Nate King: From the Racetrack to the Pipe Bench

Nate King is one of the American pipe makers working at a one-man bench, grounding his craft in engineering discipline. Born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, he built his trade in Indianapolis, the capital of Indiana. His name is associated both with pipes bearing his own stamp and with a shared workshop venture founded in the mid-2010s.

The Road to the Bench

King started out as a collector before ever sitting down at the bench. Restoring and putting back into circulation old pipes bought in bulk from antique dealers and online, this estate-pipe repair experience pointed him toward design. He made his first pipe by shaping a pre-drilled kit.

The workshop of Wayne Teipen, a pipe maker working in the same region, was decisive in his acquiring the hand knowledge of the craft. He is known to have drawn heavily on this contact for his habits around measurement and tool use.