Tag Archives: Alcohol bath

An Interesting Weatherproof Wally Frank “Pepper Shaker”

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I picked up this interesting piece of tobaciana somewhere though I no longer remember where it came from. It is an oval bowled pipe by Wally Frank and it has a briar wind cap that is attached via a brass peg. To me it looks like a Pepper shaker so that is what I have named it. I have a few other ones like this but the cap is made out of Bakelite and is on a side pin that allows it to flip forward. This one spins to the side or can be removed should the pipeman not want to use it covered.

It came to me unsmoked and clean on the inside. The finish was very poorly done. There was a coat of varnish or lacquer on the pipe. It was spotty and in some places seemed to have bubbled or ran when it was applied. The stain that was underneath obscured the grain on the pipe. I decided to refinish the bowl and give it a new stain. I soaked it in an alcohol bath and then wiped down the bowl with acetone to clean the finish off. Once it was removed I sanded it with micromesh pads to get it smooth. I restained it with a nice cherry aniline stain. I flamed the stain to set it in the grain and then buffed the bowl to remove the excess and surface stain. The stem and pipe were buffed as a whole with white Diamond and then several coats of carnauba. Here is the finished product.
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New Life for a BBB Ultima Thule Pocket Billiard

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Blog by Steve Laug

I picked up this little BBB in the same lot as the little BBB bulldog that I posted about recently. It is a similar pocket size (4 and ½ inches) and needed a bit of work. It is stamped BBB in the standard diamond and over that Ultima Thule. (According to Wikipedia the name refers to any distant place beyond the known world.) Under the diamond it is stamped Own Make. The first two pictures are the EBay seller’s photos. When the pipe arrived I can honestly say that the seller did a great job on taking honest photos. The pipe was solid but in rough shape. The rim was slanted toward the front and round all the way around with many nicks and dents in it from tamping the pipe out. It was still round on the inner edge which is pretty amazing on these old timers. This was a pretty well cared for pipe other than the tamping. The finish was dirty and spotty – lighter in some places than others – with a mottled look to it. The stem was oxidized and the edge/ shoulder at the shank junction was rounded and no longer a good smooth fit. There were no bite marks on the stem and the surface was smooth under the oxidation. This would not be a bad clean up.
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I separated the stem and bowl and reamed the bowl. I wiped the exterior with acetone to remove the remaining finish and the grime. Then I placed the bowl in the alcohol bath to soak while I worked on the stem.

The stem actually was relatively easy to clean up. I wiped it down with a damp magic eraser and removed the majority of oxidation. Then I sanded it with 400 and 600 grit wet dry sandpaper followed by 1200-6000 grit micromesh sanding pads. I gave it a coating of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. Once the bowl was finished I would buff them together. I did not want to chance rounding the edges even more. I also did not want to lose any more of the button on the pipe stem by over buffing.

I removed the bowl from the alcohol bath after 1 hour of soaking. I dried it off and cleaned out the shank with pipe cleaners, shank brush and cotton swabs soaked in isopropyl alcohol. I worked those until they came out clean. I used sandpaper on the interior of the bowl to smooth out the remaining cake and clean the surface. I wiped it down with cotton swabs and isopropyl afterwards. I used the sanding board and paper to top the bowl and bring it back to a flat and even condition. I did not have to remove very much of the top but I wanted it to be straight and not slanted toward the front. I used my normal variety of sandpapers (280, 400 and 600) to do this and finished it with micromesh sanding pads 1200-6000 to remove the remaining scratches. I wiped down the bowl with a cotton pad dampened with acetone to remove any sanding dust and remnants of the topping process. I restained this bowl with an oxblood stain thinned with isopropyl to arrive at the original colour. I flamed the stain and when dry took it to the buffer and gave it a buff with White Diamond.

I reinserted the stem and the gap and roundness of the shoulders on the stem made a smooth fit impossible to attain. I decided to use an old BBB band that I had in my box and heated it and pressure fit it to the shank. I liked the finished look of the pipe. I gave the entirety several coats of carnauba wax and a polishing buff with a clean flannel buffing pad. The pictures below show the finished product.
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Polishing Stems (PART 1) Piet Binsbergen

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I have had some questions about polishing stems.

I must warn that I will not be held responsible for any damage you may cause to pipes following this method. The process is relatively fail safe but certain circumstances that may be beyond my control, I simply cannot be held accountable for. I do suggest that you do a couple of trial runs using old or broken stems before you attempt this process with your beloved birth year Dunhill.

I will share with you my process. Please bear in mind that there are many ways to skin this cat, this is my way of doing things but this does not mean that I reject any other processes that other pipe repairman use.

I use two approaches. Firstly it is important when doing up a pipe to try and save the stems at all costs. So process 1 involves cleaning and polishing stems that have tarnished.

Secondly, especially when it comes to hotrods, I use pre-moulded stems. I am able to hand cut stems from rod stock but I find the process way to involved and time consuming for what I am doing. Call me a cheat but I find this works really well for me. My preferred medium is vulcanite and ebonite but I do not turn down Lucite stems if they come my way. Lucite is problematic in the sense that it has little give and little room for error. On the up side of it Lucite does not tarnish.

Part 1

Saving Original stems

As most of you know vulcanite is compressed rubber, the same stuff your car tyres are made of to a point. This rubber is just compressed way more. I have found different qualities of the stuff over the years and have notice some being more superior to others.

I do not have much to add here due to the fact that Steve Laug is doing some ground breaking work with regards to original stem repair. He manages to remove teeth marks and patch holes in bits. I have studied his technique but will need to pick his brain a little more before I perfect this process. For me, as soon as a stem has a hole in the bit, I replace it with a pre-moulded stem. (This process of his is archived on this blog.) I love tapered stems. There seems to be more ‘meat’ to work with and more ‘meat’ means there is room to open up the draft holes, file out teeth marks and restore the stem as good as new. Saddle stems prove to be a bit of a challenge due to the fact that there is not much room to move.

Most stems look like this, and believe me these are good ones!
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What I usually do is drop them into a bleach bath. Household bleach does the trick for me. Here in RSA I use a product called ‘Domestos ‘.
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WARNING: Be sure to coat the tenon and nomenclature (If any, like say the GBD rondelle) with Vaseline (Petroleum Jelly).
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This protects the stem material from coming into contact with the bleach. If you do not do this you will end up needing to resize the tenon as the bleach may eat away at it. As soon as the needed parts are coated, I drop the stem into the bleach. It will bubble a little and you will immediately notice the liquid turning brown. Depending on the extent of tarnish and the quality of the vulcanite will depend how long I leave the stem in the bleach.  A good average for me is 20 min.

Below is a picture of the stem in the bleach for a minute or so. It looks scary I know, but it works.
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Remove the stem from the bleach and rinse in warm water. Wipe off the Vaseline from the tenon. This process has an added bonus as it tends to eat the muck out of the draft hole in the process.

PROBLEM: But fear not. If you draw on the stem you will taste 2 things. Firstly, you are going to get a strong taste of bleach, secondly, you may taste the left overs from the ghosting of the previous owners blend. If it were aro’s you will really taste it. This is easy to get rid of.

The next step involves scrubbing out the daft hole. I use bristle brushes and bristle pipe cleaners. If I choose to open the stem to my preferred 4mm, I do it at this stage.

Interesting Observation: I have had clients complain that a pipe ghosts flavours of tobacco even when the bowl has been well refinished. Did you know that vulcanite is porous and will hold the ghost in the same way the bowl does. If you do not believe me remove a stem from an old pipe and draw on it, you will taste the ghost! The bleach bath cures this problem to a point. Further manual scrubbing aids the removal of the ghost.

The picture below shows how much dirt and grime is loosened and scrubbed out of the draft hole during this process.
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In order to remove all ghosting of tobacco, bleach and in order to sanitize the stem, I soak the stem in alcohol for an hour. I use Isopropyl alcohol (96%). Now this stuff is poisonous in a big way if ingested but research has proven that as soon as it has evaporated it is harmless. This is the same stuff used by hospitals to clean and sanitize operating theatres and equipment so go figure. After an hour remove the stem from the alcohol bath and rinse with clean water.

Here is a picture of the colour of the alcohol once the stem has come out a soaking for an hour.
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Notice the stem may turn white, light green or matte black depending on the type of vulcanite used by the manufacturer. I have noticed that most Peterson stems for example turn white. If you draw on the stem at this stage will taste nothing. I will be as good as new.

Sanding and polishing: You may notice the following, the stem may be smooth with colouration or it may look matt black and be rough textured. Start sanding. I use 400 and work my way up to 800 grit sand paper. This is a time consuming process, do not take any short cuts here. The last thing you want is a stem with a high polish that is full of surface scratches.

By the time I reach 800 grit I move to the buffer. I use Tripoli (Brown wax) which is equivalent to 800 grit sand paper and move onto White Diamond which is the same as 1200 grit. If you do not own a buffer, you can still get the same finish but the process will just take longer as you will hand sand up to 1200 grit and beyond.

The pictures below show the buffing process. Note that the picture of the stem on the right is not the finished product but shows what the stem looks like after buffing.
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By this stage the stem should shine and you should be able to see your reflection in the material. If not revert back to sanding, you have taken short cuts!

Depending on the type of material, as vulcanite differs in hardness, I continue hand sanding with 1500, 1800, and finally 2000 grit. Here you may notice the stem may start to dull a bit. The final polishing stages involves Brillo, or what we call Silvo here in RSA.  Silvo is a jewellery polish. Polishing is now done by hand using a soft duster cloth.
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Finally, and you may laugh, but, I use tooth paste as the final step. This is a trick I learnt from a flute maker who high polish silver. Think about it, it really is quite logical. Toothpaste is a fine, very fine, rubbing compound. This process is also done by hand using a soft duster cloth.
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A final word of advice: Vulcanite is light and air sensitive. The more light the faster the tarnishing process will start. To avoid further tarnishing I run the stem including the bowl over a slow spinning buffer using carnauba wax. This forms a protective layer on the vulcanite keeping the oxidation process at bay. When done smoking your pipe, wipe the bit clean with a soft cloth. Saliva (Ph levels) mixed with the smoke is what makes pipes so yukky around the bit area. My stems are always clean and oxidation free. Besides standard cleaning after smoking I run the stem over the buffer to seal them up again from time to time.

Here are a couple of pictures to wet your stem polishing appetite. These are a herd of refurbished GBD that belong to “Muddler”. Stems can look better than new if you take the time and put in the effort.
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A Peterson Kildare.

Before and after
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Good Luck and enjoy!

Restemmed Petersons 69 – Second Try was a Charm


I had this old Peterson 69 bowl in my refurb bin for quite awhile. It is stamped also on the other side K&P Dublin, Made in the Republic of Ireland. I cleaned and reamed the bowl and cleaned out the mortise area with cotton swabs. I wiped the bowl down with acetone to remove the surface grime. I topped the bowl as it had major dents and roughening on the top from abuse. It needed a stem so I researched the kind of stem it needed and called a Peterson repair person in the states to have one sent to me.

Here is where the story gets a bit dicey. All I really wanted was to have the stem sent and I would fit it to the pipe but I let myself be talked into sending it south. It came back with the wrong stem on it and also had some serious cut marks on the tenon end. It also was a stem for a p-lip system pipe and the 69 is not a system pipe as far as I can tell. I was a bit frustrated to say the least so I set it aside for a week or two before calling the repairman and letting him know what I was feeling. I have to say that it is frustrating to expect one thing and get another. It is also frustrating to know that I could have done the work myself in less time if only I had a stem blank that I could have used.

I sent it back to him for a redo and included this internet photo of the pipe with the stem.
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When it finally came back it was better – see the photos below. It was much better so I decided I was done with sending it back. Two times is enough. Once it was back I finished working on the rim and the rest of the bowl. I stained it with a medium brown aniline stain. It took the stain well and came out a reddish brown colour. I buffed it with Tripoli and White Diamond to polish the stem so the grain would show through. I finished it with several coats of carnauba wax and buffed with a soft flannel buff. The silver ferrule was polished with silver polish. It is a good smoker and is comfortable in the mouth.
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Refurbishing a GBD Penthouse with a Chairleg Stem


While scanning EBay for interesting old pipes to work on I came across a pipe for sale with the stamping Penthouse. There was little other information on the advert regarding the pipe but it looked interesting to me. The chairleg type stem made me think of the series of pipes that Al (upshalfan) has restored so I put a bid in for the pipe. I contacted Al and he sent me the following picture from a Tinderbox catalogue showing that indeed the pipe was a GBD line. (NOTE: The GBD catalog page came courtesy of Jerry Hannah. Jerry created the GBD Shapes/Model page that I frequently use for reference. I’m not sure if he reads this blog, but if so, thanks!) The headline on the page says that GBD breaks with tradition and forges bold new designs. Pipes marked J, K, and L in the picture below are all Penthouse pipes. I have no idea where they took the name but let imaginations rest, the pipes are stunning and the stems are uniquely beautiful.
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The Penthouse pipe that I bid on and subsequently won is an apple shape. The first six photos below are the seller’s pictures. It was these pictures that tempted me to place my initial bid on this pipe. As it turned out I was the sole bidder. The stem was badly oxidized and had some tooth chatter at the button. The stamping showed up but was not as deep as it appears in the photos. The rim appears to be darkened but not charred in the photos and the finish appeared to be dirty but not dented or scratched deeply. It was stamped on the left side- Penthouse in script over Made in England in block letters. On the right side it was stamped London England over 347. Now the wait began.
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When the pipe arrived it was much as the pictures had shown. I am never sure what to expect when I bid on these old pipes as I have been utterly surprised both ways – they have shown up in much worse shape than the photos showed or in much better shape. The next four photos show it as it appeared when I removed it from the box.
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The finish was actually quite dirty. Many of the dark areas of the finish were actually grime and grit and not the understain on the pipe. I wiped the pipe down with acetone to remove the grime. I also used a battery terminal brush to clean out the remaining cake remnants in the bowl. Then I dropped the bowl in the alcohol bath and the stem in a bath of Oxyclean. The bowl sat for about an hour in the alcohol bath and the stem sat in the bath overnight. When I removed them I cleaned out the shank and the inside of the stem until the pipe cleaners and cotton swabs came out clean. I wiped the entirety with a soft cotton pad and acetone to remove any remaining grime and the next series of four photos show the state of the pipe at this point in the process. The alcohol bath and acetone had successfully removed the remaining finish and the grime on the surface of the pipe. The Oxyclean had done a great job on the oxidation. You will notice the shiny areas on the top of the stem – I had run my fingernail across the surface to show how the oxidation had softened. It was ready for the next step in the process of cleaning the stem.
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The next two photos show the stem after I had scrubbed it with a Magic Eraser. The stem was wet and shiny and you can see the oxidation on the Magic Eraser under the stem. I continued to scrub the stem with the Magic Eraser until it came out clean.
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The oxidation was greatly decreased at this point but there was more work to be done on the stem. The hard points on the stem were obviously around the chairleg section. The grooves were difficult to get to with the Magic Eraser. I decided to use some Meguiar’s Scractch X 2.0 which is a scratch and blemish remover for auto paint finishes. I used soft cotton pads (makeup removal pads) with a spot of the Scratch X 2.0 on them to scrub the grooves and the area around the button as well. The next series of three photos show the stem after the scrubbing with X 2.0. The oxidation is further removed but still evident.
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At this point I continued to scrub with the X 2.0 until the stem was once again black. I buffed the stems with White Diamond on my buffer once that was finished. The next two photos (please forgive the blurry focus) show the stem after the application of Obsidian Oil to the clean stem. I left the Obsidian Oil on the stem until it was absorbed and then coated the stem with an initial coating of carnauba wax to protect it while I went to work on the bowl.
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I coated the bowl with an oxblood aniline stain. The next two photos show the coated bowl before I flamed the stain to set it in the grain. The stem appears to be brown again but I had coated it with wax and left it to dry while I worked on the bowl.
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I buffed off the stain with a soft flannel cloth that is pictured below. I wanted to highlight the variety of grain in the pipe so that is why I chose the stain I did. It also shows that the black understain that appeared in the original photos still remained and makes the grain very visible in the pictures below.
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Once the stain was dry I put the pipe back together and took it to my buffer. I buffed the stem and bowl with White Diamond until is shone. Then I moved on to a soft flannel buff with carnauba wax and a final polishing buff with a clean soft flannel buff. The finished pipe is pictured below. All that remains is to fire it up and enjoy a bowl in the “new” Penthouse pipe. The stamping on the stem is still present and not harmed by the work but it is light and will not hold any whitening product.
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Refurb on the London Made

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I finished up the refurb on a London Made billiard. It is a big pipe 7 1/2 inches long. This one was by far the worst one in the lot of three large pipes that I had in my box to refurbish. The rim was in very rough shape with burn marks on the right hand side and dents and scuffs from banging out the dottle. The bowl was heavily caked and the stem and shank were virtually plugged with tars.

I reamed the bowl and cleaned the shank with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and a shank brush and isopropyl alcohol. Then I gave the bowl an alcohol bath over night. The next morning I took it out of the bath, dried it off with a soft cloth. Once it was dry I sanded the bowl with micromesh sanding pads (1500-6000 grit) until it was smooth. I wiped it down with a cotton pad and some isopropyl to clean off the sanding dust and any remaining oils from my hands. I restained it with an oxblood aniline stain thinned with isopropyl alcohol.

I went to work on the stem after that. The stem was in bad shape. There was a very deep cut mark on the top of the stem about a 1/4 inch from the button. There was also a bite through hole on the underside of the stem. I cleaned and sanded the stem until it was black once again. I left the area around the button, on top and bottom, a bit rough and then filled the cut on the top with krazy glue. I greased and inserted a pipe cleaner in the slot and then filled the hole with krazy glue. Once the glue was completely dry I sanded the two fills I made with sand paper – 400, 600 grit, and then micromesh sanding pads from 1800-6000 grit. (I have read of concern by different folks on how the super/krazy glue can melt or cause damage on vulcanite. I have now been using this process for several years and never had a problem. I have used it on both vulcanite and Lucite. In the past weeks I have also used it on a nylon stem without any probems.)

I took the pipe to my buffer and finished the refurbishing with a buff of White Diamond to polish the finish on the bowl and the stem. I gave the entirety several coats of carnauba wax and buffed it with a clean flannel buff to give it a shine.

Here are the pics of the finished pipe (once again I forgot to take pictures of the pipe before I worked on it). Thanks for looking. ImageImageImageImageImage

All the King’s horses, and all the King’s Men… A Petersen adventure — Gan Barber

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When I bid on this pipe, I hoped that the damage was just a matter of some superficial checking. Whether it was from a defect in the briar or poor smoking technique, I assumed that with a little work, this Petersen Sherlock Holmes could be restored to its former glory once again.

As it appeared on EBay

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I’ve repaired a variety of bowls damaged by overheating or hidden fissures that cracked when smoked, but this particular pipe proved much more challenging. The front lip was compressed from hammering out spent dottle, so it was obvious that this pipe had seen its fair share of abuse. I placed the bowl in an alcohol bath for several hours to clean out the fissures and soften the heavy cake. I thought that once I reamed it out and wire brushed the cracks, I would have a better idea of the repairs needed.

Unfortunately, the only thing holding this pipe together wasthe cake, and as soon as I started to ream it……….

A combination of the bowl walls being left thin due to the heavy rustication, and the previous owner’s penchant for smoking tobacco as if it were lava (must have loved the taste of burning wood), had caused the briar to burn through in several places.

The charring was significant, but the pieces were sound, and the fractures well defined, so I decided to see what could be done with such a hopeless mess……..

Back into the alcohol bath went all the pieces to further clean the broken edges and soften what remained of the cake. I left them to soak overnight and then gave them each a thorough scrubbing, scraping and wire brushing to prepare them for re-assembly. In the meantime, I cleaned up the stem with an Oxy-Clean soak and some scrubbing with #0000 Steel wool.

Using JB Kwik as a bonding agent, I began by fitting the two lower pieces back onto the stummel. I worked in pairs to assure proper alignment. Once the epoxy has set, there is no way to make adjustments to the fit, so by working in layers I had a better chance to get it right.

Before the epoxy hardened, I did some work with a toothpick on the exterior of the bowl to remove and blend the squeeze out. Once the epoxy had completely cured, I used a dremel with a small sanding drum to grind down the excess and smooth the joints on the inside of the bowl. Using the same process, I re-fitted the top two pieces.

After the initial bonding and detail work on the epoxy, the pipe still had a long way to go.

There was a sizeable hole on the left side where the briar was very thin and had been destroyed by fire. After some more work with the dremel to clean up the inside the bowl, I used the JB Kwik to build up the weakened areas, letting it flow through and fill the hole. I then added more JB Kwik to the areas on the outside of the bowl that revealed any cracks, low areas, or fissures.

Once the epoxy had fully cured, I used the Dremel to smooth the inside of the bowl, and then applied two coats of pipe mud. Made from cigar ash, this mud filled all the imperfections and created a strong protective covering over the epoxy patches. Though JB Kwik is highly resistant to heat, and rated as non-toxic, it seemed prudent to keep it well covered until a good cake can be re-established in the bowl.

I used a small rusticating tool, made from a Phillips head screwdriver, to blend in the patches on the bowl exterior, then finished preparing the briar for staining with a vigorous scrub using a brass wire brush.

To blend in the patches and color the bowl, I chose Feibings Cordovan dye and applied it liberally with the applicator. I used a torch lighter to burn off the alcohol really set the stain. I then gave it a buff with red Tripoli, to see how well it all blended and to clean up the stem.  Granted, the Cordovan dye is much darker and deeper than the original coloring, but it was my only option in order to hide all the body work required to make this Petersen look like a pipe again.

I haven’t finished working on the stem or waxed the bowl yet. I think I’ll wait until the pipe mud has hardened and see how it smokes before investing any more time into this project. The bowl feels substanial and solid, so I’m not worried about structural failings. Being that it’s no longer a 100% briar pipe, I’m curious to see how well it performs……..

Thanks for looking.

-Gan

Dr. Grabow Colour – Damaged and Reborn

2 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

I have had this old Dr. Grabow Coloured pipe for a long time. It had damage to the colour coat and to the rim. I kept putting off doing anything with it as I could see no way of repairing the colour coat. It had the nylon stem as well with the Medico filter system. It was a screw mount tenon. The stem was covered with tooth marks and I just did not want to do anything with it… until yesterday.

Yesterday morning I took the pipe out of the box of pipes for repair and wiped it down with some acetone to see if I could clean up the bowl. At this point it was my plan to find some of the same coloured paint and respray the paint on the bowl to fix the spots where it was scratched off. I put the pipe bowl in my pocket and took a trip to Walmart to see if I could match the yellow colour of the paint. I went through about 6 or 7 different yellow colours and none matched. I stuck it back in my pocket and headed home. By this point I had decided to strip the bowl back to the wood and see what was under the paint. I had always heard that the bowls used in these pipes were pretty devoid of grain and had many fills so I figured what did I have to lose on stripping the paint.

I dropped the bowl in the alcohol bath for several hours while I was working on other things around the house. My hope was to loosen the paint coat not dissolve it into the water. Isopropyl should not dissolve the paint but it would certainly soften the paint and penetrate under the paint coat through the scratch marks in the surface. After I removed the bowl from the bath I used a sanding pad with medium grit and rubbed it across the painted surface and the paint began to peel back very easily. The next series of three photos show the effect of the paint coming off with a very light sanding.

I continued to sand the paint coat until it was gone. The next series of four photos show the bowl after the sanding. The paint coat is gone; all that remains is the light coating of yellow haze that will come off with a quick acetone wash. Once the paint was gone I was left with a pretty bland block of briar. There were fills around the front of the bowl and the sides. The shank, right side had a large fill that extended most of the length of the shank. The rim was in great shape with no dents of burns. The inner bevel on the rim was in great shape. I reamed the bowl to clean up the inside and the softened cake. It came out smooth and fresh. I cleaned the shank to remove and of the remaining tars and oils.

Once I had the internals cleaned up I washed the bowl down with a cotton pad and acetone. This removed the remnants of the yellow paint. It is amazing to me to see the amount of yellow colouration that came off with the acetone. The wood had quite a bit of yellow pigment on the surface of the bowl. I washed it down until the pads remained white. I sanded the tooth chatter and marks on the nylon stem (did I ever tell you how much I hate these nylon stems?? No? Well they are truly a pain). I was able to get the majority of the tooth marks out with emery cloth and then 240 grit sandpaper. I attached the stem to the bowl to have a look at what I had to work with  and where I should go with the finish work.

The fills seemed pretty disguised in the light colour of the briar so I decided to do a bit of an experiment. With a pipe of this calibre what do you have to lose? I stained it with a black aniline stain, flamed it and stained it a second time. My hope was that the fills would be hidden well by the stain coat. At first glance they seemed to remain hidden under the stain. I took the pipe to the buffer once it was dry and buffed the bowl with Tripoli to give it a shine and polish. As I did that the fills really stood out. The matte finish of the black hid them but the shine made them stand out. In the second photo below you can see the round fills on the front of the bowl. The one on the shank also stood out a bit.

The next series of photos show the pipe after a buff with Tripoli and White Diamond. The fills on the front now appeared to be a pinkish/red colour under the black coat. The one on the shank also looked pinkish/red. In the second photo below you can see where I restained the fill area on the shank. It was a large fill shaped almost like a moustache. Once it was dry I buffed it again with a light touch. The fills were just too obvious and ugly in my opinion. I even tried giving the pipe a top coat of dark brown stain to see if that would hide them. It did not. So I set the pipe down and went to supper. While I was eating I thought about the possibility of rusticating the bowl and giving the pipe a whole new look.

I took out my modified Philips screwdriver that I use for rustication and went to work on it. The screwdriver has the x pattern and a point. I used my Dremel to cut out the point and create four points with the remaining tip. It has a handle which I pad with a thick cotton cloth so that I can push it into the wood and minimize the discomfort on my palm from pressing. 

In the picture above you can see the work of rustication. The picture below shows the red coloured fills on the front of the bowl that made the decision to rusticate pretty easy for me.

I worked my way around the bowl as is seen in the next series of photos. I worked the front and then the bottom of the bowl and worked my way up each side of the bowl. In this case I decided that I wanted to see what the pipe would look like with a rusticated bowl and a smooth shank so I left the shank untouched with the rustication until I had finished the bowl.

The next three photos show the rusticated bowl and smooth shank look of the pipe. It just did not work for me. I did not like the look. As an aside – one of the great things with the rustication tool I use is the ability to use it in tight spaces and leave the surrounding surface untouched. By the way you will also note the photos that I left the rim smooth as well. 

The next two photos show the putty fills that were used. They seemed to have been white putty that was chalky when I scratched into it during the rustication process. You can see the location and the size of the fills in these photos. I am glad that I decided to rusticate this bowl.

I wrapped the shank and stem junction with a cellophane tape in multiple layers and extended onto the shank a quarter inch. I wanted to make a smooth band that would not be rusticated and match the smooth rim that I was leaving. The tape gave me an edge so that I would feel that as I twisted the tool in rusticating the shank. I also would give an edge to put the teeth of the tool against when I twisted it into the wood of the shank. The next series of photos show the rusticated shank. On the first one you can see the size of the fill on the right side of the shank. It also was the same white putty. As I hit it with the rusticator it left a white chalky residue. You can also see the intent of the band on the shank and the rim of the bowl being left smooth and what that would look like in contrast with the rough finish.

When I had finished the rustication I removed the tape guard and then sanded the band to get it smooth and to bring out the grain with dark undercoat.

Once that was complete I stained the pipe with a black aniline stain. I applied it heavily and then flamed it. The flaming sets the stain deep in the grooves and recesses of the rustication. I gave the rim and the band a coat of black as well. Once it was on I rubbed it off with a soft cloth to get the effect that is visible in the pictures below.

Once the stain was dry I worked on the smooth areas of the bowl – the rim and the band – with micromesh pads from 1500-6000 to polish them and smooth them out. I also worked on the nylon stem. It was a pain. The material scratches no matter what you do to it. And as I learned a long time ago it does not work to buff it as it has a very low melting point. So I sanded it with increasing grits of wet dry sandpaper – 400 to 600 grit and water and then sanded it with wet micromesh pads from 1500-12,000 to remove the scratching. I polished it on the buffer with blue polishing compound and a verrrrry light touch to give it a shine. I had waxed the smooth surfaces and the stem with carnauba and then wiped the pipe down with a cloth impregnated with Briar Wipe. Here is the finished pipe. I think the experiment worked!

Reworked Jobey Shellmoor Apple

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This is one I wish that I had remembered to take a picture of before I started working on. But I did not. Sometimes when I am in a hurry I forget to take the photos and this was one of those cases. I was on my way out the door so I took this pipe out of my box of pipes to refurbish, quickly reamed the bowl and threw the stummel in the alcohol bath and the stem in a bath of Oxyclean. You will have to take my word for it – it was a mess. Probably the worst looking mess I had in the box. The bowl was caked with a dark, tarry cake that smelled like roses. The blast was so clogged with grit and grime that you could not feel texture anymore. It was smooth and muddy black looking in colour. The rim was thick with tars and lava build up and the stem was a dark and deep brown from the heavy oxidation. I pretty much figured I would be working on this one for a while to clean it up. After I dropped it in the bath I went off to work and promptly forgot about the pipe altogether. In fact it was two days before I remembered I had left it there.

I went to my work table and took both jars that held the baths. I opened the lid not sure of what I would find when I removed the pipe parts. I took the bowl out first and dried it off with a cotton cloth I have here. Then I took the stem out of the Oxyclean bath. The water had grown cold and dark tea coloured and I wondered what I would find. I dried off the stem with a cotton cloth and put them both on the work table. I was amazed at the work the baths had done to both of them. I reamed the bowl back to bare wood so start over and then wiped the bowl down with acetone on cotton pads. The first four pictures below show the bowl and stem after the bath and the reaming. I then went to work on the inside of the shank and bowl and the inside of the stem. I used both cotton swabs as pictured below and also a series of shank brush, bristle pipe cleaners and regular pipe cleaners all dipped in isopropyl to clean out the shank and stem. I went through quite a pile of both to clean out all the dark tars and oils from inside the shank and stem. The aromatic that had been smoked in this one still survived the two + days in the alcohol and Oxyclean baths and the floral scent remained – not a Lakeland like floral more of a Mixture 79 floral smell. Once the swabs and cleaners were coming out white the smell was gone from the stem and shank.

I scrubbed the exterior of the bowl one last time with a soft bristled brass tire brush to clean out any remaining grit in the sandblast finish. Once it was clean I wiped it down one last time with acetone before I was ready to stain it. I used a dark brown aniline stain to cover the bowl. I flamed it to set the stain and gave it a second coat, flamed it again and then took it to the buffer and buffed it with a Tripoli buff. The stain was still too dark to my liking and also too opaque (though they are dark photos 1-3 below give a pretty accurate picture of the colour of the pipe after staining and buffing). I took it back to my work table and wipe the bowl down with acetone on a cotton pad to lighten the stain. The fourth photo below showing the underside of the bowl gives you an idea of what the stain looked like when I was finished with the wipe down.

I worked on the scratches and tooth marks on the stem with emery cloth (medium grit) first. I worked until they were gone and then used a medium grit sanding pad and a fine grit sanding pad to remove the scratches left behind. I switched to 240 grit sandpaper and took out the rest of the scratches and marks. I buffed the stem with Tripoli and White Diamond and then used micromesh pads on it. I started with the 1500 and 1800 grit sanding pads and then applied a coat of Obsidian Oil. I let it soak in and then rubbed it down with a soft cloth. I then used the rest of my micromesh pads from 2400-12,000 grit to finish sanding the stem. I rubbed in some plastic polish and wiped it off and then buffed the stem with some Blue polishing compound on my buffing wheel. The finished pipe was given multiple coats of Halcyon II wax on the bowl and carnauba on the stem. The colour of the bowl is precisely what I was aiming for and the stem just glows. I am not sure my photos capture the reflective quality of the buff but it is pretty amazing in person.

Resurrecting a Barling “Fossil” – Gan Barber

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When I put this Barling away in my ‘Lazarus’ box, I thought that it might be from the Early Transition period, and therefore made from the last of that century old Algerian briar that Barling’s were famous for. I had not looked carefully at the nomenclature obscured beneath the grime. Noting that it was a Barling’s, I stored it away, looking forward to the opportunity to smoke from a piece of classic wood.

When I pulled it out and inspected the markings I was disappointed to find it had all the earmarks of a post transition period pipe.  The Barling was in script, the model number had four digits, and T.V.F was stamped on the shank. Further, the bowl was not particularly well carved and there were several major fills – something you would never find on a Pre-transition family era pipe. Oh well. I decided to proceed with the refurb anyways.

I pulled a beautifully grained twin bore saddle bit Canadian from a drawer of miscellaneous pipes that I randomly smoke. It has no maker’s name, and is simply marked “France” 255. What a great smoker. Dry and sweet, it sang with the sample of Rincon De LA Pipe No. 1 sent to me compliments of 4noggins Tobacco.  So, what’s in a name? You just never know…..

The pipe was in poor condition, having been snapped at the bowl junction where the shank was very thin. Image

The airway was also drilled off center, which may have contributed to the break. Image

Dirt and grime aside, the bowl chamber was not scorched or heavily caked. The stem had some tooth marks, but was more dirty than oxidized. Image

The bowl and shank were placed in my trusty container of 91% Isopropyl alcohol (99% is hard to fine in my neck of the woods) and left to soak for several hours. Meanwhile, the stem went into a bath of Oxy-Clean for 30 minutes, mostly to loosen any residual tars in the airway. Once soaked, pulling several bristle cleaners through the airway was all that was needed to clean out the gunk. After wet scrubbing the exterior with synthetic 0000 wool and Oxy-Clean, the stem was set aside to dry.

Once the bowl was done soaking, I cleaned the small amount of cake from the bowl with my Senior reamer, dipping the bowl in the bath to rinse out the bits and pieces that came free. Next, the exterior surfaces were scrubbed with the synthetic 0000 wool, working wet with clean alcohol.

At this point, with the cleaning finished, the Barling was beginning to come back to life. I set the pipe aside for the evening to let everything dry thoroughly before moving on to the bonding phase. Image

I used my favorite epoxy, JB Kwik to bond the shank back to the bowl. I set the two parts on a clean work surface, aligned as closely as possible, before mixing the epoxy. I applied a thin layer to both surfaces. I pressed the shank and bowl together, taking care to align the fracture, and let as much excess as possible squeeze out to minimize the joint. Hand pressure for three minutes is all that is needed for the initial bond. I then set the bowl down and let it rest for another 7 minutes (approximate). Under ideal temperature, humidity and proportioning, JB Kwik reaches a rubbery stage after 10 minutes.  At this point, I removed the excess epoxy that squeezed from the joint with the tip of a utility knife blade. It peels off like a rubber gasket if you catch it at the right point as it cures. I then used the bit from my Senor reamer to carefully remove any excess epoxy that may have gotten into the airway. Care must be taken to work slowly and with very little pressure, as any leverage against the shank my cause the newly bonded joint to fail. Once the excess epoxy has been removed, I let the stummel cure for at least 6 hours.

With the pipe joined and epoxy cured, it was time to take the bowl and stem to the buffer for an initial polishing with red rouge. After cleaning any residual compound off with alcohol, the bowl was ready for stain. The stem needed some sanding to clean up the faint scouring from the synthetic 0000 wool. The Barling Cross logo was a faint memory, so conserving it was not a concern. 2×2 flex micro-mesh pads, 1500 through 4000, did the trick.

After two wash coats of Feibing’s Medium Brown aniline dye, and spot staining the two rather large fills (sorry, the photos were not usable), I wiped the bowl down vigorously with a micro-fiber cloth and set the stain with a table-top lighter. The micro-fiber cloth works wonders in evening out the coats of dye. Uneven coating or overlap marks blend beautifully when wiped down just after the dye dulls completely.

With the stain applied, the fills touched up, and the stem sanded, all that was left was a gentle once-over with white diamond, followed by three coats of carnauba wax on the bowl. The stem received a white diamond buff, followed by two coats of Briar Works Stem Wax and Sealer. I prefer to protect the stem this way, as my saliva tends to react with straight carnauba, leaving an unsightly white stain. ImageImage

I’ll save the repair of the tooth dents on the stem for a future essay…..

It may be inferior, when compared to the legendary family era Barlings, but it was still fun to resurrect a pipe that could be half a century old. Sandblasted or rusticated pipes are much easier to repair in this manner, as the rough texture tends to hide the repair. The fracture is only evident on the smooth portion of the stem where the nomenclature resides.

Thanks for looking.

-Gan