Somewhere along the way in one of the pipe lots I bought off EBay this old cigarette holder was included as a pipe stem. I put it in a drawer and forgot about it for several years at least. The other evening I was cleaning out a drawer of pipes that I had already refurbished getting them ready for my daughter to catalogue and came across the old holder. At first glance it appeared to be a cigarette holder. There was no filter apparatus present and the mouthpiece was short and condensed so I did not think there would be one inside the stem itself. I sanded down the casting marks on the side of the stem and also cleaned the stem of debris. There was one burn spot on the underside of the stem near the metal holder end. The metal holder was brass and quite clean with a slight nicotine and tar build up on the inside. The airway on the stem was plugged and no air could pass through it.
I twisted the end cap and it came free from the stem itself. Inside was a filter apparatus similar to the different stingers that one finds in American made pipes of days gone by. This apparatus was a single unit. There was a rubber o-ring around the top just below the holder top. This held the cap unit snugly in place in the stem.
Once I had removed the apparatus from the stem the stinger design was visible. It extended half way down the shank of the stem. Behind the o-ring was a cut/slit half way through the aluminum of the stinger. It was clogged with tars and oils. In the middle of the slit was an opening. One on the o-ring side and one on the stem side of the slit. The aluminum then funneled down to tube that at first glance appeared to be solid. At the end of the tube were two solid rings around the tube. Between the rings there were holes on two sides in the groove. When it was inserted and clear the air would be pulled through the holder and into the stinger slit. It would circulate in the stem to cool and then move through the slit and down the tube and out the two holes. These would then disperse the smoke through the remainder of the stem and out the slot in the button. In many ways it was like an inverted stinger in shape and function to those found on pipes.
The hole in the end of the stinger does not go through the stinger but rather is like a small cup on the end. It was for collecting moisture and tars if the grime buildup was any indication.
The holder cap pictured in the photo below is the depth of the filter on a modern cigarette and also the dame diameter as the end of the cigarette. I cleaned the entire apparatus and soaked it in a bath of Everclear to try to open the airway. I was able to clean out the cut in the aluminum, the holes in the end and in the cut itself using a dental pick. I scrubbed down the apparatus with a tooth brush and Everclear. I was unable to get air to pass through due to a clog in the end of the holder. In the photo below it is visible as a small hole in the bottom of the cup. It was plugged and the dental pick was too thick to go through it. I tried a thin paper clip and a needle with no success. I finally was able to open it with a tiny micro drill bit on the Dremel and pushed it through at a very slow speed. The bit came with a plastic guide that fit inside the cup perfectly and kept the drill straight as it opened the airway. Once it pushed the clog through I cleaned the inside of the airway with Everclear and was able to push air through with no effort.
I repaired the burned spot on the stem with superglue and sanded the stem until the patch blended with the rest of the stem surface. I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and then with a medium grit sanding sponge to smooth out the scratches in the surface of the nylon stem.
I wet sanded the stem with micromesh sanding pads from 1500-2400 grit and then dry sanded with 3200 – 12,000 grit sanding pads. I used a plastic polish to further shine the stem once I was finished with the micromesh pads.
I rubbed down the stem with Obsidian Oil and gave it a very light buff with White Diamond. You have to exercise a very light touch when buffing nylon as it melts with the heat of the buffing wheel. I finished by giving the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax to give it a shine. I hand buffed the shine with a soft cotton cloth. The finish filter is pictured below in the final three photos. It is not something I will ever use but it is an interesting piece of tobacciana for the collection. I have no idea of the maker of the piece or of the age but I am fascinated by the ingenuity of the product.
rebornpipes 