Post your questions and read the answers and respond with your own. Questions and answers can be posted in the Comments section below. This section of rebornpipes is a forum to provide discussion on the work of pipe restoration and refurbishing. Post your questions here and check in regularly to see what answers may be given.
rebornpipes
reclaiming old and worn estate pipes
Hi I have a question about a KBB Yello Bole century model. It is a Canadian oval shank. Just wondering what year it might have been made. I know certain dating items i.e the kbb clover being before 55 when they were bought out by s m Frank. But besides this I am not sure as it has no date code or one of the slogans marked on the pipe. So my guess is between 47 to 55. Just curious in Montana. Thanks.
Sounds like your logic is spot on. I am not sure you can get it much closer than that for a date.
Hi All,
greetings from the U.K !
I am looking for information regarding the restoration of a Redmanol pipe stem from an old CPF( I think) meerschaum. It has a portion of the tenon stem missing (about 1 half of the tenon thread in the stem)
My question is, Can this be fixed without re stemming the pipe or other invasive procedures, also will redmanol bond with other materials/glues
Greetings! I have worked on a lot of old CPF pipes with Redmanol stems. If the tenon is broken I have used a small drill bit and screwed it into the tenon and turned it out. If that does not work you can drill out the old bit. There are replacement tenons online through JH Lowe and Vermont Freehand…
Thanks, your help is appreciated, the old tennon is stuck fast in the shank, its where it screws into the tennon end of the bit where the problem is ,as approx. a third to a half of this is broken off and missing (one side of the threaded bit in the bit)so would need to fabricate suitable material to fill the area, so its a tennon end stem rebuild if you understand what I mean.
my thoughts were to fabricate and fix the stem in place on the pipe,this would make it non removable but functional?
Any ideas would be most welcome as you guys are the oracle(s) of pipe restoration!
Many thanks
Greetings,
I’m taking care of a mistreated full bent billiard meerschaum lady, and I would like to give her a blackened rim (e.g. Lee van Cleef’s meerschaum in “For a few dollars more”). I would highly appreciate any hint or advice about how to get the above mentioned finishing.
Best regards,
Piper is Calling
I have done that with either a Black Stain Pen or a Black Sharpie pen with good results. Let us know how it works!
Thanks for your suggestion. I was thinking on something like the old “Vienna meerschaum” or Peterson meers have. It seems to me they burn the rim with a torch, but I tried that without positive results.
Hello, can anyone tell me if it’s possible to fix a hole in a sandblasted Oom Paul? It’s at the very bottom and goes all the way through to the bowl.
Yes it is possible. It needs to be drilled out and a plug put in the bowl.
Hello! Regarding BBB Christmas pipes : Which year was the first Christmas pipe made ?
Sincerely J.A.Winther
I am not sure
Hello I’ve recently purchased an interesting pipe stamped cpf and would like to know more about this pipe. I believe it is a horn stem(2 piece) and looks like a English bull dog.
Here is a link to my reflections on the CPF history. There are also a lot of restorations on CPFs as it is a brand I collect.
https://rebornpipes.com/2013/04/14/some-reflection-on-the-historical-background-on-cpf-pipes/
Greetings,
I have what I think is a Dr. Grabow rusticated Billiard with a threaded stem that was over screwed by an eighth of a turn or so. I used the boil the stem in the microwave method to realign the stem and by golly it worked. The little teeny white spade emblem came off the stem in the boil and I lost it, its so dang small. I was thinking about buying some white epoxy resin on Amazon for 6 or 7 dollars and fill in the inset and sand it down. Seems a little pricey seeing that I think I paid $2 for the pipe. Do you have any thoughts on this or perhaps a better alternative? I enjoy your website. Thanks in advance, Mick
Mick, I have used acrylic white paint and filled in the hole in the stem and then sanded it smooth. It took a couple of fillings with the paint but it worked well.
Greetings Brother-I bought a cheap Missouri meerschaum hardwood pipe to take hunting and just about had it right when I was removing the stem and the shank separated from the bowl. How should I secure it back into place or should I just trash it? I will not buy another just to have the same thing happen. You expert advice would be truly appreciated . I really hate to even bother you with such. Best Regards, Thomas Brown
Thomas you can glue the shank into the bowl wood glue or Elmers works great and an easy fix
Hi,
Saw a restoration for a Aluminum Featherweight Airograte by Yello Bole, I have one I want to restore and am looking for a new bowl and screen to restore this pipe. It currently has a yellow ceramic, coated wood bowl. Not sure it is useable. Anyone have one or know where to get one?
Thanks
Dave
Alex since you are not eating either one you can still use it! It dries hard and is neutral….
Why coat the bowl at all?
LOL! That is the question right. Most who use them do so to aid in the speedy building of cake. The idea is to protect the briar until a carbon coat forms.
Why is a layer of burnt crud desirable? I always clean my pipes pretty thoroughly every time I smoke them as part of the ritual. The last time I tried baking cakes in a few pipes I had to bring them to you because they stank. (Full disclosure: I don’t eat cake either!)
Is there a vegan alternative? 😉
How do you make a bowl coating to protect a pipe? Some use honey and charcoal powder while others of us use yogurt or sour cream with charcoal powder…
Is there a vegan alternative? 😉