Should army-bit / military-mount pipes always be rusticated?

Personally I'm a huge fan of smooth pipes and all of mine are that way.

However, I've been looking to pick up a pipe with an army or spigot mount and it seems to me that those -- by their very nature as pipes that would be used in the trenches -- should be rusticated in keeping with their "gritty" use.

I can picture a guy smoking a smooth pipe while sitting at home by the fire. I just don't see a guy sitting in the dirt with a rifle slung over his back doing the same.

Before people say "There are no rules" and "Everyone can smoke what he wants"... I understand that. I'm asking about the quintessential military mount pipe. The Platonic Ideal of this type of pipe. Would it be rusticated?

Rustication purely comes down to briar quality. If the briar has fantastic grain with no flaws or pits, the pipe stays a smooth. If the briar has poor grain, lots of pits etc. the pipe will be sandblasted or rusticated.

Smooth pipes with stellar grain command more money. So to answer your question, no. If a pipe maker has great briar, and it happens he's making an army mount, keeping it smooth would be the correct thing to do.

Sometimes a pipe is just a pipe.

With all that being said, I get where you're coming from. Over half my collection are rusticated pipes. I think rusticated billiards with straight stems are just plain masculine.

Luckily, you can buy any pipe for any reason ya want! So if you think army mounts should be rusticated by principal, you can buy one!

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Originally Posted by Ropey

Before people say "There are no rules" and "Everyone can smoke what he wants"... I understand that. I'm asking about the quintessential military mount pipe. The Platonic Ideal of this type of pipe. Would it be rusticated?

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In reality, I would envision the quintessential military mount as being smooth, for the simple reason that in a trench, the rusticated bowl will quickly be caked with dirt and grime in the troughs of the briar. Whereas a smooth bowl could be easily spit upon and wipe completely clean on one's trouser leg. I would say that it should not be a shiny, polished finish, for the sake of avoided needless glare, but instead a matte finish.

Just my take on it.

Thank you for answering in the spirit of the thread. I can see your logic and agree that a matte smooth finish would be true to the spirit of the mount's origin. A fancy, glossy finish might look good but it would be like having a gold-trimmed Jeep... just wouldn't look right.