Tag Archives: Bowl – finishing

A Well Done Rogers Rarity 220 Bulldog

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe is a really neat looking chubby Bulldog with a vulcanite saddle stem. The thick shank and stubby looking pipe was made to hold in your hand. It is quite light weight for its size and the blade on the stem is thin and looks comfortable. We picked up this pipe from an auction back 2018 in Beaumont, California, USA. He cleaned the pipe in 2019 and now I am working on it in 2021. It is stamped on the top left side of the shank and reads Rogers [over] Rarity in an oval. On the top right side it is stamped Imported [arched over] 220 [over] Bruyere. The title of the blog is a play on the term rarity as this particular pipe came to us extremely well done – tired and worn. The exterior of the bowl had a thick coat of dark heavy grime ground into the finish. It was oily and dark looking. The single ring around the cap on the bowl was filled in with grime. There was a heavy cake in the bowl and an eruption of thick lava on the rim top. It was hard to know the condition of the rim top and rim edges because of the grime and thickness of the cake and lava. The cleaning would make it very clear! The stem was dirty and lightly oxidized with light tooth marks and chatter on both sides but nothing like what I was expecting from the condition of the bowl. Jeff took photos of the pipe to give a clear picture of what we were up against with this pipe. He captured the cake in the bowl and the thick eruption of lava on the rim top and edges exceptionally well in the next photos. It was very clear that the pipe had not been seriously cleaned since the first smoke. But it is also very clear that it was an exceptional smoker! The stem is oxidized, calcified and shows the took marks on the button surface and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff somehow captured some of the beauty of the shape and the grain in the next photos. You can certainly see what lies beneath the grime and even paint on the briar.He took photos of the stamping on the top left and right of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above.From reading Bill Unger’s book on Custom-Bilt Pipes I remember “Rogers Rarity” was made by the same company as one of it non-sculptured or rusticated pipes. I did a Google search to see if I could confirm that online. I found a pipe labeled Rogers Rarity for sale on Worthpoint, an online sales site (https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/rogers-rarity-custombilt-large-briar-1821532853). In the description they made the link to Custombilt. I quote:

Rogers Rarity briar pipes were made by Custombilt, and show all the beauty and originality of the brand.

I searched further and found a conversation asking about the brand on Pipesmagazine online forum. There was a great conversation about the brand.

(https://pipesmagazine.com/forums/threads/help-with-dating-a-pipe.62314/). I found a particular response by Jon Guss of the Seattle Pipe Club particularly helpful. I quote from Jon in full.

First, “Rodgers” is a misspelling; it was always spelled “Rogers”. Three generations of the Rogers family ran one of the leading importers of pipes (including Petersons for a number of years) and resellers of pipes and smokers articles; they also did a bit of manufacturing. The name of the company was Rogers Imports, Inc.

Second, for several reasons I also believe that Rogers Rarity pipes were made for Rogers Imports by CustomBilt.

The Rogers Rarity line was introduced by the company in late 1945. The advertising copy from the spring of 1946 described Rogers Rarity pipes as “The height of pipe luxury and enjoyment”, and claimed that they were “Carved by hand of Algerian bruyere over 150 years old”. Was it true? I would guess not, but age fabrication regarding the briar from which pipes were made was a kind of industry trope for generations. While most of the Rarity pipes apparently sold for $5, the listed price range stated various models cost from $5-25. The $5 pipes were available in natural and grain finishes; there was also a $10 version called the Rogers Rarity Deluxe that was sterling banded and meerschaum lined.

I can’t be sure when the line ceased production, but believe it was by the end of 1949. Certainly Rogers Rarity pipes are no longer listed in the RTDA Almanac from 1950 on, and mentions of the pipe in advertisements to consumers become thin on the ground. More tellingly newspaper ads from 1951 show the pipe heavily discounted, suggesting that excess inventory of an obsolete line was being flushed through the channel…

Now I knew that my memory was correct. The pipe was made by CustomBilt for Rogers Imports. I also knew that it was made between 1945-1949 when the line was no longer made. It was a bit of an old timer… Now it was time to work on the pipe.

I was amazed at how clean and new the pipe looked when I took it out of the box. It is really a beautiful piece. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. I took photos of the pipe as I saw it when I put it on the table. I took photos of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top looked pretty good but the inner edge of the bowl showed some damage and was out of round. There was also some burn damage to the outer edge of the bowl on the front. The stem was vulcanite and there were light tooth marks on the button and some light marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The stamping on the top left and right sides of the diamond shaped shank are clear and readable. It reads as noted above.I started my work on this pipe by dealing with the damage to the inner edge of the bowl. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the inner edge and give it form once again. The cleaned up rim edge looked very good. I sanded the darkening/burn damage on the front outer edge of the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper as well. I finished the cleanup of the rim top by gently topping it on a topping board to smooth out the damage and minimize it on the edges. The result was actually quite good. I polished the briar with 1200-1500 micromesh sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar. I polished it with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. This Chubby 1945-49 Rogers Rarity 220 Straight Bulldog with a vulcanite saddle stem is a well grained pipe with a flowing shape that looks great . The rich browns of the darkened natural finish makes the grain come alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 Rogers Rarity Bulldog really is a beauty and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 1/8 inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.52oz./43grams. This old timer will soon be on the American Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store if you would like to add it to your collection. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

Found and reclaimed – A Vintage Stanwell Selected Grain 49 Zulu

2 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe is a vintage Stanwell that is quite exceptional. It is a well executed Zulu made between 1948-1960s. Some think the shape was designed by Sixten Ivarrson but I am not sure we will know for sure. Jeff and I picked up this pipe in a batch of pipes we purchased from a fellow in Los Angeles, California, USA. The pipe is stamped on the top side of the shank and reads Stanwell [over] Regd. No. 969-48 [over] Hand Made. On the underside of the shank it is stamped Selected Briar. The stamping is clear and readable. The briar was dark with tars and oils that almost obscured the amazing grain around the bowl and shank. There was a thick hard cake in the bowl with an eruption of lava on the rim top that made it hard to know what the condition of the rim top and edges was underneath. The truth would be revealed once it was cleaned. The stem was oxidized, calcified and had tooth marks on the button surface and tooth chatter on both sides of the stem. It really was mess that had glimmers of promises peeking through the grime of time. Jeff took photos of the pipe to give you a sense of what it looked like before cleanup. He captured the cake in the bowl and the thick eruption of lava on the rim top and edges exceptionally well in the next photos. It was very clear that the pipe had not been seriously cleaned since the first smoke. But it is also very clear that it was an exceptional smoker! The stem shows the took marks on the button surface and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff somehow captured some of the beauty of the shape and the grain in the next photos. You can certainly see what lies beneath the grime on the briar. He captured the stamping on the top and underside of the shank. It is readable but the topside is definitely more worn than the underside. The Crown S stamp on the stem is deep and workable but has a lot of corrosion and grime in the stamping.I have worked on a lot of Stanwell pipes over the years and have found the Pipedia site very helpful in terms of giving background and an historical overview of the company from its founding to the present day. Here is the link to the article on the site on Stanwell pipes (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell).

I also scanned through the catalogues in the margins and in the links on the site and found a page that included the shape #49 Oval stem large sized Zulu pipe that I am working on. I have done a screen capture of the page below and encircled the shape in red. I then turned to a linked page on the article to the section on Shape Number and Designers that was primarily the work of a friend of mine named Bas Stevens. Bas initially had this article on the rebornpipes site so I am familiar with it. I include the link here if you want to check it out (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). I was hoping that Bas had a clue to who designed the shape 49 but alas he did not seem to. What was there though was that there were two versions of this shape. The first was what he calls a Dublin and others call a Zulu and the second was a freehand. I am working on shape “a” from the chart below. It is described there as a Dublin, slightly bent, oval stem and mouth piece.Armed with the information that I had gleaned from my research, I turned my attention to the pipe itself. I was amazed at how clean and new the pipe looked when I took it out of the box. It is really a beautiful piece. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. I took photos of the pipe as I saw it when I put it on the table. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top looked pretty good and there was some darkening on the inner edge at the front of the bowl. The stem was vulcanite and there were tooth marks on the button and some light marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.The stamping on the top and underside of the stem are clear and readable. The stamp on the top side is more worn but it is still readable. The stamped Crown S on the stem is very clear and should retain the new white acrylic very well.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. I started my work on this pipe by dealing with the darkening on the inner edge of the bowl. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the inner edge and give it form once again. The cleaned up rim edge looked very good. I polished the briar with 1200-1500 micromesh sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and started the polishing with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper.I polished it with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I paused the polishing to touch up the Crown S stamp on the top of the oval stem. I have been using an acrylic white fingernail polish and find that it works well and is long lasting. I painted it on the stamp and worked it into the stamp with a tooth pick. Once it had hardened I scraped and sanded the excess off with a 1500 grit micromesh sanding pad. It came out looking very good.I picked up the polishing once again. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem.This Vintage Stanwell Regd. No. 969-48 Selected Grain 49 Zulu with a vulcanite stem is a beautifully grained pipe with a flowing shape that is stunning . The rich browns of the stain made the grain come alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 Stanwell Selected Grain Zulu really is a beauty and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.31oz./37grams. This one will soon be on the Danish Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store if you would like to add it to your collection. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

Restoring a Cracked 1911 MRC (Marechal, Ruchon & Cie) Military Bit Billiard

2 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

Every so often Jeff and I make an effort to meet somewhere and do a bit of pipe hunting. Back in October of 2019 we met in Southern Alberta and drove along the Queen Elizabeth Highway up to Edmonton. We stopped a lot of different antique shops and malls along the way to see what kind of luck we would have finding estate pipes. We picked up this pipe along with a few others at several Antique Malls in Edmonton. This one was a real mess with a very thick cake and heavy lava pouring from the bowl over the rim top. The was a crack in the right side of the bowl from the rim top down about 1/3 of the depth of the bowl. It was a hairline crack but it was visible even in the filthy condition we found the pipe in. However even with the grime ground in to the briar and the tarnished silver I knew that we were dealing with an old timer. I knew that MRC was related to GBD pipes so I was hooked. The stem was heavily oxidized and had tooth grooves on both side of the stem ahead of the button. There was wear on the button edges as well. The button itself also spoke of the pipe being an old timer because it was an orific button with a hole instead of a slot. Jeff took photos early in 2020 when he got to cleaning it up for us. The photos of what he saw are included below. There was a lot of damage to the outer edge of the rim and it was not clear what the rim top or inner edge truly looked like because of the thick cake and lava overflow. There was also a crack on the right side of the bowl about 1/3 of the depth of the bowl. It was hard to know at this point if it went through the bowl and on the rim top. Cleaning would reveal all! The stem was oxidized, calcified and had some deep tooth grooves on both sides from the button forward. There was also some damage on the top and under edge of the button itself. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the overall look of the grain and the condition of the bowl. In the first photo below I have encircled the crack in red on the right side so you can see it clearly. He took photos of the stamping on the shank and on the sterling silver ferrule. It is clear and readable. The MRC logo in the shield is on the left side of the shank and it is also on the ferrule. There is also an AO stamp followed by three hallmarks on the ferrule – an anchor, a rampant lion and an “m”. These help to date the pipe and identify the maker and city.I turned to Pipedia to help date the MRC (Marechal Ruchon & Cie) and connect the dots with GBD pipes (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Marechal_Ruchon_%26_Cie). I quote the section below that is pertinent form the site.

Marechal Ruchon & Cie. was a company owned by Auguste Marechal and Ferdinand Ruchon (“& Cie” is the French equivalent of “& Co”) which owned the GBD brand from the end of the 19th century until 1902 when they sold Marechal, Ruchon & Cie. to Oppenheimer Pipe, which in turn changed the name of the company to Marechal, Ruchon & Co., Ltd.. Upon the creation of Cadogan, however, the brand was no more, remembered only in the name of the GBD Marcee pipes made until just after the Second World War.

I then turned to the Pipedia article on GBD history to further the connection information I had above (https://pipedia.org/wiki/GBD). I quote:

…August Marechal and Ferdinand Ruchon led the firm into the 20th century. They were in charge of the company for more than 50 years…

…There is a very simple explanation for GBD’s program to turn more “British”: GBD became a British company soon after the turn of the century! In 1902 Marechal and Ruchon sold GBD to A. Oppenheimer & Co. in London. Charles Oppenheimer had founded this successful trade business in 1860 as an import-/export house. His brothers David and Adolphe and brother-in-law Louis Adler soon joined him. Adolphe took over when Charles went to Germany as British ambassador. Briar pipes were among the first products traded. The business relation to GBD in Paris began as early as 1870. Being the most important customer in the English speaking world, Oppenheimer & Co. were designated as sole distributor for Great Britain, the USA and Canada in 1897. Especially Adolphe Oppenheimer had a burning interest in the pipe business, and Louis’ son James Adler shared that. He should play the most important role in the amicable merger of GBD. A. Marechal, Ruchon and Cie. in Paris was now Marechal, Ruchon & Co. Ltd. (see Marechal Ruchon & Cie. page) – a British firm with four directors: Adolphe Oppenheimer and James Adler had their seat in the head office in London while Auguste Marechal and Ferdinand Ruchon went on leading the GBD factory in the Rue des Balkan in Paris, which was considerably extended and modernised. Ruchon acted as CEO.

I knew that the pipe I was working on came out after the sale MRC to Oppenheimer and it became a British Company. It ceased to be Marechal, Ruchon & Cie and became Marechal, Ruchon & Co. Ltd. The principals (Marechal & Ruchon) continued to lead the GBD factory. I would need to do a bit of work on the Silver Hallmarks to pin down the date but I know the rough time frame.

The hallmarks on the silver ferrule were as follows:

An anchor – a symbol for the city of Birmingham, England
A rampant lion – a symbol for .925 Sterling Silver
A lower case “m” in a squarish cartouche which was the year of manufacture.
An AO which was the maker’s mark. I link that to Aldophe Oppenheimer as noted above. He played an important role in the merged GBD British Company.

I turned to the British Silver Hallmark page to try and pin down the date for this silverwork (https://www.925-1000.com/british_marks.html). I have marked it with a red box on the chart that is below. The lower case “m” in the cartouche on the silver matches the one for 1911. So now I knew that I was working on a 1911 MRC pipe that was made for sale in England and bore the Birmingham silver. It really is a crossover pipe – French made by Marechal, Ruchon and Company Ltd. in Paris with British silver work made in Birmingham!Armed with the information that I had gleaned from my research, I turned my attention to the pipe itself. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. The damage on the rim top and inner and outer edges is very visible in the photos below. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. When I received it the pipe looked very good. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl were in rough condition. The top of the rim was beat up pretty badly with nicks and chips. The inner and outer edges were rough and the bowl was out of round. It was also clear that the crack on the right side of the bowl went onto the top. The stem was vulcanite and there were deep tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.The stamping on the pipe and the silver ferrule is clear and readable as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole.I started my work on this pipe by dealing with the damaged rim top and inner edge of the bowl. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the inner edge and bring it back to round. I topped the bowl to smooth out the damage on the rim top. I did not remove much of the briar but conservatively dealt with the damage. The cleaned up rim top looked very good. Now it was time to deal with the crack in the bowl on the right side. I marked the end of the crack on the briar with a Sharpie pen as I viewed it through a lens. I used the mark to guide me when I drilled the end of the crack with a microdrill bit on the Dremel. I filled in the drilled hole with briar dust and clear CA glue. I spread it over the entirety of the crack on the side and the rim top. Once the repair had cured I used a small flat file to flatten out the repair and bring it down to the surface of the briar. I blended it into the surface of the briar with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I was happy with the look of the repair.I polished the briar with 1200-1500 micromesh sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good. I polished the silver ferrule with a jewelers cloth to give it a sheen and protect it from further tarnishing. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I “painted” the tooth marks/grooves with the flame of a lighter. I was able to lift them considerably. I filled in the remaining marks with clear CA glue. Once the repair cured I used a small file to flatten it out and begin the blending process to make it disappear into the surrounding vulcanite. I followed that by sanding the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and started the polishing with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper. I polished it with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem. This 1911 MRC (Marechal, Ruchon & Cie) Military Bit Billiard with a vulcanite stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The rich browns of the stain made the grain come alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 1911 MRC Billiard really is a beauty and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¼ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.34oz./38grams. I am still debating on whether to keep this one or sell it… It fits nicely in my collection of older pipes. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

New Life for a Great Looking Butz-Choquin Cocarde 1283 Calabash

1 Reply

Blog by Steve Laug

This July long weekend has been a bit of rest and relaxation for me as I have been able to take time in the basement at my work table and deal with pipes that have been piling up in the boxes around the table. I have posted two I have worked on already – both French Made – a Butz-Choquin Optima, a Chatham Volcano as well as a Savinelli Duca Carlo Pot. They were all interesting pipes because of the shape and style. This next one was more of a relaxed restoration because it was a classic shape and did not present too many challenges. Jeff purchased this pipe from an antique mall Ogden, Utah, USA. It had an interesting light brown finish on it that reminded me of a darkened natural briar. The bowl was classic Calabash shape. There was a thick cake in bowl and lava on the rim top and the inner bevel. The finish was filthy with grit and grime ground into the surface of the briar. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank Butz-Choquin at an angle [over] Cocarde and on the right side it was stamped St Claude in an arch over France [over] the shape number 1283. The stem was oxidized and had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides at the stem. The BC logo on the left side of the taper was faded and needed to be touched up. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work. I like to have an idea of how the pipe was smoked before we got it and what the bowl and rim top looked like. Jeff always takes some photos of the bowl and rim from various angles to show what it looked like. The stem looked very good under the oxidation.He took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to give a sense of the grain on the pipe. The next two photos show the stamping on the left and right side of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. Jeff also captured the BC stamp on the left side of the taper stem. I did a quick scan of the rebornpipes blog and found a link to the Butz-Choquin Cocarde pipe that Dal Stanton had restored (https://rebornpipes.com/2021/01/08/a-christmas-vacation-pipe-from-nashville-a-butz-choquin-cocarde-geante-plus-st-claude-france-1397-tabac-st-michel-paris/). I always appreciate the research that Dal does when he works on pipes because it is what I like doing when I am restoring the pipes on my table. I quote from the portion of the blog that gives the background information on the brand. (Thanks Dal for the leg work on this one!)

The history of the Butz-Choquin name is concisely put on Pipephil.eu and its helpful to me for the refresher.

The origin of the brand reaches back to 1858 when Jean-Baptiste Choquin in collaboration with his son-in-law Gustave Butz created their first pipe in Metz (France). Since 1951 Butz-Choquin is a brand of the Berrod-Regad group (Saint-Claude, France).

Jean Paul Berrod managed the company from 1969 to 2002 when he retired and sold the corporate to Mr Fabien Gichon. Denis Blanc, already owner of EWA, took over the S.A. Berrod-Regad in 2006.

I could not find anything specific in Pipedia about the ‘Cocarde’ line, but a simple search on the internet will show many different shapes available in the Cocarde line from Butz-Choquin. I did find a shapes chart pictured in the Butz-Choquin Pipedia article that included the 1397 Geante Plus. Unfortunately, there is no reference to the date of the catalogue. A quick look at Google Translate gave a translation of the Geante Plus as ‘Giant More’ – which is no surprise. The photo below sets the Geante Plus apart with the 1397 shape number as unique to this designation. The Giant Billiard seems to be the unique bearer of this designation.

Dal had found a catalogue link for the pipe he was working on but the 1283 shape was not listed in the catalogues on the side.

On another blog he wrote Dal had some more information on the Cocarde line of Butz-Choquin pipes (https://rebornpipes.com/2017/02/21/hole-in-the-wall-gold-mine-butz-choquin-cocarde-major-rhodesian/).

When I take the BC Cocarde Major out of the basket, I am anxious to recommission this nice-looking Rhodesian, I decide. The first thing I do is pull up Google Translator and insert Cocarde Major in the French to English machine. I did not study French in school so help is appreciated. I want to know if special meaning is attached to this St. Claude BC. Cocarde translated into English as the word, ‘Cockade’ which was defined as, a rosette, roundel or knot of ribbons worn in a hat as a badge of office or party, or as part of a livery. With a little looking on the internet, I found these interesting French examples of Cocardes.With this meaning for ‘Cocarde’ it put doubt in my mind regarding my original thought that ‘Major’ referred to large or big. Attaching Major to the idea of the French symbol of national pride, it is most likely pointing to a level of rank, or when ‘Major’ is attached to another rank (e.g., sergeant-major) it denotes the ranking of one superior among those of the same rank. I emailed a colleague living and working in Toulouse, France, whose command of the language could help. His comments confirmed what I was thinking:

The word cockade refers to a national symbol for the French, like “cocarde tricolore’ refers to the French flag which is, of course, one of the most important symbols of the French people and national pride. It has many meanings, but for example official cars or planes have this symbol on it. You are right about the word Major, referring to a military grade. Used as an adjectif, “majeur” it means big. I would conclude that this is simply the name of the pipe. You can’t translate it literally. The pipe’s name implies in my opinion that it is a symbol of French pride, like the French insignia for a general in the military.

With the symbols of French pride stamped on this BC Rhodesian, I have a greater appreciation for the pipe when I take more pictures now on my worktable.

Armed with the information that I had gleaned from Dal’s blog, I turned my attention to the pipe itself. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. When I received it the pipe looked very good. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl were in good condition. The stem was vulcanite and there were some light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The stamping on the pipe is clear and readable as noted above. The BC logo on the stem is deep and needs to be repainted with white.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. I started my work on this pipe by filling in a small chip on the left front of the bowl. Once the repair cured I polished the briar with 1200-1500 micromesh sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I touched up the BC stamp on the left side of the stem with white acrylic nail polish (thanks again for the reminder Al!). I worked it into the stamp with a tooth pick and then sanded off the excess once it had dried with a 1500 micromesh sanding pad.I polished it with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem. This Butz-Choquin Cocorde 1283 Calabash with a vulcanite stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The rich browns of the stain made the grain come alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 BC Cocorde 1283 Calabash really is a beauty and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¼ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.31oz./37grams. This beauty will be going on the rebornpipes store in the French Pipe Makers section. Let me know if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

How about a Danish for Breakfast?

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Blog by Kenneth Lieblich

This spectacular pipe came in a lot of freehand pipes that I bought recently. It seemed to me that I needed to restore a Danish freehand pipe in order to earn my pipe-restoring stripes, so-to-speak. The pipe is absolutely beautiful and a superb example of Danish pipe-making craftsmanship. But right at the start, I want to apologize for the dearth of photographs in this post. I guess I was so delighted at the prospect of working on this pipe that I occasionally forgot to capture the moment on camera.The pipe is a Danish freehand pipe by the esteemed pipemaker, Bjørn Thurmann. The gorgeous briar wood transitions seamlessly into the horn ferrule. It really makes an impression. I am not able to date the pipe, as the photo shows all of the markings to be seen. Thurmann passed away a few years ago, but his company, Thurmann Piber, is still well known in Copenhagen for the fine quality of his work. The reference book, Scandinavian Pipemakers by Jan Andersson, provides us with a nice overview of his background and work. I will quote a bit of it here:

Bjørn Thurmann was born in 1946 – some would say, born into the tobacco trade. In 1953, his parents opened a pipe shop in central Copenhagen and Bjørn helped them there from the beginning, mainly by sorting pipes. Initially, the pipes were bought from a firm called Larsen & Stigart, but eventually they decided to start their own production.

Bjørn’s parents thought that their son ought to widen his views and get some international experience, so, in 1968, he was sent to London to work in different tobacconists shops, a period of learning that ended at Dunhill’s famous shop on Duke Street. After returning home, he almost immediately received an offer to work for Iwan Ries & Co. in Chicago, an offer that was hard to resist, so off he went.

In 1976, Bjørn established himself as an independent pipemaker, and since then he has had shops in several places in Copenhagen. Bjørn has also written a book called Pibemagerens Handbog (The Pipemakers Handbook), which tells how to make pipes using simple tools most people have at home.Clearly, Thurmann was a vastly experienced and talented pipe man. I am delighted to be able to work on a pipe like this. One can not only see, but also feel, the quality of the briar. First of all, I am pleased to report that the stummel of this pipe was in good condition. There was some burning around the rim and there was a small nick along one edge of the rim and another small nick on the top of the rim. Otherwise, the wood just needed to be made a bit more spiffy. Meanwhile, the stem needed some attention. It showed signs of oxidation and had been well chewed. The stem was first on my list. I took a BIC lighter and ‘painted’ the stem with its flame in order to lift the tooth marks. This was only slightly successful in raising the dents. Then, I cleaned out the insides of the stem with pipe cleaners and isopropyl alcohol. Once this process was done, the stem went for an overnight soak in the Before & After Hard Rubber Deoxidizer. The following day, I cleaned all of the de-oxidizing sludge off with alcohol, pipe cleaners, et cetera. The oxidation had migrated to the surface and would be fairly straightforward to remove. I scrubbed vigorously with SoftScrub to remove the leftover oxidation. Before I moved on to the Micromesh pads, I built up both dents and the squashed button on the stem with cyanoacrylate adhesive and let them fully cure. I used my miniature files to do a proper cutting of the new button – this ensures that it keeps its shape and looks like it should. I then sanded it down with 220-, 400-, and 600-grit sandpapers to meld seamlessly into the stem. I did the same to the remaining tooth marks. I then used all nine Micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to bring out the lovely black lustre on the stem. I also used Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil in between each pad scrubbing.On to the stummel, and the usual cleaning procedures were in order for this pipe. I used both the PipNet Reamer and the KleenReem to remove the built-up cake and take the bowl down to bare briar, as I wanted to ensure there were no hidden flaws in the walls of the bowl. Fortunately, there were none. I then proceeded to clean out the insides of the shank with Q-tips, pipe cleaners, and isopropyl alcohol. There was some nastiness inside this stummel, but fortunately not too much – it only took a handful of pipe cleaners etc. to sort that out. I followed that up by cleaning the insides with some dish soap and tube brushes. I then moved on to cleaning the outside of the stummel with Murphy’s Oil Soap and some cotton pads. That removed any latent dirt. As I mentioned earlier, there were some small burn marks on the rim of the stummel that also needed to be addressed. A lot of this was removed by the Murphy’s. For the burns that remained, I took some oxalic acid on a Q-tip and rubbed and rubbed. As you will see, the treatment worked very well and the rim is much improved. I completed this part by gently sanding the rim edge to remove the roughness that remained.Then I addressed the two nicks on the rim – both were relatively straightforward. The first one required a touch of light sanding with the Micromesh pads and then the merest bit of stain with one of my furniture pens. Looks fantastic now. The other nick was solved by filling it with cyanoacrylate adhesive and letting it fully cure. After this, the entire stummel was treated to a rub-down with all nine Micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit). A light application of Before & After Restoration Balm brought out the best in the stummel’s grain. There is some beautiful wood on this Danish pipe! Now it was off for a trip to the buffer. A dose of White Diamond and a few coats of carnauba wax were just what this pipe needed. I had to be especially careful with the bench polisher, since the sharp edges had a tendency to catch on the buffing wheels. I have to admit, this did put my heart in my throat a few times!

This pipe was a delight from the start and its beauty only increased through the restoration process. Finally, I am pleased to announce that this pipe is for sale! If you are interested in acquiring it for your collection, please have a look in the ‘Danish’ pipe section of the store here on Steve’s website. You can also email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. The approximate dimensions of the pipe are as follows: length 180 mm; height 55 mm; bowl diameter 55 × 39 mm; chamber diameter 25 × 21 mm. The mass of the pipe is 77 grams. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

Breathing Life into this Savinelli Made Duca Carlo Pot

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Blog by Steve Laug

This July long weekend has been a bit of rest and relaxation for me as I have been able to take time in the basement at my work table and deal with pipes that have been piling up in the boxes around the table. I have posted two I have worked on already – both French Made – a Butz-Choquin Optima and a Chatham Volcano. They were interesting pipes because of the shape and style. This one was more of a relaxed restoration because it was a classic shape and did not present too many challenges. Jeff purchased this pipe from an antique mall Logan, Utah, USA. It had an interesting fire-like finish on it that reminded me of molten lava. The bowl was classic Pot shaped. There was a thick cake in bowl and lava on the rim top. There were nicks around the out edge of the rim on the right side. There were several fills around the bowl sides. The finish was filthy with grit and grime ground into the surface of the briar. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank DUCA CARLO and on the underside across the shank just below the shank/stem union it was stamped ITALY. I remembered that the pipe was a Savinelli made pipe but I could not remember how it was connected. I would need to check the blog. The stem was oxidized and had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides at the stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work. I like to have an idea of how the pipe was smoked before we got it and what the bowl and rim top looked like. Jeff always takes some photos of the bowl and rim from various angles to show what it looked like. He also captured the nicked right outer edge. The stem looked very good under the oxidation. He took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to give a sense of the grain on the pipe. You can also see the fills on the right side of the bowl. The next two photos show the stamping on the left side and underside of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above.I did a quick scan of the rebornpipes blog and found a link to the Duca Carlo pipe that Dal Stanton had restored (https://thepipesteward.com/2021/05/04/liberating-the-grain-of-a-candy-apple-finish-a-savinelli-duca-carlo-poker-of-italy/). I always appreciate the research that Dal does when he works on pipes because it is what I like doing when I am restoring the pipes on my table. I quote from the portion of the blog that gives the background information on the brand. (Thanks Dal for the leg work on this one!)

Whenever I work on a pipe, I’m always interested to know something of the pipe. My first stop at Pipedia reveals that the Duca Carlo is a second of Savinelli, the well-known Italian pipe manufacturer.Savinelli’s history as an Italian pipe maker goes back to 1876 – a rich history and tradition which can be read in Pipedia’s Savinelli article. The Duca Carlo is listed in the main Savinelli article within an extensive listing of “Savinelli made sub-brands, seconds & order productions”. The Duca (Duke) Carlo is listed with the Duca di Milano and Duca di Paolo giving the impression that Savinelli produced these as special lines commemorating these historical figures. With a quick internet search brings me to a Wikipedia article. Duca Carlo reveals an interesting story of a child that died of smallpox at age 3 (See: Carlo, Duke of Calabria):

Carlo of Naples and Sicily (Italian: Carlo Tito Francesco Giuseppe; 4 January 1775 – 17 December 1778) was Duke of Calabria as heir to Naples and Sicily. Born at the Caserta Palace near Naples, he was known as the Duke of Calabria at birth as the heir apparent to his father’s throne. His mother was a daughter of Empress Maria Theresa and thus sister of Marie Antoinette.

A member of the House of Bourbon, he was a prince of Naples and Sicily by birth. He was the hereditary prince of Naples. His birth allowed his mother to have a place in the Council of State, pursuant to his parents’ marriage contract.

Carlo died of smallpox^[1] aged 3. Six of his younger siblings would die of smallpox also: Princess Maria Anna (in 1780), Prince Giuseppe (in 1783), Prince Gennaro (in 1789), Prince Carlo Gennaro (also in 1789), Princess Maria Clotilde (in 1792) and Princess Maria Enricheta (also in 1792). He was buried at the Church of Santa Chiara in Naples.

The only other reference to the Duca series in the Savinelli Pipedia article comes from a photo that does not mention a name, but the stem stamping is clearly from the Duca series of pipes listed. No dating on the picture can be seen.The Savinelli Duca line is confirmed by my next stop. Pipephil (http://pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-d9.html) gives two examples of Savinelli Ducas – a Duca Carlo and Duca Eraldo. Consistent between each example is the crown stem stamping.Armed with the information that I had gleaned from Dal’s blog, I turned my attention to the pipe itself. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. When I received it the pipe looked very good. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl were in good condition. There were some nicks on the right outer edge of the bowl but otherwise it looked good. The stem was vulcanite and there were some tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The stem is made for a 6mm filter or a Savinelli Balsa Filter System.The stamping on the pipe is clear and readable as noted above. There are the remnants of the crown stamp on the left side of the saddle stem.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. I started my work on this pipe by addressing the nicks along the edges. I filled them in with a clear CA glue and set them aside to cure. Once cured I blended them into the surrounding briar with a 1500 grit micromesh sanding pad. I touched up the rim top with a Walnut stain pen to blend it into the surrounding briar. I would probably need to do a bit more work on it but I liked what I saw. I sanded the bowl with micromesh sanding pads, dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I polished it with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem. I fit the stem with a Savineli 6mm Balsa System filter. The fit was perfect and the draw seems remarkably open. This Savinelli Made Duca Carlo Italian Pot with a vulcanite saddle stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The rich browns and blacks of the contrasting stains came alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 Duca Carlo Pot is a beauty and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¾ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.31oz./37grams. This beauty will be going on the rebornpipes store in the Italian Pipe Makers section. Let me know if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

A Mystery Pipe that turned out to be a Chatham Bruyere Flat Bottom Volcano

3 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe that I chose to work on is a bit of a mystery pipe that Jeff and I picked up but have no real memory of when or where. It is a sandblast volcano pipe that has a flat bottom making it a sitter. The pipe was coated in a heavy coat of varnish that made it shiny and a mess. There was a chip on rear outer edge of the bowl. It was stamped on the underside of the shank and reads CHA…[over] Bruyere. The finish was dirty and tired but had a great sandblast with grain that. The bowl had a moderate cake inside and a lava overflow and darkening on the back rim edge and top. The vulcanite stem was oxidized and had light tooth chatter and marks on the stem near the button on both sides. It had a white circle C stamp on the left side of the stem. It had a great shape to it and the blast was well done. Jeff took photos of the pipe before his cleanup. He took photos of the rim top to show the condition of the top and edges of the bowl. The cake in the bowl, the lava on the back side of the rim top and the wear on the outer edges are visible. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff took the stem off the pipe and took some photos of the stinger apparatus in the tenon and the look of the shank end and mortise.He took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the sandblast around the bowl and the condition of the pipe. It is a very unique looking pipe. You can also see the peeling and chipping varnish coat on the bowl sides. He took photos of the stamping on the underside of the shank and also of the Circle C stamp on the left side of the saddle stem. It is clear and readable as noted above.I turned first to Pipephil’s site to have a look at what was listed there in terms of pipes with stamping starting with a CHA… I wanted to see if I could decipher the mystery of the brand on this pipe. I scrolled through the list of pipes beginning with those three letters to see if any stood out as possible candidates. There were so many options and nothing stood out. Then it dawned on me that there was also a circle C stamp on the left side of the saddle stem. Perhaps with those two pieces in place I could connect the dots and find the brand. Then it was clear that I was dealing with a CHATAM Pipe. I did a screen capture of the section and have included it below (http://pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-c4.html). I turned to Pipedia to see what I could learn. There was nothing that I could find listed there so I was limited to the information on Pipephil’s site.

I knew that I was dealing with a Chatham pipe. It was stamped Chatham Bruyere on the underside of the shank. The Circle C stamp on the left side of the saddle was also the piece that gave me the link to the brand. Knowing that I had the background I needed for the brand and it was time to work on the pipe itself.

As usual Jeff had done an cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and acetone to cut through the varnish coat on the finish. Once it was cleaned off the finish he scrubbed the bowl with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the remaining grime on the finish of the bowl. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. When I received it the pipe looked very good. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl were in good condition. There were some nicks on the back outer edge of the bowl but otherwise it looked good. The stem was vulcanite and there were some tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.The stamping on the pipe is well hidden in the sandblast of the pipe. If you look at the photo below carefully you will see the stamping as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. The first photo shows the stinger in the tenon and the second shows the stinger removed.I started working on the pipe by touching up the chipped area on the back outer edge of the rim top. The chipped area was not large and it could be blended in well with the surrounding sandblast. I stained it with a walnut stain pen and it looked good. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I rubbed it into the vulcanite shank extension to we what it would do. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. I studied look of the bowl and shank and it appeared to me that the shank had been sanded down as there was a swale or dip between the shank end and the end of the blast. I put the stem back on the shank and took a few photos. The gap between the shank and the stem was also uneven. The more I looked the more I knew that it would look good with a thin band and the band would take care of the swale in the sanded part and the unevenness of the shank/stem joint.The photos show the variation in the diameter of the shank and the poor fit of the stem. I was more convinced than ever than the band was a good option. I went through my bands and found one that was a perfect fit. It was going to be a cosmetic band rather than one to repair a cracked shank. I used a dental spatula to put a ring of all purpose glue on the shank end. I pressed the band into place and I liked the looks of it. I took photos of the looks of the banded shank.I put the stem in place and took a photo of the new look of the pipe. I was liking what I saw as I look it over. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. There was a large chip out of the stem on the right underside of the stem. I filled it in with clear CA glue and set it aside to cure. Once the repair had hardened I sanded it smooth with 220 grit sandpaper to blend it into the stem surface.I touched up the stamp on the left side of the saddle stem with White Acrylic fingernail polish. I pressed it into the stamp with a tooth pick. Once it cured I polished off the excess with a 1500 grit micromesh pads. The stamping was too faint on the top portion of the C and the Circle to hold the acrylic but it is visible in person.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem. This sandblasted finish on this French Made Chatham Bruyere is beautiful. The volcano shape on the bowl and the flat bottom worked well to make it a great sitter that could be stationed next to a mug of coffee or a favourite drink while you work. The mixture of rich brown stains looked amazing and with the polishing it really came alive with buffing and waxing. I put the stem back on the shank and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Chatham Bruyere Volcano Sitter is a beauty and feels great in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¾ inches, Height: 1 ¼ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch.The weight of the pipe is 1.20 ounces/34 grams. This pipe will soon be on the French Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store if you are interested in adding it to your rack. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

A Butz-Choquin Optimal 122 sitter that can sit flat on the heel or on the bowl front

3 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe that I chose to work on is an interesting looking short pipe that Jeff and I picked up this pipe in 2019 from an antique mall in Airdrie, Alberta. We finally got around to cleaning it up a year later and restoring it two years later. That is what happens when you have a lot of pipes to work on around you every day. It has a flat bottom making it a sitter. It also was flattened on the front of the bowl which allows the smoker to stand it on the front as well. The pipe was stamped on the flat front of the bowl and reads Optimal [over] Butz-Choquin [over] des.J. Colombo. On the heel of the bowl it is stamped: Selection [over] 122 [over] Made in France [over] Modele Depose [over] No.154221. The finish was dirty and tired looking but had some great grain poking through the grime. The bowl had a thick cake inside and a lava overflow on the rim edges and top. The vulcanite shank extension was oxidized and the glue anchoring it to the shank end had dried and it come loose. It had a white bar inlay going horizontally across the top. The short, stubby vulcanite saddle stem was oxidized and had tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe before his cleanup. He took photos of the rim top to show the condition of the top and edges of the bowl. The thick cake in the bowl, the lava on the rim top and the wear on the edges are visible. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the shank extension removed from the shank and also the stem removed from the extension.He took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the grain around the bowl and the condition of the pipe. It is a very unique looking pipe. He took photos of the stamping on the front and heel of the bowl. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned first to Pipephil’s site to have a look at what was listed there and did a screen capture of the section (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-butzchoquin.html). In the side bar of the listing on the Optimal I found that pipes that were stamped like the one I was working on with des. J. Colomo dated from the 1960s and were designed by Joe Colombo. There was a photo of the designer on the site that gave an good look at the designer. It was a nice plus to be able to connect the stamping to the man who had designed the pipe.

I turned to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Butz-Choquin) to see what I could learn. I found a great read on the history of the brand but nothing on the specific Optimal brand.

I knew that I was dealing with a pipe that was designed by Joe Colombo and was made in the 1960s. He had designed some unique looking pipes and I was fortunate to be working on this unusual sitter. Knowing that I had a new appreciation for the brand and it was time to work on the pipe itself.

As usual Jeff had done a thorough cleanup on the pipe. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol. When I received it the pipe looked very good. I took a photo of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top and the inner edge of the bowl were in good condition. There were some nicks on the inner edge of the bowl and some nicks in the rim top but otherwise it looked good. The shank extension was loose and would need to be reglued. The stem was vulcanite and there were some tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.The stamping on the front of the bowl and the heel are clear and readable as noted above.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. It is a unique looking Canadian and I am looking forward to seeing what I can do with it.I started working on the pipe by reattaching the shank extension to the shank. I painted the shank extension tenon with white all purpose glue and aligned the part in the shank. I pressed it home in the shank end and wiped off the excess glue that squeezed out. I set it aside for the glue to cure.During their separation the shank somehow was slightly larger in diameter than the extension. It was not a huge difference but it was bothersome to me. I sanded shank and the extension to remove the excess on the shank itself. I used a folded piece of 220 to smooth out the transition. It took a bit of work but it was finally suitable. I worked over the damage on the rim top and on the inside of the rim edge with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. With a bit of effort the rim top and edge were in good order.I sanded the bowl and vulcanite shank extension with micromesh sanding pads, dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads and wiping it down with damp cloth after each sanding pad. As I worked through the cycle of pads the shine developed with each change of pad. The pipe looks very good.I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I rubbed it into the vulcanite shank extension to we what it would do. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar and the vulcanite shank extension took on a rich shine. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I heated the stem with the flame of a lighter until the vulcanite softened. Once it was soft I bent it so that it was like the bend in the one in the photo from Pipephil’s site.I sanded the stem surface with 220 grit sandpaper blend in the tooth marks and scratches into the surrounding surface of the stem and started polishing the stem with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. The photos below show the polished stem. This smooth finished Butz-Choquin Optimal Selection 122 Sitter designed by Joe Columbo with a flat heel and flat bowl front on which it could be laid or stood on a flat top. The rich medium brown finish looked amazing and with the polishing it really came alive with buffing and waxing. I put the stem back in the shank extension on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Butz-Choquin Optimal Sitter is a beauty and feels great in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch.The weight of the pipe is 2.12 ounces/60 grams. This pipe will soon be on the French Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store if you are interested in adding it to your rack. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!