continue to do so for at least another 60 if taken care of. The rim has darkened, giving it almost a fumed look, but there is no structural damage or even real charring. This is the perfect sign of a well-smoked pipe by someone who knew what they were doing. I decided to leave the darkening rather than damage the sandblasted rim.

The pipes go through one final check before shipping, so if you notice any inconsistencies in the carnauba finish or smudges they will be taken care of before your pipe is shipped to you.