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· Pacific Northwesterner
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282 Posts
Discussion Starter · #1 ·
It's my hope that one or more of you experienced gentlemen might be able to provide me an idea as to whether a 15+ year old 50g. tin of 1792 Dark Kendal Flake tobacco that I have, would still be good (the tobacco inside I mean), in spite of the tin having succumbed to what appears to be vacuum warping or whatever? The tin has never been opened.

When I gently shake the tin side-to-side, I can hear some loose tobac hitting the sides of the tin. . . but for all intensive purposes, it "sounds" rather solid within.

Below are some pics; the second photo depicts the back of the tin and the warpage of the tin's metal which I am referring to:

As you can see in this second photo, the metal at the top right and bottom left corners of the tin have creased from what I presume was/is vacuum pressure that had built-up over the years.

Do believe the tobac inside is still viable?

Many thanks in advance,

~Gary
 

· The Cheese stands alone
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2,779 Posts
Looks good to me. I doubt that it was any kind of internal pressure that bent the tin, it looks like something got set across the 2 corners.

Does the tin have a date on it, or how do you know it is 15 years old? That's not the current label but you can buy a tin of 1792 for less than $7 today, I was only 11 in 1994 so I have no idea how much pipe tobacco cost then but $8.79 seams high.
 

· Lakeland Grognard
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3,998 Posts
Looks fine to me, if you gently squeeze it and it feels "sealed" then it probably is.

I'm resisting the urge to make the obligatory "looks bad, send it to me to test" joke.
 

· Heavy Puffer
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7,169 Posts
Unless if it's bent toward the top where it meets the lid, it's probably still ok. If you're still unsure feel free to send it to me for testing (oh yeah, I went there).

P.S. I would love to know what 15 year old 1792 is like!
 

· Pacific Northwesterner
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282 Posts
Discussion Starter · #7 ·
. . .Does the tin have a date on it, or how do you know it is 15 years old? That's not the current label but you can buy a tin of 1792 for less than $7 today, I was only 11 in 1994 so I have no idea how much pipe tobacco cost then but $8.79 seams high.
Regarding the tin's date. . . I received it in its current condition back during 2002. It was a gift of sorts from Larry Roush, and I was left assuming that the tin had been sitting around his shop for quite some time (Larry shared with me that he receives all sorts of free tobacco samplers, which was no big surprise to me).

Perhaps I was off several years on the tin's packaging date, but I can say with 100% confidence that it is at least 8 years old.
 

· -
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11,802 Posts
the pipe looks like a Tom Eltang Eskimo shape... only a few other pipe makers make that shape. so, could be one of the few that make it, or a Tom Eltang.

as far as the tobacco still being good, i would say that it is, just on looks of the bottom of the tin. i've had a # of tins from SG that looked like that on the bottom. still sealed, tobacco still fresh to the touch when finally opened.
 

· Pacific Northwesterner
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282 Posts
Discussion Starter · #15 ·
the pipe looks like a Tom Eltang Eskimo shape... only a few other pipe makers make that shape. so, could be one of the few that make it, or a Tom Eltang. . . .
I own one of those from Tom Eltang as well . . . (guess I need to get my digital camera out this evening to perform a side-by-side photo of my Howell next to my Eltang, and post the pic here). . . I'm slightly disappointed with my Eskimo shape Eltang though, the pipe's mortise to stem fit is not very tight (which is the way it arrived new, when I purchased it). Since it's such a small pipe, I'm strongly considering epoxing the stem to the shank, just so that the stem doesn't twist when I smoke it or when cleaning it.

EVERYONE ELSE: Thank you gentlemen so very much for your suggestions and feedback. Naturally, my take away from this discourse is, "I need to open the tin and see for myself" what condition the tobac is in. :redface:

~Gary
 

· he that puffeth
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2,744 Posts
Pull gently on the lid. If it falls off, there's yer answer. These rectangular tins are sealed with negative pressure (vacuum) and once opened, they never close back again.
 

· Pacific Northwesterner
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282 Posts
Discussion Starter · #18 ·
As promised, below are photos of my Howell Ukulele next to my Eltang Eskimo. I placed the zippo in there to give you some idea of scale. The Eltang piece is somewhat small (at least I thought so when I first removed it from its pipe sock and layed eyes on it for the first time). Of course, the Howell piece isn't much bigger.








:pp
 

· Heavy Puffer
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7,169 Posts
Maybe it's just me, but for some reason those pipes freak me out. The shape, the color, everything, they remind me of leaches. Weird I know, but leaches freak me out.

They are very beautiful pipes though, & quite unique!
 
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