Gabrieli Pipes: a Pennsylvania Maker Who Moved From the Kitchen to the Bench

Gabrieli Pipes is the name of a pipe bench Dan Chlebove runs single-handedly in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The brand carries the name of the master's son, Gabriel. Its scale of production is small and does not rely on a lathe: every pipe is shaped by hand, and no two examples are alike. Gabrieli is counted among the generation of small American benches that found buyers in the early 2000s through online communities and auctions.

Shaping and Material

The rough shape is not turned on a lathe; the master works with a rasp and a sanding wheel. This method is preferred because, rather than leaving symmetry to the machine, it allows the work to proceed according to each block's own grain pattern. By the master's own statement, annual production does not exceed sixty.

The briar used for the bodies is mostly plateau block from Italy and Corsica; source texts occasionally mention Algerian briar being used as well, though this has not been independently confirmed. On the mouthpiece side, German ebonite and mottled ebonite (brindle) are prominent, with acrylic also worked on request.

Regulating the airway is one of the details the bench pays attention to. The bore is drilled conically down the shank so its diameter does not narrow; the slot in the mouthpiece is cut by hand and funneled outward to open the draw. A delrin tenon is used at the point where the shank meets the mouthpiece.