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Yet Another Filthy and Messy Pipe – a Danish Sovereign Made in Denmark 64 Freehand Dublin

Blog by Steve Laug

I recognized the shape as being a Sixten Ivarsson design but Icould not remember the shape number associated with it. I turned to Pipedia’s article on shapes that Bas Stevens originally worked on to check it out (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). I am including a shape chart below. It identifies the shape as a 64 (bottom right side of the fourth column in the photo below).I also have included information the site regarding the shape 64. The pipe I am working on is 64a in the list below. Stanwell’s “64” shape number actually corresponds to two different designs. The first is a larger version of the “64,” a Freehand, plateau top, saddle stem and designed by Sixten Ivarsson. This vintage “64” is of the first type, really showcasing flowing Dublin shape and the plateau rim top.

64. Two versions of this shape number

a) Freehand, Plateau top, saddle mouthpiece, by Sixten Ivarsson.
b) Bent billiard, medium size, full mouthpiece.

List by designer

Sixten Ivarsson: 01 (Nefertiti), 01 (Pick Ax), 02, 06, 07, 09, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 20 (Boat), 20 (Bent Dublin), 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 30, 32 (Free Hand), 33, 34, 35 (Bent Free Hand), 37, 38, 41, 43, 48, 55, 59, 62, 63, 64, 70 (Free Hand Volcano/Sitter), 75 (Billiard w/oval shank), 79, 82, 85 (Bent e), 86, 87, 90, 91R, 95, 96, 105, 110, 119, 124, 2606, POY 1993.

Now I knew it was an Ivarsson Design shape 64 with a saddle stem. Now it was time to work on the pipe. I removed the stem and turned my attention to the bowl clean up. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the fourth (and largest) cutting head to take the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls with a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel to smooth them out. I scrubbed the exterior of the briar with a brass bristle wire brush, a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the grime and soap. It looked much better and the dust and debris was gone. I dried it with a cotton towel. I worked over the plateau rim top and the bowl some more with a brass bristle wire brush to further knock off the debris in the valleys of the finish.I scrubbed out the internals of the shank, mortise and the airway in the stem with 99% isopropyl alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. There was a lot of tar and oil in the shank and airway. It was a mess.Once I had cleaned the shank with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs I tried the fit of the stem in the shank. It fit tightly against the mortise end but the gap between the shank end and the stem saddle was still open. I examined the fit and found that the shank end was not even – in fact it was slightly wavy. I heated the brass band and pressed it onto the end of the shank and then checked the fit of the stem and it was perfect. The band created a smooth shank end for the saddle stem. I also really like the look of the thin band. I decided to deghost the bowl so I stuffed it with cotton bolls and rolled one into the shank end. I used a ear syringe to fill the bowl with isopropyl alcohol. I set the bowl aside overnight to let it leech out the tars and oils from the bowl and shank. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 git sanding pads. I worked on the high spots on the plateau top along with the bowl and shank. As I finished the last of the micromesh it looked much better. With the briar polished smooth I decided to stain the bowl with a Light Brown aniline wash. I used a wool dauber to apply the stain. I lit it with a lighter to set the stain in the grain. I repeated the process several time until I was happy with the coverage. I buffed the bowl with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel to polish the newly stained briar. I like the way the wash made the grain stand out and blended in some of the darkened spots. It looked very good.

I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With that done, the bowl was finished other than the final buffing. I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I wiped it down with some Soft Scrub on cotton pads to remove the oxidation and calcification. I was able to remove most of the oxidation and the calcification. It looked much better when I finished.I “painted” the stem surface with the flame of a Bic lighter to lift the tooth marks. I was able to lift all of the marks on the top surface and all but three small deeper marks. I filled in those with black CA glue. I flattened the repair with a small file and further blended it into the surface with 220 grit sandpaper and started polishing it with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper. It really was taking on a shine. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) then wiped the stem down with another coat of Obsidian Oil.I am excited to finish this Ivarsson Design Danish Sovereign Made in Denmark 64 Freehand. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, saddle vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Danish Sovereign Made in Denmark 64 Freehand is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¾ inches long, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.83 ounces/52 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemaker Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

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

Yet Another Filthy and Messy Stanwell Antique Made in Denmark 25 Scoop

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Blog by Steve Laug

25. Three versions of this shape number:

a) Footed cutty with a long tapered stem (early 1950s – see catalog)
b) Same as 24(a) but larger, by Sixten Ivarsson.
c) Bent squat-apple with a rounded rim and a saddle stem, by Sixten Ivarsson.

List by designer

Sixten Ivarsson: 01 (Nefertiti), 01 (Pick Ax), 02, 06, 07, 09, 10, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19, 20 (Boat), 20 (Bent Dublin), 21, 22, 23, 24, 25, 30, 32 (Free Hand), 33, 34, 35 (Bent Free Hand), 37, 38, 41, 43, 48, 55, 59, 62, 63, 64, 70 (Free Hand Volcano/Sitter), 75 (Billiard w/oval shank), 79, 82, 85 (Bent e), 86, 87, 90, 91R, 95, 96, 105, 110, 119, 124, 2606, POY 1993.

Now I knew it was an Ivarsson Design shape 25 with a military style saddle stem. Now it was time to work on the pipe. I removed the stem and turned my attention to the bowl clean up. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the fourth (and largest) cutting head to take the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls with a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel to smooth them out. I scrubbed the exterior of the briar with a brass bristle wire brush, a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the grime and soap. It looked much better and the dust and debris was gone. I dried it with a cotton towel. I worked over the sandblast rim top and the bowl and shank sides with a brass bristle wire brush to further knock off the debris in the valleys of the blast. I worked over the damage on the inner edge of the bowl and the rim top. I also smoothed out the damage on the outer edge with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. It looked much better after I sanded the damaged areas smooth. I worked over the rim top and the heel of the bowl with a dry brass bristle brush to remove some of the darkening. It is looking better.

I scrubbed out the internals of the shank extension with 99% isopropyl alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. I wiped down the tenon on the shank extension with some white all purpose glue and the shank end and extension end with the glue and pressed it onto the shank. I aligned the shank and extension and held it in place until the glue set. I used my Dremel and a dental burr to retrace the lines of the sandblast on the sides of the bowl and the heel. I also used it to recut the lines of the blast on the rim top as well. I stained the bowl and shank with a light brown stain wash. I applied it to the surface of the briar with a wool dauber. I flamed it with a lighter flame to set it in the grain. I repeated the process until I was satisfied with the coverage. I polished the acrylic shank extension and the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 git sanding pads. I worked on the smooth front of the bowl and on the high spots on the sandblast. I wanted to make the new stain coat a bit more transparent. As I finished the last of the micromesh it looked much better. I cleaned out the shank now that the extension was attached with alcohol and pipe cleaners. It was not too bad in the shank end but the short briar to the from there to the bowl was dirty. I probably should have done the clean up earlier but I did not do so until now. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With that done, the bowl was finished other than the final buffing. I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I cleaned out the airway in the stem with pipe cleaners and isopropyl alcohol.I wiped it down with some Soft Scrub on cotton pads to remove the oxidation and calcification. I was able to remove most of the oxidation and the calcification. It looked much better when I finished.I sanded out the light tooth marks and chatter along with the remaining oxidation with 220 grit sandpaper and started polishing the stem with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) then wiped the stem down with another coat of Obsidian Oil.I am excited to finish this Ivarsson Design Stanwell Antique Made in Denmark 25. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, fancy turned vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Stanwell Antique 25 Made in Denmark Scoop is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches wide x 1 ¾ inches long, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.66 ounces/47 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemaker Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

Restoring a Filthy Lorenzetti 3200 – 20 Bent Egg Filter Pipe

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Blog by Steve Laug

The site also had a photo of a pipe that has the same finish as the one that I am working on. You can see from the photo what the one I am working on must have looked like when it sold. Here is the photo courtesy SmokersHaven.com.From that I knew that the pipe in my hands looked like when it came out. It was a real beauty that gave me the impetus to work on it. Armed with that information I turned my attention to restoring the pipe.

I decided to start my work on the pipe by reaming the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the first and second cutting head to take the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls with a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel to smooth them out. I wiped the bowl down with acetone to remove the tarry build up and the varnish on the briar. There was a lot of grime that came off with the varnish. It still needed a lot of work but it was looking better. I scrubbed the exterior of the briar with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the grime and soap. It looked much better and the dust and debris was gone. I dried it with a cotton towel. Next, I worked on the rim top of the bowl to clean up the bevel and the inner edge. I also worked on the marks around the bowl that needed work. It took some work but it cleaned up well. I used a folded piece of sandpaper to clean up the inner edge of the rim and to sand the darkening off around the bowl sides. I scrubbed out the internals of the pipe with 99% isopropyl alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. I cleaned out the airway in the stem as well. The airway into the bowl was a little different. It was in the bottom of the bowl toward the back. It has some wear on the top edge of the airway entrance. I worked on these areas repeatedly until the shank and the airway in all the parts was clean.I stained the bowl and shank with a light brown stain wash. I applied it to the surface of the briar with a wool dauber. I flamed it with a lighter flame to set it in the grain. I repeated the process until I was satisfied with the coverage. I polished the shank extension and the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 git sanding pads. I wanted to make the new stain coat a bit more transparent. I wiped it down with a cloth and some Obsidian Oil. The bowl had a very fowl tobacco ghost that hung over the pipe and the desk top where I was working on it. I stuffed the bowl with three cotton bolls and twisted one into the shank end. I used an ear syringe to fill the bowl with alcohol. I let the bowl sit for several hours to work on the stem. Once I came back to it the cotton boll was filthy. Once it was removed I ran pipe cleaners through and the pipe smelled much better. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With that done, the bowl was finished other than the final buffing. I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I polished the oxidation and tooth chatter on the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) then wiped the stem down with another coat of Obsidian Oil.I polished finished Lorenzetti Italy 3200-20 Bent Egg Sitter with Blue Diamond to polish out the remaining small scratches. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax and buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The smooth briar shows the effect of the brown stain wash and works very well with the black acrylic stem. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. I have worked on several Lorenzetti’s over the years and I have always been impressed by his ability to a craft a comfortable and functional smoking pipe. The Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 inches. The weight of the pipe is 64 grams/ 2.26 ounces. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the Italian Pipemakers Section if you would like to add it to your rack and carry on the previous pipeman’s legacy. This is an interesting estate to bring back to life.

Restoring well repaired Soren Hand Carved Made in Denmark Freehand

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Blog by Steve Laug

It looked like I was once again working on a pipe made by Soren Refbjerg Rasmussen for the US market as it was stamped Soren. I continued to do reading on another of my go to websites, Pipedia. Here is the link for the article there. https://pipedia.org/wiki/Refbjerg. I quote some of the more pertinent information.

Søren Refbjerg Rasmussen founded a company in 1969, which employed an average of 8 – 12 craftsmen in the 1970’s. The semi-freehands they produced were traded under his prename Søren. Rasmussen himself finished only the very best pipes. So his way of pipemaking closely resembled the ways of Preben Holm, Karl Erik Ottendahl or Erik Nørding. Altogether more than 1,000,000 pipes were sold.

There was also a note from Soren himself regarding the Danbark line of pipes that he made. I think that it is interesting to note that even on these he used the finest Corsican and Grecian briars. I assume that is also true of his other lines as well. I quote the note in full.

“A note from the carver:

I am very proud to introduce my new (!) series of hand-carved Danbark Pipes by Søren. These pipes are crafted from the finest Corsican and Grecian briars. I take a great deal of pride in crafting the Danbark Pipes to be highly functional and so they will provide the smoker with many years of dedicated service. The Danbark Pipes by Søren are available in several different styles and finishes with my personal touch and inspirations. At this time I favor making classic shaped pipes with a slight touch of my own hands and feelings. I do not produce many pipes today but the pipes that I do make available are individually crafted from the finest Corsican and Grecian Briars available to me. I still make free-hand pipes but not as many as I once made. For the past 35 years I have always tried to make good smoking pipes in my workshop located near Copenhagen, Denmark. I have always tried to craft my pipes in such a way as they will be long lasting and best friends with the owners. I take great pride in the shape of my pipes, the drilling of the pipes, and the overall dimensions of the pipes. I enjoy spending my spare time on the very long, rugged coasts of Denmark. I derive much relaxation from being on the coast while angling for Sea Trout with my own hand-tied flies. I find this environment is a great inspiration to me for making pipes. Many times I think to myself, “Inspired by nature, made by me”. — Happy puffing, Søren”

From that I knew that the pipe in my hands came from the 1970s. It bears the Soren signature stamp which also says that it was made for sale in the American pipe market. Armed with that information I turned my attention to restoring the pipe.

I decided to start my work on the pipe by working on the shank repair issues. I filled in the repair area with clear CA glue and pressed some briar dust into the glue. It took a few layers to smooth it out but the touch up on the repair was effective. I sanded the repaired area on the shank smooth with 220 grit sandpaper to blend it into the surrounding briar. I also sanded the burn mark on the side of the bowl. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the third cutting head to take the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls with a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel to smooth them out. I used a brass bristle wire brush to knock off the debris in the plateau on the rim top. It took some work but it cleaned up well. I used a folded piece of sandpaper to clean up the inner edge of the rim and to sand the darkening off the smooth area around rim top. I sanded the vulcanite shank extension at the same time to break the oxidation on the surface. I scrubbed the exterior of the briar with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the grime and soap. It looked much better and the dust and debris was gone. I dried it with a cotton towel. I touched up the sanded areas on the shank and the bowl spots using a Maple Stain Pen to start the process of blending them into the rest of the bowl. The colour is very close and once I restain the bowl it will work very well. I stained the bowl and shank with a light brown stain wash. I applied it to the surface of the briar with a wool dauber. I flamed it with a lighter flame to set it in the grain. I repeated the process until I was satisfied with the coverage. I polished the vulcanite shank extension and the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 git sanding pads. I wanted to make the new stain coat a bit more transparent. I wiped it down with a cloth and some Obsidian Oil. I scrubbed out the internals of the pipe with 99% isopropyl alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. I cleaned out the airway in the stem as well. I worked on these areas repeatedly until the shank and the airway in all the parts was clean.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With that done, the bowl was finished other than the final buffing. I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I wiped it down with some Soft Scrub to remove the oxidation.I touched up the “S” stamp on the top of the stem with white acrylic nail polish. Once had dried I sanded out the excess with a worn 1500 micromesh sanding pad.I polished the oxidation and tooth chatter on the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) then wiped the stem down with another coat of Obsidian Oil. I polished finished Soren Hand Carved Danish Freehand with Blue Diamond to polish out the remaining small scratches. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax and buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The plateau on the rim top and shank end and the smooth Dark and Medium brown contrast finish work very well with the black vulcanite stem. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. I have worked on several Soren pipes by Soren Refbjerg Rasmussen and several Refbjerg pipes over the years and I have always been impressed by his craftsmanship and ability to work a pipe to follow the grain of the briar. He does great work and is quite innovative in terms of shapes, flow and finishes on his pipes. The Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 2 inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 inches. The weight of the pipe is 73 grams/ 2.57 ounces. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the Danish Pipemakers Section if you would like to add it to your rack and carry on the previous pipeman’s legacy. This is an interesting estate to bring back to life.

Another Filthy and Messy Stanwell Made in Denmark Pot on the table

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Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe I chose to work on came is another one from the lot of 11 pipes I purchased from a lady in Regina, Saskatchewan. She had found them in a house she bought and wanted to know if I wanted them. We struck a deal, I paid for the pipes and shipping and the box arrived while I was traveling in Europe. In the box were 4 Stanwells, I Danmore Bowl, 1 Soren Freehand, 1 Calabash with a Briar Bowl, 1 Nording Freehand, 1 Italian Made Bertenetti, 1 Rhodesian with a banded cracked shank, and 1 Brigham. I have restored the Nording, the snapped Stanwell, the Brigham, the Gourd Calabash with the briar bowl and restemmed the Danmore bowl. There are blogs on each restoration available. The next pipe on the table is one of the dirtiest pipes in a box full of very dirty pipes. It is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads Stanwell [over] Made in Denmark. There is no visible model name or shape number stamped on the pipe. There was a thick cake in the bowl, debris in the bottom and on the bowl walls and some remnants of tobacco. The airway was plugged and there was no draught on the pipe. There was a heavy lava overflow on the rim top and down the sides of the bowl and shank. It was hard to know the condition of the inner edges of the bowl because of the cake. The outer edge actually looked quite good under the grime. The finish was dirty and dusty and there was lava on the sides and heel of the bowl. The vulcanite shank extension was filthy and oxidized. The stem was in rough shape in appearance but underneath the calcification and oxidation the tooth marks and chatter looked minimal. I took photos of the pipe before I started my cleanup work on it. I took a close-up photo of the bowl and rim top to show the cake in the bowl. The rim top shows some thin lava spots on the smooth finish. The inner and outer edges of the bowl looked good. I took photos of the top and underside of the stem surface and button to show its general condition. It looked very good under the spotty oxidation.The stamping on the underside of the shank is faint but readable as noted above. You can barely make out the Stanwell stamp on the smooth panel near the shank extension but it is present. I took the stem off the shank and took a photo to give a sense of the proportion of the pipe.I recognized shape as being a Sixten Ivarsson design but Icould not remember the shape number associated with it. I turned to Pipedia’s article on shapes that Bas Stevens originally worked on to check it out (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). I am including a shape chart below. It identifies the shape as an 11 (bottom left corner of the photo below).I also have included two screen captures regarding the shape 11. The pipe I am working on is 11b in the list below. It is a slightly bent large, wide pot with a concave rim and various possible stem configurations (typically saddle, but can also be military mount, tapered, faux spigot saddle etc.), by Sixten Ivarsson.Now I knew it was an Ivarsson Design shape 11 with a military style saddle stem. Now it was time to work on the pipe. I removed the stem and turned my attention to the bowl clean up. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the fourth (and largest) cutting head to take the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls with a piece of 180 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel to smooth them out. I scrubbed the exterior of the briar with a brass bristle wire brush, a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the grime and soap. It looked much better and the dust and debris was gone. I dried it with a cotton towel. I worked over the damage on the inner edge of the bowl and the rim top. I also smoothed out the damage on the outer edge with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. It looked much better after I sanded the damaged areas smooth. I worked over the rim top and the heel of the bowl with a dry brass bristle brush to remove some of the darkening. It is looking better.I scrubbed out the internals of the pipe with 99% isopropyl alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. I cleaned out the airway in the stem as well. I worked on these areas repeatedly until the shank and the airway in all the parts was clean. I polished the vulcanite shank extension with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 git sanding pads. I wiped it down with a cloth and some Obsidian Oil.I stained the bowl with a light brown aniline stain to blend the lighter and darker portions into each other. I applied it with a wool dauber and then flamed it with a Bic lighter to set it in the grain. I repeated the process until the coverage on the bowl was what I wanted. I wiped the bowl down with isopropyl alcohol on cotton pads to make it more transparent and show the other colour underneath. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With that done, the bowl was finished other than the final buffing. I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I wiped it down with some Soft Scrub to remove the oxidation and calcification. I sanded out the light tooth marks and chatter along with the remaining oxidation with 220 grit sandpaper and started polishing the stem with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) then wiped the stem down with another coat of Obsidian Oil.I am excited to finish this Ivarsson Design Stanwell Made in Denmark 11. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, fancy turned vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Stanwell Large Pot 11 is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.69 ounces/48 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemaker Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

New Life for a Comoy’s Sandblast Squat Straight Bulldog

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Blog by Steve Laug

This Comoy’s Sandblast on my work table has a rugged, swirling sandblast finish with lots of nooks and crannies in the briar. It is a beauty! The straight Bulldog is clearly stamped on a smooth panel on the left underside of the diamond shank and reads Comoy’s [over] Sandblast. Underneath that it is stamped Made in London [over] England in two lines. There is no shape number stamped visibly though it could possibly be underneath the gold band. I received an email a few weeks ago from Alec, a reader of the blog about the pipe. Here is what he wrote…

I have an old Comoy’s straight, sandblasted, squat bulldog pipe which I got from an antique store. From what I can tell, it is from the 60s or 70s, pre-Cadogan. The stem is vulcanite and has some deoxidization [sp]. I was wondering if you would be able to do some restoration work for me? I am not looking to sell it, but don’t have the time to go about doing it myself.

We wrote back and forth and he sent the pipe to me. It came yesterday and when I looked at it this morning this is what I saw. The valleys and ridges of the sandblasted grain showing through the grime and dirt are a mixture that leaves a rich texture. It had a rich dark and medium contrasting brown stain that does not look too bad. There was a moderate cake in the bowl with remnants of tobacco stuck on the walls. There was a light lava overflow in the blast on the rim. The edges of the rim and top are dirty but look pretty pristine under the grime. There was a scratched gold band on the shank end that upon examination showed a crack on the lower right underside. It was a beautiful pipe that was dirty and tired looking. The stem was oxidized and calcified with what appeared to be marks from a rubber Softee Bit toward the end. It had some tooth marks on the top and underside of the button. I took photos of the pipe before I started my cleanup work on it. I took photos of the bowl and rim top to show the cake in the bowl and the lava build up on the edges of the bowl. It was thick and hard but hopefully it had protected the rim and edges from damage. The edges look pretty good.I took a photo of the stamping on the smooth panel on the underside of the shank. The stamping was readable as you can see from the photo below. It read Comoy’s [over] Sandblast and underneath Made in London [over] England. The second photo shows the C logo on the left side of the saddle stem is formed by three circles working to make the C. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of proportion. Before my work on the pipe began, I wanted to see where it fit in the Comoy’s timeline. I looked on Pipedia to pin down a date for the pipe. Since the pipe is stamped Made in London England I decided to use that to see what I could find. Pipedia has a great article on dating these pipes (https://pipedia.org/index.php?title=Comoy%27s_Dating_Guide#Made_in_London_England). I found the information below. I have highlighted the pertinent portion in red in the paragraph below. The stamping matches the pipe I am working on.

Appears in two versions. This is again stamped in two straight lines “MADE IN LONDON” on the top and “ENGLAND” beneath. It can be assumed that this stamp was first used in the export drive in the early 1950s. On a Bulldog Sandblast from the early 50s the Comoy name has slightly more fancy block letters with serifs and the apostrophe. (It seems that some grades carried different stamps, or at least that the stamping changed in different years for some grades.)] was used together with “MADE IN LONDON” over “ENGLAND”. There are no known examples of pre-WW II Comoy’s stamped in this way. The second version is the same as above but in a “rugby ball” shape. This shape is verified on Comoy´s “Extraordinaire” pipes.

From that I knew that I was working a Comoy’s Sandblast Bulldog Made in London England from the early 1950’s.

I have also included two catalogue pages from Pipedia as well to show the line for sale at several time periods in Comoy’s history (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Comoy%27s). The first page is from the 1922 Catalogue and the second one is from a later date. Read the description that highlights how they did their sandblasting combining heat and sand to bring out the grain. I started my work on the pipe by reaming the bowl. I reamed it back with a PipNet pipe reamer using the first two cutting heads to take off all of the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and then sanded the bowl walls with 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a piece of dowel. I cleaned out the interior of the pipe with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol. It was not as dirty as I expected. I was able to remove all of the grime and tars that were in the mortise, shank and airway in the stem.I scrubbed the exterior of the bowl and shank with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. It looked surprisingly better and the dust and lava filling in the sandblast was gone. The pipe had a strong aromatic smell remaining in the bowl and shank even after cleaning thoroughly so I filled the bowl with cotton bolls and a cotton plug in the shank. I used an ear syringe to fill the bowl with 99% isopropyl alcohol to deghost it and remove the smell of the aromatic. I let it sit overnight. In the morning the cotton was dark with tars and oils. I removed it from the bowl and ran pipe cleaners and alcohol through it. I used some alcohol thinned light brown aniline stain as a wash on the briar. I applied it to the briar with a wood dauber and flamed it with a Bic lighter to set the stain in the wood. I set it aside to let the wash dry. I rubbed Before & After Restoration Balm on the pipe, working it into the grooves and deeper areas of the sandblast. The balm enlivens, cleans and protects the briar was it is worked into the finish. I let it sit for a short time and then buffed it off with a soft cloth. I took photos of the bowl to show the condition at this point. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I scrubbed the surface with Soft Scrub and cotton pads to remove some of the oxidation on the surface. While it worked it left behind some very deep oxidation. I “painted” the stem surface with a lighter flame and was able to raise them quite a bit. I cleaned up the stem end with 220 grit sandpaper and then filled in the remaining marks on the button edge and the surface with black CA glue. Once it cured, I used a file to shape the button edge and also smooth out the fill. I sanded the remaining marks with 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the surface of the surrounding vulcanite. I started polishing the stem surface with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper. I polished the stem surface with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding with 3200-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Oil to preserve and protect the stem. I put the stem back on the bowl and worked the pipe over on the buffing wheel using Blue Diamond to lightly polish both the bowl and the stem. I buffed the bowl and stem to raise the gloss on the briar and the vulcanite. I gave the bowl a lighter buff than I did on the stem to keep the polishing material from clogging the deep grooves of the blast. There is a little remaining oxidation around the C logo which I am leaving as I do not want to damage it. There was also some water damage (lightening) just ahead of the button on both sides that remains after much work! I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and gave the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the entire pipe 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. The contrasting brown stain – both medium and dark brown goes well with the rich black of the vulcanite stem. The dimensions of the pipe are: Length: 5 1/2 inches, Height: 1 3/4 inches, Outside Diameter: 1 1/4 inches, Diameter of the chamber: 3/4 inches. Now that the pipe is finished I will soon pack it up and mail it back to Alec. I know he is looking forward to loading it up and smoking it. Thanks for walking with me through the restoration.

My Grandfather’s Apple

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Blog by Kenneth Lieblich

Next on the chopping block is a personal pipe – and one that is staying in my collection. This pipe is a charming apple shape with a straight stem of what I assume is amberoid – and not real amber. I do not know where my grandfather acquired it (or under what circumstances), but I suppose it does not ultimately matter. My grandfather was an enthusiastic pipe smoker and he clearly enjoyed this one. I am definitely looking forward to cleaning this one up. It has a value well beyond dollars. As the photos show, this pipe has a stem that tapers towards the button. In addition to this, it also has an orific button. These two facts suggest a pipe from the pre-WW2 era. For more information on the orific button, take the time to read Steve’s interesting article on the subject. This type of button is a feature that apparently disappeared by the 1930s, but the metal tenon suggests a date that is more likely in the 1940s. The pipe’s markings read Racine de [over] Bruyere [over] Garantie (on the left side of the shank). Alas, there are no other markings to be found. As you may know, Racine de Bruyere Garantie means “Guaranteed Briar Root”. This indicates that the pipe almost certainly comes from St Claude, France, but gives no indication of who made it. As previously mentioned, I do not know the exact date of the pipe, but it is likely from the 1940s.Anyway, on to the pipe – and it’s a pipe that just makes you smile. There is something wholesome and comforting about the look of the pipe. I must admit, however, that I may be thinking of my grandfather more than the pipe!

This poor pipe was not without its issues. The stummel had the following problems: lava on the rim, charring to the rim, a bashed rim, plenty of cake in the bowl, a few substantial and ugly fills, and a tired, worn-out colour of wood. By the way, some of the strange “marks” on the bowl are, in fact, old bits of newspaper. After my grandfather died, the pipes were wrapped in newspaper and stuck in a box. The newspaper got wet at some point in the intervening years. Meanwhile, the stem had its own set of problems: major tooth marks and dents, a bite-through, and a filthy stinger. The stem was first on my list. The stinger actually screwed into the tenon – and it was being quite stubborn about coming out! I opted to warm the stinger with a heat gun and this provided just enough softening of the internal goo to allow me to pull it out. The stinger then went for a soak in some lemon-infused isopropyl alcohol. I let it set for several hours and then cleaned it off and it looked much improved. I then finished it with some 0000-grit steel wool, greased the threads with some petroleum jelly and moved on. I wiped down the outside of the stem with Murphy’s Oil Soap on some cotton pads. Then, I cleaned out the insides with pipe cleaners and isopropyl alcohol. As I mentioned earlier, I think this stem is made from amberoid. This is a synthetic of small pieces of amber, pressed together under great pressure and high heat.Now it was time to make a fix the damage. I tried desperately hard to clean the discoloration inside and outside the stem, but this met with limited success. I ended up filing the dents etc. with clean cyanoacrylate adhesive. I first plugged up the stem’s draught hole with a pipe cleaner coated in petroleum jelly. This ensured that any of the cyanoacrylate would not accidentally plug up the air passage in the stem. I then used a miniature file to shape the button and make it suitable for sanding. I then sanded the stem down with 220- and 400-grit sandpapers to meld seamlessly into the stem. This ensures that it keeps its shape and looks like it should. I then used all nine Micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) on the stem to make look as much like amber as possible. I also used Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil in between each pad scrubbing. It is worth noting that a repair this big on a stem will never be invisible, but I was pleased with how the stem finished up. On to the stummel, and the usual cleaning procedures were in order for this pipe. I used the KleenReem to remove the built-up cake, and followed that with 220-grit sandpaper to remove as much as I could. I wanted to take the bowl down to bare briar to ensure there were no hidden flaws in the walls of the bowl. Fortunately, there were none. I then proceeded to clean out the insides of the shank with cotton swabs, pipe cleaners, and isopropyl alcohol. There was quite a bit of filth inside this stummel – it took many pipe cleaners et cetera to clean it out. Have a look at the photos – disgusting! I decided that a de-ghosting session would be a good idea. I thrust cotton balls into the bowl and the shank and saturated them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. I let the stummel sit overnight. This caused the oils, tars and smells to leach out into the cotton. The bowl was nice and clean after this. One interesting point of note is that the mortise on this pipe is lined with cork (another sign of the pipe’s age). This complicated the cleaning process, as I needed to ensure that the alcohol etc. didn’t degrade the cork. I worked carefully and it turned out alright.I followed that up by cleaning the insides with some Castile soap and tube brushes. I then moved on to cleaning the outside of the stummel with Murphy’s Oil Soap and some cotton pads. That removed the bits of aforementioned newspaper and any remaining dirt. I also soaked the rim in Murphy’s for a while, then used a toothbrush to loosen up the lava.There were several notable dents and nicks on the rim. Normally, I would top the pipe on a piece of 220-grit sandpaper. I didn’t do that this time because I wanted to maintain the rounded profile of the rim. I still used 220-grit sandpaper, but made sure to keep the look of the pipe.Having completed that, I was able to address the fills on the stummel. I used a dental tool to dig out the old, crumbly putty. I filled the divots with a mixture of cyanoacrylate adhesive and briar dust – then let it cure. Now, with the nicks filled, it was time to sand down the stummel. I used all nine Micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to sand everything smooth.After that, a light application of Before & After Restoration Balm brought out the best in the stummel’s grain. What a difference that made! I felt that this pipe really needed some colour for two reasons: some dark colour would contrast nicely with the orange of the stem and it would help obscure some of the dreadful fills. I applied Fiebing’s Cordovan Leather Dye with a cotton dauber. I flamed it with my Bic lighter, let it set, then coated it again with dye, flamed it again, and let that set too. I decided to let the pipe sit overnight. Upon the morrow, I used isopropyl alcohol to wipe down the pipe and remove excess stain. I am very happy with the results.Then it was off for a trip to the buffer. A dose of White Diamond and a few coats of carnauba wax were just what this pipe needed. The lovely shine made the wood look absolutely beautiful.This is a wonderfully crafted pipe and has a very elegant feel to it. It took a lot of work, but I am proud of it and the final product is (hopefully) worthy of my beloved grandfather’s memory. Obviously, this is one pipe that I am keeping for myself and adding to my collection. I am sure that I will be enjoying this one for many years to come. I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this pipe as much I as I did restoring it. The approximate dimensions of the pipe are as follows: length 5⅜ in. (136 mm); height 1⅝ in. (43 mm); bowl diameter 1⅜ in. (37 mm); chamber diameter ¾ in. (19 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1¼ oz. (40 g). If you are interested in more of my work, please follow me here on Steve’s website or email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

Thanks Bill for the chance to craft one of my own

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Blog by Steve Laug

Earlier in the summer I received a package from a friend in Saskatchewan that included some nice pipes for me to enjoy that he had restored along with this partially finish Billiard. It had been shaped and drilled and had some large flaws on the left side of the bowl. The one mid-bowl was quite large and another toward the top of the bowl and onto the rim top. Both were deep and ragged looking and both would need work. I filled them both in with briar dust and clear CA glue and set it aside to cure. I was not too worried about it as in the shaping process much of the briar around the sides and rim would be removed. I took closer photos of the repairs to the flaws in the sides of the bowl. I layered in briar dust and clear CA glue to build up the flawed areas. I wanted to be able to start the process with a smooth surface on the bowl and shank. Once the repairs cured I flattened them out with files and then sanded them smooth with 220 grit sandpaper. I used a Dremel and a sanding drum to further blend them into the surface of the bowl. I removed the long taper billiard stem and “discovered” that it was a filter stem made for a 9mm filter. I decided to get rid of that stem and with the length of the thick shank that I would fit a new stem. I chose a stem that was about an inch shorter than the taper original. It was a thick looking saddle stem that I thought would look great and create a nice looking Lovat.I set up the PIMO tenon turning tool on my hand drill. I adjusted the settings to give me a very clean turn on the tenon. In the first photo you can see the misshaped tenon. I measured the tenon and then turned it once. I cleaned off the excess and turned it a second time to smooth out the roughness of the edges. I tried it in the shank and though the diameter of the stem was larger it looked very good. I used a flat rasp to remove excess material from the stem diameter. I continued to sand and file off the excess until it was close to the same diameter as the shank. I took photos of the fit of the stem to the shank on the pipe. I used a Dremel and sanding drum to bring it down further. I worked on the stem/shank fit with 220 grit sandpaper. It was looking very good at this point. It was getting very close to the shank fit. I fit the stem on the shank and took photos of the new look of the stem/shank fit. It still needed work but it looked very good at this point. I worked on the stem some more with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the transition between the stem and the shank. Once it was smooth I decided to see what the shank would look like with a band. I had a gold band that was perfect size for the shank. I put the band on the shank and took photos of the bowl with the shank. What do you think? To me it is exactly the touch I needed for this pipe to step up a bit. I like the look on the shank. I fit the stem to the shank to have a look at the flow of the pipe with the gold band and the saddle stem. Now I was even more convinced that the band was a great idea. It gives the pipe a classic Lovat look with a touch of bling. In preparation for staining the bowl I polished it with micromesh sanding pads 1500-400 grit pads to smooth out the repaired areas and the scratches on the surface of the bowl and rim top. It looked much better at this point in the process. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust and then put a cork in the bowl and prepared the bowl for staining. I have had success in using a Cordovan stain when I am dealing with large repairs like this bowl had on the rear and left side of the bowl. It works to blend them in better than just a brown stain.I applied the stain with a dauber and then flamed it with a lighter it to set it in the grain. I repeated the process until I was happy with the coverage. You can see the darkness and coverage of the stain in the photos below.I like the stain to be more transparent to allow the grain to shine through but I want it opaque enough around the repairs to blend them into the surrounding briar. I sanded the bowl and shank with a medium and fine sanding sponge and I am really pleased with the coverage and the transparency of the colour. I rubbed the bowl and rim down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. I really like watching the Balm do its magic and bring the briar alive. I sanded out the file marks and the scratches with 220 grit sandpaper and started the polishing with 600 grit wet dry sandpaper. It looked significantly better and was ready to polish it. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. It works to protect the stem from oxidizing. I set it aside to dry. I love it when I am carving or shaping a pipe to come to this point in the process. If always feels I am on the homestretch. I look forward to the final look when the Lovat I have carved is put back together, polished and waxed. I put the bowl and stem back together. I lightly polished the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond to polish out the scratches in the briar and the vulcanite. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The depths of the rustication really pop with the wax and polish. The shiny black vulcanite stem is a beautiful contrast to the browns of the bowl and gold band on the thick shank. This Thick Shanked Lovat was a fun pipe to carve and to finish. It really is a quite stunning piece of briar whose shape follows the flow of the briar. The repaired fills blend well into the stain of the finish. The pipe feels great in the hand will be better when warmed up while smoking. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 3/8 inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 2.15 ounces/61 grams. I am looking forward to loading a bowl and enjoying this pipe. Thanks again Bill for the gift and the joy I had in working on it.

A Resurrection of a 1920 Dunhill Patent Ao Bruyere 52 Bent Billiard

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Blog by Eric Fleming

Eric and I have chatted about pipe restoration for some time now and when he picked up this Dunhill I asked him to keep me posted on his work on it. I have to say, he went far beyond anything I have done and really, what I expected when I saw the pipe. It is a very creative and innovative restoration that I thought you might all enjoy! Without further introduction or discussion, Eric will walk us through his process in the following pages. Thanks Eric for allowing me to post it on rebornpipes!

As a student of history and all things of antiquity I am a sucker for an old Tobacco Pipe. And as a result, when I ran into this poor old and somewhat disabled Patent era Dunhill I couldn’t resist the temptation to “try” to rehabilitate it. Configuring a plan of attack based solely on pictures is usually riddled with surprises and this plan was the usual. The damage was as adequately represented as an image can be but holding a thing in one’s own hands and soaking in the magnitude of it is another thing entirely. Upon unboxing, it was obvious that my plan was slightly premature.

The moment I concluded my purchase I moved straight on to Pipedia to confirm some of what I already knew (Dunhill Bruyere – Pipedia.html). This old boy was a Dunhill (shape 52) Inner Tube patent# 1130806/15 (1924-1926) Ao Bruyere. The history of the early Bruyere is interesting. By 1920 Dunhill was making all of their stummels in house and the Bruyere of this time was “usually” made of Calabrian briar due to its physical traits and ability to take on a deep red stain (Pipedia Dunhill Dating Guide – Pipedia.html).

Here are the Before pics. The Dunhill had some things going for it. The original Vulcanite stem had already been polished and exhibited very little external wear. There are a few indentations near the tenon that a previous owner decided, rightly, to leave alone rather than reduce the diameter where it matches up to the stummel. This pipe is almost 100 years old. A little original wear is, in my opinion, a mark of character. Proof of a past existence if you will. The tenon to mortice fit was surprisingly tight. Extreme care was taken to remove it. This will have to be remedied before it is re-inserted. The stem’s draft hole was heavily caked in tar. The stummel was in reasonably good shape everywhere but the rim. This poor old boy survived many violent blows over the years, Severe mushrooming and on one side it chipped out at some point. A crude epoxy fill was employed to fill the damage. The rest of the stummel had almost no original finish and was clean internally and sooty externally. The factory stampings were difficult to read, rather thin but enough to make out. I was hopeful that cleaning would bring them back some. The bottom of the bowl was hard to make out since a very thick bowl coating had been applied. Shining a light into the bowl revealed that the bottom of the bowl was eroded below the draft hole. This pipe might have been someone’s favorite. It has been smoked heavily. It was now time for deep cleaning. Aiming towards the low hanging fruit, I decided to deal with the stem first. The draft hole had an impressive build up. The first alcohol soaked bristle cleaner was tough to push through and many were employed to finish the job. Toward the end I couldn’t help but wonder if I was removing the end result of a fine smoke that took place nearly 100 years ago.Now on to the stummel. Because it was quite clean already I decided to skip the soapy water scrub and just scrub the outside with Murphy’s oil soap concentrate and a toothbrush. This action effectively revealed the briar under the grime and I was quite happy to see that the stampings were clearer and more visible. Still light but legible.

Next was the issues with the inside of the bowl. The coating was hiding much of the real condition of the pipe. Cotton balls were inserted into the bowl and wadded up tissue pressed into the mortice. 99% alcohol then poured in to perform its overnight magic. The next morning the coating had been dissolved, easily removed with a wipe. Now the real condition is revealed and it wasn’t all that good. The epoxy fill was deep and the side of the bowl had light erosion from the many smokes this pipe had delivered. The erosion at the bottom of the bowl was deeper than originally perceived. Not near burnout, but about 1/8” below the draft hole. At this point a decision had to be made as to how to proceed. The epoxy fill was poorly done and would likely cause future problems if left alone. The mushrooming of the rim was unlikely to be steamed out and the height of the rim was obviously below it’s original state. After a day of rolling it around in my mind I decided that there was no other acceptable option but to remove the offending rim and replace it. The erosion would also need to addressed.

For me the easiest way to remove the top of the rim is with my old manual knee mill. Using the disc sander an even flat is ground on the top of the rim. The stummel is then placed in the machine vise with protective strips of leather. The leather not only protects the briar from indentation but it also adds some traction for the jaws to grip. A dial indicator is then used to indicate the flat on the top of the rim. This operation could have been done with the disc sander alone but I am partial to the control allowed by the mill. After the mill the refreshed rim is lightly sanded by hand to 400 grit on a sanding block. To fabricate a new rim a small piece is cut from a chunk of briar left over from another build and sanded flat on one side then milled flat and parallel on the knee mill. The only references I had to estimate the correct height of the bowl were the measurements taken before the rim removal and an image found online of a 52 shape Dunhill.

By the way, The shape 52 is listed as a Bent Low Pot. My measured estimation is that once the rim was removed there needed to be .200 added back. This is not an exact science. The .200 thick block of briar then has two diameters marked with a compass for outside diameter and inside diameter, leaving a little extra on each of course, and taken to the scroll saw to be roughed out. Glue up comes next. All briar surfaces to be bonded are wiped with alcohol to remove dust and or oil residue. The epoxy I have grown fond of is West Systems G Flex 2 part epoxy. It is incredibly durable, neutral when cured and easy to work with. Since it is undesirable to have an epoxy filled bowl, I have found it advantageous to mix the epoxy, wait 45 minutes (the listed pot life) and then apply to both briar surfaces. At this point the epoxy is gel like and will not run. The stummel is clamped in a vise and remains for 24 hours. Once the rim replacement has cured the tedious hand work begins. Extra material is removed with aggressive hand files. Then small needle files are used to bring the profile close to finished. To match and blend the two surfaces at the end a ¾” wood dowel wrapped in 150 grit sandpaper is used to mate the inside diameters while a small thin sanding block with 150 grit is used to mate the outside diameter. The entire stummel (except for the stampings) are at this point sanded from 250 grit thru 2400 grit micro mesh. The stamped parts of the stummel sanded 1500 thru 2400 grit micro mesh only. The erosion damage to the bottom of the bowl is the next focus. I have used “pipe Mud” with success in the past but it can be precarious and doesn’t always stay put long term. I wanted a more permanent fix and didn’t feel the need to bore a hole through the bottom of the stummel for a plug. So, I shot a call to my pipe making and repair mentor Mark Tinsky of American Smoking Pipe Co. Mark has been making Artisan Pipes longer than I have been alive, tolerates my frequent calls and emails, and is an all around great guy and wealth of knowledge. Upon presenting my Dunhill issue he shared with me one of his bowl bottom repair tricks. A mixture of Elmer’s multi purpose glue, Briar dust and Charcoal dust mixed into a black paste. This was a new one to me. When I asked Mark “why not Pipe Mud”? He replied… “I don’t smoke Cigars”. Apparently, Elmer’s glue is an organic material and when mixed with both briar and charcoal holds up to the temperature and general abuse well. The Briar dust was left over from the rim removal and the charcoal dust was made from Willow Charcoal sticks easily found at an art store. The mixture is easy to adjust for texture and also easy to apply. The draft hole of the stummel was plugged with a pipe cleaner and the mixture slowly scooped in to the desired level which was almost to the top of the cleaner. The stummel was then set aside to cure for 24 hrs. The next day I had a high and flat surface at the bottom of the bowl. A ¾” wood dowel was taken to the disc sander and slowly profiled to my desired radiused bowl bottom. This took several attempts. Then a small diameter was cut from a sheet of 80grit sandpaper and glued to the radius of the dowel. I used super glue for it’s fast adhesion. The bottom of the bowl was then sanded with the abrasive dowel until the desired depth was achieved. The result was surprisingly good. The shiny dark color was noticeable but very uniform to the bowl. All that was then necessary to complete the repairs to the inside of the bowl was to address the light erosion to the sides. Since they were shallow It was decided that Pipe Mud would be a good solution. A nice Maduro was sacrificed to fulfill my pipe repair needs. You owe it to yourself to employ a “good” cigar for this purpose. Not only is it a nice change of pace but a fine cigar actually produces a higher quality ash. Using a dropper, I slowly added water to the ash. This can easily be overdone. If the mixture becomes shiny, you have added too much water and need to add more ash. If the mixture is too dry it wont stay put. I experimented before using it the first time. I am glad I did. The Pipe Mud was then scooped into the bowl, not allowing it to settle in the bottom and then worked into the erosion with a finger. The Dunhill was again set aside for the day. With the Dunhill repaired, sanded and ready for dye I had reached a point of concern. How do I blend this light colored briar to the rest of the stummel without it looking like a repair? I had previously researched the old Bruyere finish used in this era Dunhill. Apparently, it consisted of a light brown dye under a dark red dye. A few examples were found online and saved for comparison. The light briar of the repair then received 6 coats of dark brown dye lightly polishing each back until it was darker than the original briar color. The rest of the original stummel received one coat of light brown dye and polished back. At this point I tried to blend the light into the dark for a seamless look. Then the dark red was lightly received and polished back. The result was not great. The original part of the stummel looked nearly identical to the sample images I had found but the repair was still obvious. With no other option I gave the repair many coats of dark red overlapping onto the original briar to try to create a pure dark red blending into the lighter dark red. This took several tries and applications. In the end, I was not able to perfectly match my sample images due to the very dark rim, but I think it’s better than having a obvious mismatch that would surely stand out. Indoors the repair is almost invisible. Outside in sunlight it can be faintly seen. Because I was a little hesitant to mess with this time consuming and difficult dye job, it was decided to take the light-handed approach to waxing the stummel. Crystal Clear Paste Wax was lightly rubbed on with a soft clean cloth and polished off. Letting it sit for 30 minutes, polished again and re-applied 3 times. This approach is probably not as durable as pure carnuba wax applied with a buffer but I was not willing to risk spoiling the hard won appearance. Normally I would call this repair complete but there had been so much work done to the inner bowl I was uneasy to leave it as is. There are many versions of Bowl Coatings but from what I have read and heard they all server the same purpose. To protect the inner bowl from heat damage. At this point I had a glue concoction for a bottom and pipe mud lightly coating the sides and epoxy joint. That is worth protecting. I decided to go with another of Mark Tinsky’s suggestions and use the honey/charcoal version of the bowl coating. A couple drops of honey were placed in a small bowl. Water was mixed in with it 1 part honey to 3 parts water to create a very thin yet sticky liquid. I still had charcoal dust laying around from earlier. Using a pipe cleaner bent in half It was dipped into the honey water and lightly swabbed on the entire inside of the bowl. The charcoal then dumped into the bowl, a piece of cardboard held over the rim and a good blow into the draft hole to scatter the charcoal and clear the draft hole. It was then let sit for a few hours and the charcoal dumped and blown out. This Old Dunhill has been rehabilitated and is ready for a few more years of service.I learned a lot from this project. It is the most involved pipe repair I have attempted to date and has opened my eyes to the possibilities from this point on. Because I know this project could not have been a success without the incredible depth of knowledge that was shared with me I would like to thank those individuals for their giving nature.

I have been reading rebornpipes for years and have structured much of my method after Steve Laug’s style of pipe repair. I don’t think I would have started refurbishing pipes if it were not for this Blog and am honored to be a part of it.

A shout out to Mark Tinsky as well. I doubt there is any aspect of pipe repair or pipe making that this man has not experienced. His patience with me has been instrumental and is greatly appreciated.

Eric Fleming

Boise Idaho

Fresh Life for a Republic Era Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky 608S Saddle Stem Pot

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Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table is a sandblast Peterson’s Rusitcated Pot shaped pipe that we purchased from an auction in Manorville, New York, USA on 07/28/2022. It was stamped on the underside of the shank and read Peterson’s [over] “Donegal” Rocky [over] Made in the Republic of Ireland (in three lines) followed by the shape number 608S. There is a band on the shank that is stamped on the left side and reads K&P in shields [over] Sterling Silver. Under those stamps there are three hallmarks – Hibernia seated, Crowned Harp for country of manufacture and a date letter in this case an oddly shaped upper case “S”. It has a rusticated finish around the bowl and shank that has a lot of oils, debris and grime in the finish. There was a thick cake in the bowl and a heavy lava overflow in the rustication on the rim top. The inner edge of the bowl looks to have significant damage on the left front under the tars and lava. There was a very beautiful pipe underneath all of the buildup of years of use. The stem was a Peterson’s style P-Lip Saddle Stem. It had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show the thick cake in the bowl and the heavy lava build up on the rusticated rim top and the edges of the bowl. The rim top and edges looked rough but a proper clean up would tell the full story. At this point the inner edge of the left side of the bowl looked to be out of round. Jeff took photos of the top and underside of the stem showing the tooth chatter, scratching, calcification and oxidation on the stem surface and wear on the edges of the button. More would be visible once Jeff cleaned it up. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the condition of the finish. You can see the grime and what looks to be white paint around the sides of the bowl and shank in the rusticated finish. It seems to fill in the grooves in the rustication. Jeff took photos of the stamping on the underside of the shank. The stamping was faint but readable as you can see from the photos. It read as noted above. The Sterling Silver ferrule is actually clearly stamped and readable. The hallmarks are light but readable.

I am including the information from Pipedia’s article on Peterson pipes. It is a great read in terms of the history of the brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Peterson). I have included a bit of the pertinent history here.

1950 – 1989 The Republic Era – From 1950 to the present time, the stamp for this era is “Made in the Republic of Ireland” in a block format generally in three lines but two lines have been used with or without Republic being abbreviated.

During the 1950’s and 60’s the Kapp & Peterson Company was still in the ownership of the Kapp family. However 1964 saw the retiral of the company Managing Director Frederick Henry(Harry) Kapp.

I turned to the hallmarking chart on one of the blogs on rebornpipes to lock down the date for the pipe (https://rebornpipes.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/peterson-cataloguecomp_page_27.jpg). The chart defines the meaning of each hallmark. The first one of the seated woman with a harp is known as the Hibernia stamp and identifies the pipe as made in Ireland. The second stamp is a crowned harp which is a fineness mark denoting the high quality of silver that was used. The third stamp is an oddly shaped S. I have included a larger screen capture of the chart in the lower left of the photo below.

I have drawn a RED CIRCLE around the date letter below. What appeared to be an upper-case S actually is a very stylized G as seen in the circled letter below. It identifies the date of this Peterson’s pipe to 1974.I knew that I was dealing with a Republic Era pipe made between 1950 and the present. The hallmarks date the pipe to 1974. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had done a great job cleaning up the pipe as usual. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet reamer and cut back the cake back to the bare briar. He cleaned up the walls with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the interior of the bowl and shank with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol to remove the tars and oils. He scrubbed the exterior of the pipe with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime from the finish. He worked on the rim top lava and darkening with the soap and tooth brush. He scrubbed the inside of the stem with alcohol and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the stem with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer. He washed it off with warm water to remove the Deoxidizer. The pipe looked far better when it arrived. The silver tarnished once again and would need to be polished because it had been sitting here for awhile. I took some close up photos of the rim top and also of the stem surface. I wanted to show how well it had cleaned up. The rim top and edges look quite good though the bowl was very out of round with damage to the left side toward the front of the bowl. I also took close up photos of the stem to show the light tooth marks on the surface near the button. I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank and the band. You can see that it is stamped as noted above. It is faint but still readable. I took the pipe apart and took a photo of the pipe. It is a good-looking pipe and has a rugged rustication around the bowl. I started my work on the pipe by addressing the damage on the inner edge of the rim and the top. I built up the damaged edge with clear CA glue and briar dust. The initial start looks pretty awful but follow through the photos. I used a brass bristle brush to clean up the rusticated rim top. I worked over the inner edge of the rim with both a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper and a piece of dowel wrapped with 220 grit sandpaper. The rim top and edges looked significantly better after the clean up. I touched up the inner edge and the rim top with a Walnut stain pen to match the stain on the briar around the bowl. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips and a horsehair shoe brush to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I polished the Sterling Silver band on the shank with a jeweller’s cloth to remove the tarnish and polish it. I “painted” the surface of the stem with the flame of a Bic lighter to lift the light tooth marks on both sides. I was able to lift all of them. I followed that by sanding it with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I started the polishing of the stem with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper. I wiped it down with some Obsidian Oil. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. It works to protect the stem from oxidizing. I set it aside to dry. I am excited to finish this Republic Era Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky 608S Pot. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I hand buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the rugged rustication all around it. Added to that the polished Sterling Silver band and the black vulcanite stem was beautiful. This rusticated Classic Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky Pot is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 29 grams/1.06 ounces. It is a beautiful pipe and one that will be on the Irish Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you are interested in adding it to your collection let me know. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over this pipe. Thanks to each of you who are reading this blog.