Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table is another NOS and UNSMOKED beauty. It is just dusty and dirty from sitting in a display case somewhere. We recently purchased it from an estate in Idaho. It is a sandblast Dublin with a rectangular shank. The crowned rim top also has some sandblast grain that looks a lot like plateau and the inner edge of the rim is smooth and slightly bevelled inward. It is stamped on the heel of the bowl and reads Handmade [over] By [over] Erik Nording at an angle. Next to that it is stamped with the shape number 82. There is a light carbon bowl coating and the bowl was very clean and it is unsmoked. There is no smell of tobacco in the bowl. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl looked very good. The mortise was also clean with no oils or tars darkening it. There is a 9mm filter in the shank/tenon. There is a light coat of shellac on the bowl that gives it a rich shine. The acrylic filter stem has dust/dirt against the edge of the button. There were not any tooth marks or chatter on the top and underside on and near the button. There was a Nording “N” logo stamped on the left side of the stem. I took photos of the pipe before I started my cleanup work. They tell the story and give a glimpse of the promise that we see in this pipe.  I took a photo of the rim top and bowl to show the current condition. The inwardly bevelled rim top is in perfect condition with no nicks or flaws. The bowl photo shows the clean walls on the bowl show the bowl coating and dust. The stem photos show the dust or grime against the button each side.I took photos of the heel of the bowl to capture the stamping. It is clear and readable as noted above but a bit hard to capture in the photos. I removed the stem from the shank and took photos of the overall look of the pipe. It is a beautiful pipe. I turned my attention to the pipe itself. I wiped out the inside of the bowl with a paper towel to lightly remove the dust in bowl coating on the pipe. It looked much better at this point.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I set the bowl aside and started working on the stem. I sanded out the “crud” from the button edges with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished hand polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I wiped it on with my fingers and buffed it off with a soft cloth. The stem really began to have a deep glow. I gave it a final wipe down with Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. I am excited to finish this Nording Handmade Sandblast 82 Rectangular Shank Dublin with a polished acrylic saddle stem. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I hand buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with beautiful birdseye and cross grain on the sides of the bowl. Added to that the polished nickel band and the black vulcanite stem was beautiful. This smooth Nording 82 Sandblast Dublin Filter Pipe is great looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¾ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 49 grams/1.76 ounces. It turned out to be a beautiful pipe. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the Danish Pipe Makers section. If you are interested in adding it to your rack let me know by message or by email to slaug@uniserve.com. Thanks for your time and as Paresh says each time he writes – Stay Safe.