Tag Archives: Bowl – finishing

‘Gramps’ – A Redonian Deluxe London Made 26 Rescued

Blog by Dal Stanton

I know exactly where I was when Charles Lemon, of Dad’s Pipes, posted his blog Family Heirloom Comes in from the Cold on December 22. I was dutifully, pushing the shopping cart at the Target in Golden, Colorado, while my wife and I were engaged in last-minute Christmas shopping. Well, my wife was shopping and I was catching up on pipe blog reading with my iPhone 6s. The story Charles told was of a pipe (without a stem) discovered on a stroll in a pasture, how it arrived there was a mystery, which, after some research looking at old photos, was determined to belong to a great-great uncle. The restoration was to be a Christmas gift for the great-great nephew, the pipe finder’s step-father…. It was an excellent restoration on Charles’ part, but the story itself, the condition of the pipe, the fact that it was found after how many years – contributed to one of the core reasons I love restoring pipes. As I read Charles’ heart-warming story, I found myself rooting for the pipe to make it and to again be restored to the lineage of the steward. While I continued faithfully to keep pace with the shopping cart, dodging frantic shoppers and kids on too much sugar and reading Charles’s post, ‘Gramps’ came to mind. The first time I saw the pictures of ‘Gramps’ and read the eBay seller’s comments, I determined to place my bid to rescue the old, worn out, tossed aside, pipe. Why did I immediately name him ‘Gramps’? Here is what the eBay seller said:

Vary rare REDONIAN Pipe. Found at the Estate Auction of a 98-year-old man. (Who said smoking will kill ya?…no way). So the pipe has some ware marks up by the mouth piece, see pictures. Pipe is marked bowl piece is marked 26 on one side and SARDINIAN de Luxe Made in London on the other. It is a used pipe. Ready to be Enjoyed, Gifted or Resold…ENJOY!

With a smile on my face while looking at Gramps’ pictures, notwithstanding the ‘mild’ exaggeration of the seller’s sales bravado, “Ready to be Enjoyed, Gifted or Resold…ENJOY!”, this is what I saw: I have no idea if I can bring Gramps to drink of the Fountain of Youth or not, but I’m now looking at him on my worktable here in Sofia, Bulgaria. The markings on the left shank are Redonian Deluxe over London Made. The right side of the shank bears the mark, 26, which I assume is the shape number. Surprisingly, the stem stamping is legible – a red ‘R’ ensconced in a circle. A look at Pipedia and I discover that the Redonian was made by the John Redman Ltd./British Empire Pipe Co. in London, the same company that was a possible manufacturer of the L. J. Perretti I restored not long ago – the Perretti Co. is based in Boston and the second oldest Tobacconist in the United States. According to the Pipedia article, John Redman Co. pipe lines, along with Redonian, include Aristocrat, Buckingham, Buckingham Palace, Canberra, Captain Fortune, Dr John, Golden Square, Richmond (not Sasieni), and Twin Bore. I take some additional pictures of ‘Gramps’ for a fresh look. Like Charles’ patient, this pipe looks to have been left outside or exposed in a barn or something, as half of it seems to be colored differently – laying on its side for some time. The stem has the heaviest oxidation I’ve seen to date – perhaps something else is going on – it appears to be leprous! The surface is so soiled and the cake so thick – there appears to be a spider web in the fire chamber – I really can’t determine the condition of either the stummel or stem, so after taking some pictures from my work table, I plop the stem in Oxi-Clean to start dealing with the stem leprosy and I plop the stummel along with spider web, in an alcohol bath – isopropyl 95% to soften the ages of crud clinging to the stummel – inside and out.About 24 hours later, I retrieve the stem from the Oxi-Clean bath and the oxidation was raised to the vulcanite surface as hoped and expected. I first attack the oxidation by wet standing the stem with 600 grit sanding paper. I’m very careful to stay clear of the Redonian ‘R’ stamping and work around it. I sand for quite some time. After making some progress, I switch to using 0000 steel wool to take off more oxidation and smooth in the process. Again, I’m steering clear of the ‘R’ stamping. I wish I would have taken a picture at this point. The stem is looking much improved except for the circle ‘R’ stamping – still encased in thick oxidation. I know that taking anything abrasive to the stamping will erode it and for me, this is anathema. I try another tack – I think I remember reading somewhere about using Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. I brought it to Bulgaria from the US and hadn’t used it yet. The sponge that emerges from the box would not be abrasive – I hope. So, I wet the sponge and start working on the area of the stamping. I start very cautiously and gingerly apply pressure with the sponge Magic Eraser. When I discover that it is not eating away at the stamping I apply more pressure. Before long I was working on the area aggressively. Very gradually, and without perceptible damage to the ‘R’, the oxidation disappeared – or at least, in very large measure. The last picture in the set below shows the magic brought by the Magic Eraser! I’m pleased with the progress cleaning up a once, leprous stem! Satisfied with the progress on the stem, I fish the stummel out of the alcohol bath. I use several pipe cleaners attempting to open the airway between the mortise and draft hole – unsuccessfully. I then use about a 6-inch length of hanger wire as a probe and to ream the airway gently. After a while, I finally push through the ancient muck and reconnect the mortise and bowl. After this, I put the stummel back in the alcohol bath to soak further after stirring up and opening the internals. Out of the bath again, I take Q-tip cotton swabs and pipe cleaners and clean the gunk out of the mortise and draft airway while it is still loosened. It’s cleaning up well, but I need to ream the bowl to remove the softened cake and the old residues. I want Gramps to have a new start down to the fresh briar. I use the Pipnet reaming kit using the two smaller blades of the four available. The cake comes easily. I fine tune the reaming more using the Savinelli pipe knife. I then take 240 grit sanding paper, wrapped around a Sharpie Pen and sand the chamber walls to remove the remaining carbon. I finish by cleaning the bowl using cotton pads wetted with isopropyl 95%. The fire chamber looks good – no problems, no burn throughs detected visually. The pictures mark the progress. With the bowl reamed and cleaned, I now turn to the stummel externals. I take another critical look at the stummel surface and lava flow on the rim and take a few pictures to show the condition of the briar before I use Murphy’s Oil Soap. I want to mark the progress moving from the desperate condition in which the Redonian Deluxe started. I use undiluted Murphy’s Soap and scrub the rim and stummel surface with cotton pads. I also use a bristled tooth brush to scrub the surface. After cleaning, I rinse the stummel with warm tap water careful not to allow water into the stummel internals. The rim cleans nicely and it looks good. Looking at the briar surface, not surprising I detect several pits which need to be either sanded or filled. What is emerging from underneath the gunk, grime and grunge is a piece of briar holding much potential to shine with the gradual appearance of some nice-looking grain. With my work day ending, I decide to apply olive oil to the stummel to hydrate the very dry wood – letting it absorb the oil through the night. The pictures show the progress. The next morning, I decide to further clean and purify the stummel using the salt/alcohol soak. I fill the bowl with Kosher Salt and cover the opening with my palm and shake the stummel to distribute the salt. I then place the stummel in an egg carton to give stability, and fill the stummel with isopropyl 95% until it surfaces over the salt. I then cork the mortise and let it sit and do its thing – letting the salt absorb the crud. I then turn to the stem. I clean the stem internals using pipe cleaners dipped in alcohol. Using a sharp dental probe, I dig gunk out of the slot to clean it. It takes a while to work a pipe cleaner all the way through the stem. Once I do accomplish this, I use a bristled pipe cleaner with alcohol to run it back and forth several times to clear and clean the airway – hopefully allowing a pipe cleaner easier passage. After cleaning the internals of the stem, I now look at the condition of the button area. The 98-year-old grandpa that owned the Redonian did not leave teeth marks (is that a clue to his dental condition??) but the upper and lower bits are almost flush with the stem surface. This is not good – the button edges are necessary to hang the pipe properly on the teeth so that one does not bite the stem leaving the teeth chatter and dents one must remove when restoring a pipe! I will use charcoal/superglue putty to build up the button area. I form a wedge made of index card and fit it into the slot of the stem to keep putty from covering the opening. I open a capsule of activated charcoal and pour the powder on an index card. I then put a small puddle of Hot Stuff Special ‘T’ CA glue (extra thick glue) next to the charcoal powder. With a toothpick, I draw charcoal into the glue, mixing it as I go. I continue to add charcoal powder until I reach a thickness like molasses. When I reach this viscosity, I then dollop the putty around the button area – more than is needed to provide excess to sand down to the proper button proportions. I use an accelerator to set the putty. I then remove the wedge from the slot and put the stem aside to cure. The pictures show the process. Several hours have passed since the stummel began its salt/alcohol soak. The salt has darkened some, so I assume it’s done its work! I dump the used salt from the stummel and thump it on my palm to remove lodged salt crystals. I take a paper towel and wipe out the bowl. Using a bristle brush, I clean the mortise to remove any salt lodged in the internals. I want to be sure all the salt is purged. I then return to using Q-tip cotton swabs, pipe cleaners and isopropyl 95% to complete cleaning the internals. With 2 Q-tips, the verdict is in – the Kosher Salt and alcohol soak did a great job drawing out the muck and freshening the mortise. I complete the job by wiping the chamber with a cotton pad with isopropyl 95%. Done. The pictures show the result!With the stummel now clean, I take a close look at the stummel surface to be reminded of the question areas. I take a few pictures to show these. The stummel is in surprisingly good condition for what it looked like when I started. I find some pitting on the surface that I will fill with superglue. I also detect a rim ‘skin’ on the front end of the stummel. There are also other nicks around the rim from normal wear and tear. I start preparing the stummel surface by sanding with a medium grade sanding sponge to remove a layer off the finish – to determine where fills are needed. After using the medium grade sanding sponge, I apply super glue to the 3 places on the stummel I detected earlier to fill the larger pits and a small crevasse and put the stummel aside for the superglue fills to cure. The pictures show the progress. Now to return to the stem’s button rebuild. The charcoal superglue putty has fully cured and ready for shaping. I take pictures of the upper and lower bit to mark the progress.The technique I’ve developed for button shaping is to start at the end of the stem, using a flat needle file I file to establish the vertical – perpendicular slot area – that it’s flat. This establishes a base-line for the end of the button and shaping the rest (I forgot to document this in a picture!). I then start with the upper button area with the flat needle and begin filing from the stummel-side toward the end to establish the straight edge of the button’s ‘lip’. I gradually file this toward the stem’s end until it appears a good depth for the upper button. I then file top of the bit’s lip to shape in further. When I’m satisfied with the upper button shaping, I then flip the stem over doing the same with the lower button seeking to match the upper. When the basic filing is completed, I use a pointed needle file to enlarge the slot. The pictures show the button rebuild process. To remove the roughness of the files, I then use 240 then 600 and finally 0000 steel wool to further perfect the shape and to cover the treads left by the files. Which often is the case, air pockets encased in the charcoal/superglue are exposed during the shaping and sanding process. I apply some CA glue to the button surface and paint it with a toothpick to cover the pin-sized air pocket holes and then spray an accelerator on the glue to cure it more rapidly. After a while, I return with 240, 6000 paper and then 0000 steel wool to remove the excess CA glue on the button and complete the button rebuild. The pictures show the completion of the button rebuild. With stem internals cleaned, and new button completed, I transition to the externals. Using micromesh sanding pads 1500 to 2400, careful to guard the Redonian ‘R’ stamping, I wet sand the stem and follow the set by applying Obsidian Oil. I then use micromesh pads 3200 to 4000 and after, pads 6000 to 12000 following each set with an application of Obsidian Oil. I set Gramps aside to soak in the Obsidian Oil. All I can do is to say, ‘Oh, my!’ Gramps is responding well to the TLC. The pictures tell the story – I can’t but help to throw in a reminder of how far we’ve come! With a reborn stem waiting, I turn to the stummel. The 3 pit-holes that were filled with superglue are cured. Using 240 grit paper I sand the excess glue to the surface and blend the patches. I take a close-up picture of the rim and inspect the rim more closely. Along with nicks, I can see that rim lines are not sharp. There is evidence of a bevel on the inside ring of the rim which is scorched. I decide to mildly top the stummel and reestablish a crisp bevel. The bevel will also remove the scorching I see. I use 240 grit paper on a chopping board and rotate the inverted stummel in an even, circular motion to remove old briar. I stop and check things after every couple of revolutions to make sure I’m staying level. I only take off enough to leave the former bevel more distinct. To recut the inner bevel, I use 120 grit paper rolled very tightly to create a hard-sanding surface. I want the bevel to be straight and uniform. I follow the 120 using 240 grit also tightly rolled to remove the coarser lines. The topping and bevel look good. The bowl is in-round. After completing the rim and bevel, I take a medium grade sanding sponge and then a light grade sanding sponge and sand the stummel to blend the superglue fills – careful to work around the Redonian Deluxe London Made markings on the stummel. Then, using micromesh pads 1500 to 2400 I wet sand the stummel, followed by dry sanding using micromesh pads 3200 to 4000 and then 6000 to 12000. I never tire seeing the grain emerge during this process. After I complete the micromesh cycles, I unite stummel and stem to get a look at where we are. Gramps is looking good. The pictures show the progress – woops, I forgot to take a picture after the first micromesh cycle! I’m liking very much the progress of the Redonian Deluxe London Made – aka, Gramps. I decide to use Fiebing’s Dark Brown Leather Dye with Gramps. I think the rich depth of the leather dye will create the subtle expression of the straight grain hugging the bottom of the stummel as it expands into horizontal patterns and scattered bird’s eye on top. I give the surface a quick wipe with a cotton pad to clean and remove any leftover briar dust. I use my wife’s hair dryer to warm the stummel to expand the wood to help the grain to be more receptive to the dye. I use a cork in the shank as a handle and I then take a folded over pipe cleaner and apply the dark brown dye over the entire surface. After this, I fire the wet dye which immediately burns the alcohol and sets the dye in the grain. In a few minutes, I repeat the process concluding with firing the wet dye. I put the crusted stummel aside to rest. I decide to do the same and call it a day. The pictures show the progress.The next day, after a full day’s work, I’m anxious to look at Gramps, and with the Dremel I begin unwrapping the fired dye crust. After mounting a dedicated felt wheel for applying Tripoli, I set the Dremel’s speed for 1, the slowest possible, and first purge the wheel with the sharp edge of the Dremel’s tightening wrench – to rid it of old compound and to soften the felt wheel. I apply very little pressure on the briar surface, allowing the RPMs and compound to do the work for me. To reach the inside of the bent shank elbow with the Tripoli compound, I switch to a smaller, pointed felt wheel to get in the tight angles. With the Tripoli finished, I rejoin the stem to the stummel and I mount a Blue Diamond dedicated felt wheel and again buff stem and stummel. When completed, I hand buff the pipe with a cotton cloth to remove the compound dust left over. The pictures show the progress. With the abrasive application of the compounds finished, before I apply carnauba wax to the stummel and stem, I want to dress up Gramps’ stem stamping. The original appears to have been red so I take red acrylic paint and apply a dab over the Redonian ‘R’ and circle and let it dry thoroughly – overnight. When dry, I gently rub/scrape off the excess with the flat side of a toothpick which protects the paint in the indentations. After this, I rub it well with a cotton pad to clean the remainder of the excess – gently leaving a rebranded stem – very nice, a refreshed stem stamping. The pictures show the results. With the Redonian stem stamp completed, I reunite stem and stummel and mount the cotton cloth Dremel wheel and apply several coats of carnauba wax to the pipe. I increase the speed of the Dremel to 2. I follow the carnauba wax with a vigorous hand-buff using a micromesh cloth to dissipate wax that was not spread evenly and to deepen the gloss of the shine.

When I think about the 98-year-old steward from whose estate this Redonian Deluxe London Made came, I cannot believe he would have dreamt his pipe would one day start a new lifetime serving another steward. I gave this old, worn pipe the nickname, ‘Gramps.’ Bear with me one more time to put a picture of ‘Gramps’ in front of the younger man he has now become. I’m amazed at the transformation and it is why I love this hobby – the pictures speak for themselves. I sell my restorations with the profits helping the work we do with the Daughters of Bulgaria – those sexually exploited and trafficked. This Redonian Deluxe London Made is ready to serve a new steward. If you’re interested in adopting him and helping the Daughters, check out ‘Gramps’ at The Pipe Steward Store. Thanks for joining me!

Renewing and restemming a La Strada Staccato Bent Pot

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Blog by Steve Laug

This tired old La Strada came to me for repairs. It was in rough shape. The stem had been gnawed, broken and gnawed again. The finish was shot and covered in oils and grease to the point that it was hard to see the rope rustication around the bowl. The bowl had a thick crumbling cake and smelled heavily or aromatics. The lava from the bowl had flowed over the top of the rim and darkened the finish there. The outer edge of the rim was heavily damaged on the front left side and looked as if the bowl had been dropped. There were dents on the underside of the bowl as well from a similar event. The shank was so dirty that the stem would not fit into the mortise. I was able to get it in but the fit was not tight against the shank. The shank is slightly off round so the stem was slightly different. The next photo is out of focus but the road rash on the bowl bottom is visible.I took a series of close up photos of the bowl and rim and the stem to show the condition of the pipe when I started. In the first photo you can see the thick crumbly cake and the damage to the rim surface and edges. It was hard to tell if the inner edge of the bowl was damaged and only after reaming would I be able to know for certain. The stem was a write off as the damage was too extensive to repair. The fit against the shank also warranted a new stem. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer and went through the various cutting heads. I cleaned up the remaining cake in the bowl bottom with the Savinelli Pipe Knife. I took the cake completely out of the bowl and reamed it back to bare briar.I wiped down the surface of the bowl with acetone on cotton pads to remove the finish. It came off with a bit of scrubbing but there were places where it did not come off with the acetone. It would take some sanding to remove the totality of the finish. The damage to the bowl top and outer edges required that I top the bowl. I gently topped it on the topping board so as not to remove too much and remove the smooth portion above the rope rustication on the top edge.I sanded the bowl and rim top with a medium and a fine grit sanding sponge and took the following photos. I cleaned out the internals of the shank and the replacement stem that I fit to the shank with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. It took a lot of scrubbing to get the mortise and the airway clean in the shank. The stem was in decent shape so it did not take too much work on it.I took some photos of the pipe at this point to get a feel for the look with the new stem in place. I wrapped some sandpaper around a dowel and sanded the walls and bottom of the bowl. There was a ring at the bowl bottom that was grooved and needed to be smoothed out. It did not take a lot of sanding before the inside walls were smooth.I restained the bowl with a dark brown aniline stain mixed 50/50 with isopropyl alcohol to approximate the original colour of the pipe and to highlight the grain on the pipe. I flamed the stain and repeated the process until the coverage was even around the bowl and rim.I buffed the bowl with White Diamond on the buffing wheel to even out the new finish and give it a bit of a shine. I took photos of the bowl at this point to give a clear picture of the new look. Now all that remained was to finish the fit and polishing of the stem. I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper until it fit the shank well. It took some adjusting of the diameter of the stem to match the slightly out of round shank. In the end it fit well. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding with 3200-12000 grit pads to give it a deep shine. I buffed the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel to polish the minute scratches on the vulcanite and on the briar. I buffed them both until the stem and briar glowed. I gave the bowl and stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the bowl and stem with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfibre cloth to deepen the shine. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. It is ready to go back to the pipe man who sent it to me for restemming and refurbishing. I think he will enjoy it and it will deliver a life time of good smokes to him.

Another Hole in the Wall find! Stanwell Silver Mount 85

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Blog by Dal Stanton

I first laid my eyes on the Danish made, Stanwell Silver Mount a couple of weeks ago, not really knowing what I was seeing. I was giving a tour to a new team member who had just arrived in Bulgaria. As part of orientation I take ‘newbies’ on a tour of the center of Sofia – I sprinkle in a bit of history, architecture, politics, religion and culture as we stroll through the streets and boulevards. The tour was also the perfect opportunity to showcase a ‘typical’ Bulgarian antique shop – I’m always looking for a way to drop by the ‘Hole in the Wall’ where I’ve landed several great pipes in past visits. As my guest surveyed the shelves of stuff stacked on stuff, I went directly to THE basket, stuffed up into one area among the artifacts, where I started plucking through the newer offerings of pipes added since my last visit – since before Christmas. I did spy a very nice unmarked Brandy shape with a hearty stummel. When the shop owner diverted my attention, conspiratorially confiding that there was something he wanted me to see – my curiosity heightened. He pulled the Stanwell out from a closed cabinet which always is an indicator of a treasure of greater value. I left the Hole in the Wall with the pipe on my mind but not in my pocket. A week later, I returned to the Hole in the Wall with two other people as part of another tour. This time, however, I wanted to see the Stanwell again – hoping it was still there. It was. This time I took pictures and dickered a bit, but again, left without a pipe. I wanted to do some research on this Stanwell and send a note off to Steve to get his feedback, including some of the pictures I took at the Hole in the Wall.

His response was to the point: “That line of Stannies is a pricey one. Nice find.” Added to this was confirmation that the asking price was indeed very reasonable! That sealed the deal for me and with resolve (after receiving my wife’s blessings) I returned to the Hole in the Wall the next day and negotiated a favorable deal. Sweetening the transaction of the Stanwell was bundling the Brandy Unmarked I saw in the basket. I’m a good customer and he agreed to a “good customer” price. He was happy and I walked out of the Hole in the Wall this time with two nice pipes – but the Stanwell was the find pipe pickers place their hopes!

With my newest Hole in the Wall find now in front of me, I take more pictures for evaluation. On the lower side of the shank is stamped Stanwell over Made in Denmark over Silver over Mount. Unfortunately, through wear or over-aggressive buffing, the ‘S’ of Stanwell and the “Ma” in Made in Denmark are very thin. There is a shape number on the right side of the shank stamped 85 – I’ll need to research this to see if I can place this pipe with the plethora of information about Stanwell pipes on the internet. Both the shank’s ferrule and the military or spigot mounted stem’s band, have 925 stamped – the world-wide authentication of sterling silver (.925). What I did not see in the poor lighting of the Hole in the Wall, was that the mortise ferrule also had Stanwell stamped in the sterling. The silver inlaid crowned “S” stem cartouche is in good shape. The acrylic stem has many scuffs and nicks and tooth chatter near the button. The rim and bowl surfaces also are nicked and dented a good bit. As a matter of personal taste, I am not too partial to the black finish that hides the briar grain. These pictures fill in the gaps. My first time dealing with a Stanwell pipe was with a second – a Danske Club Vario, a very nice pipe also landed at the Hole in the Wall. Pipedia’s article describes the beginning of the well-known Danish pipe making company, Stanwell:

At the end of the war, briar became available again, so Nielsen began importing his own briar and started making briar pipes to compete with the English manufacturers. It must be remembered that in 1948, England was the single great center for pipe making. Therefore, Nielsen changed the name of his pipes to “Stanwell”, which sounded much more like a proper English name than “Nielsen”. He also created the horse-drawn carriage logo for its English connotations. He later changed his own last name from Nielsen to Stanwell, a testament to his devotion to the pipes he made. Stanwell’s relationships with Danish pipe makers goes back to Sixten Ivarsson, who is considered the originator of modern Danish pipe making. Ivarsson was commissioned to design Stanwell shapes. In 1969, the factory was moved to a town called Borup, just outside of Copenhagen to be closer to Ivarsson.

To establish the date of this Stanwell Silver Mount style, thanks to Bas Stevens’ extensive compilation of Stanwell pipe shapes posted on Rebornpipes, the shape number 85 is listed as a bent billiard which was discontinued in 2006 (changed to shape number 246). I also found the Silver Mount style featured in two Stanwell catalogs listed in Pipedia’s collection. One ‘Brochure by the Lorup Group’ displayed samplings of the Silver Mount style but I could not establish the date of the brochure. The other was a Russian catalog of Stanwell offerings including Silver Mounts dated 2001. This pipe could predate 2001 but the latest possible dating would be 2006 when the shape number was discontinued. Since Stanwell closed the doors of their manufacturing operations in Denmark and moved it to Italy in 2009 (link above), this confirms the Danish origin of the pipe. The Silver Mount style is unique, not only because it provides two large sterling silver adornments to the classic bent billiard shape – a shank ferrule and stem band insert, but it creatively immolates a military or spigot stem mount. I found two different comments on SmokingPipes.com about Stanwell’s Silver Mount line. The first highlighted Stanwell’s Silver Mount shape 85:

If you like the look of a military or spigot mount but prefer a more conventional tenon/mortise arrangement, this Stanwell offers both — along with an elegant, graceful silhouette and plenty of chamber to boot.

Of the stem style itself, there was this comment, that even though not a true military mount, since it has a tenon instead of a tapered fit, it nonetheless is one of the best faux-military mounts this observer had seen. The sense I have of the pipe’s design is that it is an interesting mixture of higher class elegance with the ample showcase of sterling silver, but with the military/spigot stem style a ruggedness is also introduced. My challenge now is to help this Stanwell, a ‘knight in shining armor’, regain its former glory! The sterling silver ferule mounted on the shank is easily removed. This will help the ease of the stummel’s cleanup. The chamber in this billiard is large with a depth measurement of 1 3/4 inches and width of 7/8 inches – a good long smoker able to pack a bowl of one’s favorite blend. The chamber is lightly caked but I want to clean it down to fresh briar. I do this with my Savinelli pipe knife working over a paper towel for easy disposal of the carbon. The reaming did not take long. Then I take a rolled piece of 240 grit sanding paper wrapped around both my index finger and then a Sharpie pen and sand the chamber wall. I finish the bowl cleaning by using a cotton pad wetted with isopropyl 95% and wash the chamber. The fire chamber looks good – I see no problems. The pictures show the progress. With isopropyl 95% on the work table, I turn directly to cleaning the stummel internals. Using pipe cleaners, Q-tips dipped in alcohol, I work cleaning the mortise. Using the flat edge of a dental spade, I scrape the sides of the mortise walls cleaning the tars and gunk. The Q-tips and pipe cleaners are doing the job. Later, I will also give the stummel a Kosher salt and alcohol soak to freshen the internals even more. On a roll, I take the acrylic stem and clean the internals with pipe cleaners and Q-tips in the 9mm tenon area with alcohol. There was little resistance. With a cotton pad wetted with isopropyl, I also give the stem’s and mortise’s sterling silver an initial cleaning and polishing. The progress is shown. With internals finished, I take another look at the stummel and take a few close-ups looking closely at the surface and rim. As I said earlier, personally, I’m not a fan of the solid black finish. My standing ovations are roused by gazing upon natural briar grains! In my research looking into the Silver Mount line of Stanwell in catalogs, I came across a similar Stanwell line called the, ‘Silhouette Pipe’, featuring several different shapes with the same black finish. My plan is to remove the black finish and repair the stummel and rim surfaces, then apply a darker stain that is essentially black, but allowing the grain to be seen. This will maintain the sleek, dark look of the bent billiard and continue to set it off in sharp contrast to the sterling silver ferrule and band along with the classic silver crowned ‘S’ Stanwell inlaid silver cartouche. With this plan before me, I use acetone to remove the finish. Not knowing how tough the finish will stand, I start with a cotton pad wetted with acetone and see how the work progresses. The cotton pads wetted with acetone are not making much progress so I add the gentle abrasion of 0000 steel wool. I am careful to avoid the nomenclature on the lower part of the shank as well as the shape number. With these areas, I only use cotton pads and a bristled tooth brush, acetone and a lot of elbow grease. I do not want to erode the stampings! As the black finish gradually gives way, I’m amazed that Stanwell covered such a beautiful piece of briar! The straight grains travel vertically up the bowl from the heel of the stummel which holds a nest of bird’s eye grain – the whole effect is like a camp fire flowing upward from the fire pit. With the black finish removed, I’m able to see some small pin hole pitting exposed on the surface. To address this, I use a medium grade sanding sponge followed by a light grade sanding sponge to remove most of the pitting as well as nicks that remained on the rim. The pictures show the progress. With the initial stummel prep complete, I decide to use the Kosher Salt and alcohol soak to clean the internal airway and mortise more fully. Using Kosher salt (versus iodized which can leave an after-taste) I fill the bowl and then after corking the shank opening, I hold my palm over the bowl and give the stummel a shake. This displaces the salt a bit into the mortise. I then pour isopropyl 95% into the bowl until it fills just over the level of the salt. I put the stummel in an egg crate for stability and put it aside for 4 to 5 hours to let the salt and alcohol draw out the tars and oils residing in the briar. The pictures show this process.With the stummel is ‘cooking’ with the salt/alcohol soak, I turn my attention to the stem. The question and concern that comes to mind is the care in cleaning the stem while protecting the sterling silver band that is attached to the stem? Will sanding the stem damage the band if the sanding runs over the edge? Unlike the sterling silver shank ferrule that came off easily, the stem band is not going anywhere. Just to get an idea how well the silver will clean up before I start on the stem clean up, I take the shank ferrule and apply Weiman Silver Cream to it. As the directions describe, using the sponge in the container, applying the compound, rubbing then rinsing off with tap water. Wow! It works well. The pictures show the result!I move forward with caution with the acrylic stem by protecting both the crowned ‘S’ stem mark and the sterling silver band. I do this by holding my thumb over the areas to keep the sanding instruments at bay. After taking a few ‘before’ pictures to mark progress, I begin addressing the rough scratches in the acrylic with 240 grit paper to do the heavy lifting. I also work out the teeth chatter in the bit area – upper and lower. Following the 240 grit paper, I use 600 grit paper and then 0000 steel wool, taking a picture at each step to mark the progress. Following the steel wool, I run the stem through the complete 1500 to 12000 micromesh pad treatment, taking a picture at the customary sets of 3. In the final set, I also apply Weiman Silver Cream to the sterling silver band to spruce it up. I discovered along the way, that the finer grade micromesh pads were not a problem for either the band or Stanwell stem mark – they shine up quite nicely! I’m pleased with the progress. With stem completed, I again look to the stummel which is benefiting from a Kosher Salt and alcohol soak. The salt has darkened somewhat indicating the success of the process. I dump out the old salt, thumping it on my palm to rid the stummel of the expended salt. I use a paper towel to clean the bowl and I also utilize bristle brushes and pipe cleaners dipped in isopropyl 95% to further clean the airway and mortise. Time to address the finish of the stummel. I use an Italian stain which is called Wenge’ – it appears to have a black base. After I heat the stummel with my wife’s hair dryer, I liberally apply the stain to the stummel with a folded over pipe cleaner. I fire the dye and the alcohol immediately burns off. After a few minutes, I repeat the process and fire the stain. Then, within a few minutes, I use a cotton pad and wipe the stummel with isopropyl 95% to blend the stain in the wood. After wiping the stummel down with alcohol, I decide to switch and use a black water based dye and mix it 50 to 50 with isopropyl 95%. I apply the mixture to the stummel with a folded over pipe cleaner and fire the stummel again. With this mixture, it did not ‘fire’ the way an aniline dye will but it did evaporate as I passed it over a lit candle. This helped to set the dye in the grain. I set the stummel aside to rest. The pictures show the progression. Well, in the interest of full disclosure, what is not pictured are the several iterations of applying ‘black’ stain to this stummel. When I first ‘unwrapped’ the stummel from the fired crust, buffing with my Dremel using Tripoli and then Blue Diamond compounds with a cotton cloth wheel, I was not satisfied with the hue of black I saw emerge. I wanted the finish to be a translucent black, allowing grain to show through, but in black spectrum hues. What I was seeing was the brown of the grain emerging giving more of a dark chocolate brown look. I repeated the staining several times, changing up the black dye content and alcohol, flaming and then wiping the stummel with a cotton pad wetted in isopropyl 95% to blend the stain with the briar and each time repeated buffing with Blue Diamond with the Dremel cotton cloth wheel. I finally started seeing emerge a stummel that correlated with the image in my mind – a black stummel, in keeping with the original Stanwell intent, but with subtle grains showing through. Satisfied finally with the result, I move on and apply several coats of carnauba wax to the stummel and to the acrylic stem with the Dremel’s cotton cloth wheel set to speed 2 (one notch up from the slowest speed). I also attach the sterling shank ferrule with a bit of super glue to keep it in place and finish with a rigorous hand-buffing of stummel, sterling, and stem with a micromesh cloth.

It is true, personal tastes are subjective, but my sense is that I’ve improved this dressy Stanwell Silver Mount bent billiard by transforming the solid black to a translucent finish allowing the natural grains to show through. This presentation of grain pattern is subtle and I believe it is in keeping with this special line of Stanwell pipes, the Silver Mount. You’ll notice at the end of the presentation pictures below, I’ve included two pictures taken on a dark surface which enables the grain to be seen more clearly. Stanwell’s retired shape number 85 is a larger bent billiard with a pleasing feel in the palm. The faux military stem mount brings a rugged look to the pipe but the twin sterling silver adornments, uniting the shank and acrylic stem, places this Stanwell a touch of class. This Stanwell Silver Mount bent billiard is ready to serve a new steward. If you’re interested in this pipe, check out the store at my new site, The Pipe Steward. The profits of all pipe sales go to the Daughters of Bulgaria, an organization my wife and I work with helping women and children who have been sexually exploited and trafficked. Thanks for joining me!

Checkered History and Heritage of an East German Howal Old Briar Rustified Dublin

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Blog by Dal Stanton

Finally, a ‘simple’ clean up! Or, so I hope. The Howal has been in my ‘Help Me!’ basket for some time. I bought him from a vendor in an antique market, in the shadow of Nevski Cathedral in downtown Sofia, Bulgaria. It was from the same young man I purchased, out of his bag of pipe parts, an orphaned stummel which became my maiden restoration project published on Reborn Pipes. I titled it, A Newbie Restore of a Dr. Plumb 9456 Oom Paul – only it wasn’t an Oom Paul. Al Jones’ (aka, Upshallfan) comment to my first blog observed correctly: “the 9456 is a classic GBD shape, although it is considered to be a Bent Billiard (rather than a Oom-Paul).” I’m thankful for much ‘newbie’ grace I have received! Though, the pipe’s name is still Chicho Pavel, Bulgarian for Uncle Paul! He continues to be a favorite in my rotation and a special friend. The Howal (over Old Briar) Rustified Dublin now before me is of interest to me partly because of its origins. The pictures from my work table give an overview of the pipe itself. The Howal name is of interest to me because it originated from behind the former ‘Iron Curtain’ in East Germany during a geopolitical climate rife with change and human tragedy. My wife and I have spent over two decades living behind what was formerly the Iron Curtain and this is the second Howal I’ve found in the same Antique Market here in Bulgaria. The question that comes to my mind is whether Howals are more commonly found in Eastern Europe where perhaps, they were circulated under the old USSR in an enforced socialist, command economy? Pipedia’s article was both interesting and helpful in understanding the predecessor of and origins of the Howal name:

C.S. Reich was founded by Carl Sebastian Reich in Schweina, Germany in 1887. By its 50th jubilee in 1937 C.S. Reich was the biggest pipe factory in Germany. In 1952, however, the owners of the company were imprisoned and the company itself was nationalized as Howal, an abbreviation of the German words for “wood products Liebenstein” or “Holzwaren Liebenstein”. By the 1970’s Howal, after acquiring many other smaller pipe making firms, was the sole maker of smoking pipes in East Germany. In 1990, with the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification of the Germanys, the company was closed.

While helpful for a broad sweep, I discovered much missing from this summary and it raises more questions. From another interesting source, Edith Raddatz’s lecture on tobacco pipe production in Schweina at the Tobacco Pipe Symposium in 2003, it describes a history of pipe production in this central German village that was reminiscent of my research into France’s pipe mecca, St. Claude. A strong development of the pipe making industry can be traced in the 1800s to the apex of the C.S. Reich Co. being Germany’s largest pipe producer in 1937, but Raddatz’s lecture reveals that other producers of pipes were also based in the German village of Schweina. Pipedia’s article above describes how the owners of the C.S. Reich Co. were arrested and imprisoned followed by the nationalization of the Reich Co. and becoming ‘Howal’, an acronym for “Wood Products Liebenstein” – Bad Liebenstein was the town that bordered and absorbed the village of Schweina. The question begs to be asked – which, unfortunately introduces the human tragedy wrapped around the name ‘Howal’ – Why were the owners arrested? In an unlikely source, the website of the ‘Small Tools Museum’ adds the names of those imprisoned: shareholders Robert Hergert and Karl Reich.

Edith Raddatz’s lecture (referenced above) brings more light to the difficult geopolitical realities these people faced (Google translated from German – brackets my clarifications):

By 1945 the company, which had meanwhile [passed to] the next generation – Kurt Reich And Walter Malsch – [had] about 100 employees. Among them were many women who mainly did the painting work. At the beginning of the 1950s, an era ended in Schweina. The first [oldest] tobacco pipe factory in Schweina closed their doors. There were several reasons for this. Kurt Reich passed away in 1941, [and] Walter Malsch [in] 1954. The political situation in the newly founded GDR made the conditions for private entrepreneurship difficult. The heirs of the company “AR Sons” [Reich family] partly moved to West Germany. The operation was nationalized and later toys were made there.

In post WWII occupied Germany, the Soviet occupied section was declared to be a sovereign state and the German Democratic Republic (GDR) was established in 1949 (See link). With a rudimentary understanding of Marxism and the economic philosophy undergirding it, it is not difficult to deduce what brought the demise of the C. S. Reich Co. and the formation of Howal. Solidification of the FDR’s hold on power paralleled the necessity to nationalize private ownership and to institute a State-centered command economy. These efforts gained momentum and forced companies/workers to work more with no additional pay. In 1952, the year that the owners of C. S. Reich Co., were arrested, this edict was advanced (See link):

In July 1952 the second party conference of the Socialist Unity Party of Germany (SED) took place in East Berlin. In SED General Secretary Walter Ulbricht‘s words, there was to be the “systematic implementation of Socialism” (planmäßiger Aufbau des Sozialismus); it was decided that the process of Sovietization should be intensified and the importance of the state expanded. The party was acting on demands made by Soviet premier Joseph Stalin.[2]

As a result, Germany remembers the Uprising of 1953 which started in East Berlin, as factory workers revolted against the repression of the GDR, and spread to all East Germany. Many lost their lives as Moscow responded to squelch the unrest with tanks on the streets. In play also, was the mass exodus of people fleeing to West Germany, which included, per Edith Radditz’s lecture, the Reich family, who would have been heirs of the family’s legacy and company – pipe making. Also in 1953, completing the State forced abolition of any Reich claim, the largest pipe making company of Germany was seized, nationalized, and changed from C. S. Reich Co. to Howal. As ‘Howal’, pipes continued to be produced, undoubtedly with the same hands and sweat of the people of Schweina, along with other wooden products, such as toys. In the Pipedia article I quoted above, it said:

By the 1970’s Howal, after acquiring many other smaller pipe making firms, was the sole maker of smoking pipes in East Germany. In 1990, with the fall of the Berlin Wall and reunification of the Germanys, the company was closed.

My curiosity piqued, what does it mean when it says that Howal acquired many other smaller pipe making firms? Should we question whether these words can be understood in the normal free market enterprise way we are accustomed? Doubtful.

As I now look at this Howal before me, it is with a greater connection to its checkered past, the people of Germany’s pipe making heritage, and specifically, to the hands that drilled, shaped and finished the pipe. The possible dating of this Howal spans from 1953 to 1990, when the Howal factory was closed for good with the fall of the Berlin Wall and the old USSR (See link). The Howal markings on the left side of the shank are in very good shape. The rustification is very attractive in the Dublin style – definitely an ‘olde world’ feel. There are some marks on the rim. The bowl is totally free of cake – someone did some clean-up work before coming to me. The dark color of the stummel appears to be paint or a black stain – I can see brown around the nomenclature on the shank. I will clean the stummel with Murphy’s and see what happens. There is no oxidation on the stem nor teeth chatter or dents. So, could this Howal be only a simple cleaning and freshening?

I start by taking a picture of the rim and markings to take a closer look at areas of question. Then using Q-tips and pipe cleaners with isopropyl 95% I start cleaning the stummel internals. After only one plunge of a Q-tip, I see that the mortise is full of the black finish that is also on the external surface. I find no tobacco gunk in the mortise, only black dye – or whatever it is. After several Q-tips and some pipe cleaners, I decide simple to fill the mortise with isopropyl and let it soak for a few hours. This did the trick. After pouring off the dirty isopropyl the Q-tips, after the soak, started coming out clean very quickly. Stummel done. The stem required very little effort. The pictures show the progress. I take undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and scrub the stummel surface with cotton pads and a bristled brush. I want to test the finish to see how solid it is as well as clean the grime out of the rustification ridges. After a good scrub, I rinse the soap of the stummel with tap water, careful not to allow water inside. After drying, I have two impressions of the black finish. First, the splotched glossy areas left over from the Murphy’s scrub remind me of the acrylic finishes that I’ve seen on smooth briars. Secondly, the finish now is speckled where the briar is coming through. Decision time. A plan starts formulating in my mind. I like the rustification of the Howal Dublin and I very much like the feel of the Dublin in my hand – it has a good ‘meditation’ appeal, which is a good quality for a pipe J. Yet, truth be known, I’m not a fan of the black finish. To me it is plain and stark – it lacks depth and interplay with the tight, crisp rustification patterns. I decide to continue scrubbing the surface with Murphy’s Soap to remove the remaining glossy spots but to leave the black hue in place. After Murphy’s, I use some isopropyl 95% with a cotton pad and work on the glossy areas. While not 100% gloss free, the last picture shows sufficient progress. I will give more thought to the plan at this point. The pictures tell the story. With a night of rest now fueling the thoughts, I decide to use the dark stain on the stummel as a back coat for a subtle Oxblood over-coat. My goal is to create more depth in the rustification by introducing another hue. I begin preparation of the stummel by very lightly sanding the top peaks of the rustification ridges with a 1500 grade micromesh pad. I do this to create entry points for the new dye in raw briar opened by the sanding. I’m thinking of the restoration I did with the classic rustified Lorenzo Rialto for the basic approach I’m now employing. I want the surface to be clean so I follow the sanding by wiping the surface with a cotton pad and isopropyl 95%. I use a black Sharpie pen to darken the worn ring of bare briar around the rim of the Dublin for better blending. I included a picture of the Lorenzo Rialto to get an idea of where I’m hopefully heading! In preparation to apply the stain, I cover the Howal gold lettering stamping with a bit of Petroleum Jelly to protect it. Using my wife’s hair dryer, I warm the stummel to open the briar to the new dye. Using a cork inserted in the bowl as a handle, I liberally apply Fiebing’s Oxblood Leather Dye to the surface of the stummel with a doubled pipe cleaner – careful to cover the entire stummel and rim. After the initial application, I fire the aniline dye and the alcohol burns off quickly setting the hue in the briar. After a few minutes, I repeat the process to assure an ample coverage and put the stummel aside to rest. The pictures show the progress. With the newly dyed stummel resting, since the Howal’s stem came to me in good condition – no tooth chatter or dents, I start wet sanding the stem using micromesh pads 1500 to 2400. I follow the wet sanding with an application of Obsidian Oil on the hungry vulcanite. I then dry sand with micromesh pads 3200 to 4000 and then 6000 to 12000 – following each set with an application of Obsidian Oil. The stem looks great – that newly polished vulcanite pop is very nice. I put the stem aside to dry. The pictures show the progress. Time to ‘unwrap’ the fired, crusted Oxblood dye I applied to the dark stummel. I mount a new felt polishing wheel on the Dremel and set the speed to the slowest setting and utilize the fine abrasion of Tripoli compound to take the crusted layer off. Patiently, I move the wheel across the surface in a circular motion, allowing the RPMs of the Dremel and the compound to do the work – I apply little downward pressure on the briar. As the results started to appear, I see the Oxblood speckling I was hoping to see, but not as much. I decide to follow by lightly sanding the rustified surface with a 1500 micromesh pad. This resulted in the direction I wanted to go, but I wanted the Oxblood hints, beginning to peek out, to be a few shades darker, richer. Even though I had already put away the stain and cleaned up, I decide to repeat the staining as before – hopefully to realize the results I can envision in my mind. The bottom picture in the set shows the stummel after the second staining with Frieberg’s Oxblood Leather Dye – not looking much different than before but simply to chronicle my procedure. The first picture, after the Tripoli then after, the sanding show the developing motif with the Oxblood and the rustification. After several hours, admittedly, I was a bit impatient to unwrap the fired crust the second time around. In the time in between, I had some time to think about the next step. My usual approach is to use a felt polishing wheel with the application of Tripoli compound to smooth briars. A felt wheel is flatter and firmer than a cotton cloth wheel and therefore, more abrasive than the cotton cloth wheel. With use on a rustified surface, I’m thinking that the felt wheel might possibly ride more naturally on the peeks of the raised ridges and possible do its work unevenly – at least in theory. My usual approach with the Dremel is to use a cotton cloth wheel when coming to the carnauba wax polishing stage. I decide to mount a cotton cloth wheel for both compounds I employ, Tripoli and Blue Diamond, and see how it goes. With the new cotton cloth wheel mounted on the Dremel, I’m ready to put theory into practice first with the Tripoli compound. The only problem breaking in a new cotton cloth wheel is that loose fibers run amuck and I’m covered! I continue to use the slowest speed the Dremel can offer for the compound. After the Tripoli, again with a new cotton cloth wheel, I apply Blue Diamond compound. I am truly amazed at the subtle Oxblood texturing that emerges – it is working! I find that I spent more time with the Tripoli as the Tripoli was the abrasive that created the effects of the Oxblood speckles. Where there were none or few Oxblood accents, I focused the Tripoli wheel at that area and the highlights would begin to appear. With the Blue Diamond I spend much less time as it was shining what was already revealed not bringing out more. I take a picture after the compound phase. After the compounds, I hand buff the stummel with a cotton cloth, not so much as to shine the stummel but to remove residue compound powders left over. I do this before the application of carnauba wax, also with a cotton cloth wheel, but with the Dremel increased to number 2 of 5 (being the fastest). After reuniting the stummel and stem, I give both several applications of carnauba wax. The only difference in technique with the wax is that with a small, Dremel polishing wheel, I am able strategically to apply the wax so it doesn’t get gunked up in the ridges of the rustification. I keep the wheel parallel with the grain and follow the ridges/valleys as I apply the carnauba. With the compounds, you are still sanding and ‘taking off’ from the finish, even though it’s shining things. With the wax, you’re not taking but leaving something behind – the wax has the purpose of polishing and protecting the finish. After applying the carnauba, I decide to do one more thing to recommission the rustified Dublin. With Rub ‘n Buff European Gold Wax Metallic Finish, which I just acquired during my Christmas visit to the States, I spruced up the Howal nomenclature. I applied the Rub ’n Buff with a pointed Q-tip and carefully wiped the excess. After dried, again I spruced up the area with a few passes of the carnauba wax wheel. A few pictures show the before and after. To finish, I give the stummel and stem a rigorous hand buffing with a micromesh cloth to bring out and deepen the shine.

I have a deeper appreciation for the name this rustified Dublin carries. Understanding the past helps us to stay rooted in the present. I appreciate better the legacy of the Howal name and the journey of the Carl Sebastian Reich family beginning in Schweina, Germany in 1887. I’m very pleased with the results of the Oxblood finish. In the presentation pictures below, I had to take some unusually close shots to see the subtle Oxblood highlights hidden by the reflection of the light. To me, the finish adds depth and texture to the attractive rustified Dublin. If you would like to add this Howal Old Briar to your pipe collection and stories, see my blog at The Pipe Steward. Thanks for joining me!

A Gold Banded Bent Dublin Eldorado Lucite of Italy

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Blog by Dal Stanton

When I first saw this Eldorado Lucite, I believed it to be a Zulu or Woodstock, the Dublin’s smaller cousin. In the end, I settled on it being a bent Dublin because the stummel was larger than I would expect a Zulu’s to be. When I saw the Eldorado Lucite bent Dublin on the eBay auction block, two things, no, three things drew my attention motivating me to slog through the bidding and bring this pipe home to Bulgaria. First, the shape is very attractive – I like the curve of the Dublin’s natural ‘nose-forward’ stummel flowing to and through the stem; an attractive pipe, I wanted to try it out in my palm. Secondly, the briar’s potential. I love taking smooth briars and bringing out the grain to encourage a double-take. The straight grain of the Eldorado is nice. Thirdly, the band – a touch of class for any pipe, but for this pipe, also raises some questions. The following eBay photos from the seller show what I saw. When I retrieved this pipe out of the “Help Me!” basket in Sofia, I take a fresh look at the Eldorado over Lucite – stamped distinctly on the left shank. The right shank shows Imported Briar over Italy. Both stamps are obstructed/hidden somewhat by the band which immediately brings into question the possibility of the band being part of a cracked shank repair. I would not think the original design would include a band hiding part of the nomenclature, but I might be wrong! After removing the stem, I inspect the mortise and conclude that a crack may be there, but it’s not conclusive – at least to me. The band is gold and stamped with hallmarks of 1/20 14KT (ensconced in a diamond) G.F. Looking on the internet, I discover from RareGoldJewelry.com these hallmarks indicate the ratio of gold in the band is at about 1 to 20. Rated at 14 karats means that it’s approximately 58% gold and the band is ‘gold filled’ rather than ‘gold plated.’ Regarding gold filled and gold plated, eBay’s buyers’ guide jewelry describes the difference:

Gold-filled jewelry is much more valuable than gold-plated. In fact, there is almost 100 percent more gold in gold-filled items than is found in gold-plated items. Just as gold-plated jewelry is plated with gold, gold-filled jewelry is as well, but there is a big difference between the ways these products are made. Gold-filled items have a much thicker layer of gold on them, and the gold is a much higher quality. In fact, it is just a step down from solid gold when it comes to quality and value. Speaking of solid gold, pure gold is very soft and is not a good choice for jewelry; that is why an alloy is almost always used for gold jewelry items, even in jewelry pieces worth an incredible amount of money.

If this band is part of a cracked shank repair, which doesn’t appear to be the case, it seems that whoever had this pipe valued it quite a bit to add a gold band. Another question is raised regarding the name – Eldorado Lucite. According to the compilation of Herb Wilczak & Tom Colwell (3/3/97) ‘Who Made That Pipe’ (Yes, Santa brought this!) lists Eldorado as Maker or Seller as the Linkman Co./ Parker Pipe and country USA/ENGL. My subsequent research into Linkman turned up the connection to Dr. Grabow pipes – ‘Eldorado’ is a high-end pipe of Dr. Grabow – which doesn’t fit the pipe before. Dr. Grabow pipes are usually marked as such. Parker Pipe Company turned up nothing too. This pipe is also stamped, Italy, but does this mean country of manufacturer or source of the briar in this case? – as the right shank has the marking ‘IMPORTED BRIAR’ over ‘ITALY’. Would the ‘Imported Briar’ indicate a US manufacturing – the usual US marking and spelling? But this, I found is not always the case. One more question that doesn’t find answers in my research – Eldorado Lucite – does ‘Lucite’ refer to a unique pipe name or is it referring to the stem material with which it was originally outfitted? If this is the case, is the stem now with this Dublin a replacement because it certainly isn’t Lucite but vulcanite? Yet, as I look at the stem, it works VERY well with the stummel and shape – it doesn’t appear to be a replacement stem. So are the many questions this beautiful pipe creates, but now I turn to the pipe itself and take more pictures to fill in the gaps! The stummel appears to be in good condition except I detect what might be an acrylic finish with normal wear marks and scratches on top of it. I’ll want to clean the old finish off. The bowl has moderate cake build up and old dottle flakes left in the bottom. I’ll remove the cake bringing the bowl down to the briar for a fresh start. The rim looks to be in good condition structurally, but has light lava flow and possibly some scorching. I need to clean the rim to assess this fully. The stem is attractive. I’m not sure if it has a special name, but it flays out from the shank and the button is fanned – a fish tail? It has minor oxidation. There are tooth dents on the upper and lower button area and a possible crack on the slot side through the button lip pictured above. I’ll need to look closely at this. The band is in good shape – I’ll polish it simply with a clean cloth, no more!

I begin the clean-up of the Eldorado Lucite by plopping the stem into the Oxi-Clean bath to work the oxidation to the surface of the vulcanite. I take the Pipnet reaming kit out and discover that the conical chamber is too tight and angled in the Dublin’s shape to employ the reaming blades. I’ll use the Savinelli pipe knife instead to ream the bowl. With the Savinelli pipe knife I make good progress removing the cake in the tight quarters of this chamber. Following the reaming, I sand the chamber walls with 240 grit paper wrapped around a Sharpie pen and then finish by wiping the chamber with cotton pads and isopropyl 95% to remove the carbon dust. The chamber looks good. The pictures show the progress. Before continuing with cleaning the external stummel, I tackle the internals with pipe cleaners and Q-tips and isopropyl 95%. The cleaning job proves to be a bit more than I expected. I’m not positive about the internal layout and drilling of the mortise but it ‘feels’ like there is a gunk trap slightly below the air passage leading out toward the draft hole in the chamber. After building a good mountain of expended Q-tips and pipe cleaners, and after looking at the lateness of the hour, I decide to give the stummel a salt soak, and let the Kosher salt and alcohol do some of the work for me. I put the stummel in an egg crate to keep it stable, and fill the bowl with kosher salt which is not iodized – iodine can leave a taste (Thanks to Charles Lemon of Dad’s Pipes for this information). I cover the bowl with my hand and give it a bit of a shake to displace the salt. After corking the shank side, I fill the bowl with isopropyl 95% and turn out the light. The next morning I see that the salt has darkened a bit and I toss the used salt into the waste basket. I take a paper towel and wipe out the remaining salt from the bowl and use a bristle bush both in the bowl and the mortise making sure that salt residue is purged. I then return to cleaning with Q-tips, pipe cleaners and isopropyl and finish the internals very quickly. Done! The pictures show the progress. Time to retrieve the stem from the Oxi-Clean bath and I see that the oxidation has risen to the vulcanite surface which is shown very nicely in the first picture below. I attack the oxidation by wet sanding with 600 grit paper. I follow this by using 0000 steel wool to remove more oxidation and begin the smoothing process as well. Following this, I work on cleaning the internals of the stem with pipe cleaners and isopropyl. It was going so well until it wasn’t! Earlier, you recall, as I was doing the initial inspection of the stem, I identified what appeared to be a crack on the left side of the button. The pressure exerted by the pipe cleaners exacerbated this crack and now I see fissures developing in the vulcanite – not only at the original crack sighting but now also on the right side of the button. It would not be difficult to project the path of the fault line and the ultimate stem break if not addressed. Ugh! The pictures tell the story. Oh, ‘the best laid plans of mice and men’ – my plan is to apply thin CA Instant Glue to the cracks to seal them and hopefully to stop the fissure’s progress. I fold a piece of index card and cover it with tape and insert it in the slot to keep glue from possibly entering the airway. It also serves to ‘torque up’ a bit, and opening the cracks a hair to allow better glue penetration. After this, I will build up the button with a mixture of charcoal dust and super glue and redefine the bit hopefully to reinforce the area. I put the stem aside for the glue to cure. The pictures show the progress. After the initial CA glue cures, I start the button rebuild. I use 240 grit sanding paper to rough up the button area, upper and lower. Then I clean the area with a cotton pad and isopropyl to prepare for the charcoal/glue putty. While in the States for Christmas, I picked up a bottle of activated charcoal capsules. In the past, using a mortar and pestle, I had to grind up granulated charcoal which was sold for an aquarium filtration application for use with charcoal patches. Generally, I was not satisfied with the results. After the patches were applied, sanded/shaped, and polished, etc., I found a very porous and speckled result – not smooth as I wanted. I suspected the cause was that the charcoal grade was not fine enough. So, we’ll see if better results are realized with current charcoal powder. I decide to re-use the ‘slot insert’ that I earlier made from an index card. With the crack going through the lip of the button, I make sure I have sufficient ‘overage’ of charcoal putty to cover the crack. After opening a charcoal capsule, I empty it onto the index card and then add a puddle of Hot Stuff Special ‘T’ CA glue next to the charcoal. The ‘T’ stands for extra thick. Using a toothpick, I begin to draw the charcoal into the glue puddle to form the putty. I’m aiming at a honey-like viscosity for the putty – not to thin that it won’t remain where I put it and not to thick that it doesn’t shape well. When I arrive at what looks good, I use the toothpick as a trowel and apply the putty to the button – the top receiving the most attention. With charcoal putty applied to the button, I put the stem aside giving time for the curing process. The pictures show the progress. I return to the stummel to clean the externals. I’ve not worked before with a gold band and I don’t believe that any cleaning agents I use will deface the gold, but to stay on the safe side, I cover the band with a few layers of masking tape. I then take undiluted Murphy’s Soap and cotton pad and clean the stummel surface and rim. With the help of a brass brush, which will not scratch the briar, the light lava flow on the rim becomes history. I rinse the stummel with warm tap water keeping the internals dry. After the Murphy’s Soap, I still can detect the acrylic shine of the finish which is not what I like (2^nd picture below). I prefer the shine of the natural briar and not what I have referred to as a ‘candy apple’ shine finish. To remove the finish, I use acetone with a cotton pad. After a few unsuccessful rounds of this, I utilize 0000 steel wool to add a little abrasion to the acetone removal process. This does the trick, though the candy apple finish did not come off easily. The pictures show the progress. To remove nicks and some pitting in the briar I use a medium grade sanding sponge on the stummel and rim. I follow this with a light grade sanding sponge. To remove some damage in the inner rim edge and to clean it up, I use 240 grit sanding paper rolled tightly. I again follow the 240 grit paper and use the light grade sanding sponge on the rim to smooth things out. Before I move forward with sanding and finishing the stummel, I return to the stem and the shaping and repair of the button and slot. I take another close-up of both the top and bottom to mark the progress. I begin using a flat needle file and a pointed half-circle needle file to re-shape the slot and to redefine the end of the stem. I will work from stem end, having established a base line. When I finish the basic shaping with the needle files I then continue shaping the button with 240 grit paper then 0000 steel wool. The pictures show the progression. Near the completion of the button rebuild, I use K-150 Black Medium glue to fill pockets and unevenness in the upper bit area. After cured, I re-sand the area with 240 grit, then 600 grit papers then complete the process with 0000 steel wool. The last two pictures show the finished button rebuild. It took some time, but I think it looks good as well as refortifying a formerly, weak and cracked button. With button rebuild completed, I begin the micromesh sanding process first by wet sanding the stem with pads 1500 to 2400 and follow with an application of Obsidian Oil over the entire stem. I then dry sand the stem using pads 3200 to 4000 and again with pads 6000 to 12000, following each set with a fresh application of Obsidian Oil. The stem looks great and the button repair has blended well. I put the stem aside to dry. The pictures show the progress. Turning again to the stummel, I wet sand the surface with micromesh pads 1500 to 2400, then 3200 to 4000, and then 6000 to 12000, taking a picture after each set to show the progress. The micromesh pads’ work is spectacular by teasing out the beautiful briar straight grain. The briar on this Eldorado Lucite is very nicely showcased cascading down the elongated Dublin canonical stummel. A very nice choice of briar for this pipe style. As I moved through the micromesh cycles, my usual thought processing is to ponder the finish and what approach will best showcase the briar. Should I leave the natural grain color and apply carnauba wax or apply a stain? With the 14K gold band on this sleek Dublin, I decide to leverage toward a darker brown than the original. I think the black stem and the darker stummel will give the gold band an extra pop – standing out very nicely. To expand the briar and enabling the grain to be more receptive to the dye, I warm the stummel using my wife’s hair dryer. Then, using a pipe cleaner folded in two, I apply Fiebing’s Light Brown Leather Dye liberally to the stummel and rim. I cover the surface thoroughly. When covered, I flame the wet dye using a lit candle and the alcohol in the dye immediately evaporates setting the dye hue in the grain. After a few minutes, I repeat the process including flaming the dye. I set the stummel aside for the night to rest. The picture shows the dye-crusted stummel.The next morning, I’m anxious to ‘unwrap’ the crust of the fired dye from the night before. Since I live in a flat on the 10^th floor of former Communist block apartment building, I do not have a lot of room for my work shop. The Dremel high speed rotary tool is how I solve the problem of not having regular high speed buffing wheels. To unwrap the stummel, I mount the Dremel with a felt polishing wheel and set the speed of the Dremel to the slowest speed. The felt material is abrasive and I don’t want to over-heat the wood with the higher speeds. Each polishing wheel is dedicated to a specific compound used in the buffing process. I mount the Tripoli wheel, and after purging it from old compound with the edge of the metal wrench, used to tighten the wheels on the Dremel, I apply Tripoli compound to remove the flamed residue of the light brown dye. I rotate the wheel around the surface of the stummel slowly, not applying much vertical pressure on the surface but allowing the RPMs, felt and compound to do the work. I use the sheen created on the surface of the briar (reflecting the bright overhead work lamp) to observe the compound’s behavior, which enables me to distribute the compound evenly over the surface. See my essay, ‘My Dremel Polishing Technique’ if you want more detail. I took a picture of the ‘unwrapping’ with the Tripoli compound and wheel. You can see the before and after comparison very easily which demonstrates my typical approach.I follow the Tripoli compound with Blue Diamond. Again, using a dedicated Blue Diamond wheel mounted on the Dremel, I work the compound into the surface in the same manner as Tripoli. After the Blue Diamond cycle, I hand-buff the stummel with a cotton cloth simply to remove the powdery residue of the compounds from the briar surface. I do this before applying carnauba wax. Next, I mount the cotton cloth polishing wheel onto the Dremel, increase the speed of the Dremel from 1 to 2 (5 is the fastest) and apply several coats of carnauba wax to both stummel and its reunited stem. I finish with a rigorous hand-buffing with micromesh cloth not only to deepen the shine but to distribute any pockets of unintegrated carnauba wax.

I was hoping to create a pop with the classy gold band linking a slim, gently curving stem with the rich darker brown hues of the Dublin’s cascading briar patterns. I think what I now see before me effectively does just that! This gold banded Eldorado Lucite of Italy is an elegant Dublin which feels very comfortable in the hand. It will be a great addition to some new steward’s collection.

Below, in the comments, I reposted this blog of Reborn Pipes to my new blog site, http://www.ThePipeSteward.com This site is serving not only as a ‘store front’ for pipes I’m selling, but it also describes the work we do in Bulgaria with the Daughters of Bulgaria Foundation – rescuing and restoring women and children who have been trafficked and sexually exploited. To help with this work, the profits of my sales go to the Daughters. So, if you’re interested in adding this Eldorado Lucite Bent Dublin of Italy to your collection, jump over to The Pipe Steward, and check it out! Thank you for joining me!

Savinelli Capitol Bruyere 6001

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Blog by Johan Viviers

I received an email not too long ago while I was traveling in India for work from Johan. He wrote of his love or pipe restoration and how he had come across rebornpipes. After replying to his email about his work I asked him to send me a few photos of what he had done. He promptly did so. I asked him to submit a blog for the site and what follows after his brief introduction is his first blog for rebornpipes. Welcome Johan. It is great to have you here.

Introduction

I am Johan Viviers. I was born and raised in Cape Town, South Africa. As a child I was surrounded by pipe smokers. All of them had a Kaiser, because a man was not a man without a Kaiser!. My one grandfather though had a rotation.

I bought my first pipe at 28 from a Belgium man who had shop in Pretoria. He sold me a Peterson and sample tobaccos at first until we discovered my preference… and then after a further twenty or so years of wandering (a bit like Parsival did), I made a home in Portugal; and a home is not a home without a pipe being smoked in it.

So, the Why and the How of getting into pipe sanitation, recovery and refurbishment… I suppose I evolved into it. Maybe there are a “few roots” to be found in my dream of opening a pipe smokers’ lounge. Then too, the rest of the “roots” may also probably be found in the creativity that is born from the curiosity and wonder that surfaces when smokes a new tobacco blend or from a new pipe.

Last summer whilst sipping a beer on the local esplanade with a fellow piper, I told him that it is time for me to plant tobacco, figure out the bit between harvesting and blending and then to explore and create a blend. All for personal consumption of course. A 78 year old friend who’s a pipe smoker too, offered some land in exchange for a share of smoking tobacco.

I then spent most of my free time reading everything I could find on tobacco. And on a day my favourite pipe broke. It happened on the same day that I discovered Dad aka Charles Lemon, which led me to rebornpipes. Well, all your stories filled me with such curiosity and excitement that I somewhat altered my priorities. As I am in the habit of recovering vintage furniture, floors in old buildings etc., it seemed that pipe refurbishing may deliver an even greater level of happiness and satisfaction.

So I set out by first buying three pipes at the local flea market and experimenting to find a “studio practise”. I had to discover for myself the materials and mechanisms of a pipe and also determine whether the natural products I work with every day is suited to briar. Well three experimental pipes later and I made my first refurbishment, the Capitol 6001. I worked on it for five days and on day six I sold it and reinvested the profit in other estates. I now own seventeen estates that are either refurbished or at various stages of recovery. And I have to confess that I do not wish to sell any of them because I am still marveling at their transformation, whether it being the sweet smell of the briar when I rendered it, or the smoothness of its surface before I finish it or its final transformation/outcome that I want to hold onto a little longer.

Even so, I will continue and grow the seventeen estates I have acquired and if I sell none of them now, I will put them to good use when I find the capital to open the Pipe Smoker’s Lounge that I am thinking of naming Maria do Purificacão: Where Ladies Without Beards Smoke Pipe.

The Restoration

Sand blasted and stamped Capitol over Bruyere with 6001 to the right on the underside of the bowl with no stem markings.

This Capitol according to both Savinelli and the young lady who sold me this pipe, is a 50’s production. The pipe belonged to her grandfather Fernando a property developer and it was his “thinking aid” she told me, hence the tooth chatter on the stem. He passed away ten years ago and since then this pipe remained in his desk drawer. Fernando’s home remained unoccupied for ten years, where this pipe remained until now.

Lisbon being a very humid city left it’s mark on both the bowl and stem. The stem was greenish yellow due to oxidation and the outside of the bowl was soft in places due to what I belief to be exposure to moisture in the air. There was no cake in the chamber, but the unevenness to the rim of the bowl made wonder whether Fernando may have been a “pipe knocker” like my friend Adam or whether it was the actual design by Savinelli. The tenon, however, was a snug fit regardless.

Given that this was my second attempt at an actual recovery of a smoking pipe I though long and hard as to how i will approach its recovery and given my fascination with “the story” an estate pipe arrives with, I decided to keep the uneven organic shape to the rim and even the tooth chatter on the stem.

To start I hung the bowl out in a an area that receives no direct sunlight and a natural flow of air until felt the bowl has expelled all the surface moisture it had collected. At the same time the stem was soaking in a solution of cider vinegar and coarse salt to loosen up oxidation.

I then filled the bowl with salt and alcohol and let it stand overnight as I have seen you guys do and the next morning I reamed the chamber a little and gave it a light sanding with 400 grit paper until I could detect the sweet smell of the briar. Once this was done I cleaned out the airway of the stummel with a dental tool to remove the oils and tars after which I passed 400 grit paper rolled into a tube through the airway to be certain it is clean. Once this was done I washed the bowl and chamber down with a lukewarm solution of natural Marseille soap (a method to raising the grain and open the pores of the wood when I restore furniture) and rinsed it down with clean lukewarm water. I then filled the chamber and airway with tissue paper to absorb the excess water and wiped the outside of the bowl dry before I hung it out to dry for a couple of days (again in an area that receives no direct sunlight with the temperature constant at between 15 to 20 degrees Celsius).

I then took to the stummel and sanded it wet with 500 grit paper. I finished the stem with 00000 steel wool and then cleaned the airway by passing pipe cleaners dipped in a clean solution of the Cider vinegar and coarse salt after which I also washed the stem down with a solution of lukewarm water and Marseilles soap flakes, finishing it with clean water.

To complete I prepared a prepared Carnauba Wax emulsion with 15% natural Green Umber pigment and entered the solution with a lint free cloth into the bowl, stummel and chamber and hung it out to dry. An hour after application, I passed a clean lint free cloth to remove any excess. Then I rubbed the Carnauba wax emulsion into the stem and hung it out to dry alongside the bowl.

Twenty-four hours later I hand rubbed both the bowl, chamber and stem to bring out its lustre and then I got so excited that I had to fill the pipe with Hal O’ The Wynd and smoke it. What a sweet smoke, so much so that I named this here pipe Fernanda

Later that day, Fernanda and I sat in a coffee shop savouring another bowl of Hal O’ The Wynd and I sold her to a fellow piper there and then. This sale financed a purchase of nine other estate pipes.

A Christmas Gift in need of a stem splice – L J Peretti Squared Shank Billiard

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Blog by Dal Stanton

After a wonderful time in the US, sharing Christmas and New Year with our family, and catching up on ‘grandpa time’ with our two grandsons, my wife and I returned to Sofia, Bulgaria, to find as much snow as we left in Denver! Two memorable ‘piping events’ transpired while in Denver. First, the inaugural smoke of the restored 1907 McLardy Gourd Calabash (See: Link) which was filled with a tasty bowl of Dark Star recommended by Steve for the special occasion. It was a wonderful, cool smoke. The McLardy did admirably. The second ‘piping event’ was a pipe-picking expedition several of my family members (guess who this trip was for?) did to Denver’s huge Brass Armadillo Antique Mall! We had a great time in search but unfortunately, I found no treasures to bring home. Yet secretly, my youngest son stowed away his Christmas gift for me which I discovered under the tree a few days later! He got a great deal and I can see why! He knew I would have fun trying to breathe new life into the L J Peretti now before me on my work table in Sofia. I am anxious to get back to work on a pipe and this Peretti is a great starting block for 2017! With the obvious need to solve the issue of the broken and missing stem piece, I can easily see what attracted my son to this stummel. The briar swirls stunningly into fire grain and very distinct and tight bird’s eye knots. There are a few lightened fills that will need attention and the bowl has significant cake and will need to be reamed down to the fresh briar. The rim shows some thick lava flow and has minor dents. Unfortunately, the center swatch of the L J Peretti – Imported Briar marking on the squared shank is worn off – over achieving buffing or wear? The Peretti ‘P’ is visible on the surviving legacy of the original saddle stem. I’ve grown to appreciate the enduring marks of a pipe’s provenance and for this reason, this surviving piece of this pipes history needs to be protected and restored! I’ve been thinking for some days – actually, starting with the opened gift (!) about how to splice a new piece of stem to the survivor? I haven’t done this particular maneuver before, but I’m sure it can be done!

When I began my research on L J Peretti, I was surprised to discover that it is not an Italian pipe as one might expect with such a name! In fact, I discovered the genesis of a significant story of Americana pipe history with the establishment of the L. J. Peretti Company of Boston in 1870 (Pipedia citing: Pipes, Artisans and Trademarks, by José Manuel Lopes), the second oldest tobacco shop in the US, second only to Iwan Ries & Co. of Chicago established in 1857 (See: Link). Going directly to L J Peretti’s website, now president, Stephen L. Willett provides this historical summary of this Boston icon (Link: http://www.ljperetti.com):

In 1870, Libero Joseph Peretti arrived in Boston from Lugano, Switzerland. Filled with an entrepreneurial spirit and a love for fine tobacco, L.J. established the “Peretti Cuban Cigar Co.” in Boston’s historic North End. In the first two decades of business, the company provided a number of contributions to the tobacco industry and began to blend “house cigars”.

1892 marks the establishment of the Peretti Cigar Factory in Park Square, Boston. For over forty years, the company employed fifty rollers who produced some of the finest cigars in New England. Not only did Peretti’s manufacture blended cigars, but they also created Clear Havana Vitolas such as the legendary La Mirendella.

L.J.’s son, Joseph, aka “The Major”, followed his father into the family business. His primary love was pipes and pipe tobacco. Among his notable accomplishments was the creation of the first “English” blend, called British, in the United States; as well as securing the exclusive import rights to Peterson pipes and Sullivan & Powell tobaccos.

After World War II the third generation Peretti’s, Robert, entered the firm. The original store had moved from the North End to the centre of Boston on Massachusetts Avenue and there were additional stores throughout the financial district of Boston. Robert became a tobacco legend in United States and throughout the world. Most of the more than eighty house blends of pipe tobacco were created by Robert Peretti. His reputation as a blender led politicians, actors, celebrities and gentlemen of all callings to seek his tobacco advice.

I enjoyed reading several comments after the interview of Stephen Willett on The Pipes Magazine Radio Show (See: Pipes Magazine Radio Interview) extolling the fact that tobaccos are mixed in house and one could take his pipe to their shop on 2 1/2 Park Square today, and be guided by experienced tobacconists and test several selections before making a decision to purchase. My son and daughter-in-law, formerly of Boston, also had the opportunity to explore this historic tobacco shop!

I was still curious about the name, “Peretti”, and its Swiss (not Italian) origins with the patriarch Libero Joseph Peretti’s arrival in the US in 1870 from Lugano, Switzerland. It did not take long to figure it out when looking at the location of Lugano on a map of Europe thanks to Google Maps. The Italian influence would be inescapable as Lugano is situated in a slender finger of Swiss land on the southern edge of the Alps with greater topographical access to the Italian planes falling away to its south than to Switzerland proper to the north – through the Alps. Curiosity satisfied.One other question hounds me – the question for each pipe: Where was this particular L J Peretti pipe made? In Boston? Per L J Peretti’s website, today pipes with the Peretti stamping are made exclusively by Briar Works in Nashville, TN. This Peretti, however, predates this association. Briar Works began operations in 2012. One possible clue came at the close of Stephen Willett’s interview on the Pipes Magazine Radio Show in April of 2016 referenced above. Willet was asked about relating a ‘favorite pipe story’. Willett commented on being in London smoking pipes with a John Redman, who used to make pipes for L. J. Perretti Co. So, a possible source. The John Redman Ltd. and British Empire Pipe Co. is cited in Pipephil.eu listing the names produced (Aristocrat, Buckingham, Buckingham Palace, Canberra, Captain Fortune, Dr John, Golden Square, Redonian, Richmond, Smokewell, Twin Bore) but no reference to a L. J. Peretti association. I sent an email to the L. J. Peretti Tobacconists shop in Boston regarding the provenance of this particular Peretti names-sake before me. We’ll see if we can learn more.

I was gratified when an email arrived from the L. J. Perretti Co. Tobacconists shop in Boston a few days later. Here is what I found:

Hello Dal,

We have been sourcing our proprietary pipes from a number of different manufacturers. That said, it is most likely that Arlington Briars made the pipe you have in your possession. Photos would help us identify the pipe further. I will have to look through some of our old content and see what I can find. Hope this helps,

Tom

LJP

Thankful to Tom for his response, I sent on photos. Per Pipedia,

Arlington Briar Pipes Corporation was founded in 1919 in Brooklyn, New York, and produced the Arlington, Briarlee, Firethorn, Krona and Olde London brands among dozens of others, primarily acting as a subcontractor making pipes to be sold under other brand names. Among others, in the 1950’s, Arlington turned pipes for the famed Wilke Pipe Shop in New York City. The corporation was dissolved by the State of New York as inactive on December 6, 1978.

With a greater appreciation for the pipe before me and the rich heritage of the L. J. Peretti name and company, I take another long, hard look at the surviving stem piece. My goal is to splice the stem by cannibalizing another saddle stem. My original idea was to see if I could find a piece of stainless steel tubing small enough to insert into the airways of both the survivor stem piece and the new cannibalized piece and connect them – providing a firm connection point and reinforcement for the splice. Before returning to Bulgaria, I went to a specialized store in Denver with hope of finding such a tube. They were not able to help me and indicated that I could probably find tubing like I wanted in a medical equipment context…. So, with this idea put aside, my goal is a clean bond using only superglue. I take another picture of the surviving stem piece and the stem candidate. I want to remove the stinger and after it refuses to budge I heat it with a lighter loosening the vulcanite grip. It joins the other retired stingers in the bottle. Using a straight edge, block and sharpie pen, I draw a line across the original stem. It will act as a guide as I cut the vulcanite using the Dremel with a cutting blade. Well, after starting with a cutting blade, I discovered that it was difficult to maintain control over the blade movement. I switched to the sanding drum and that worked much better. I’ll fine tune the cut after cutting the second stem. The pictures show the progress. I want to cut the donor stem very close to the saddle expansion where the stem is thickest. This hopefully will give me more wiggle room as I fashion the two stems together. I use the Dremel blade to do a rough cut to remove the shank side of the stem. I’ll save this piece to fabricate a breather insert later – waste not want not! Key to this stem splice working is a proper aligning of the airways while working on shaping the external stem appearance. Hopefully to accomplish this, to keep the airway stationary, I form a temporary insert stabilizer by cutting off the ends of a Q-tip and wrap the center plastic Q-tip tubing with scotch tape. I do this to enlarge the circumference of the left-over Q-tip to form a tight fit as each end is inserted into the airways of the adjacent stem pieces. It took me a few test Q-tips to get the size right. Now I can gradually shape the external stem and keep things lined up. In the final picture of the set below, you can see the aligning tube. The pictures show my plan materializing. I have hope that it will work! Now to fine-tune the trueness of the cut stem ends. I start with the survivor by standing it and eye-balling it next to a straight edge – not perfect! The first picture shows the leaning tower of Pisa! Working out of our 10^th floor flat, I don’t have all the tools available to me to automate procedures so I must improvise. I have a miter box that might do the trick. I take a strip of 240 grit sanding paper and use the miter’s perpendicular position to create a sanding mechanism that should produce a flat, true end. Moving the sanding paper back and forth while I manually pinch it against the triangle seems to do the job. After patient, easy back-and-forth motion, the end of the survivor stem piece looks good! A comparison shot to the leaning Tower of Pisa shot shows the progress. The new extension also needed some fine-tuning. Since there is a taper in the stem and therefore it’s uneven, I cannot use the miter box like before. I use the topping board with 240 grit paper to bring the angle into proper alignment – I discover that it is not an easy slam dunk to get things right. It takes several spins on the board following each spin by refitting the extension with the original stem and looking for the gaps between the two pieces. I need the junction to be as true, tight, and flat as possible for a good bond and a straight stem. After several cycles, I have it about as good as its going to get. The pictures show the process. I replace the temporary Q-tip stabilizing insert with a pipe cleaner inserted through both pieces and linking them up. The pipe cleaner will serve to keep the airway lined up during gluing as well as guard against glue possibly clogging the airway. I use a narrower, less fuzzy bristled pipe cleaner. After testing I found that a non-bristled pipe cleaner had too much fuzz and inhibited a tight junction between the pieces. I apply a little petroleum jelly to the section of the pipe cleaner that may meet the superglue. This will (hopefully!) keep the pipe cleaner from sticking to the glue. I wipe off excess jelly because I don’t want it interfering with the glue bonding. I then apply Starbond Black Medium KE-150 glue to the original stem piece, not too thick and spread it over the junction surface with a toothpick. My main concern is to allow the bond to settle ‘naturally’ around the airway alignment and have the stem straight. If gaps appear I can add additional glue later as a fill. Pulling the pipe cleaner from the shank side I draw the pieces together, align and compress for a few minutes. I set the spliced stem aside allowing the KE-150 glue to cure. The pictures show the progress. Turning now to the stummel, I take another close-up of the rim and chamber before starting. I use the Pipnet reaming kit and clean out the moderately thick carbon cake formed in the chamber. I use 3 of the 4 blades available to me to remove the harder than usual cake. After the Pipnet blades, I fine tune the chamber surface with the Savinelli pipe knife and then, using my finger and a dowel rod, I sand the internal chamber wall with 240 grit paper. Finally, I wipe the bowl out with a cotton pad dampened with isopropyl 95%. The chamber wall looks good – no problems there. Before cleaning the rim and stummel externals, I take Q-tips and pipe cleaners with isopropyl 95% to clean the internals of the stummel. Following this, I use Murphy’s Oil Soap undiluted with cotton pads and scrub the rim and surface. The lava build up on the rim proved to be resistant so I added use of the brass brush to the cleaning job. The inner rim appears to have burn marks on the front and back of the bowl. I’ll remove this damage by cutting an inner rim bevel later. The pictures show the cleaning progress. After rejoining the curing spliced stem to the stummel to avoid creating shank shoulders, I take a medium grade sanding sponge and sand the entire stummel surface and rim, avoiding the shank panel containing the L J Peretti stamping. I follow this with the same regimen using a light grade sanding sponge. With the sanding sponges, I’m removing small pitting and imperfections from the briar surface. To clean up the rim further, I cut an initial bevel on the inner rim first using a tightly rolled piece of 120 grade paper. I follow this using 240 grit then 600. I closely examine the surface and the sponge sanding did the job so that I did not need to use any super glue for fills. I did use the stain marker and darken fills that had lightened. The pictures show the initial stummel prep. I’m anxious to return to the stem repair to begin the ‘sculpting’ process. I’m sure that the donor stem that I’m using isn’t the best candidate for a match, but it is the only other saddle stem I have that isn’t already claimed by a stummel here in Bulgaria. Oh my – it reminds me that I just saw lots of 100 stems being auctioned on eBay! If only…. I take a few pictures of the spliced stem before I begin. To do the sculpting I use my Dremel high-speed rotary tool and mount the drum sanding tool. With the Dremel speed set on 2 of 5 (1 being the slowest RPMs) I gently and patiently begin removing vulcanite and shape the stem to give it a uniform look. The pictures show the progress until… …You’ve heard me say before, “As they say, it was going so well until it wasn’t.” The new superglue bond between the two stem parts simply gave way. I sat back in my chair looking at the divide and contemplated a visit to my favorite adult beverage. Before starting this project, I researched through the blogs looking for different approaches and techniques to this specific genre of stem repair – splicing. Steve has a very helpful Reborn essay, What are the options for repairing a damaged stem? I could not find anything with the specifics I was facing. Now with the two pieces before me, I decide to shoot an ‘SOS’ to Steve, even though I know he’s somewhere in the world traveling with his work. I press the send button, turn off the light, and head to bed!Gratefully, Steve’s reply arrived the next morning referencing another Reborn Pipes contributor, Jacek A. Rochacki, from Poland. Steve’s email described Jacek’s technique of creating a simple interlocking step between the two stem pieces by filing 90 degree angles out of the upper half of one piece and a corresponding 90 degree angle out of the lower half of the other piece. Essentially creating a juxtaposed and flipped ‘L’ on each stem piece. The step will provide more area for the glue to bond as well as distribute the stummel’s weight across the stem rather than at one tension point. The science behind the technique sounds good, now I need to bring the theory into physical reality! I decide to use the width of a flat needle file to determine the steps’ widths. Starting with surviving stem, I score a line to provide a guide for the edge of the step (first picture). After this, I wedge the stem piece in the miter box and invert the flat needle file and use it as a saw to cut a straight vertical incision half-way into the stem. Pictures 2 and 3 show this in progress. I use the Dremel to gradually remove the vulcanite and finish the fine-tuning with the needle file. The pictures show the progress. The other stem piece follows the same protocol. The whole process took quite a bit of time filing, eye-balling, test fitting and filing again. The junction I have is not a perfect fit. Dealing with the odd matching stem pieces presents its own challenges. The key as before, is to align the airway holes to have as much as possible a seamless airflow. The final picture in the set below shows the pipe cleaner inserted through the pieces and mimics the natural alignment before bonding with superglue. In this position, to test the freedom of the pipe cleaner to move, I compressed the pieces at the ‘step junction’ and then pulled the pipe cleaner back and forth to assure as much as possible a good alignment. The pictures tell the story. As before, I use a bristled pipe cleaner with less fuzz, apply petroleum jelly to the pipe cleaner to avoid sticking to the glue, and apply Black KE-150 Glue to the step surfaces. I pull the pipe cleaner from the shank-side to draw the stem pieces together to allow a natural placement favoring a clear airway. Once the steps fully engage, I compress the steps together to form the bond. While I apply this pressure, I also give a little pull on the pipe cleaner to assure that it is still moving freely and not crimped at the splice junction. After curing for 24 hours, I inspect the junction lines and apply additional KE-150 glue where needed to seal the joint. With the stem splice curing, I turn my attention to the stummel. Staying clear of the L J Peretti nomenclature on the left shank panel, using micromesh pads 1500 to 2400 I wet sand the stummel. Following this, I dry sand the stummel using micromesh pads 3200 to 4000 then again with pads 6000 to 12000. The depth of the briar grain looks good. The pictures show the progress.I like very much the lighter brown, butterscotch tones of the briar. I decide to apply a very light stain made up of one part Fiebing’s Light Brown Leather Dye to 4 parts isopropyl 95%. My desire is to blend the fills on the bowl even though I had already applied stain sticks to these areas. Using a pipe cleaner folded I apply a generous coat of the dye mixture, making sure to cover the entire stummel. After applying the dye, while still wet I fire the dye with a lit candle. This sets the hue of the dye well in the grain. After a few minutes, I repeat the process concluding with firing the wet dye. The alcohol in the dye burns off quickly and normally this does not burn the wood. I did scorch the wood of the rim of a restoration not long ago. I concluded that the problem was the cork that I had inserted in the bowl to manipulate the stummel while staining – the cork itself was saturated with the alcohol and kept ‘firing’ and scorched the thin wood of the rim…. Ever learning! Now, I hold the stummel by inserting a couple twisted pipe cleaners in the shank acting as a handle. The picture shows the final state after the second application of stain.I set the stummel aside to allow it to ‘rest’ through the night. The next day, I’m looking at the stummel and the spliced stem. I decide to jump into the stem work. Honestly, as I look at the stem, the word that comes to mind is ‘Frankenstem’. The stem that I cannibalized was not the best match to begin with. Changing the positioning of the stem pieces to give the ‘step splice technique’ a chance of working, left a spliced stem with a definite limp. Yet, I’m not finished and I’ve discovered along the way, there is a lot of forgiveness and flexibility in working with vulcanite. As the old Timex commercial assured, “Takes a lick’n and keeps on tick’n!” That will be my mindset as I approach the Frankenstem! I take some pictures to show the challenges. The first picture, perspective from the top looking down, shows the greatest challenges. The stem addition is offset revealing the original stem’s protrusion underneath. There is also more taper in the stem addition than in the original stem. My approach as I look at the stem will be to try to create a higher (toward the shank) taper on the original stem (on the lower side in the picture). This hopefully will blend the mismatch.I decide to chronicle the approach I take. I first work on the ‘straight’ side of the stem (lower) by using a rounded needle file to create a ‘dimple’ that would represent the deepest part of the tapered curve. It was adjacent to the protrusion on the right side (above in the picture below). After creating the dimple, I then gradually fan out the dimple with 240 grit sanding paper until I achieve a smooth taper joining the saddle with the button. I’m pleased with the results of phase 1.Phase 2 is creating another dimple on the other side – right at the point of the protrusion sticking out from underneath from the original stem step (pictured better above). Again, after the dimple is formed with the rounded needle file I use 240 grit sanding paper to fan the taper evenly throughout the stem. While the stem still is off center a bit, the tapering gives the allusion of a straighter stem. It seems to me the stem is resembling a fishtail style reminiscent of Stanwell pipes.Next, I sanded the upper and lower stem with 240 grit paper to smooth and blend the splice repair. This is helpful because it enables me to see that there are gaps in the seams of the patch. In the pictures below you can see the vulcanite dust from sanding lodged in the gaps. I decide to apply a bit of the Black Medium KE-150 glue to fill the gaps. Before I do, I wash the stem with water and a bit of dish soap. I apply the KE-150 then spray the joint with an accelerator that I just brought back to Bulgaria from my time in the US for Christmas. Putting the stem on the sidelines to cure a bit, I’m anxious to ‘unwrap’ the stummel and look at the briar underneath the fired dye crust. I take the Dremel and mount a felt wheel and using Tripoli compound, I apply the compound using the slowest speed available on the Dremel. For detailed ‘how tos’ in using a Dremel for this process, see my essay on Dremel Polishing Technique. After I finish the cycle with the Tripoli compound, I wipe the bowl lightly with a cotton pad and isopropyl 95% to blend the stain. After the Tripoli, I change to the Blue Diamond compound felt wheel at the same RPMs and apply Blue Diamond. Then I take a clean cotton cloth and give the stummel a rubdown removing the excess compound residues which is like powder. The stummel is looking great even before the carnauba wax application, but I decide to delay the wax application and again turn back to the stem.

To see the big picture, I unite the spliced stem with the stummel. I like the proportions. I was concerned that the stem might end up being too short and the L J Perretti becoming a nose warmer. This is not the case as the picture shows!Accelerator is God’s gift to the impatient! My first time to use it and it is nice – though I understand the downside of using an accelerator is the potential of a weaker bond, at least as I have read. The Black K-150 glue looks good. I return to sanding the stem to blend the patch and finish the shaping. With 240 grit paper, I smooth out the superglue fill and even though I can still see the lines, the touch test is the goal. I can feel no ridge at the junction seams. Success! With all this rigorous sanding, the verdict is in – the step splice technique is holding! I continue sanding moving down the stem removing the sand marks left by the Dremel drum sanding wheel. I finally arrive at the button and to lower lip is out of line. I straighten this with a flat needle file and I freshen the button lines while I’m at it. I use 240 grit paper again to remove the effects of the needle file use in the button area. Finished with the 240 grit paper, I use 600 grit paper to smooth the stem more and to reveal nicks or gouges that may have been missed. The last two pictures below show the finished shaping project. I’m very pleased with the results – the splice is holding well and the newly shaped stem is passable. Even though the splice seams are visible, they are smooth to the touch and I’m hopeful that as the stem polishing and waxing is completed, the seams will blend more. I think Frankenstem has been transformed well. Before bringing out the micromesh pads on the stem, I drop the newly spliced stem into the Oxi-Clean bath to raise the heavy oxidation left in the original stem piece. Another day is finished. The next morning I fish the soaking stem out of the Oxi-Clean bath. The oxidation has surfaced, and as expected, especially on the original stem piece. Initially I use 600 grit paper and wet sand the stem removing the top layer of oxidation. I use a topping board with 600 grit paper to make quick work of 3 of the 4 panels of the saddle stem block (not sure if there is a special name for this part of the stem). I am careful to protect the Perretti ‘P’ on the other panel by putting my thumb over it as I sanded around it. I repeated the process using 0000 steel wool. As always, the most difficult part to rid of oxidation were the vertical ‘rise panels’ above and below the stem. I’m satisfied with the progress the pictures show. With the new day, I’m in the home-stretch! With so much focus on the stem repair, I only now recall that I have not cleaned the internals of the now spliced stem. Using pipe cleaners dipped in isopropyl 95% I work on cleaning the internals. After running 2 pipe cleaners through the airway, for a nice change, I discover that all is clean!I turn now to the micromesh cycles with the stem. Beginning with pads 1500 to 2400 I wet sand the stem and follow the set with an application of Obsidian Oil over the stem. Next, I dry sand using pads 3200 to 4000 followed by 6000 to 12000, following each set with a fresh application of Obsidian Oil. I’m generally pleased with the technique of this splice, but the fine polishing of the two pieces of vulcanite have revealed that not all vulcanite is the same. I assume the original survivor piece was of better quality than the donor piece. The polishing reveals that the original is a darker hue of black and it wasn’t evident only until now. So, we do the best we can with what we have! The pictures reveal this with a close look. The stem still looks good and what I’ve been through with it make it even look better! The pictures show the progress. Before rejoining stummel and stem to apply carnauba wax, I want to re-establish the Perretti ‘P’ stamping on the stem. Checking with the L. J. Perretti Co. stampings on Pipephil.eu, most stem marks are set with white lettering. I want to do the same to emulate how this Perretti most likely was commissioned. Taking white acrylic paint, I dab a bit over the ‘P’ on the stem. After an hour or so, after dried, I gently scrape the top layer of paint off with a pointed Q-tip which I picked up in the US at Hobby Lobby. Pictures show the result. Rejoining stem and stummel, I apply several coats of carnauba wax to both. I use a cotton cloth wheel mounted on the Dremel, increase the speed to a setting of 2 and apply the wax moving the wheel in a circular motion over the surface. After completing the carnauba wax application, I mount a clean cotton cloth wheel on the Dremel and clean buff the stummel and stem. Following this, I give the entire pipe a hand buffing with microfiber cloth to bring out the luster and depth of the grain even more.

The briar of this L J Perretti is unbelievable – a beautiful display of fire grain and very clear and distinct bird’s eye. The stem isn’t a perfect rendition mainly because of the unmatched vulcanite creating the splice. Yet, the ‘step’ technique Jacek provided (via Steve!) is working very well. The squared shank transitioning into the tapered fishtail-like stem I think is very nice. It works. I’m thankful to my son for gifting me with this L J Perretti! I would have enjoyed my inaugural smoke to have been a bowl of a special hand blended mixture from the L. J. Perretti Co. Tobacconists in Boston! Yet, after taking the presentation pictures following, I settled for a bowl of my favorite Cavendish blend – Lane BCA. Report? The L J Perretti smoked very well, indeed. Thanks for joining me!

Love the shape of this Savinelli Classica 904KS Horn

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Blog by Steve Laug

I have been cleaning up and restoring quite a few pipes over the holidays. I have had some free time and needed the space to relax and pipe refurbishing has always done that for me. Tomorrow I go back to the normal work week and then do some more traveling so my pipe work time will slow down considerably. I am hoping to finish a couple of more pipes this afternoon but we shall see. My brother picked up another interesting pipe for me to work on. The box he sent me before Christmas had a lot of unique and interesting pipes. This one is no exception to the pipes he sent me. I would call the shape of this Savinelli pipe a horn. It is a sandblast version that had a dirty finish and some overflow of cake and darkening on the rim. The pipe is stamped on a smooth part of the underside of the shank. It reads Savinelli in an oval over Classica. Next to that is the Savinelli S in a shield and next to that it is stamped 904KS over Italy. The stem is oxidized and there are tooth marks and chatter on the top and underside near the button. There is a crown logo stamped on the left side of the saddle shank. My brother took photos of the pipe when it arrived in Idaho Falls and before he cleaned it. The first four photos show the overall condition of the pipe. He took a close up photo of the bowl and rim. Note the light cake in the bowl and the tars and oils built up on the back side of the rim top. The crevices of the sandblast are filled in but the inner and outer edge of the bowl look to be in good condition.The next three close up photos, show the stamping on the underside of the shank. The stamping is clear and readable. The S shield and the Italy stamp are the most hard to read but they are still readable. The fourth photo shows the gold crown on the side of the stem is also very clear. The last two photos he sent to me show the tooth marks and chatter on the stem near the button. The oxidation is light but in the curves of the saddle they are darker.My brother scrubbed the exterior of the pipe and stem with Murphy’s Oil Soap and rinsed it with running water. He scrubbed the rim top to remove the oils and tars from the grooves and crevices. He reamed the bowl, cleaned out the inside of the shank, mortise and airway in the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. When I received the pipe in Vancouver I took photos of what it looked like. The oxidation came to the surface of the stem and the finish looked washed out. I took a close up of the rim top and the bowl. The bowl was very clean and my brother had been able to clean up the crevices in the sandblast. The stain was worn on the sides and top of the rim.I took close up photos of the stem. There are some dents in the top edge of the button and along the sharp edge of the button. There were tooth marks on both sides of the stem and some tooth chatter.I started the restoration process by working on the bowl. I wiped it down with alcohol and cotton pads to remove and dirt or grime. After it was cleaned off I restained it with brown aniline stain, flamed it and repeated the process until the coverage and colour were even and what I was looking for on this particular blast. When the finish was dry I lightly buffed it with a shoe brush. I took photos of the bowl after the staining. I hand waxed the bowl with Conservator’s Wax and buffed it harder with a shoe brush. I was able to raise the shine on the bowl and it was beginning to look better and better. I sanded out the tooth marks and chatter with 220 grit sandpaper. I sanded the remainder of the stem at the same time to break up the oxidation. I was careful around the crown logo on the stem side. While the gold stamp was light the stamping itself was deep in the vulcanite and would be easy to restore once the stem was clean.I decided to scrub the stem with the Before & After Stem Deoxidizer and pipe stem polish starting with gritty DeniCare polish and then using Before & After’s Fine and Extra Fine Stem polish. While it cut through the oxidation on the flat and round portion of the stem it did not work as well in the curves of the saddle. I took photos of the stem after spending about an hour scrubbing the stem with the polishes. You can see the shadows of oxidation that still needed to be dealt with. I used Rub’n Buff European Gold to rework the stamping in the crown on the side of the stem.I worked over the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding with 3200-12000 grit pads. I rubbed the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each set of three pads. After the last set of pads I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. I buffed the stem with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel and gave the stem several coats of carnauba wax. I gave the bowl another coat of Conservator’s Wax and buffed the bowl and stem with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. It is a great looking pipe that has a lot of life in it. It should be a good addition to someone’s rack and provide years of good smokes. Thanks for looking.

Great Grain – a Triangle Shank Grabow Westbrook Billiard

6 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

Wikus asked me in a comment on the blog I wrote on the KBB Yello-Bole Churchwarden why I don’t give the pipe a coat of either varnish or shellac after I have refinished them. I wrote a response in which I said I don’t like that finish and want the pipe to be able to breathe. I have found that the varnished bowls get hot when smoked so that is another reason. But probably the biggest reason is that I really like a more matte finish instead of the high gloss that some like. I have to be honest – to me the matte finish that lets the grain pop and hides nothing behind the shine really is my preference. It does not mean I don’t like a shine but rather that I like the shine of a good wax and buff over the other options.

The pipe I worked on next is a prime example of what lies beneath the varnish coat. This one is a unique (at least to me as I have not seen one before) triangular shank billiard made by Dr. Grabow. It is stamped on the left side of the shank WESTBROOK over Dr. Grabow (the bottom edge of the lower stamp is faint as it is very close to the ridge on the angle of the side). It is stamped on the right side Imported Briar (faint stamp) over Adjustomatic in script. Underneath both lines it reads PAT.2461905. My brother picked this one up because the grain and shape caught his attention. He took the following photos before he cleaned it up. From the above photos you can get a general idea of the shape and condition of the pipe. It is sound and has no cracks or burns on the surface. The finish is pretty well shot – the varnish is crackled and checked looking on the sides of the bowl and shank. The overall look is cloudy and muddied by the varnish going. There is a pretty thick cake in the bowl and it overflows onto the rim top. The bowl however appears to still be in round both on the inner and outer edges as far as can be seen in the slightly out of focus third photo. The stem looks good at this point with light oxidation and some tooth chatter and marks on the topside near the button. The orange Grabow spade logo is in place on the left side of the stem. More will be revealed through his close up photos.

The first photo shows the rim condition up close. My initial observation about the edges need to be modified somewhat. The inner edge looks good but it will be better determined once the thick and uneven cake is removed from the bowl (good news is that this one must have been a good smoker to have developed this kind of cake). The outer edge looks good other than some slight damage to the front right side where there appears to be a chip and some wearing.The next close up photos show the stamping and stem logo. I have recorded the condition and content of the stamping above. I include these for you to see the overall condition of them and the finish on the shank and stem.The last photos he included show the condition of the stem. There is a visible line that covers the separates the first inch of the stem from the rest which looks to me that the stem had a Softee bit on it for most of its life. There is tooth chatter on both sides of the stem and on the top side (second photo below) there are visible tooth marks that need to be dealt with. This is why I think the bit protector came after the initial tooth marks or they would have been far worse. On the underside of the stem there is a small tooth mark that is quite deep. Both sides will need some work to smooth out the damage.I did a US Patent search to see what I could find out about the patent number on the side of the shank. I was able to find out that the patent was filed on Jan. 25, 1946 but was not issues until February 15, 1949. I learned that the inventor of the Adjustomatic system for Grabow was D.P. Lavietes. I know nothing about him but I do know that Dr. Grabow used the mechanism in their pipes. With this information I know that the pipe was made after 1949 because the patent stamp says that the mechanism is patented not patent applied for. I have included the entire patent below for those who may be interested. I enjoy the descriptions, rationale and drawings that the inventor includes in these old patents. They are a pleasure for me to read through them. If you want you can skip over the next four photos and read about the pipe’s restoration. My brother did his usual thorough cleaning of the pipe. He reamed the bowl and cleaned the internals of the shank, mortise and stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the rim and was able to remove all of the tars and oils that had built up there. He cleaned the exterior of the bowl and stem with Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime and build up in those areas. When I received the pipe in Vancouver it was clean. The only thing that he had not been able to do was remove the stinger from the threaded tenon to clean behind it. The next four photos give a clear picture of what the pipe looked like when it arrived. The close up photo below shows how well the rim and bowl cleaned up. The inner rim was in pretty decent shape other than a little burn on the front edge almost in line with the chip on the outer edge.The stem was in better condition than I expected as in the cleaning process a lot of the chatter seems to have been removed with the calcification.I took photos of the condition of the stinger apparatus because it was looking really good. In the past when I got these they were black and looked awful. They were bad enough that if I did not like stingers before, the general grime and grit would have sealed the deal. This one however was sparkling.I heated the stinger with a Bic lighter and the tars that held in the tenon released it. With the stinger removed I was able to clean out the buildup behind it in the stem. I used pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol to clean out that area of the stem. I cleaned out any remaining debris in the mortise at the same time.I sanded the tooth marks and the rest of the stem to deal with the oxidation using a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. The tooth marks came out of the top side of the stem with no problem. There was still one small almost pin hole tooth mark on the underside that I would need to deal with and repair. I cleaned the surface of the stem with alcohol and filled in the mark with clear super glue. Once it dried I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to blend it in with the rest of the stem surface. I buffed the stem with Red Tripoli on the buffing wheel and brought it back to the work table to polish it with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded it with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanded it with 3200-12000 grit pads. After each set of three pads I rubbed it down with Obsidian Oil. After the last pad I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. After polishing with the 1500-2400 grit pads I wiped down the tenon with an alcohol wet cotton pad to remove some of the darkening in the threads. In doing so I got some alcohol on the end of the stem and it brought out a bit more oxidation to the surface. This is one of those frustrations but also a good thing as I was able to then back track and sand the stem again with 1500-4000 grit pads and then buff it with some Blue Diamond on the wheel and I removed the rest of the oxidation. I then went back to polishing the stem with 6000-12000 grit pads to bring the shine to the surface.With the stem polishing done I set it aside and turned to the bowl. I examined it and decided that the best way to deal with the crackling varnish coat was to remove it. My choice for removing varnish coats is to scrub the finish with acetone on a cotton pad until it is gone. The first wipes will leave the surface gummy and rough. You have to scrub the surface until it is smooth to touch. The next four photos show the bowl with the crackled finish. It took four cotton pads and acetone to remove this crackled varnish finish. Underneath the cloudy varnish coat there was some really stunning grain. Once the finish was gone and I had wiped the pipe with a paper towel with a little bit of olive oil I took photos of the pipe. There was some scratching in the briar that would need to be polished and there were some nicks that would need to be lifted if they did not polish out but the overall appearance of the pipe was stunning. I worked on the bevel of the inner edge to smooth out and remove the damage on the front side. I used 180 grit and 220 grit sandpaper to bevel the rim a little to accommodate the edge damage. I polished the briar on the rim with 2400 grit micromesh sanding pads to remove the scratching left behind by the beveling. I polished the bowl and rim with 3200-12000 grit micromesh sanding pads to raise a shine in the briar and make the grain stand out. I put the stem and bowl back together again and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the wheel to further polish it. I gave the bowl and stem multiple coats of carnauba wax to protect it and buffed it with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfibre cloth to deepen the shine. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. It has come a long way from the worn and tired pipe that came to my brother in Idaho. The depth of the shine, the look of the grain and the flow of the pipe all work together to make this a beautiful Dr. Grabow pipe. It is one of the earliest pipes of the RJ Reynolds era. It was a fun pipe to work on and the results just multiplied as each step I took in the cleaning and polishing process brought more of the beauty of this piece of briar alive. Thanks for looking.

Cleaned an 80+year old KBB Yello-Bole Churchwarden 2095

2 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

After the last challenge of the cracked bowl on the WDC Wellington House Pipe it was time to take on something that would go quickly and have some real beauty as well when finished. My brother had included just the pipe in the latest shipment that came to Vancouver from Idaho. It is a twelve inch long churchwarden. The bowl had the typical varnish coat over a oxblood stain that was peeling. There was a light cake in the bowl and the rim was dirty but the Yello-Bole Honey Cured Coating was very visible on the inner bevel of the rim top. The stamping on this one is the classic older Yello-Bole. It had the KBB cloverleaf on the left side of the shank and next to that it read YELLO-BOLE over Honey Cured Briar. ON the right side of the shank it has the shape number 2095. The stamping is in excellent shape. The stem was lightly oxidized and had the yellow circle on the top side near the shank/stem junction. There were single cut marks on both the top and underside of the stem about three inches forward from the button. There was also minimal tooth chatter and tooth marks on the stem on either side. The stem did not fit all the way into the shank when the pipe arrived in Idaho. (I have included the photos of the pipe that my brother took before he started to clean up the pipe.) From a comment on a blog I wrote on the various Yello-Bole logos in my collection of these pipes I was able to narrow down a date for the pipe. Here is the link to the post and the comments on the blog: https://rebornpipes.com/2013/01/25/yello-bole-logos-from-my-collection-of-old-yello-bole-pipes/. The comment came from Troy who I consider my go to guy for Yello-Bole informantion (who has written on rebornpipes and also has a blog of his own). Troy wrote as follows on dating Yello-Bole pipes by the stamping and logos.

“I have a large KBB Yello-Bole collection, They are some of my most favorite pipes and the best smokers for the money (briar wise) you can find in my opinion. I have restored and researched them quite a bit. I have several listed on my blog that I have cleaned or restored. I own about 30-40 KBB Yello-Boles now.”

“Here is a little guide to dating KBB Yello-Boles. If it has the KBB stamped in the clover leaf it was made 1955 or earlier as they stopped the stamping after being acquired by S.M. Frank. From 1933-1936 they were stamped Honey Cured Briar. Pipes stems stamped with the propeller logo they were made in the 30s or 40s no propellers were used after the 40s. Yello-Bole also used a 4 digit code stamped on the pipe in the 30s. If the pipe had the Yello-Bole circle stamped on the shank it was made in the 30s this stopped after 1939. If the pipe was stamped BRUYERE rather than briar it was made in the 30s.”

From that information I ascertained the following. The churchwarden I had was stamped with KBB in the cloverleaf on the shank side which told me that the pipe was made before 1955. It is also stamped under the YELLO-BOLE name stamp with the words Honey Cured Briar which put its manufacture between 1933 and 1936. Further the four digit shape code 2095 also put the date in the 1930s. With all of that collected I knew the pipe was made between 1933 and 1936 which means that this old Churchwarden has seen a lot of life. I wish it could tell its story.

My brother included some close up photos of the rim top and the peeling varnish on the bowl sides and bottom for information. You can also see some peeling of the varnish on the rim top along with the darkening and overflow of cake. The next photo shows the stamping on the left side of the shank. The stamping is clear and readable.The next two photos show the condition of the stem. You can see the tooth chatter and marks on the stem surface on both sides. None of them are deep and all should be able to be polished out.The next photo shows the cut mark on the top side of the stem. There is a matching mark on the underside.My brother cleaned up the pipe – reaming the bowl, cleaning out the shank, airway in the shank and stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. The inside was clean. He scrubbed the briar and stem with Murphy’s Oil Soap and cleaned out the buildup on the rim and the grime on the sides of the bowl. The next four photos show what the pipe looked like when it arrived in Vancouver. It was ready to clean up and bring back to life. I took a close up photo of the bowl and rim. The beveled inner edge shows the Yello-Bole coating. It is also visible on the inside of the bowl.I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and worked on the tooth chatter on each end with the same sandpaper. I took closeup photos of the Yello-Bole stinger apparatus. The first shows the topside of the stinger and the second the underside.I took closeup photos of the existing finish on the bowl to show the peeling varnish and the speckled finish.I wiped down the bowl with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the varnish coat and I was surprised by the grain that came through once the varnish was gone. I waxed the bowl with Conservator’s Wax so that I could see the scratching and spots that needed more attention on the briar. A bit of a shine makes issues in the briar stand out. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 3200-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cotton pad to remove any polishing dust left behind. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding with 3200-12000 grit pads. I rubbed it down with Obsidian Oil after each set of three pads. After the last set of pads I rubbed it down with a final coat of oil and set the stem aside to dry. I buffed the bowl with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel to polish out the last of the scratches in the briar. I gave the bowl multiple coats of carnauba wax and buffed the bowl with a clean buffing pad. The next photos show the finished bowl. I put the stem on the bowl and buffed the entirety again with Blue Diamond and gave the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed it with a clean buffing pad and hand buffed the pipe with a microfibre cloth to deepen the polish. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. It is cleaned, all varnish has been removed from the bowl and shank and it has been waxed and buffed. The finished pipe has a rich shine and all of the grain is visible through the finish. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me.