First I would like to say hello. New to this forum(joined because I got into wet shaving with straights, so far) and was pleased to stumble upon the Brown Leaf. New to pipe smoking also. Kinda started both around the same time. Seem to go hand in hand. So in my quest to elevate my pipe smoking experience and purchase a handmade pipe I find JM Boswell Pipes. As many of you may know, when his pipes hit the site for sale on Thursdays, they're usually all sold within 2-4 hours. I now know why. While the curse of living in the " People's Republic of Maryland "(love the state, hate the politics), it has become a blessing to have Boswells in such a close proximity. With a 75 mile drive, 69 of it major Interstate, 1hour & 3 min later, my cousin and I arrive in pipe smokers heaven! You are greeted by JM & his son Dan as you walk in the door. You feel comfortable and right at home. You are encouraged right away to fill a bowl with whatever you want, sit down and make yourself at home. Before you purchase a thing! Well I was there to purchase and purchase I did. Very cool, large rusticated poker handmade by JM. JM peeled the price tag off it and said " fill it up " before I even paid for it! We talked pipes and pipe making, politics and tobacco. Then he took us upstairs to the other smoking lounge. Yes there are two. Big Leather sofas and chairs. Heavy wood cocktail and end tables. Pedestal ashtrays, matches, cigar cutters, pipe tools & rests, books, literature, all within arms reach from wherever your sitting! Just sit back, relax and enjoy. Natural light pouring in through the windows. Great decor everywhere. Even the bathroom you wanna chill and have a smoke in, which I suspect is probably ok to do. Strangers became friends. You are in the moment there and thinking about nothing else. So after about 2.5 hours, my cousin and I decide to grab a bite local before we head home. We grab a few oz of choice JM blends. Which is tough to do, kinda like trying to pick your favorite child. Free oz of your choice with purchase of a pipe, plus Dan threw in a bundle of pipe cleaners and Czech pipe tool, gratis. Asked about a good local spot to eat, no chains. He recommended. We paid our tab and on our way out the door we were invited to come back in and have another smoke before we rolled home. Really??? I doesn't get much more hospitable than that. So we walked to the restaurant. Ate, talked about our experience up to this point, when we were coming back and how soon. We walked back to the truck with every intention to head home and not overstay our welcome. But as we opened the doors we looked at each other, gave a smile, grabbed our pipes, locked up the truck and headed back in. We're greeted with glad you came back, fill em' up, have a seat and relax. Made some new friends, asked some regulars if our experience was unique or just an anomaly? We were told NO, that its pretty much how it goes here and when you come back they'll most likely remember you and treat you the same way. Then before we knew it it was " alright gentleman, its closing time, sorry ". Sorry? Really???What I'm trying to get at is this. BWI airport is 105 miles away. Southwest Air hub. Cheap flights. There is a Travelodge hotel across the street. For you civil war buffs, Gettysburg is 25 miles away. If you wanna see tyranny in action, The District of Criminals(sorry cant help myself sometimes) is a 2 hour drive south. But Boswells is the main attraction for sure. Check out his site. If you wanna plan a trip, pm me and I can help with logistics. When traveling in & out of Bmore or DC, timing is everything. Would look forward to meeting anyone wanting to make the trip. Thanks for reading. Yours in Liberty, TTwinz
Chambersburg PA. A place you must visit.
- Thread starter TonyTwinz
- Start date
Just a friendly suggestion: That block of text is very hard to read. Think about breaking it up into smaller units. Whitespace really helps, IMO.
But I will read it when my eyes are a bit less tired.
But I will read it when my eyes are a bit less tired.
Welcome to B&B
thanks for the heads up on all that is available there
If you have not already done so, stop into the Hall of Fame and tell everyone a little about yourself
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/30-Hall-of-Fame
thanks for the heads up on all that is available there
If you have not already done so, stop into the Hall of Fame and tell everyone a little about yourself
http://badgerandblade.com/vb/forumdisplay.php/30-Hall-of-Fame
Been there, wonderful guy and very warm and inviting shop. Did you get the opportunity to "meet" his pet/mascot?? I truly hope you did, lol
I've had a few conversations with JM Boswell when I had an interest in pipe smoking a few years ago. I live approximately 2 hours away. The Boswells seem like truly awesome people from my limited perspective. I never ended up trying pipe smoking, but your story really spurs me to want to give it a go.
Last edited:
- Thread starter
- #6
​Sorry about the text. I was surprised to see that it came out like this after I previewed it then posted it. I had it spaced and everything. New to forums and probably shouldn't use the phone when I want to respond to a thread. But I will be more diligent next time. And maybe not so long winded. Thanks for the advice though.
No worries, live and learn. Welcome to the Brown Leaf! Thanks for the write-up!
Commander Quan
Commander Yellow Pantyhose
I was able to stop in on a Saturday morning 2 summers ago on a trip across PA, and I'm hoping I can do the same again this year. My intent was go pickup some of my favorite aros which I did, but also walked out with 2 pipes, one of them with a custom churchwarden stem Dan made for me while I waited.
I feel for you, Tony. I lived in Frederick, MD in the 1990's. That was when they really clamped down hard on the anti-smoking. Cigar smoking was the big craze at the time, so I picked up that habit out of protest before fleeing the state. My then fiance and now late wife got me to change to pipes in the late 90's. I forgot the pipe on a visit back to Frederick, but there was a smoke shop in town that carried Boswell pipes. I got one and always wanted to get more. Never made it back there, as the lady joined me out here.
Great place, been there a few times. I have family in Chambersburg.
I went to school at Mont Alto, the closest Penn State campus to Chambersburg. We used to go there quite a bit but I don't remember much about the restaurants, etc. Overall its a great part of the state.
JM is really a class act, as is the whole family. I knew exactly where this thread was going when I saw the title. I went to college just a few miles north of Chambersburg, and then lived in the area for a total of about 8+ years of my life.
I bought a pipe there in college that I treasured. Unfortunately I lost it somewhere while deployed. When I got to take some leave I went straight back in and bought one of his pipes... Which to my own stupidity broke en route back to the deployment... after the deployment I took it back to him and the first thing I said was "I messed up.". His reply was "how bad is it?" When I told him I probably needed a new bit, he knew exactly what I did, but took a look at it, said it was nothing, could fix it in about an hour... And offered a loaner pipe and a bowl for for me to wait... And then fixed it for free.
I check the site every week.
I bought a pipe there in college that I treasured. Unfortunately I lost it somewhere while deployed. When I got to take some leave I went straight back in and bought one of his pipes... Which to my own stupidity broke en route back to the deployment... after the deployment I took it back to him and the first thing I said was "I messed up.". His reply was "how bad is it?" When I told him I probably needed a new bit, he knew exactly what I did, but took a look at it, said it was nothing, could fix it in about an hour... And offered a loaner pipe and a bowl for for me to wait... And then fixed it for free.
I check the site every week.
Similar threads
