CO-Pipes

CO-Pipes is the joint brand of two makers working in Hamm, in Germany's Westphalia region. The workshop, which takes its name from this partnership, is run by Kelvin Pohler and Thorsten "Toto" Klemme; the pair have presented the pipes they produce under their own names since 2015. Both pursue pipe-making alongside other work, so production moves not in series but piece by piece.

The Danish Line

By the workshop's own description, its benchmark is the formal approach developed in Denmark; CO-Pipes is in this respect counted among the German followers of the approach known as the Danish school. The concrete expression of this is that, rather than fixed classic shapes, mostly freeform bodies are worked. In such production, the material is what decides: the direction of the grain revealed when a briar block is opened largely determines which way the body will extend and which surface will be brought to the fore. Every body thus remains a one-off.

Another point the manufacturer's texts highlight is that concern for form does not overshadow ease of use; accordingly, even a sculptural-looking pipe is expected to have balanced weight distribution, a comfortable bite, and a properly opened smoke channel. The workshop is said to have become recognized relatively quickly within the German community; this assessment currently rests on manufacturer and retailer texts.