This isn’t a restoration, but I hope you will indulge my fascination with the Peterson 9BC shape.

I enjoy collecting different finishes for my preferred shape and recently, the Peterson 9BC has caught my attention as of late. I found this “Kapruf” finish pipe on Ebay (via infamous seller Shinypipes…) and made an offer that was accepted. 9BC shapes don’t show up that often, but curiously, the seller had not identified the model in the ad, which was to my advantage. They had the pipe incorrectly listed as a “Pre-Republic, 1940’s-1950 era pipe. The stamping is worn but completely legible with the naked eye. The round “Made in England” stamp was reportedly used up to 1959, at least by the Pipepedia article.

I didn’t know much about the Kapruf line. It is described in a 1960’s catalog as:

Quote :
A fine sandblast finish distinguishes this range of light natural grained pipes with their distinctive red colouring. Very popular with sportsmen.

The second page shows the 9BC shape.

This one has a little grain and some flaws that would have otherwise been fills on a smooth pipe. It has plenty of character, that is for sure.

Compared with my other 9BC (Premiere Selection), this one is incrementally smaller in all dimensions and 67 grams vs. 72 for the smooth pipe. The P on the stem is long gone (as were most I’ve come across, save my smooth) but the robust p-lip button has the same profile as the smooth pipe.