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Well, I think I have settled on dates for my visit with Mimmo. I'm going primarily to drink red wine, tour the mill, and steal blocks from Teddy's pile , but I'm also putting an order together for those of you who would like some. Now, I don't need to make money on this, but I do need to be compensated for my time and the overhead. I am running a business after all.

So, here are the "rules" if you'd like to get in on this:

*Minimum order is $350 (about 10-15 blocks)
*Payment must be received before I leave on Nov. 8.
*Domestic shipping (UPS Ground) will be charged at actual shipping cost.
*$50 will be tacked on to the total to cover my time and material costs (boxes, overweight fees at the airport, assembling packages, etc.)

Basically you'll be adding about $75 in additional fees to whatever you order. This is a heck of a lot better than the $250+ for overseas shipping, and the minimum order is roughly half of Mimmo's. Hopefully, this will enable more of you to get some really great wood.

Feel free to pair up and combine your orders, but please know that I will only ship to one person (who can then divide it up as he chooses) and I would appreciate getting payment from only one person for that order. I don't want to be responsible for anyone feeling blocks were divided inequitably or getting upset because their partner didn't send his portion of the payment in time and the briar wasn't ordered, etc. In other words, I need to do everything to make what is a very complicated endeavor as simple as possible.

Please e-mail me if you would like to get in on this. I've already got enough participants to make it work, so I'll be going ahead with it.

Best regards,

Todd

tmjohnso@samford.edu

Hey Guys,

I just wanted to answer some of the questions I've been getting here. If you combine an order with someone else--i.e. you get 5 blocks and he gets 5 blocks--there is only one $50 charge. I will ship the blocks to whomever sends me payment and that person will be responsible for dividing the blocks up.

Secondly, I am going to offer a briar "grab bag." This will be comprised of several different cuts--plateaux and Mimmo's special crosscuts, in his two highest grades, and in several sizes. This way, you can have an idea of what is offered and how to work with a variety of blocks. I will try to put together a representative sample of wood for anyone who wants to go this route. This is actually similar to how I buy my own wood. Mimmo sets blocks in various sizes and shapes aside for me throughout the year.

I'm offering these "grab bags" in $350, $600, and $1000 quantities.

That's all for now. Please e-mail me with any more questions you might have.

Best regards,

Todd

Hi todd.

You have admitted that it's ok to skim off the top the best briar and sell the rest. The briar that you are willing to buy for the participants,are you going to sift the best from that too?

Tano

I give Mimmo my patronage and a guaranteed 200 block order annually, and Mimmo in-turn cherry-picks blocks for me throughout the course of the year.

He doesn't have to. Mimmo does it for him and I would then assume the remainder of what is purchased by others will come from a different lot.

Tano wrote:Hi todd.

You have admitted that it's ok to skim off the top the best briar and sell the rest. The briar that you are willing to buy for the participants,are you going to sift the best from that too?

Tano

Good question Tano, and Butch basically answered it. I don't need to. First off, yes, Mimmo already skims off some of the very best stuff for me. Second, none of the briar at the mill is earmarked for you anyway, so there's nothing to skim from. I will go and my briar will be there waiting for me. Perhaps I'll cherry pick 15 or 20 additional pieces, either for their shape or size or grain, and then I'll have my lot. Then, I'll go through and pick blocks for the participants in this order. As long as I'm able to get a steady supply of superior quality briar, I have no real need to hoard it.

If you haven't noticed Tano, there's really nothing much in this deal for me. I could fly to Italy without the participation of anyone here, return with the same blocks of briar and help no one in the process, and you would still be playing connect-the-dots with the same ebauchons from Pimo. My intention here is to get you guys some high-quality briar in hopes that it will have a positive affect on the state of American pipemaking in general. A rising tide raises all ships.

Best,

Todd

My intention here is to get you guys some high-quality briar in hopes that it will have a positive affect on the state of American pipemaking in general.

Yeah, but are you gonna go through our blocks and skim the best out and replace them with the crappiest ones that Mimmo has been saving for you?

BTW, I just have to say that the volcano on the front page of your pending web site is absolutely awsome. That's the coolest volcano I have ever seen.

Rad

Yeah, but are you gonna go through our blocks and skim the best out and replace them with the crappiest ones that Mimmo has been saving for you?

Only yours, Davis!

BTW, I just have to say that the volcano on the front page of your pending web site is absolutely awsome. That's the coolest volcano I have ever seen.

Rad

Thanks Rad. I like that piece a lot too. The site should be up and running next week.

Best,

Todd

Gotta go with Rad on that. That is a wicked cool volcano.

Nick wrote:Gotta go with Rad on that. That is a wicked cool volcano.

Just to bring this thread back on topic, that pipe is a perfect example of what can be done with such stellar wood. On that pipe, I scarcely even needed to think. In cutting the block the way he did, Mimmo had already done half the work for me

Todd