by Steve Laug

This rusticated Bent Cherrywood with an acrylic shank extension and a military bit. It was one of a lot purchased on 01/20/2026 from a Facebook seller in Quaker Town, Pennsylvania, USA. It is a rusticated Bent Cherrywood with a smooth panel on the underside of the shank and around the shank end. The stem is an acrylic black military push stem. The bowl is stained with a contrast of browns that give depth to the rustication around the bowl and shank. It is stamped on the smooth panel on the underside of the shank and reads La Strada [over] Centurion [followed by] the shape number 160 and Italy. The bowl had a thick cake and some tobacco debris on the walls. There was an overflow of lava and debris in the inwardly bevelled rusticated finish of the rim top. There was grime ground into the finish which left the bowl and shank dirty and dull. The acrylic, black military stem has light tooth marks and chatter on both sides of the stem ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his work on it. He took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before his clean up. You can see the lava coat on the rim top and the cake in the bowl. The inner edge looks to be okay under the thick cake on the walls. He took photos of the stem to show the condition of both sides. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the uniquely stained rugged rustication around the bowl and shank. The mixture of brown stains adds depth to the finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on this one was on the underside of the shank and is shown in the photos below. There was also a shape number 160 is stamped perpendicular to the stem/shank junction. The stamping on both is clear and readable as noted above. The stem also has the La Strada logo stamped on the top side. The La Strada was a brand about which I remembered very little. I had some vague memory of seeing them sold through Tinderbox but was not sure about that memory. I did a bit of research and found that indeed they had been sold there. They were Italian Made. Here is a page from a Tinderbox catalogue showing the brand. The catalog describes the pipe as “a gracefully conservative style that has today’s favoured matte finish, enhance by the unexpected touch of random routing.” The price was a princely $8.95-$10.00.The pipe I am working on is a Bent Cherrywood with a shank extension and a military bit stem. The shape 160 was not shown in the above photos.

I turned to Pipephil to see I could learn anything more on the brand and the Centurion. There was nothing on the line but it confirmed the tie to Tinder Box (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-l1.html). I did a screen capture of the section and have included the sidebar information below the picture.Export brand seen in Tinder Box catalogue

Given that information I was read to work on the pipe.

Jeff had thoroughly cleaned up the pipe. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the stem with Soft Scrub to remove the grime and calcification. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. The pipe looked very good when it arrived here in Vancouver. I took close up photos of the bowl, rim and the stem. The rusticated rim top cleaned up very well. The stem looks clean but still has light tooth marks and some chatter as noted above.I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo to give a sense of the proportions of the pipe. The briar is quite beautiful and the stains really make the grain and the sandblast stand out.The pipe was in great condition after the clean up. I began my work by rubbing the bowl down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my finger tips and a horsehair shoe brush to get into the nooks and crannies of the rustication. I let it sit for 10 minutes and the Balm did its magic. It enlivens, cleans and preserves the briar. It certainly brought this bowl back to life. I buffed it off with a clean cloth and took the following photos. I set the bowl aside and turned to the stem. I touched up the La Strada logo on the stem top with white acrylic fingernail polish. Once it hardened I scraped of the excess and polished it with a 1500 grit micromesh sanding pad. It looked very good.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. I set it aside to dry. This rusticated La Strada Centurion 160 Bent Cherrywood with an acrylic shank extension and military bit is a great looking pipe with a beautiful combination of finishes. The mix of stains once cleaned up really highlights the grain and the depth of the blast. The polished finish is stunning. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing the entire pipe with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished La Strada Centurion 160 Bent Cherrywood fits nicely in the hand and feels great. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 48 grams /1.69 ounces. I will be adding the pipe to the Italian Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store. If you are interested in purchasing this pipe send me a message or an email. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it.

As always, I encourage your questions and comments as you read the blog. Thanks to each of you who are reading this blog. Remember we are not pipe owners; we are pipe men and women who hold our pipes in trust until they pass on into the trust of those who follow us.