by Kenneth Lieblich

This recently acquired pipe caught my eye because of its markings and I thought I should clean it up and offer it to you all. It is a Kaywoodie Standard 99B bulldog, with a square shank, a screw-in tenon, and a bent saddle stem. In fact, Kaywoodie refers to this pipe as ‘Squat Bulldog, Half Bent, Saddle Bit’. The difference is that this one comes from London, England. Most unusual! It’s a handsome pipe, a lovely piece of briar, and reminds me of another time and another place.

A quick look at the markings tells us what we need to know. On the left side of the shank, we read Kaywoodie [over] Standard. On the right side of the shank, we read London England [over] 99B. Finally, the stem has the famous cloverleaf logo on the left side.

Dating this Kaywoodie is a bit of a head-scratcher. I think I’ve figured it out, but the historical details of many a pipe have been lost in the mists of time. Perhaps the cloverleaf logo on the stem can help. Pipephil says:

The cloverleaf logo: the round logo (black cloverleaf in white circle or white cloverleaf in black circle) was first used in 1937. Up until the late 40’s this logo was used on all of the upper-grade pipes. The concomitant use of the plain white cloverleaf and the disk inlaid logo continued until the early 80’s. Up until the late 1940’s/early 50’s, the logo was on top of the stem. After that the logo was moved to the side of the stem (exceptions exist).

Some elementary investigation online (from Pipedia and Pipephil) informed me that the ‘Standard’ line did not appear until 1950, so we can combine that tidbit with the detail above (regarding the cloverleaf) and certainly say that the pipe dates from after 1950. Furthermore, the fact that the pipe was made in England doesn’t help insofar as date is concerned. Kaywoodies were made there from about 1938 to about 1972.

After doing some digging on Pipedia, I finally figured out a reasonable date range for this old pipe. Please follow me! The following image shows a page from the 1947 Kaywoodie catalogue and it shows this pipe, as it should be:

So far, so good. The next image shows a page from the 1955 Kaywoodie catalogue and it also shows this pipe, as it should be:

That’s also good. Finally, the next image shows a page from the 1968–69  Kaywoodie catalogue and it shows something a little different:

Do you see the difference? It shows the same pipe (99B) – but with a flush stem, not a saddle stem. Instead, the 99S is the one with the saddle stem. I will conclude that this particular pipe was made no earlier than 1950 and no later than 1968. My experience and my gut tell me that it’s probably from the earlier part of this time range, but it’s difficult to know for sure. There you go.

Let’s get on with cleaning this beauty. The bowl is in lovely condition – dirty, but quite sound. No significant damage to be seen – a couple of small nicks near the shank, but no big deal. The stem was thoroughly oxidized and the three-hole stinger was dirty too. Of course, these Kaywoodie stingers don’t come off, so it will have to be cleaned in situ.

I used isopropyl alcohol on a few cotton rounds and wiped down the stem (including the stinger) to provide an initial cleaning of filth before moving on to the next steps. The primary cleaning came next. I disinfected the inside of the stem with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. I scrubbed thoroughly to make sure the interior was very clean. I used quite a few pipe cleaners and cotton swabs.

The goal of the next step is the removal (or minimization) of oxidation. Going to my sink, I used cream cleanser, cotton rounds, and a toothbrush, and scoured the stem and stinger to remove as much surface oxidation as possible. As the photos show, the result was a hideous, ochre-coloured mess – but better off the stem than on it.

Once the stem was reasonably clean, I soaked it overnight in some Briarville Stem Oxidation Remover. This solution works to draw oxidation in the stem to the surface of the vulcanite. This is a major aid and an important step in ensuring a clean stem. The following day, I drew out the stem from its bath and scrubbed the lingering fluid with a toothbrush. Due to the severity of the oxidation, I then repeated the scrubbing with the cream cleanser for maximum effect.

Before moving on, I then finished the stinger with some 0000-grit steel wool to give it a nice shine.

The penultimate step for the stem is sanding. First, with my set of needle files, I reduced the bulk of the cyanoacrylate repairs. I removed the excess adhesive as near to the surface as possible, without cutting into the vulcanite. Following that, I used all nine of the micromesh sanding pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to sand out flaws, even out the vulcanite, and provide gentle polishing of the finished surface. I also applied pipe-stem oil while using the last five micromesh pads. There was a wonderful, deep black shine to the stem when I was done. There was still a hint of the old oxidation, but it will always be with this pipe.

As the stem was (nearly) complete, I moved on to the stummel. The first step was to ream out the bowl – that is to say, remove all the cake inside the bowl. This accomplished a couple of things. First (and most obviously), it cleaned the bowl and provided a refurbished chamber for future smoking. Second, when the old cake was removed, I could inspect the interior walls of the bowl and determine if there was damage or not. I used a reamer and a piece of sandpaper taped to a wooden dowel. Collectively, these ensured that all the debris was removed – fortunately, there wasn’t much.

Similar to the stem, I then cleaned the stummel with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. With a pipe this dirty, it took quite a while and much cotton to clean.

I then decided to ‘de-ghost’ the pipe – that is to say, exorcize the remaining filth from the briar. I filled the bowl and the shank with cotton balls, then saturated them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. I let the stummel sit overnight. This caused the remaining oils, tars and smells to leach out into the cotton.

To tidy up the briar, I wiped down the outside, using a solution of a pH-neutral detergent and some distilled water, with cotton rounds. This did a good job of cleaning any latent dirt on the surface of the briar. The last step of the cleaning process was to scour the inside of the stummel with the same mild detergent and tube brushes. This was the culmination of a lot of hard work in getting the pipe clean.

I used all nine micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to sand the outside of the stummel and finish it off. This sanding minimizes flaws in the briar and provides a beautiful smoothness to the wood. I rubbed some LBE Before & After Restoration Balm into the briar and let it sit for 30 minutes or so. The balm moisturizes the wood and gives a beautiful depth to the briar. I then buffed the stummel with a microfibre cloth.

For the final step, I took the pipe to my bench polisher and carefully buffed it – first with a blue diamond compound, then with three coats of carnauba wax. This procedure makes the pipe look its best – the stummel sings and the stem glows.

All done! This English-Made Kaywoodie Standard 99B bulldog looks fantastic again and is ready to be enjoyed by its next owner. I am pleased to announce that this pipe is for sale! If you are interested in acquiring it for your collection, please have a look in the ‘American’ section  of the store here on Steve’s website (even though it was made in England). You can also email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. The approximate dimensions of the pipe are as follows: length 5½ in. (141 mm); height 1⅔ in. (41 mm); bowl diameter 1¾ in. (44 mm); chamber diameter ⅞ in. (21 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1⅜ oz. (41 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this pipe’s restoration as much as I enjoyed restoring it. If you are interested in more of my work, please follow me here on Steve’s website or send me an email. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.