Tag Archives: polishing

New Life for a Peterson’s Republic Era Kildare 87 Apple

Leave a reply

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table came to us from one of Jeff’s pipe hunts or auctions. It is a beautifully grained Peterson’s “Kildare” 87 Apple. The shape follows the grain around the bowl which is a combination of cross grain and birdseye. The finish was very dirty but the grain shone through the grime. The bowl had a thick cake in the bowl and a lava overflow on the inner edge of the rim top. There was darkening on the briar around the inner edge of the rim. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank and reads Peterson’s “Kildare”. On the right side of the shank In the Republic of Ireland followed by the shape number 87. The stamping is clear and readable on both sides. The stem was dirty and oxidized. There were tooth marks and chatter on the stem near the button on both sides and some on the surface of the button as well. There was the Peterson’s “P” on the left side of the taper stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he cleaned it up. Jeff took photos of the rim top to show the thick cake in the bowl and the lava overflow on the rim edge. The photos show the rim top and bowl from various angles. Jeff took some photos of the bowl sides and heel to show the nice grain that was on this bowl. It is a quite beautifully grained pipe. The stamping on the sides of the shank read as noted above. The photos show that they are very clear and readable. The P on the left side of the stem is in good condition. The stem was a very good fit to the shank. It was oxidized, calcified and had debris stuck to the surface of the vulcanite. There was light tooth chatter and marks on both sides of the stem and on the button surface. 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.

With that information in hand I knew what I was dealing with in terms of the stamping and the age of this pipe. I knew from the information that the pipe was made during the Republic Era between 1950 and 1989. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Armed with that information I turned to work on the pipe itself. 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 with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Before & After Deoxidizer. He washed it off with warm water to remove the deoxidizer. The pipe looked far better. I took photos of the pipe when I received it before I started working on it. I took photos of the bowl and rim top to show how clean it was. The rim top and edges look very good. The stem looks clean of oxidation other than a little around the P-lip. There is also light tooth marks and chatter on both sides of the stem.I took photos of the stamping on both sides of the shank. It is very clear and readable.I took a photo of the pipe with the stem removed to show the overall look of stem, tenon and profile of the pipe. It also shows the aluminum tube in the tenon end. It extends into the bottom of the bowl.I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads and I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth. The bowl began to take on a shine. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes while I worked on the stem. After the time passed I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The briar came alive with the balm. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. It was in great condition so I polished out the tooth chatter and remaining oxidation on the vulcanite with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. This Republic Era Peterson “Kildare” 87 Straight Apple is a beautiful pipe. The grain around the bowl sides and shank really stand out with the polishing. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well to highlight the grain on the pipe. The polished black vulcanite P-lip taper stem adds to the mix. With the grime and debris gone from the finish and the bowl it is really is eye-catching. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel, carefully avoiding the stamping on the shank during the process. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Straight Apple is quite nice and feels great in the hand. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that like the other pipes I am working that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¾ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another interesting pipe. This Peterson’s “Kildare” will be added to the Irish Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.

Restoring a Beautifully Sandblasted Savinelli Punto Oro 310KS Poker

3 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table came to us from one of Jeff’s pipe hunts not far from where he is located. It is an interesting Savinelli Poker with a really nice sandblast finish. The blast is quite rugged and defined and feels as good in the hand as it looks to the eye. The finish was very dirty with flecks of white paint in the crevices of the blast around the bowl. The bowl had a thick cake in the bowl and a lava overflow on the rim top. There was darkening on the briar around the inner beveled edge of the rim. The pipe is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads Savinelli over Punto Oro followed by the Savinelli S shield and the shape number 310KS Italy. The stamping is clear and readable. The stem was dirty and oxidized. There were tooth marks and chatter on the stem near the button on both sides and some on the surface of the button as well. I am not sure the stem is original though the fit is perfect. There are no marks identifying it as a Savinelli or Punto Oro pipe but that is not enough to be conclusive on the status of the stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he cleaned it up. Jeff took photos of the rim top to show the damage, the tick cake in the bowl and the lava overflow on the rim top filling in some of the crevices in the blasted rim top.. The photos show the rim top and bowl from various angles. Jeff took some photos of the bowl sides and heel to show the nice grain that was on this bowl. It is a quite beautifully sandblasted pipe. The stamping and logo are on the underside of the shank and are as noted above. They look very good even though some of each line is stamped in the blast portion not just on the smooth panel.The stem was a very good fit to the shank. It was oxidized, calcified and had debris stuck to the surface of the vulcanite. There was tooth chatter and marks on both sides of the stem and on the button surface. I turned to Pipephil’s site to get a feel for the Punto Oro line. All of the previous Punto Oro pipes that I have worked on were smooth finish with great grain. This was a sandblast one and I do not recall working on one before. Here is the link (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-savinelli3.html). I have included a screen capture of the pertinent information on the line below. It appears the line came out in both smooth and sandblast finishes.I turned to Pipedia to look at what information they had on the brand. I found a catalogue page on the Punto Oro which confirmed what I had surmised about the line having both smooth and sandblast finished pipe (https://pipedia.org/images/d/db/Sav_Punto_Oro.jpg). I have included a screen capture of the page below. It says that the line was available in 2 distinct finishes – a rich Mahogany smooth finish and a genuine sandblast.The Savinelli shape number was 310KS so I turned to the Savinelli Shape Chart on Pipedia and included a screen capture (https://pipedia.org/images/4/41/Sav_Shape_Chart_2017.jpg). Ihave circled the 310KS shape in red in the photo below.Armed with that information I turned to work on the pipe itself. 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 with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Before & After Deoxidizer. He washed it off with warm water to remove the deoxidizer. The pipe looked far better. I took photos of the pipe when I received it before I started working on it. I took photos of the bowl and rim top to show how clean it was. You can see the darkening on the inner edge of the rim and the top.  The stem looks clean of oxidation and the tooth marks and chatter are very clear in the photos.I took a photo of the stamping on a smooth panel on the underside of the shank. The photo is a little blurry but the stamping is clear and readable.I took a photo of the pipe with the stem removed to show the overall look of stem, tenon and profile of the pipe.I cleaned up the darkening of the edge and rim top with a brass bristle wire brush. I was able to remove some more of the darkening and while not perfect it is certainly better. There were also still some white paint flecks in the sandblast grooves. I cleaned them out at the same time. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips and a horse hair shoe brush to get it into the deep crevices of the sandblast. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes while I worked on the stem. After the time passed I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The sandblast came alive with the balm. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded out the tooth marks and chatter on both sides of the button surface and stem with 220 grit sandpaper and began the polishing with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper.I rubbed the stem down with Denicare Mouthpiece Polish – a red, gritty Tripoli like substance that is a paste. I rubbed it into the surface of the stem and polished it off with a cotton pad. I have found that is a great intermediary step before polishing with micromesh pads. I am not sure what I will use once the final tin I have is gone!I polished the vulcanite with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. This Savinelli Punto Oro sandblast Poker Sitter is a real beauty. The sandblast reveals some great ring grain around the bowl sides and birdseye on the heel. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well to highlight the grain under the blast on the pipe. The polished black vulcanite saddle stem adds to the mix. With the grime and debris gone from the finish and the bowl it was a beauty and the blast really is eye-catching. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I buffed the sandblast with a light touch and carefully avoided the stamping on the shank during the process. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Savinelli Punto Oro Poker is quite nice and feels great in the hand. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that like the other pipes I am working that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another interesting pipe. This pipe will be added to the Italian Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.

Restoring a bit of an oddity – a Dri-Cool Briar Carburetor Rhodesian

Leave a reply

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table came to us from one of Jeff’s pipe hunts or auctions. It is a strange pipe in many ways. The end of the stem is wrapped tightly with thread forming a protective bit cover to protect the stem from bite marks – or was it? Maybe it was a home down repair job and when we removed the thread we would see what was wrong. The other thing about the pipe is that it has a clip on the underside of the pipe with a patent number 2,166,172. Under the spring clip there was a Kaywoodie style carburetor in the bottom of the bowl. It extends up into the bowl bottom about1/4 of an inch. The post is split in the centre like a slotted screw. The airway enters the bowl at the base of the post. The rest of the shank and stem are normal. The bowl was very dirty with a thick cake in the bowl and a lava overflow on the rim top. There was a large chip out of the outer edge of the bowl at the front of the rim top. The stem was dirty but lightly oxidized. There are not any tooth marks on the stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he cleaned it up. Jeff took photos of the rim top to show the damage, the tick cake in the bowl and the lava overflow on the rim top. The photos show the rim top and bowl from various angles. Jeff took some photos of the bowl sides and heel to show the nice grain that was on this bowl. It is a quite beautifully grained pipe. Jeff took several photos of the apparatus on the heel of the bowl. You can see the clip like piece of metal with a patent number on it over the carburetor/nozzle extending out of the bowl. The stamping and logo are interesting on the left side of the shank. They include the Dri-Cool Briar stamp and a pipe that illustrates the system. On the right side of the shank it reads Aged Imported Briar. The previous pipeman had wrapped the end of the stem in twine/thread to provide a homemade bite protector. We have seen this before and generally what is underneath is a mess. However Jeff took photos of the unwrapping this time and what was underneath was quite pristine. Whew a good surprise! Before I started to work on the pipe I decided to hunt down the patent number on the clip on the heel of the bowl. I did a patent search on the US Patent Site and found the following Patent Information. For some reason one of the pages was not available on the site but I have included what was there along with the patent drawings. It appears that the concept was patented on December 30, 1936 by A.B. Modine. While the pictures are slightly different from the pipe I am working on the parts appear to be the same. It is an interesting piece of the perpetual and ongoing search for a cool and dry smoke. I also found a picture online of a Dri-Cool Briar The Thermostatic Control Billiard and have included below.Armed with that information I turned to work on the pipe itself. 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 to remove the grime from the finish. He scrubbed the inside of the stem with alcohol and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Before & After Deoxidizer. He washed it off with warm water to remove the deoxidizer. The pipe looked far better. I took photos of the pipe when I received it before I started working on it. I took photos of the bowl and rim top to show how clean it was. You can see the darkening on the rim top and the apparatus in the bottom of the bowl. The chip out of the outer edge of the rim is visible and deep.I took a photo of the clip on the underside of the shank to show the Patent Number. Jeff was able to clean up around the clip as well and it looked very good. I took photos of the stamping on both sides of the shank. It is clear and readable.I cleaned up the damage on the rim top and filled in the chip on the edge with briar dust and super glue. Once the chip repair cured I sanded it smooth and sanded the damaged rim top smooth with 220 grit sandpaper. I polished it with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 pads and wiping the surface down with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris. It began to really shine as I worked through the various grit pads. I used a blend of Cherry and Maple stain pens to restain the rim top and blend it into the rest of the briar. Once it polished the colour will blend together with the rest of the briar.Once the stain cured I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes while I worked on the stem. After the time passed I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I polished the vulcanite with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. This was a fun pipe to work on. The “plumbing” on it made it quite fascinating to clean up and to restore. It seems to me that it functions a lot like a Kaywoodie Carburetor but externally is different. I wonder if the clip is not a way of regulating the airflow from the Carburetor in the bowl bottom. Anyway, I put the pipe back together again and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and stem several coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe on the wheel with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. I am really happy with how the pipe came out and the way in which the rim edge repair blended in with the rest of the bowl. The browns of the stain and the black of the polished vulcanite came out really well. This is a nice looking “contraption” pipe versus how often they are quite ugly! The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ¾ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outer Diameter of the Bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber Diameter: ¾ of an inch. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. It is an interesting pipe and one that will reside in my “Search for a Cooler/Drier Smoking Pipe” Collection. Give the blog a read. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me.

New Life for an HAJ Handmade in Denmark ¼ Bent Brandy

2 Replies

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table came to us in a group of pipes we purchased from a fellow who was getting rid of his collection. It is an interesting looking ¼ bent Brandy. It is stamped on the underside of the shank HAJ over Handmade in Denmark. The shape number is stamped at the shank stem junction and reads 7A. The grain around the bowl is a mix of swirls and cross grain and the stain is a reddish brown with dark brown undertones. The pipe was dirty and there were remnants of cake around the bowl in spots but not covering the entire bowl. It appeared to have been reamed and not completely cleaned. The bowl was dirty and darkened from smoking. You will be able to see what I am referring to about the spotty cake when you look at the photos Jeff took of the bowl and rim. The finish was dirty but looked good underneath. The vulcanite stem was lightly oxidized and there were tooth marks and chatter on both sides just ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the bowl to show what it looked like when we received it. Jeff has gotten very good at capturing the condition of the bowl and rim top with his photos. You can see the work that is ahead of us in terms of the spotty cake on the walls of the bowl. It is kind of odd in that the other portions of the bowl have been sanded smooth. The rim top looks pretty good.The next set of photos show the grain on the sides and heel of the bowl. It is an interesting combination of grain – cross grain and swirls. I look forward to seeing what this one looks like once it is clean and restored. He took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank. The HAJ stamp is readable as is the Handmade in Denmark and the shape number stamp.The next photos show the stem surface. It was very dirty and had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Before I started to work on the pipe I wanted to learn as much as I could about the brand. I have heard of or worked on a HAJ pipe before so I had no idea who made the pipe. I turned first to Pipephils site to see if there was any information on the Danish Made HAJ pipe and came up empty. I turned to Pipedia and looked for the HAJ brand and found that under the Danish pipe makers there was a listing. (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Hans_Aage_J%C3%B8rgensen). I quote the totality of the information included on the listing below:

Hans Aage Jørgensen is the pipemaker behind HAJ pipes, stamped HAJ and Handmade in Denmark.

From there I decided to search a bit further so I googled the brand under the name Hans Aage Jorgensen HAJ. I found several pipes that were listed. I found a link on worthpoint.com to the brand and when I turned there I found the very pipe that I have in hand. It is exactly The grain, stamping, stem, shape everything is identical to the pipe I am working on. I have included the photos as well as the description from Worthpoint regarding this pipe (https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/vintage-haj-handmade-hans-aage-419739128). I quote from the site:

…We present to you a Hans Aage Jorgensen HAJ briar estate pipe. It is a bent smooth Brandy style pipe with a beautiful reddish walnut exterior finish. Very light and lightly smoked , it is an incredible pipe with the great eye appeal. Great for gifting, collecting or using yourself! Solid pipe with nice grain. Its about 5″ long , 1.5″ tall , 1.65 ” wide and weighs a mere 40 grams. It is stamped HAJ Handmade in Denmark 7A and there is nothing on the stem. Now it was time to work on the pipe itself. Jeff had once again done a great job in cleaning this pipe. It looked far better than what it was like when we found it. Because of the spotty reaming job previously he took it through the whole gamut we use when reaming a bowl. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet Pipe reamer and took the cake back to bare briar. He cleaned up any stubborn spots on the bowl walls with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the slight darkening on the inwardly beveled rim top. The finish looks very good with good looking grain around the bowl and shank. Jeff scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Before & After Deoxidizer to remove the oxidation on the vulcanite. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the inwardly beveled rim top and stem. Once Jeff removed the spotty cake in the bowl the inside and outer edge looked very good. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean and there is some tooth chatter and marks on the button surface and just ahead of the button.I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank to show what it looked like after the cleaning.I took the stem off the bowl and took a picture of the pipe. It really is a pretty little pipe with a classic Danish look to it. I was happy with the way the rim top and edges looked after Jeff had done his cleanup work so I did not need to do anymore except to polish them. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. The grain really began to stand out and the finish took on a shine by the last sanding pad. The photos tell the story! I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 set aside the bowl and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded out the tooth marks and chatter with 220 grit sandpaper and started polishing it with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. This oval shank bent Brandy made by HAJ is a real beauty. It is a Hand Made in Denmark pipe. The shaping and carving follows the grain and highlights the mix of grains around the bowl. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well to highlight the stunning grain on the pipe. The polished black, oval shaped vulcanite saddle stem adds to the mix. With the grime and debris gone from the finish and the bowl it was a beauty and the grain just pops at this point. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank during the process. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished ¼ bent Brandy shape is quite nice and feels great in the hand. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that like the other pipes I am working that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another interesting pipe. This pipe will be added to the Danish Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.

Replacing a Broken Tenon on a Stanwell RP Freehand

Leave a reply

Blog by Steve Laug

Yesterday a fellow pipe smoker called to say he was in front of my house and had a pipe that he had dropped while on a walk and needed a replacement tenon. He put the pipe in my mail box and I picked it up and while he was on the front side walk I chatted with him from the front porch – very much observing social distancing. The pipe was a beautiful Stanwell RP Freehand. Sure enough the tenon was stuck in the shank and snapper off just ahead of the fancy turned ball on the stem. Tenon replacements on these freehand styles are some of the easiest to do. It means that the stem end is flattened and drilled out to accommodate a new tenon. He also pointed out some road rash on the left side of the bowl where the pipe had bounced off the sidewalk. While I am not taking on new work what could I say to a previous customer standing at my gate asking for help. Of course I took the pipe in and today decided to address the broken tenon. I took pictures of the pipe to show its condition before I started. I took some photos of the shank end to show the snapped tenon in the shank and the broken end on the stem. I tried to pull the tenon with some simple tricks and it was stuck in the shank. It would not budge no matter how I tried. I put the bowl in the freezer for 10 minutes to see if a change in temperature would loosen the tenon.I took the bowl out of the freezer and screwed a drywall screw into the airway in the tenon. It did not take much effort at all to wiggle it and pull out the broken tenon. I kept the piece of tenon so that I could match the replace tenon to the diameter of the broken tenon.Before moving on to make the new tenon I decided to address the road rash on the side of the bowl. I have circled it in red in the first photo below. For this application I used a wet cloth and heated the blade of a butter knife over the flame of my gas stove. I put the wet cloth over the damaged spot and when the knife became hot I touched it to the wet cloth. The heat generated steam from the wet cloth and began to lift the damaged spot. I knew that it would not come up totally as it was a rough area but I knew that I could improve the look. The second photo shows the area on the bowl side after the steam application. I enclosed the repaired damage with a red circle.The damage looked much better after the steaming, not perfect but better! I stained the upper portion of the bowl with an Oak stain pen to blend it into the rest of the surrounding briar. Once it was polished it would blend in very well.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. I find that it also helps to blend a newly stained area into the rest of the bowl. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to replacing the tenon. I had a threaded tenon that I had started turning down to size for another pipe that would work perfectly. It is shown in the photo below next to the broken chunk of the original tenon. I would need to use a Dremel and sanding drum to finish turning the tenon portion down to match the diameter of the broken one. I would also need to reduce the diameter of the threaded tenon end because of the size of the end of the stem.I set the tenon aside and flattened the jagged portion of the broken tenon on the stem with the Dremel and sanding drum. Once it was flat I began the process of drilling out the airway to receive the new tenon. I always start with a drill bit slightly larger than the existing airway so that I do not chip of damage the stem. I don’t want create more work! I worked my way up to a ¼ inch drill bit as it was the largest one that I could get away with drilling into the stem end without damaging the external surface.I reduced the diameter of the portion of the tenon that fit in the shank and the portion that would be anchored in the stem using a Dremel and sanding drum to rough fit it. I straightened out the edges of the insert portion with a rasp and squared up the edge so that it would seat in the stem. Once I had a good fit in the stem and the shank I used slow setting super glue to anchor the new tenon in the stem. I coated the edges of the tenon and then set it in place and aligned it so that it was straight.Once the glue had cured I cleaned up the surface of the tenon so that it was not scratched with sandpaper and so that it fit well in the shank. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads.  I wiped down the stem after each pad with a damp cloth. I polished the fancy turnings on the stem and area around the new tenon with Before & After Pipe Polish (both Fine and Extra Fine) using a cotton swab to get into the grooves and angles. When I was finished I rubbed the entire stem down with the polish and buffed it with a microfibre cloth. With that the pipe is complete. I buffed it on the buffing wheel with Blue Diamond Polish and gave the entire pipe several coats of carnauba wax on the wheel. I buffed it with a clean buffing wheel and then hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe is now ready to go back to the pipe man who dropped it off Friday afternoon. I look forward to hearing what he thinks of his repaired pipe when he picks it up. Thanks for walking with me through this restoration. Cheers.

Rebirth of a Rusticated Long Shank Lumberman Made in France

1 Reply

Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table is a long shank Lumberman or what I would call a Canadian. It has a long oval shank and a tapered stem. The pipe is stamped on the top of the shank and reads LUMBERMAN over Algerian Briar over Made in France. The bowl is rusticated with a tight rustication pattern that gives it a pebble look. The pipe was filthy when we picked it up. The rustication was full of dust and debris. The finish was crackled on the smooth portions of the pipe. It was like a varnish coat was crackling and peeling. The finish was messy. The bowl had a thick cake in it that had overflowed lava onto the rim top. The inwardly beveled rim top was hard to see it was so filled with debris and lava. Even though it looked rough there was something about it that captured Jeff’s eye and eventually mine. The stem was oxidized but in terms of the general condition of the rest of the pipe was miraculously unchewed and bore no sign of tooth marks or chatter. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. I know I have used this phrase before but it adequately describes the photos that Jeff took of the rim top and bowl. He captured the condition of the bowl and rim top with the next series of photos. There is a lot of work to be done to get the bowl cleaned up and rim top visible. The pipe had an interesting tight rustication pattern around the bowl and shank. There was a smooth band at the rim edge and the shank end as well as a smooth beveled rim top. There was a smooth band on the shank top that bore the stamping. He took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank. It is clear and readable. It read as noted above. He also took a photo of the crackling finish around the stamping and on the shank end of the pipe.The photos of the stem show the stem surface. It is dirty and is free of tooth marks and chatter on both sides. That is quite remarkable as this is obviously an oft smoked pipe.I checked all of my usual sources of information and it appears that almost all of the major pipe makers turned out Lumberman stamped pipes. I have restored several English made versions that were made by Comoy’s and I have worked on a few from Chacom as well. This one had no identifying information beyond the stamping so it was not possible to narrow down the maker much more. I would not be surprised if it was made by Chacom. Now it was time to turn to work on the pipe.

Jeff cleaned the pipe thoroughly with his usual care. He reamed it with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the rim top. He had been able to remove the crackling finish on the shank end and after cleanup the finish looks very good. The stem had been tight in the shank before so Jeff left it loosed. He scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub to remove the grime and build up on the surface and soaked it in a bath of Before & After Deoxidizer. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the rim top and stem. The photo of the bowl shows how clean the bowl and the smooth rim are. The rim top had some scratching and some darkening but it should be able to be polished out. The inner and outer edges of the bowl look really good. They are in excellent condition. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean.I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank of the pipe. It is clear and readable as noted above. The pipe was in great condition and only needed to be polished. I polished the smooth portions of the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. The grain really began to stand out and the finish took on a natural shine by the last sanding pad. The photos tell the story! I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips and used a horse hair shoe brush to work it into the nooks and crannies of the rustication. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 laid the bowl aside and turned to deal with the stem. The tooth marks and chatter on the stem were not deep. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. The long pipe came together quite well. The finish on the pipe looks great and the contrasting stains between the smooth portions and the rustication work well with the black vulcanite stem. With the grime and debris gone, the bowl had a natural beauty and grain that pops. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank during the process. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax by hand and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Lumberman pipe is quite elegant looking and feels great in the hand. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 7 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. It is great looking and in great condition, ready for the next pipe man or woman who takes it on in trust. I will be adding it to the French Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store shortly. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another beautiful pipe. Thanks for your time.

Refreshing a Grade 3 Ligne Bretagne from 2011

1 Reply

Blog by Steve Laug

This afternoon I chose the next pipe from my boxes to work on. It is stamped Ligne Bretagne. I am not sure what I would call the shape. At some level it is almost a Cutty with a saddle stem and at another level an oval shank Billiard. You be the judge on the shape but it is a beautiful pipe. It is stamped on the underside of the shank with the Ligne Bretagne logo and the numbers 11 and 3 at the shank stem junction. It was in pretty good condition – just a little dirty and dusty when we received it. The bowl had a thin cake but the top and the edge of the rim was clean and in excellent condition. The pipe had a rich brown stain on the bowl that highlighted some nice grain on the bowl sides under the dust. The vulcanite saddle stem was in good condition with light tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button and on the button surface itself. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. Jeff captured the condition of the bowl and rim top with the next series of photos. You can see the work that is ahead of us there.The birdseye and cross grain around the bowl is quite stunning. Jeff took some great photos showing what is underneath the grime and debris of time and use. He took photos of the stamping on the underside of the shank. It is clear and readable. It read Ligne Bretagne underlined with a long line. At the shank end it is stamped with an 11 and a 3.The photos of the stem show the stem surface. It is dirty and has light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.This is the first Ligne Bretagne pipe that I have worked on. I knew from previous reading that the pipe was connected with Trever Talbert but was not sure how. I turned to Pipephil to get a quick overview on the brand so I knew a bit about the pipe I was working on (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-t2.html). I have included a screen capture of the pertinent section below. I turned to the Talbert Pipes Website and found a lot of helpful information on the pipe that I was working on. I quote from the first link a great short history of the brand and company written by Talbert (https://www.patreon.com/talbertpipes).

Talbert Pipes was founded in 1998, shortly after Trever Talbert won the first Pipes & Tobaccos Magazine national carving contest. Emily Talbert joined the business fulltime in 2002, when husband and wife relocated to the western coast of France for seven years to acquire tools, stock, and experience, as well as adding the Ligne Bretagne brand of pipes to our offerings. Now back in the USA, Talbert Pipes continues to offer a wide selection of classical and fantasy-themed shapes for all our fans worldwide.

From there I turned to read about the Ligne Bretagne pipes so I could have a clearer picture about the pipe in hand (https://talbertpipes.com/). I quote:

Ligne Bretagne – Aged, factory-turned shapes in classical designs, finished here in our shop for the discerning collector seeking a more individual alternative to mass-produced brands.

The final link provides a helpful explanation of the stamping on the shank of the pipe. The pipe I am working on is stamped with the Ligne Bretagne logo and the numbers 11 and 3 at the shank stem junction (https://talbertpipes.com/grading/). From this I learned that the pipe I have was made in 2011 and is a Grade 3 with is the first of the smooth finished pipes. I am including a screen capture of the site’s explanation below.

With that information in hand I knew what I was dealing with a beautifully grained factory-turned shape in a classical design, finished by the Talberts. I also knew that it was made in 2011 and was a Grade 3 smooth pipe. Now it was time to turn to work on the pipe.

Jeff cleaned the pipe thoroughly with his usual care. He reamed it with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the rim top. The finish looks very good with good looking grain around the bowl and shank. Jeff scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub to remove the grime and build up on the surface and soaked it in a bath of Before & After Deoxidizer. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the rim top and stem. The photo of the bowl shows how clean the bowl and the smooth rim are. The inner and outer edges of the bowl look really good. They are in excellent condition. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean.I took photos of the stamping on the underside of the shank of the pipe. It is clear and readable as noted above.I took the stem off the shank and took a picture of the pipe. It really is a nice looking pipe with great lines.The pipe was in great condition and only needed to be polished. I polished the beautifully grained briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. The grain really began to stand out and the finish took on a natural shine by the last sanding pad. The photos tell the story! I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 laid the bowl aside and turned to deal with the stem. The tooth marks and chatter on the stem were not deep. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. The pipe came together quite well. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well with the black vulcanite stem. With the grime and debris gone, the bowl had a natural beauty and grain that pops. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank during the process. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Ligne Bretagne pipe is quite beautiful and is comfortable looking pipe. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: 5/8 of an inch. I really like the looks of this pipe. It is great looking and in great condition. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another beautiful pipe. Thanks for your time.

 

A Fresh Start for the second Davidoff  from this estate – a Straight 214 Billiard

Leave a reply

Blog by Steve Laug

One thing about having so many boxes of pipes to work on surrounding my work table is that I can always find one that grabs my attention to work on now! This is the second of the two Davidoff pipes in the box and I had passed over in the past weeks but this morning I decided that the second pipe would join the days queue. It is a nice looking Billiard shape pipe stamped Davidoff on the left side of the shank. The name is underlined and the D has a flourish both on the stamping and on the logo on the left side of the stem. On the right side it is stamped with the shape number 214. It was dirty and was another well-loved pipe when we received it. The bowl had a thick cake and the lava overflow on the top and the edge of the rim. It was hard to know the condition of the inner edge of the bowl. The pipe had a rich Mahogany stain on the bowl that highlighted some nice grain on the bowl sides under the grime and the finish appeared to be damaged on the left side of the shank and rim top. The shiny varnish coat was damaged on the rim, on the right side of the bowl and the left side of the shank. It was worn. A lot would be revealed once Jeff had worked his magic on it. The acrylic stem was in good condition with light tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button and on the button surface itself. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. Jeff tried to capture the condition of the bowl and rim top with the next series of photos. You can see the work that is ahead of us there. The grain around the bowl is quite stunning. Jeff took some great photos showing what is underneath the grime and debris of time and use. He captured the stamping on both sides of the shank and both sides of the half saddle acrylic stem. They are clear and readable. It read Davidoff in script underlined with a Script D on the left side of the stem and Hand Cut on the right side of the stem. The photos of the stem show the stem surface. It is dirty and has light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button.This second Davidoff pipe is also the second one I have worked on from this pipe maker. I turned to Pipephil to get a quick overview on the brand so I knew a bit about the pipe I was working on (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-d3.html). I have included a screen capture of the pertinent section below. It seems that for awhile anyway the pipes were carved by the Cuty-Fort Group (Chacom, Jeantet, etc.).I turned to Pipedia to fill in more of the gaps and found that the article quotes Jose Manuel Lopes whose book I have on my shelf ( https://pipedia.org/wiki/Davidoff) I quote:

From Pipes, Artisans and Trademarks, by Jose Manuel Lopés’

Davidoff started in 1911 as a family run tobacconist located in Geneva. Henri Davidoff, a Russian emigrant, was the founder. The shop was located in Geneva. His son, Zino Davidoff (1906-1994), concentrated on the tobacco business, starting in 1924, and revolutionized the conservation of quality cheroots throughout Europe.

Davidoff became World famous, and the company was acquired in 1970 by the Oettinger group, and expanded into numerous accessories for men. For Zino, the pursuit of pleasure was a constant, two of his maxims being: “Take pleasure from everything in life, without excess” and “the pipe is a valuable companion, the essence of tranquility and must be smoked with respect”.

Davidoff’s first pipes date from 1974 and were commissioned by various companies, notably Butz-Choquin and the Cuty Fort Group. The brand offers 14 classic shapes, in three finishes and with acrylic stems.

It appears the pipes are now made in Italy, as the website states the following about their pipes:

Creation of the Davidoff Pipe entails a meticulous, detailed process performed by only the most skilled Italian pipemakers. This dedication is why the Davidoff Pipe upholds a standard of quality and design found in no other pipe in the world. Made of the finest and carefully selected briar, each Davidoff Pipe features a flawless, hand-finished bowl and perfectly fitted, hand-cut acrylic stem. The Davidoff Pipe is available in three beautiful designs and finishes — sandblasted black, red brilliant and natural light brown.

With that information in hand I knew what I was dealing with either a French made or an Italian made pipe. I have been working on a lot of each lately and the pipe in hand also had the feel of a French made Chacom pipe rather than an Italian. I would work with that assumption. I had no idea of the age of the pipe but it was time to work on the pipe itself.

Jeff cleaned the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness that I really appreciate. This one was a real mess and I did not know what to expect when I unwrapped it from his box. He reamed it with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the rim top. The finish looks very good with good looking grain around the bowl and shank. Jeff scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub to remove the grime and build up on the surface. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. (I forgot to take a photo of the top view of the pipe.) Fortunately I took some photos of the rim top and stem. The photo of the bowl shows how clean the bowl is and also the damage and peeling of the varnish coat on the smooth rim. The inner edge of the bowl was also in rough condition with burn marks and damage around the front inner edge. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean.I took photos of the stamping on the stem and shank of the pipe. It is clear and readable. You can also see the smudge in the varnish finish on the left side of the shank in the middle of the Davidoff stamp.I took the stem off the shank and took a picture of the pipe. It really is a nice looking pipe with great lines.With the damage on the finish on the side of the shank and the finish on the rim top I decided to remove the varnish or shellac coat on the briar. I wiped it down with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the shiny coat. I would need to sand the rest of the finish off with micromesh sanding pads but before I did I wanted to clean up the edge and top of the rim. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the damage and give the rim edge a light bevel. I topped the rim with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the damaged finish and clean it up. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. I wanted to finish removing the varnish coat and polish the rim top. Once the varnish was removed the grain really began to stand out and the finish took on a natural shine by the last sanding pad. The photos tell the story! (Once again I forgot to take a few photos — don’t know what is happening.) I stained the polished rim top with a Mahogany Stain Pen. The colour matched the rest of the bowl perfectly. There was still a small nick in the rim edge that remains – to remove that would have changed the look of the rim.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 laid the bowl aside and turned to deal with the stem. The tooth marks and chatter on the stem were not deep. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. The pipe came together quite well. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well with the black acrylic stem. With the grime, debris and varnish coat gone, the bowl had a natural beauty and grain that pops. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank and stem during the process. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Davidoff pipe is quite beautiful and is a lovely billiard shaped pipe. The finish on the bowl combines various mahogany and black stains to give it depth. It is very well done. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. I really like this billiard shaped pipe and it also reminds me of a Chacom pipe. This is a great looking pipe in great condition. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another beautiful pipe. I will be adding it to the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.

Restoring a Pastoral Carved Mural Meerschaum

Leave a reply

Blog by Steve Laug

This old meerschaum pipe with a Bakelite stem and silver shank band has been sitting in my box to be restored for almost three years now. I picked up and looked at it, took it apart looked at the pieces and put it back together and put it back in the box. Today I was going through all of the boxes of pipes I had to work on and sorting them. I came upon this pipe and decided today was the day to work on it. This pipe is carved with a pastoral scene of what looks like a mountain cabin and stone fence. Reclining on the ground in the forefront is figure that looks like a Swiss hiker or shepherd with his walking staff leaning against the fence. The bowl had a cake on the walls with a lot of dust in the carving on the front and sides of the bowl. It was dusty and tired looking. The shank end was chipped and there was damage to the shank itself. A lot would be revealed once Jeff had worked his magic on it. The thin shank had a silver etched band that fit well. The shank end was threaded and acted as the mortise. The amber coloured Bakelite stem had a bone tenon that screwed into the shank end of the band. There was light tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button and on the button surface itself. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. Jeff has gotten very good at capturing the condition of the bowl and rim top with his photos. You can see the work that is ahead of us in terms of the cake in the bowl and the lava on the inner edge. The bowl is in good condition.The next set of photos show the carving around the sides of the bowl. The carving is well done. I look forward to seeing what this one looks like once it is clean and restored. He took photos of the shank to show the filigree on the band and the chipped area on the shank itself. The first two photos show the banded shank and the second two show the damage on the unbanded shank. The next photos show the stem surface. It was very dirty and worn looking. It had pitting, light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. There no identifying marks on the pipe or shank or band to help identify the maker. So it was time to work on the pipe itself. Jeff had done his usual great cleanup of this pipe. He cleaned up the bowl walls with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the inner edge of the rim. The meerschaum carving looks clean and well done. Jeff scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub to clean up the Bakelite. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the inwardly beveled rim top and stem. Once Jeff removed the lava on the top and inside of the rim top was rough. The inner edge had a bit of wear and would need to be sanded smooth. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean and there is some tooth chatter and marks on the button surface and just ahead of the button. There are also casting marks on the sides of the stem that need to be removed.I took the stem off the shank and took photos. The band was loose on the shank and the stem screwed into the threaded mortise in the top of the band. At first I thought the band was a later addition but the more I looked at it the more I realized that the band was original with the inset mortise. I spread some all-purpose white glue on the end of the shank. I unscrewed the stem from the shank and pressed the band onto the shank end. I set it aside to dry while the glue cured.I took a photo of the reclining goat herd or hiker and included it now. It is well carved.I decided to address the damage on the inner edge of the rim. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the darkening on the inner edge of the bowl. With the edge cleaned up the bowl looked better.I polished the silver band with a jeweler’s cloth and removed the tarnish on the band.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the meerschaum with my fingertips. Mark Hoover developed the product to clean, enliven and protect briar but I have been using it on meerschaum as well and found it effective. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 set the bowl aside at this point and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded out the tooth marks on the stem in front of the button on both sides.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. This large meerschaum pot with a carved pastoral scene is an unusual piece. It has a beauty of its own with the patina around heel and bowl. It is a pipe that has grown on me as I have worked on it. I have never worked on one like it. I know next to nothing about the pipe in terms of manufacture or carver. It has a German/Swiss look to the carving but that is a guess. The silver band and the thin Bakelite stem add to the mix. With the grime and debris gone from the finish and the bowl it was a unique beauty. The rim top looks really good now. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Clapham’s Beeswax by hand and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that like the other pipes I am working that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 7 inches, Height: 2 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 2 inches, Chamber diameter: 1 inch. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another interesting pipe. This pipe will be added to the Meerschaum Pipes section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.

New Life for a Danish Hand Made Prince Amled 4 Peewit Shape

1 Reply

Blog by Steve Laug

This past January Jeff and his wife Sherry and Irene and I made a pipe hunting trip down the Oregon Coast. At least that is what Jeff and I called it. We stopped in a lot of the small towns up and down the northern part of the coast and picked up some nice pipes. This little pipe was obviously Danish and I think both Jeff and I thought it was a Kriswill. We were hooked so we picked it up and added it to the finds of the trip. This pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank and on the underside at the shank/stem union. On the left side it is stamped with Prince Amled over Danish Hand Made. On the underside it is stamped with the shape number 4. Next to the 4 there was a chip in the shank end.  It was a very dirty pipe with a dull and lifeless finish but it was the shape that caught our eye. We were hoping for some nice grain around the bowl. There was a very thick cake in the bowl and a thick lava coat on the rim top and the inner edge. It was hard to see what the condition of either the inner or outer edges with the lava and grime. It did appear that there was a burned area on the right side of the outer edge. The pipe had a rich medium brown stain with a reddish tint that was meant to highlight the grain on the bowl sides. A lot would be revealed once Jeff had worked his magic on it. The pencil shank and pencil flared saddle stem was heavily oxidized and calcified. There was light tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button and on the button surface itself. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. Jeff has gotten very good at capturing the condition of the bowl and rim top with his photos. You can see the work that is ahead of us in terms of the lava and grime on the rim and the thick cake in the bowl. This pipe is a real mess.The next set of photos show the grain on the sides and heel of the bowl. It is an interesting combination of grain – cross grain, swirls and birdseye predominate. I look forward to seeing what this one looks like once it is clean and restored. He took photos of the faint stamping on the sides of the shank. The Prince Amled stamp on the left side is readable. On the underside is the shape stamp 4 which is very clear readable. The third photo below shows the crown logon on the left side of the saddle stem. The next photos show the stem surface. It was very dirty, oxidized and calcified. It had pitting, light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Before I started to work on the pipe I wanted to learn about the brand. I turned first to Pipephils site to see if there was any information on the Danish Made Prince Amled brand (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-p5.html). I did a screen capture of what was on the site and I include that below. It was another of those pipes with little information included.I turned to Pipedia see if there was any further information to help me with hunt for this pipe manufacturer. The listing for that pipe company had some great photos but also an appeal for information on the brand. It looks like I had as much information as I could find online.

Now it was time to work on the pipe itself. Jeff had once again outdone himself on this pipe. It looked far better than what it was like when we found it. We were right in our assumption of nice grain under the grime. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet Pipe reamer and took the cake back to bare briar. He cleaned up the bowl walls with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the beveled rim top. The finish looks very good with good looking grain around the bowl and shank. Jeff scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Before & After Deoxidizer to remove the oxidation on the vulcanite. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour it looked very good. I took photos before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the inwardly beveled rim top and stem. Once Jeff removed the lava on the top and inside of the rim top was rough. Both the inner and the outer edge of the bowl showed damage. There a lot of darkening on the inside edge and burn damage on the top right outer edge. The close up photos of the stem shows that is it very clean and there is some tooth chatter and marks on the button surface and just ahead of the button.I took the stem off the bowl and took a picture of the pipe. It really is a pretty little pipe with a classic Danish look to it.I decided to begin my work on the pipe by addressing the damage on the rim top and edges. The rim was beveled inward so topping it on a topping board was out of the question. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the inner and outer edges of the bowl. I also used it to smooth out the rim top to remove the damage.In the photos that Jeff took of the underside of the shank you can see a chip or large nick on the shank. It is almost like someone tried to pry off the stem. It needed to be cleaned up and repaired. I have included that photo as the first one below. One of the perks that I have found from Jeff’s cleanup methods as nicks like this will often swell and either disappear or be greatly reduced. The second photo shows the same area after his cleanup work. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the remaining damage on the shank (picture 3) and then took a photo of the clean shank end (picture 4). I was happy with the way the rim top and edges looked so I did not need to do anymore except to polish them. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. The grain really began to stand out and the finish took on a shine by the last sanding pad. The photos tell the story! I touched up the rim top to match the rest of the bowl with a blend of Oak and Maple stain pens. The blend works really well with this colour of bowl. I am happy with the work so it is time to move on.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about ten 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 set the bowl aside at this point and turned my attention to the stem. The stem was in very good condition. I decided to apply some Antique Gold Rub’n Buff to the logo on the side of the saddle stem. I rubbed it on and buffed it off and it looks good.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with a cloth containing some Obsidian Oil. I finished polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine and buffed it off with a cotton cloth. This delicate and petite Prince Amled Hand Made Danish pipe is a real beauty. I know it is hand made in Denmark but that is the extent of the information available on the brand. The shaping and carving follows the grain and highlights the mix of grains around the bowl. The finish on the pipe is in excellent condition and the contrasting stains work well to highlight the stunning grain on the pipe. The thin vulcanite pencil saddle stem adds to the mix. With the grime and debris gone from the finish and the bowl it was a beauty and the grain just pops at this point. The rim top looks really good now. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank and stem during the process. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing it with a clean buffing pad on the buffer. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished “Peewit” shape (at least that is what I am calling it) is quite nice and feels great in the hand. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. I can only tell you that like the other pipes I am working that it is much prettier in person than the photos capture. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 inches, Height: 2 ¼ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: 5/8 of an inch. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another interesting pipe. This pipe will be added to the Danish Pipe Makers section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you want to add it to your collection send me an email or a message! Thanks for your time.