HALL & FITZGERALD Craftsman De Luxe Rustic
England, 1950-70s
The lovat shape was initiated in early XX century and they say Colonel Henry Fraser, Lord Lovat smoked such pipes so the name was adopted in his honour. Several sources of information state that Gerald Grundging & Company was the first manufacturer stamped the name of Lord Lovat on the pipes of this shape. Another sources claim that BBB invented lovat pipes and produced lovats long time.
But this time we offer a lovat pipe made by another old good British company. According to Wilczak and Colwell Craftsman pipes were produced in England by Ben Wade and Hall & Fitzgerald. But neither the shape nor the nomenclature are similar to Ben Wade products, no matter – family times or lane era. Therefore we’re pretty sure it’s made by H&F – one of very old, respectable and famous English manufactures, well known since the end of the XIX century and produced wonderful pipes almost until the 1980s. You may compare the nomenclature to their Clifton pipes to dispel doubts.
The pipe markings are “CRAFTSMAN \ DE LUXE RUSTIC”. The length is 13.1 cm (5.16″), bowl’s height is 4.6 cm (1.81″). External diameter of the bowl is 3.5 cm (1.38″), internal diameter is 1.9 cm (0.75″). The depth is 3.8 cm (1.5″) and this pipe weights 32 gr. Briar, vulcanite stem, no filter.
