Viking Pipes

jimk2000 · Viking Pipes

Is this correct? Viking Pipes was originally a separate entity and then they were bought out by Dr. Grabow who then sold the "Viking" under their name?

I saw an old ad for "Viking" pipes from the early 1950's with no mention of Dr. Grabow in the ad or on the pipe. And then I have seen "Viking" pipes with Dr. Grabow insignia on it and those have a little different shank style/design.

I have found some info but not much:

-The original patent for the "Viking" is filed in 1952.

-The ad I saw is from 1955-No mention of "Dr. Grabow" in the ad

-"Dr. Grabow" was out of Chicago until 1953 and then relocated to Sparta, NC.

-The ad indicates "Viking" was out of New York.

-There are several references on some web sites to a "Dr. Grabow Viking" multi-finned patent filed in 1956.

-There are some differences in shank design from the early "Vikings" and the "Dr. Grabow Vikings".

I am going out on a limb and say "Viking" was a separate entity from 1952-1956 (Pre-Grabow) and then it appears "Dr. Grabow" bought the company or the rights to the pipe and redesigned the pipe sometime in 1956. Am I correct?

Jim K.

drbridges

Welcome, Jim K.

Look here in the DGCF at Linkman/HLT History discussion about pg. 8 posts from December 02, 2008. We discussed the acquisition of DG and CBPC by HLT. The inventor and holder of the patent on the Viking was Jerome Gevirman of Continental Briar Pipe Co. HLT acquired CBPC in 1953.

The Viking fins have certainly evolved. The last ones were more rounded and tapered down to the edges. Easier to draw than explain.

jimk2000 · Viking Pipes

Thanks for the info. So if they bought the company making Viking pipes in 1953 and the patent was 1952 then the Viking was never sold without the DG connection or would have been sold for a very short time before the acquisition, correct ?

However, when did the "Dr. Grabow" name, nomenclature, insignia etc first appear on the "Viking" Pipe. Would this be after 1956 with the new patent? The early Vikings have no "Dr. Grabow" name on them. Also I saw this ad for "Viking" from a 1955 Esquire magazine with no mention of DG anywhere in the ad. Thanks.

drbridges

Jim K. what we can say for certain is that Jerome Gevirman (hope I'm spelling his name correctly) filed the patent for the Viking design, and according to the news from 1953, he also was associated with CBPC. The article doesn't say what Jerome did for CBPC - maybe he owned it, maybe he swept floors.

Determining just WHO made the Viking may be a challenge depending on what you define as making a Viking. The metal stem and receptacle was likely cast by a metal company like Milford Automatic. The vulcanite/nylon/ABS bits likely were fabricated by another supply company. And then someone knowledgeable about pipe-making made the briar bowls.

And it is possible an entirely new fourth entity took all the components, assembled them, and packaged the Viking for sale. And a fifth company advertised and distributed it.

Just a hunch on my part, but based on some observation, HLT after acquiring DG and CBPC in 1953 didn't change what they had been doing. They appear to have continued selling the old DG lines of pipes ie. Deluxe, Supreme, Special, etc. until about 1956. They may have done same with CBPC and Viking.