Tag Archives: refinishing

Breathing life into a Dunhill Bruyere 780 F/T Oval shank Brandy with a lot of issues

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by Steve Laug

This afternoon after work I decided to work on the pipe that we picked up from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 08/09/2024. It was one that was in rough shape. I think that probably it was a beautifully grained oval shank Brandy with a vulcanite taper stem when it was purchased. It has travelled a hard road before it even made the journey from Copenhagen to us. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the and reads 780 F/T [followed by] Dunhill [over] Bruyere. On the right side of the shank it is stamped Made in England (three lines) [followed by] 4 in a circle [followed by] A. There did not seem to be any date number following the D in England. The briar is in rough condition and dirty from use with a moderate cake in the bowl and a light overflow of lava on the rim top as well as damage on the crowned rim top. In one of the photos Jeff included there was what appeared to be a hairline crack in the side of the bowl. There is a shank repair rejoining the bowl and shank. It is well done. The stem fit well against the shank end. The vulcanite taper stem was oxidized, calcified and had some light tooth chatter on the top and underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was a Dunhill White Spot logo in the top of the stem. Judging from the repairs and the crack it was obviously someone’s favourite pipe and deserved some attention. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. I have included them below. Jeff took some close up photos of the bowl and rim top. You can see the damage on the crowned rim top. The inner edge of the rim shows some damage around the entire inner edge. There appears to also be some damage on the outer edge as well. The photos of the stem show the oxidation, calcification and tooth marks on the stem ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the sides of the bowl to show the interesting grain on the Brandt shaped bowl and shank. It appears that there is either a hairline crack in the bowl side of perhaps it is deep scratch. I will check that once the pipe arrives. Jeff also captured a look at the left side of the bowl and it was definitely a fine crack. I would need to examine it further and see how extensive it was and how deep it extended into the briar.He took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank. It is faint in spots but readable as noted above. In the first photo you can see the shank repair that has been done to the pipe. It is between the shape number 780 and the F/T stamp.I turned to Pipedia’s section on Dunhill Root Briar Pipes to get a bit of background on the Dunhill finishes (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Dunhill#Root_Briar). I quote:

Bruyere

The original finish produced (usually made using Calabrian briar), and a big part of developing and marketing the brand. It was the only finish from 1910 until 1917. A dark reddish-brown stain. Before the 1950s, there were three possible finishes for Dunhill pipes. The Bruyere was a smooth finish with a deep red stain, obtained through two coats, a brown understain followed by a deep red.

There was a link on the above site to a section specifically written regarding the Bruyere finish (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Dunhill_Bruyere). I turned there and have included the information from that short article below.

Initially, made from over century-old briar burls, classified by a “B” (denoted highest quality pipe); “DR” (denoted straight-grained) and an “A” (denoted first quality), until early 1915. After that, they became a high-end subset to the Dunhill ‘Bruyere’. The DR and B pipes, a limited production, they should be distinguished as hand-cut in London from burls as opposed to the Bruyere line which was generally finished from French turned bowls until 1917, when the Calabrian briar started to be used, but not completely. Only in 1920 Dunhill took the final step in its pipe making operation and began sourcing and cutting all of its own bowls, proudly announcing thereafter that “no French briar was employed”.

Bruyere pipes were usually made using Calabrian briar, a very dense and hardy briar that has a modest grain but does very well with the deep red stain.

“Before the 1950s, there were three possible finishes for Dunhill pipes. The Bruyere was a smooth finish with a deep red stain, obtained through two coats, a brown understain followed by a deep red. The Shell finish was the original sandblast with a near-black stain (though the degree to which it is truly black has varied over the years). Lastly, the Root finish was smooth also but with a light brown finish. Early Dunhill used different briars with different stains, resulting in more distinct and identifiable creations… Over the years, to these traditional styles were added four new finishes: Cumberland, Dress, Chestnut and Amber Root, plus some now-defunct finishes, such as County, Russet and Red Bark.”

There was also a link to a catalogue page that gave examples and dates that the various finishes were introduced (https://pipedia.org/wiki/File:Dunnypipescatalog-1.png). Armed with that information it was time to work on the pipe. I needed to examine the pipe more carefully at the shank repair and the potential cracks on the left side of the bowl. Lots to think about as I went to work on this bowl.

Jeff had reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the remnants of cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl of the pipe. He rinsed it with running water. He dried it with a soft cloth. He was able to remove all of the debris in the briar leaving only the damage on the rim top and inner edge of the bowl. The small crack on the left side was clean and visible. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work. I took a close up photo of the rim top to show the condition of the top and edges of the rim. The top and the inner edges show some burn damage and nicks. The stem photos show the light tooth marks and scratching on the surface of the vulcanite.I took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank to capture the words if possible. It was faint as noted but could be read. I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts of the pipe to give a sense of the proportion of the parts to the whole. It is a well designed and made pipe.I decided to begin by addressing the damage on the rim top and the inner edge. I carefully sanded the edge with a folded piece of worn 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the damaged areas and clean up the surface. I wanted to smooth out the damage and the darkening on the inner edge. It was a good start. More would need to be done before it was smooth enough to my liking. I examined the bowl to understand the depth and nature of the crack. I was surprised in some ways to see that there was not just the one crack that Jeff captured but there were a few small hairline cracks on both sides and the front and back of the bowl. The inside of the bowl and the rim top were crack free so I was dealing with surface cracks as far as I could see. It is just a guess, but I think that with the shank repair it appeared to me that the pipe was dropped and the cracks are pressure cracks that happened when the bowl broke loose from the shank and hit a hard surface. To further support this surmise the heel of the bowl had some road rash on it where it had hit a hard surface.

To give a sense of the nature and location of the cracks, I marked the thin hairline cracks (none go deep in the surface) with a black Sharpie pen. I took photos of the marks on the bowl. They go around the bowl almost all of them at the same horizontal position on the bowl sides. There were also two thin vertical cracks – one on the back and one on the front of the bowl all starting at the same height on the briar as the horizontal cracks but none going to the time edge or top. As noted there were road rash marks on the heel of the bowl. I marked the cracks with a black pen on the briar using a magnifier. They are all hairline cracks that seem to be in the surface. I probed the cracks with a dental pick and found that they were only surface. None were deeper than the first one that Jeff pictured above. I filled them in with very thin CA glue so that it would seep into the cracks. I pressed it into the cracks with a dental pick tip. I set it aside to dry. Once the glue repairs cured I sanded the surface with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth them out and blend them into the surface of the bowl. They would be less visible and the repairs would be solid once I was finished. I sanded the bowl with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads to further blend in the repairs, the rim top shaping and to smooth out the joint of the shank repair on the underside. I wiped the briar down after each sanding pad with a cloth and olive oil. The bowl began to take on a shine by the last sanding pad and the repairs are less visible. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad to remove the sanding debris from the surface. It looked very good by the time I finished. I decided to de-ghost the bowl to remove the smell that was very present. I pressed cotton bolls into the bowl and used an ear syringe to fill it with alcohol. I plugged the shank end with another cotton boll and let it and it sit. The process would also serve as a way to check that the cracks did not go all the way from the bowl interior to the outside. If any did go through they would weep with alcohol and cotton balls in the bowl.  The  repaired  cracks  did  not  leak  and  once  the  cotton  was  removed  the  smell  was  gone. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With the bowl finished I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded out the light tooth marks and chatter in the vulcanite with 220 grit sandpaper. It did no take to long to remove them all. It looked better.I further sanded it with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads and smoothed out the sanding marks further. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian Oil cloth to remove the sanding debris. It was looking very good by the last pad.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each pad. I polished it with some Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra to deepen the shine. I wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. This Dunhill Bruyere 780F/T Group 4 Oval Shank Brandy is a surprisingly beautiful looking in spite of and probably because of the repairs. The red and brown stain on the bowl works well to highlight the grain. The polished black vulcanite taper stem adds to the mix. With the grime gone from the finish and the bowl it was a beauty and is eye-catching. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel being careful to not buff the stamping. 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 Dunhill Bruyere 780F/T Brandy 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: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 34 grams/1.20 ounces. It will soon be added to the British Pipe Makers Section on the rebornpipes store.

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.

Cleaning up a Fatta a Mano Pesaro Mastro de Paja Lovat

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by Steve Laug

This afternoon I decided to work on the pipe that Jeff picked up on Facebook Marketplace from a seller in Wellsville, Kansas, USA on 12/09/2024. It is a beautifully grained Lovat with an amber coloured acrylic saddle stem. It is a beautiful grained piece of briar that I can appreciate why he chose it. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the and reads Mastro de Paja [over] Fatta a Mano. On the right side of the shank it is stamped Pesaro [followed by] what looks like the Sun. On the underside of the shank it is stamped Media [followed by) 3A in a circle. The briar is dirty from use with a moderate cake in the bowl and a light overflow of lava on the rim top. The stem fit well against the shank end. The amber coloured acrylic saddle stem had some light tooth chatter and scratches on the top and underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was an inset gold circle logo in the top of the stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. I have included them below. Jeff took some close up photos of the bowl and rim top. You can see the light lava coat in the plateau top. The inner edge of the rim looks good with a spot of darkening and damage on the left back side. There is a light cake in the bowl that seems to have been recently reamed. The photos of the stem show the scratching and tooth marks in the stem at the button. Jeff took photos of the sides of the bowl to show the interesting grain on the Lovat bowl and shank and how the shape chases it. He took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. Before I began to work on the pipe I wanted a refresher course on the maker and the stamping. I have not worked on too many Mastro de Paja pipes before so I figured to do a bit of education before I started my restoration.

I turned first to Pipedia to get a feel for the pipe (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Mastro_de_Paja). I quote in part from the article on that site.

In 1972 Giancarlo Guidi, after having spent some time as a hobbyist in producing pipes, decided to officially found a production workshop called “Mastro de Paja”. Mastro: obviously as a master craftsman, De Paja: it derives from the name with which he was affectionately called by friends “Pajetta” because of his curly hair and translated into a dialectal expression “de Paja”.

Spadoni Giannino joins him shortly after that, at the time he was a salesman and among the products he sold there were also pipes. A professional wedding that turned out to be perfect immediately, in no time the new company “MASTRO DE PAJA di Guidi e Spadoni” immediately became one of the most respected manufacturers of pipes in Italy for the quality of production and lines that for those times were innovative, fascinating and even if coarse they immediately met the consent of enthusiasts and collectors.

Unfortunately, the professional marriage between Guidi and Spadoni, due to disagreements and different views on strategies, stopped in 1981. Guidi left the company to found a personal one. In Mastro de Paja which in the meantime became a real company with a production staff remained with Spadoni. Unfortunately, after a very short time, due to economic and financial problems that put the possibility of continuing the business at risk, Spadoni is forced to ask for help and finds it with the intervention of the Pesaro-based entrepreneur Terenzio Cecchini who, despite being burdened by his multiple industrial activities, sees in Mastro de Paja a valid expression of high craftsmanship and takes over as majority shareholder and acquires the position of director.

Soon after even Spadoni decides to leave (and create his own new company), Cecchini then puts his eyes on a very smart young man which he considered capable of giving new glaze to the Mastro de Paja which, meanwhile, inevitably presented some productive and commercial problems. That young man is called Alberto Montini and he started in his thirties his beautiful adventure in the pipes world… He was contacted by the surveyor Terenzio Cecchini at the time the only owner of the Mastro, to take care of it in every aspect, first as an employee, then as an administrator and later as a partner of Mastro de Paja and afterwards with the passing of Mr. Cecchini he became the sole owner.

…Currently the Mastro produces about 2 thousand pipes a year with strictly artisan procedure, at the Mastro currently reigns a warm harmony, is a group of friends who strives to get the best. This also stems from the fact that pipes for Mastro de Paja are not to be considered as any other object to be produced and sold following cold strategies common to everyone in the business world, it’s completely different, it is necessary to love it, it is a style of being, a philosophy of life that can only be appreciated by a noble soul and not noble by title but by principles.

I read further in the article and found the following information on the stamping and the circle 3A stamp. I quote:

Mastro de Paja “ELITE COLLECTION” It is the production of pipes made entirely by hand, even they are unique but of regular production. On all “Mastro de Paja” pipes you can see fire stamped all the information for tracing the value of each creation.

 0B: Rusticated

1B: Sandblasted

CA: Castanea

2D: Half rusticated

3A: Brown and orange stain

3B: Natural

3C: Perfect grain

It looks like the 3A is pretty high in the hierarchy of the Mastro pipes, with just the 3B Natural and the 3C Perfect Grain ahead of it. It is described as Brown and Orange Stain. That would describe what I hold in my hands today.

I turned to the Pipephil website (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-m3.html) and added the following screen capture and summary of information on the brand.Brand founded in 1972 by Giancarlo Guidi. He left it for Ser Jacopo in 1982. Alberto Montini became the owner of the brand in 1995. Production (2010): ~ 5000 pipes / year. Seconds: Calibano, Montini

Armed with that information and renewing my knowledge of the brand it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the remnants of cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl of the pipe. He rinsed it with running water. He dried it with a soft cloth. He was able to remove all of the debris in the briar leaving only the area with slight damage on the inner edge of the bowl on the left rear. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work. I took a close up photo of the rim top to show the condition of the top and edges of the rim. The inner shows some burn damage on the left read of the bowl. The stem photos show the light tooth marks and scratching on the surface of the amber acrylic.I took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank to capture the words if possible. It was clear and read as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts of the pipe to give a sense of the proportion of the parts to the whole. It is a well designed and made pipe. I decided to begin by addressing the damage on the left rear of the inner edge. I carefully sanded the edge with a folded piece of worn 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the damaged area and bring it back to round as much as possible.I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad to remove the sanding debris from the surface. It looked very good by the time I finished. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With the bowl finished I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded out the swirled scratches in the surface of the acrylic and the light tooth marks with 220 grit sandpaper. It did no take to long to remove them all. It looked better.I further sanded it with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads and smoothed out the sanding marks further. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian Oil cloth to remove the sanding debris. It was looking very good by the last pad.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each pad. I polished it with some Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra to deepen the shine. I wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. This Mastro de Paja Fatta a Mano Lovat is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The brown stains really highlight the grain and the polished finish is stunning. I put the amber acrylic saddle stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing the entire pipe with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Mastro de Paja Lovat fits nicely in the hand and feels great. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 49 grams /1.73 ounces. It is a beautiful pipe. If you are interested in adding it to your rack let me know. It will be on the rebornpipes store in the Italian Pipe Makers Section. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it.

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.

Cleaning up an Italian Made Plateau Rim Top Amorelli One Star Hand Made Horn

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by Steve Laug

This morning I decided to work on the pipe that Jeff picked up on Facebook Marketplace from a seller in Wellsville, Kansas, USA on 12/09/2024. It is a unique looking Horn with a plateau rim top. It is a beautiful grained piece of briar that I can appreciate why he chose it. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the and reads Amorelli [over]* On the right side of the shank it is stamped Hand Made [over] what looks like a clock stamp [over] Italy. The clock appears to read 7:05 or 20 minutes to 2. I have no idea what that means at this point in the process. The briar is dirty from use with a moderate cake in the bowl and a light overflow of lava on the rim top.  The stem fit well against the shank end. The black, acrylic saddle stem appeared to have some light tooth chatter on the top and underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was an inset gold bar logo in the top of the stem and the top of the shank.  On the shank there is a stamp next to the gold bar that reads 18Kt. The two parts line up for a straight fit to the shank. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. I have included them below. Jeff took some close up photos of the bowl and rim top. You can see the light lava coat in the plateau top. The inner edge of the rim looks good. There is a light cake in the bowl that seems to have been recently reamed. The photos of the stem show the scratching, oxidation and tooth marks in the stem at the button. Jeff took photos of the sides of the bowl to show the interesting grain on the horn and how the shape chases it. He took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. I have worked on one other Amorelli recently but needed to refresh my memory about the brand. I turned first to Pipephil’s site for a short introduction to the brand and was not disappointed by what a I found (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-a5.html). I have included the screen capture below as well as the side bar information on the grading of the pipes.
Artisan: Salvatore Amorelli. Grading (ascending): 1 to 5 stars. 5 stars pipes may be differentiated by some golden stars: (* * * * * or * * * * *)

I turned to Pipedia to add more to what I had learned above on Pipephil about the Amorelli brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Amorelli). There was a short article full of information. I quote from it below.

An Amorelli pipe is recognized by an unmistakable logo: an 18k Gold bar, placed in the centre of the junction of the shank and mouthpiece, and which allows a perfect positioning. Projecting and making with a scrupulous rigour, Amorelli refers to the most exigent pipe connoisseur who will be able to recognize a very high smoking quality and prize a processing of the highest level, rich in refined details. It climaxes in a delicate process of finishing, where esteemed Brazilian bee waxes are used to feed and exalt the fibre of the wood, allowing the pipe to breathe.

25 years have passed since Totò Amorelli entered the scene with his creations, inimitable still today: busbee, frac, lyra, fish-tail, nayl, unicum, interpretaions of a new point of view and to realize a pipe. The 18k Gold logo, only Sicilian and selected briar, 5 years seasoned and interpreted piece by piece…

What will the near future hold? A new line of pipes for everyone: “La Siciliana”, together with Amorelli pipes, made from the best briar collected from Sicilian Mountains overlooking Taormina, cut, boiled and seasoned directly in the new workshop of Caltanissetta, everything overseen by Totò. 

The pipe I was working on was an Amorelli made of Sicilian Briar! It was a 1-star grade pipe which fits the great grain on this particular pipe. Now it was time to turn my attention to the pipe itself.

Jeff reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl of the pipe. He rinsed it off under running water. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He was able to remove most of the lava build up on the rim top of the pipe leaving a clean rim with some debris in the sandblast. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work. I took a close up photo of the rim top to show the condition of the sandblast finish of the rim. The inner and outer edge of the bowl looks really good. The stem photos show the light tooth marks and pit on the top surface.I took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank to capture the words if possible. It was clear and read as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts of the pipe to give a sense of the proportion of the parts to the whole. It is a well designed and made pipe. I worked over the plateau rim top with a brass bristle wire brush to knock off the debris in the plateau valleys 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 sanding pad to remove the sanding debris from the surface. It looked very good by the time I finished. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With the bowl finished I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. It was in great condition that I moved ahead and polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding it with 3200-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each pad. I polished it with some Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra to deepen the shine. I wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. This Amorelli * Hand Made Italy Horn with a Plateau Rim Top is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The brown stains really highlight the grain and the polished finish is stunning. The polished plateau rim top looked very good as well. I put the acrylic saddle stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel and followed that by buffing the entire pipe with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Amorelli * Hand Made Horn fits nicely in the hand and feels great. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 ¼ 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 48 grams /1.66 ounces. It is a beautiful pipe. If you are interested in adding it to your rack let me know. It will be on the rebornpipes store in the Italian Pipe Makers Section. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it.

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.

Bringing Dad’s Two Pipes – Second Pipe the Medico Gold Crest Back to Life for his Daughter.

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by Steve Laug

At the end of last week, I received an email from Terrica in Florida regarding some pipes that she wanted me to clean up for her. I have included her first email below:

I would like to send my deceased father’s old tobacco pipes for cleaning. I will not be using the pipes but would like to get them cleaned up so I can keep them on display.

I wrote back asking what the pipes looked like in terms of condition. I also wanted to know her general wishes on the clean up and how far she wanted me to go with it. She responded as follows and sent photos of the two pipes that I have included below.

Thank you very much for responding. As you can see, these are very inexpensive pipes. My deceased dad likely purchased them at a local drugstore. I have no doubt that they have never been cleaned.

I will never be using them, but I would at least like them presentable. Thank you very much, Terrica

I took a look at the photos and was able to discern that the top pipe was a Medico Gold Crest Pot shaped pipe that had a thick cake in the bowl and was very dirty with grime ground into the finish. The stem, other than being very dirty did not have deep tooth marks. There was tooth chatter and grime on the vulcanite filter stem that would need to be cleaned up and removed. The second pipe was stamped Venturi and was made out of a resin that was used in The Pipe, The Smoke and the Venturi. This was a bent Billiard. It was dirty and had a cake in the bowl. The stem was also very dirty and had some tooth chatter on the surface.I chose to work on the Medico Gold Crest next. The finish was dirty and there were nicks around the outer edge of the rim top. The inwardly bevelled rim top was very dirty with a thick lava build up and there was a thick cake in the bowl. The stamping on the left side of the shank was clear but had a lot of dust in the stamping. It read as noted above – Medico [over] Gold Crest [over] Imported Briar. On the right side of the shank it is stamped 149 (shape number). There is a 14K gold plated band on the shank that is stamped Medico [over] 1/30 14K RGP. The “1/30 14K RGP” likely refers to the gold content of the band, indicating it is a 14K gold rolled gold plate. The stem appears to be a Medico synthetic rather than rubber but I am not sure. There surface as dirty and had some build up ahead of the button on both sides. There was some tooth chatter on both sides ahead of the button edge. The pipe smelled of the tobacco that had obviously been smoked in it. The style of the build up/cake make me think of a drug store tobacco of the style of Prince Albert or Sir Walter Raleigh. I will certainly l know more once work on the second pipe. I took photos of the pipe before I started my work on it. I took photos of the rim top and the stem to show the condition. You can see the cake in the bowl and the thick overflow of lava on the rim top. The photos of the stem show the tooth marks and chatter on the top and the underside of the stem.I took a photo of the stamping on the left side of the shank to capture it. The left side read as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts to give a sense of the look of the pipe. I paused in the restoration to gather backgound on the brand. I turned first to Pipephil’s site to see what I could learn (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-medico.html). I have included a screen capture of the section on the Gold Crest. The stamping shown in the capture below is identical to the one that I am working on.From there I turned to Pipedia to see if I could gather more information on the brand as a whole and specifically the Gold Crest Line (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Medico). I quote below:

Medico was created in 1933, and is still produced by S.M. Frank. The brand is famous for its pipe filters, which were launched in the same year. Since 1966, some models have been made in Brylon, a synthetic material, and others in briar. The brand was also sold by the English company Cadogan and Oppenheimer Pipe. Symbol: M inside a shield, although early pipes, like the example bellow, had a + sign, like a Medic would have on their sleeve.

I have also included some of the advertising flyers that were on the site as well. They give a sense of the pipe’s look and feel and the old descriptions are great to read. Now it was time to turn my attention to the pipe itself. I started my work on it by reaming the bowl with a PipNet reamer. I used the first cutting head and took the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and removed all the remnants of the cake. I scraped the rim top with the flat edge of the blade at the same time and removed most of the thick lava build up. I sanded the walls of the bowl with a piece of dowel wrapped in 220 grit sandpaper. The walls look very good at his point in the process. I cleaned out the shank, the airway and the mortise as well as the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, hard bristle and soft bristle pipe cleaners. It was a very dirty pipe which just meant that it had really been enjoyed by the previous pipe man.I scrubbed the exterior of the bowl and shank with a tooth brush and undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I scrubbed the lava on the rim top and overflow on the outside of the bowl with the soap. I rinsed the briar with warm water to remove the grime and debris of the scrubbing. It looked significantly better after the scrubbing. Once I cleaned the bowl with the soap it looked much better. I wiped the bowl down with acetone on cotton pads to remove the spotty varnish coat on the bowl and to break up the darkening on the top of the rim. I worked over the darkening on the back topside and inner edge of the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper. It took a lot of elbow grease but it was getting better with each piece of sandpaper. I sanded the briar further with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth after each sanding pad. It began to look very good. I polished the briar bowl with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad with an olive oil cloth. By the final sanding pad the bowl had taken on a significant shine. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm to deep clean the finish on the briar bowl and shank. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar and gives the briar a rich shine. I worked it in with my fingers to get it into the surface. I let it sit for 10 minutes then I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth. The bowl began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. It is a beautiful bowl. I set the clean and polished bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded the stem smooth with 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the marks and chatter. It was smooth and all that remained was to polish it.I wiped the stem down with olive oil and sanded the surface with the 2 x 2-inch sanding pads – 320-3500 grit pads to clean up the sanding marks on the stem surface. I wiped it down after each sanding pad and by the final 3500 grit pad the stem started to really shine.I touched up the faint M shield on the left side of the stem with Rub’n Buff Antique Gold. I worked it into the stamping with a tooth pick. I buffed it off with a paper towel and wiped the stem down with some Obsidian Oil. It is faint in spots but looks very good.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I gave the stem a final polish with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish both Fine and Extra Fine. I rubbed the stem with them and then gave them a final coat of Obsidian Oil. I set it aside to dry. I fit the metal tenon with a new Medico Paper Filter. Even though the pipe probably would not be smoked I thought it was important to put it together the way it was originally.I am excited to finish this Medico Gold Crest Gold Banded Pot with a saddle stem. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and then by hand with a microfibre cloth to deepen it. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished stem. This Medico Gold Crest Pot is great 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 43 grams/1.52 ounces. This second and last of Terrica’s Dad’s pipes is a real beauty. I will be packing the pair up and sending them back to her later this week. I look forward to hearing what she thinks of both of these resurrected beauties. Both should be great memories of her late Dad.

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.

Breathing Life into an S&R Sandblast Oom Paul

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by Steve Laug

Years ago, I met Steve and Roswitha of S&R pipes at the Chicago Pipe Show. I cannot even remember the year but I remember having a good conversation with them. I was not able to pick up one of their pipes at that time but I was amazed at the beauty and style of pipes that the two of them were creating in their shop, Pipes & Pleasures in Columbus, Ohio. This pipe came to us from a seller in Memphis, Tennessee, USA on 08/27/2024. Jeff took some photos of the pipe when he received it to show the general condition. I have included the photos of the S&R pipe. The sandblast finish was dirty and dusty looking. There was a moderate cake in the bowl and surprisingly no lava overflow on the rim top. The sandblast follows the grain of the bowl and shank. The stamping is very clear and shows the interlocked SR with a pipe on the left side of the shank. The sandblast is quite deep and really shows the grain and is nicely done. The saddle stem is vulcanite and oxidized. There are tooth marks and chatter on both sides of the stem ahead of the button and some scratching on the stem surface. The photos below tell the story and give a glimpse of the Oom Paul shape.Here is a close up of the bowl and rim top. You can see the light lava coat. The inner edge of the rim looks good. There is a moderate cake in the bowl that is hard and rough. The photos of the stem show the scratching, oxidation and tooth marks in the stem at the button. Jeff took photos of the sides of the bowl to show the interesting grain in the sandblast. The swirls and depths of the sandblast are intricate and quite beautiful. Jeff took a photo of the S&R logo on the left side of the shank. It is a unique interlocked S&R stamp with the pipe. It is clear and legible.I decided to take some time to review my knowledge of the brand. I turned to Pipedia and read the article that was included there (https://pipedia.org/wiki/S%26R_Pipes). I quote in full below:

Stephen and Roswitha Anderson of S&R Pipes, also known as S&R Woodcrafters, have become pipe makers renowned throughout the world as talented carvers of high-grade briar pipes. They have been featured in several trade publications and magazines such as Pipes and Tobaccos and PipeSmoker, and have several pieces on display in museums in Europe and the United States.

They are the first American pipe carvers honored with induction into the Conferee of Pipe Makers of St. Claude, France; the very place where the carving of briar pipes became a world-wide industry. Sadly, Steve passed away in March of 2009. Roswitha is still carving S&R pipes and carrying on with the shop with help from her “guys” David, Marty, and Tony.

Steve and Roswitha began carving pipes in the 1960’s. They travelled to pipe shows and arts and crafts shows throughout the country and Europe selling their pipes and built up quite an extensive loyal customer base. Eventually, it became time to offer their pipes to the retail fraternity of pipe smokers.

Pipes & Pleasures had its grand opening in a distinct red brick house on Main Street in Columbus, Ohio in 1977. The front section of the house was converted into a traditional tobacco shop selling pipe tobacco, cigars, and pipes manufactured by well known companies such as Dunhill, Charatan, and Savinelli as well as the high-grade S&R pipes that Steve and Roswitha carved. A workshop was set up in the back section of the house.

When the cigar boom hit in the ’90’s, the shop was expanded by building a large computer controlled walk-in humidor. It’s no secret throughout the country that Pipes & Pleasures has the best maintained cigars in the Columbus area as well as the best selection of premium cigars available in the area including the much sought-after Davidoff line.

Soon after the boom began, Steve and Roswitha moved their pipe making workshop to their farm and converted that space into a large smoking lounge for their many customers. The lounge features comfortable easy chairs, a television set, a stereo, a library of books and magazines about every aspect of tobacciana, a chess table, and a couple of card tables. The lounge is populated daily with long-time loyal customers and newcomers to the enjoyment and relaxation of cigar and pipe smoking. It’s also the room where several cigar tastings and samplings are held every year by representatives from cigar companies such as Davidoff and La Flor Dominicana.

I captured a photo of the shop from the Pipedia article to include below. It is a great looking shop.

The Pipes & Pleasures shop, home of S&R Woodcrafters

I also turned to the Pipes & Pleasures website and copied the “About Us” section. Here is the link to the site (https://www.pipesandpleasures.biz/maintenance). I quote in part.

Pipes & Pleasures proprietors Stephen and Roswitha Anderson have become pipe makers renowned throughout the world as talented carvers of high-grade briar pipes. They have been featured in several trade publications and magazines such as Pipes and Tobaccos and PipeSmoker, and have several pieces on display in museums in Europe and the United States. They are the first American pipe carvers honored with induction into the Conferee of Pipe Makers of St. Claude, France; the very place where the carving of briar pipes became a world-wide industry.

Steve and Roswitha began carving pipes in the 1960’s. They travelled to pipe shows and arts and crafts shows throughout the country and Europe selling their pipes and built up quite an extensive loyal customer base. Eventually, it became time to offer their pipes to the retail fraternity of pipe smokers…

…Sadly, Steve passed away in March of 2009. Roswitha is still carving S&R pipes and carrying on with the shop with help from her “guys” David, Marty, and Tony, who welcome you to this website.

Jeff reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl of the pipe. He rinsed it off under running water. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He was able to remove most of the lava build up on the rim top of the pipe leaving a clean rim with some debris in the sandblast. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work. I took a close up photo of the rim top to show the condition of the sandblast finish of the rim. The inner and outer edge of the bowl looks really good. The stem photos show the light tooth marks and pit on the top surface.I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts of the pipe to give a sense of the proportion of the parts to the whole. It is a well designed and crafted pipe.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. With the bowl finished I set it aside and turned my attention to the stem. I filled in the pit on the top of the stem mid stem right side and the tooth damage at the button edge on the underside of the stem with Extra Strength Rubberized Black CA glue. I set it aside to let the repairs cure for morning. After work today I smoothed out the fills with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the surface. I sanded the stem surface further with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to finish smoothing out the repairs and removing residual oxidation. I wiped the stem down after each pad with a cloth impregnated with Obsidian Oil. It began to look very good.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding it with 3200-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each pad. I polished it with some Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra to deepen the shine. I wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. This S&R Sandblast Oom Paul is a beauty. It is a stunning example of Steve & Roswitha’s craft – the sandblast finish and the dark stain is very well done. I polished the stem with Blue Diamond polish on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax 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 contrasting finishes came alive with the buffing. The rich, contrasting dark stain work well with the polished black vulcanite stem. The finished pipe is a beauty and feels great in the hand. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 47 grams/1.66 ounces. I will be putting this beautiful S&R Oom Paul on the rebornpipes online store soon. It may well the kind of unique pipe you have been looking for so have a look. Thanks for walking through the restoration of this pipe with me. It was a fun one to work on.

New Life for a Republic Peterson’s De Luxe 440 Billiard

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by Steve Laug

In the last box of pipes Jeff sent me there was an interesting, nicely grained Peterson’s Billiard to restore. We purchased it from a seller on eBay on 08/22/2024 who was in Harrison Township, Michigan, USA. It is a Peterson’s De Luxe 440 Straight Billiard. It is stamped on the left side of the shank Peterson’s [over] De Luxe and on the right side it reads Made in the Republic of Ireland (three lines) followed by the shape number 440. It was a dirty pipe when we received it. There was lava on the rim top and heavily coated on the bevelled inner edge of the rim. The rim top was dirty and showed some wear and tear on the surface coming up for the bowl. There was a thick cake in the bowl that had remnants of tobacco stuck in it. The finish was dirty and there were spots of grime and oils. Under the finish was a great looking pipe with nice grain. The stem was calcified, oxidized and there were light tooth marks and chatter on the top and underside ahead of the button. Jeff took some photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work.He took photos of the bowl and rim top to show their general condition. You can see the tars on the inner edge and some scuffing on the rim top. The cake in the bowl is quite thick and there is tobacco debris on the walls of the bowl. The finish on the bowl is dull but the grain is still very stunning. This pipe has a classic Peterson’s P-lip stem on a saddle stem. It has calcification and oxidation on the surface of the vulcanite that is quite deep. There seems to be some tooth marks and chatter on the top and underside. Jeff took some photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to give an idea of the grain on this particular piece of briar. It is amazing and I cannot wait to see what it looks like once it is polished and waxed. He took photos of the stamping on both sides of the shank to capture it for me. The first photo shows the left side of the shank and the stamping as noted above as well as the P logo on the stem. The second and third photos show the right side of the shank with the Made in the Republic of Ireland three line stamp and shape number 440. I did a bit of work on Google to gather background on the De Luxe line of pipes when I worked on the 4S previously. I decided to quote that here as well.

The first information I found about the Deluxe line was on the Peterson’s website (https://www.peterson.ie/pipes/system/deluxe-system-smooth/). I quote from the description of the line below. I have highlighted several key portions in bold black for emphasis.

While the De Luxe stamp first appeared on our System pipes in 1940, the design itself dates to our 1896 and 1906 catalogues and, with the exception of the Supreme, has always marked our highest tier of System pipe. Like the System Standard and System Spigot lines, the Deluxe System pipe incorporates Charles Peterson’s patented System design, including a deep reservoir to collect excess moisture from the smoke; a graduated-bore mouthpiece that funnels the smoke and allows moisture to collect within the reservoir; a sturdy sterling silver military mount, which allows the pipe to be broken down and cleaned without damage or warping; and our patented P-Lip bit, which draws the smoke upward, thus reducing tongue bite. The De Luxe differs from those aforementioned lines, comprised of bowls with only the finest grain patterns and featuring a sterling silver mount and a push-gap stem, which was never designed to be flush-fitting, the space between the mount and stem base gradually decreasing with prolonged use. The Deluxe also elevates the System pipe by fixing each stem with a traditional chimney, an aluminum fitment that extends the tenon past the chamber’s airway for optimal System performance. Created for Peterson enthusiasts interested in acquiring the finest System pipe on the market, the Deluxe System will serve as the crown of any collection. Seen here in the Smooth finish.

From that information I knew how the De Luxe fit in the hierarchy of Peterson’s pipes. It was always the highest tier of the System pipes. The attachment of a chimney at the end of the tenon was to maximize System performance (the chimney was missing in this particular pipe).

From there I also turned to Pipedia to see what that would add to the information I had on the brand and line. I quote from an article by Jim Lilley and have included portions of it below. (https://pipedia.org/wiki/A_Closer_Look_at_The_Peterson_Deluxe_System_Pipe). Once again, I have highlighted pertinent sections in bold below.

The version of the system pipe for our closer inspection is one of Peterson’s more recognisable series, the handsome and very distinctive De Luxe system pipes, which include the Darwin and Mark Twain. These pipes are at the top of the ‘system’ series in terms of quality and finish.

Each Peterson Deluxe is made from carefully selected, age mellowed root briar. In matte finish with hallmarked sterling silver mounts and a unique space fitting mouthpiece to allow for years of wear. They are available in a wide range of shapes numbered, as follows 1s,2s,3s,4s,5s,8s,9s,11s,12.5s,20s, XL5s, 20FB and 11FB.

The pipes are well carved, construction, engineering and workmanship, is outstanding. The stems are well drilled and aligned. Silver work is excellent, finish very good, and the often maligned briar is of outstanding quality.

The design is a very typically Peterson classic shape. Apart from the Darwin, the balance can be stem heavy, the bit is thick and chunky, especially in the larger versions. I also enjoy the sense of presence they give to the pipe, particularly if smoking in company with friends or strangers. They have a sophistication about them.

The smoking qualities are excellent, dry and cool. The draw is good, and the flavour is particularly great in new pipes. The Mark Twain’s are outstanding in this department….

With that information I turned my attention to working on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned it thoroughly. He had reamed it with a PipNet reamer and cleaned that up with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He had scrubbed the exterior of the briar with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush. He rinsed it with running water to remove the grime and oils. He cleaned out the interior of the shank, sump and airway in the shank and stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub to remove the oxidation and calcification on the surface. He soaked it in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer to remove the oxidation. He removed it from the Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. I took some photos of the pipe before I started my part of the work. I took some photos of the rim top and stem. The rim top and bowl looked very good. The cake and lava overflow were gone and the inward bevelled rim was very clean. There was also some darkening on the bevelled inner rim edge and light damage on the edge of the top and the bevel. Jeff had been able to get rid of all of the lava and tars. The rim top looked good with light marks and scratches on the surface. The closeup photos of the stem shows that it is a much cleaner and better looking stem. The tooth marks and chatter were still present ahead of the button.I took some photos of the stamping on the shank sides to show the condition after the cleanup. Often the stamping takes a hit with the cleaning and is lessened in its clarity. Jeff does a great job in leaving the stamping looking very good. The stamp on the stem is also in good condition and will need to be recoloured. I also took the stem off the shank and took a photo of the parts of the pipe to show the proportion. The grain around the bowl and shank on this pipe is very beautiful. I started my restoration work on this pipe by addressing the darkening around the inner edge of the bowl. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the bevelled inner edge and the rim top with the same sandpaper. The finished rim top looked very good.I used 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads to remove the darkening on the rim edges and top as well to smooth out some of the scratches in the briar. Once finished it was ready to be polished. I started my polishing regimen on the bowl. I used nine micromesh sanding pads and dry sanded the bowl with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth after each pad. The bowl really shines by the final three pads. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while 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 and turned my attention to the stem. On other Deluxe pipes I have used gold to touch up the stamp rather than white acrylic. I touched up the “P” stamp on the left side of the stem with some Rub’n Buff Antique Gold. I worked it into the stamp with a tooth pick. I buffed it off with a soft cloth and some Obsidian Oil. It looked very good.I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to minimize the scratches and tooth chatter. I wiped the stem down after each pad with Obsidian Oil on a cloth. By the final pad it looked good.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped them 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. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Oil to preserve and protect the stem.  I don’t know how many times I have said this but I love it when I come to the end of a restoration and all of the parts come together and the pipe looks better than when we started the cleanup process. I put the stem back on the Peterson’s De Luxe 440 Billiard and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I carefully avoided the stamping on the shank sides during the process. I gave the bowl and 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 pipe is a real stunning example of a Republic Era Peterson’s De Luxe 440 Straight Billiard. Once again, the grain and the way the shape follows the grain is amazing. Give the finish 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: 6 inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is .99 ounces/28 grams. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another beautiful pipe. I will be putting this one on the rebornpipes store in the Irish Pipemakers Section. Let me know if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for your time.

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.

Breathing new life into another Beautiful “Malaga” M-2 Acorn

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by Steve Laug

The “Malaga” Bent Acorn is next pipe on the table. We purchased it off eBay on 09/16/24 from a seller in Center Line, Michigan, USA. The carver did a great job of shaping the pipe to follow the grain on the briar. The acorn shaped bowl, round shank and quarter Bent tapered stem look very good. The bowl had a moderate cake that overflowed with a spotty lava coat on the rim and edges look good. The sides of the bowl and shank are very dirty with grime and oils from prolonged use. The grain around the bowl and shank appeared to be very nice mixed grain under the grime on the briar. The stamping on the left side of the shank read “MALAGA”. On the top of the shank just ahead of the stem junction it is stamped M-2. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on the top and the underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was some light oxidation on the stem surface. Jeff took these photos before he started the cleanup work on the pipe.Jeff took close up photos of the bowl and rim to capture the condition of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. The rim top had thick lava overflow. The outer edge looked to be in decent condition. The stem is oxidized, calcified and has tooth marks and chatter on both sides. He also took a photo of the side and bottom of the bowl and shank to show the beautiful grain around the bowl. The photos show the general condition of the bowl and dirt and wear on the rich oil finish. You can also see the flaws in the briar which explains the M-2, or second designation. It is very dirty but this is another beautiful pipe. Jeff took a photo to capture the stamping on the left and top side of the shank. The photo shows the stamping “MALAGA” on the left side and M-2 on the top side of the shank. The stamping is very readable under the heavy grime.Before I started working on the pipe itself I went back and reread what I had found when I had worked on many of the Malaga pipes that had come across my work table. I am including a few pieces of information that I have gathered in the process.

For those of you reading this blog who are unfamiliar with the brand, I am including the link to a previous blog that I wrote. It gives some of the history of the Malaga brand and the Malaga Pipe Shop in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA. Here is the link – https://rebornpipes.com/tag/malaga-pipes/.

I have also included a link to a catalogue and the history of the pipemaker George Khoubesser. If you are interested to learn more, then I invite you to follow the link to get a feel for the brand and the pipemaker.

George Khoubesser (picture to the left) started Malaga Briar Pipe Company and located it in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA in 1939. It closed its doors for the last time in 1999 after 60 years in business. I have an old Malaga Catalogue that I scanned and put on the blog (https://rebornpipes.com/2013/02/09/george-khoubesser-and-malaga-pipes/). The catalogue describes the manufacture of the pipes as follows:

Painstaking caution is exercised in selecting flawless, perfect briar wood for the purpose of making and Curing of the “Malaga.” You can be certain of this fact, because none other than the choicest and finest select briarwood will withstand the “Malaga” Curing process. Other than the choicest quality and grain, will split wide open in the Curing vats… The Curing method renders all “Malaga” pipes, light in weight… Most all “Malaga” Senior pipes are left in their natural state; except for a skillful waxing which brings out the rich beauty of the virgin grain. No artificial polishing stain, shellac or varnishes are added. Malaga closed in 1999 after 60 years in business.

Jeff reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl. He rinsed it under running water. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He was able to remove the lava build up on the rim top and the flat surface of the rim top and the inner edge had some burn damage on the front and back side. The outer edge was rough and nicked. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work on it. The stem also looked better. I took close up photos of the bowl and rim top as well as the stem. You can see the condition of the rim top and bowl in the first photo. Jeff was able to remove all of the tar and oils and you can that the top and the edges of the bowl look very good. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button on both sides.I took a photo of the stamping on the shank to show the condition. The “MALAGA” stamp is far more clear and and readable than my blurry photos show. The M-2 stamp on the top of the shank is also more clear than the photos. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo to give a sense of how the pipe looked. I decided to address the many poxy looking flaws in the briar first. There were no fills at all just sandpits that were all different sizes all around the bowl. The worst were on the right side followed by the front of the bowl. The right side and rim top were in excellent condition. I filled them all in with briar dust and clear CA glue. Once they cured I flattened them with a small flat file and then sanded them smooth with 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the briar. I wiped the bowl down to remove the sanding dust with isopropyl alcohol and cotton pads. Once the repairs looked significantly better than the flaws in the briar that existed before. I sanded the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to begin the process of removing the scratches and blending the restored rim top into the rest of the bowl. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the dust and debris. The photos tell the story. I polished the rim top and the briar with micromesh sanding pads. I dry sanded the bowl with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The following photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I am very happy with the results. I set the bowl aside and “painted” the stem surface with the flame and was able to lift the tooth marks significantly. I filled in the ones that remained with black extra strength CA glue. I set it aside to cure. Once it cured I flattened the repair with a small file and then sanded it smooth with 220 grit sandpaper. It began to look much better. I turned to the stem to address the issues on the surface of both sides at the button. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad. I think I finally beat the oxidation.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad Obsidian Oil. I finished by polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish both fine and extra Fine and then wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil. This is a beautiful Malaga M-2 Bent Acorn with a vulcanite tapered stem. It has a great look and feel. The shape of the bowl, the rim top and the cut of the briar work well to highlight the grain around the bowl sides. I polished stem and the bowl with Blue Diamond polish 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. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The grain took on life with the buffing. The rich oil cured colour works well with the polished vulcanite stem. The finished Malaga M-2 Acorn has a rich look that is quite catching. The repaired flaws look better and are smooth. Have a look at it with the photos below. The shape, finish and flow of the pipe and stem are very well done. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 1/8 inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.23 ounces/35 grams. It is a beautiful pipe. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store shortly in the American Pipemakers Section if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for walking with me through the restoration.

Bringing a Ben Wade 53 Skater Back from the Brink

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by Kenneth Lieblich

I’ve had this pipe in my stash for a long time, and I don’t really remember acquiring it. I always thought it was a neat shape and just required the right moment for restoration. Well, the pipe found its way back into my hand and the time for restoration has come. This is a Ben Wade Standard 53 skater and it has seen better days. The pipe is worn, dirty, and tired-looking. There is some stunning grain under the grime and it holds a real charm. I’m sure you will be charmed! Here are the markings on the pipe. On the left side of the shank, we see Ben Wade [over] Standard [over] London England. On the right side, we see the shape number 53. Meanwhile, on the top of the stem, we see the words Ben [over] Wade. Doing some elementary research and comparing styles of nomenclature, this pipe looks to me as though it could be from the ‘post-family, pre-Lane’ era of Ben Wade, but I am not sure. Based on what Steve told me, it also seems possible that this Ben Wade comes from the Charatan era. The skater was a well-known Charatan shape. I suppose that shape number 53 is probably a Ben Wade number, rather than a Charatan one. I am, naturally, inclined to trust Steve’s judgment over my own on this.Pipedia has a good write-up on Ben Wade and I encourage you to read it here. This is a little snippet of the article:

Ben Wade is one of the great names in English pipe making. As Richard Carleton Hacker noticed correctly Ben Wade, like many British pipe companies, has had a checkered history. Very checkered in this case. The company was founded by Benjamin Wade in 1860 in Leeds, Yorkshire, where it was located for over a century. Ben Wade started as a pipe trader, but yet in the 1860’s he established a workshop to produce briar pipes. The pipes were made in very many standard shapes – always extensively classic and “very British”. Many models tended to be of smaller dimensions. Ben Wade offered a very high standard of craftsmanship and quality without any fills. Thus the pipes were considered to be high grade and a major competitor to other famous English brands. The often heard comparison to Charatan seems to be a little bit inadequate because those days’ Charatans were entirely handmade.Let’s examine the condition. First and foremost, this pipe is really dirty. There’s lots of filth matted everywhere – especially the rim. There wasn’t much damage to the briar to be seen initially – although that would change once cleaning began. Having said that, there were a few small nicks in the briar. The smoking chamber had plenty of cake and looked like it would take some hard work to clean up. The stem was coated in oxidation and calcification. It was very dirty too and had a few tooth dents. In short, I had my work cut out for me. The stem’s calcification was quite substantial. I used an old butter knife and gently scraped some of the thicker accretion off. Doing this now helps later in removing the oxidation. I then used alcohol on a few cotton rounds and wiped down the stem 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. This stem is so dirty. I used a LOT of 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 to remove as much surface oxidation as possible. As the photos show, the result was a hideous, brownish 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.As the stem was now clean and dry, I set about fixing the marks and dents in the vulcanite. This was done by filling those divots with black cyanoacrylate adhesive, impregnated with carbon and rubber. I left this to cure and moved on. After this, I painted the logo on the stem with some enamel nail polish. I restored the logo carefully and let it fully set before proceeding.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.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, a pipe knife, and a piece of sandpaper taped to a wooden dowel. Collectively, these ensured that all the debris was removed.My next step was to remove the lava on the rim. For this, I took a piece of machine steel and gently scraped the lava away. The metal’s edge is sharp enough to remove what I need, but not so sharp that it damages the rim. This work revealed some serious damage to the rim. It was badly scraped and I would need to address that.The inside of the stummel needed to be cleaned thoroughly. However, this pipe was so clogged, that I first needed to open the horribly occluded airway. So, I took a long drill bit and hand-cranked it to dislodge the dreadful detritus inside. Hand cranking is essential because it provides a precision and caution that a power drill cannot provide. Similar to the stem, I then cleaned the stummel with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. This stummel was sooooo dirty. It took ages and much cotton to get clean – much more than is shown in the photo.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 also wiped down the outside with some oil soap on 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 some soap and tube brushes. This was the culmination of a lot of hard work in getting the pipe clean.Having completed that, I was able to address the nicks on the bowl. I dug out my iron and a damp cotton flannel cloth. By laying the cloth over the affected areas and applying the iron to it, the hot and moist steam can cause the wood to swell slightly and return to shape. There was some improvement – not a lot, but it was better than doing nothing. The damage to the rim was significant. In order to lessen the scrapes on the rim, I ‘topped’ the pipe – that is to say, I gently and evenly sanded the rim on a piece of 220-grit sandpaper. This effectively minimized the damage, without altering the look of the pipe. Some damage will always remain and that is fine – it’s part of this pipe’s history. 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.This Ben Wade Standard 53 skater 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 ‘British’ pipe section of the store here on Steve’s website. You can also email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. The approximate dimensions of the pipe are as follows: length 6 in. (153 mm); height 1⅝ in. (41 mm); bowl diameter 1½ in. (39 mm); chamber diameter ⅞ in. (22 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1¼ oz. (38 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this pipe’s restoration as much as I did 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.

Breathing new life into another Beautiful “Malaga” Quarter Bent Egg

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by Steve Laug

The “Malaga” Bent Egg is next pipe on the table. We purchased it off eBay on 08/22/24 from a seller in Harrison Township, Michigan, USA. The carver did a great job of shaping the pipe to follow the grain on the briar. The egg-shaped bowl, round shank and quarter Bent tapered stem look very good. The bowl had a thick cake that overflowed with thick lava onto the rim so that it was impossible to see if there was damage on the inner edges. The sides of the bowl and shank are very dirty with grime and oils from prolonged use. The grain around the bowl and shank appeared to be very nice mixed grain under the grime on the briar. The stamping on the left side of the shank read “MALAGA”. There was no other stamping on it. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on the top and the underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was some oxidation deep in the vulcanite of the stem surface. Jeff took these photos before he started the cleanup work on the pipe.Jeff took close up photos of the bowl and rim to capture the condition of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. The rim top had thick lava overflow. The outer edge looked to be in decent condition. The stem is oxidized, calcified and has tooth marks and chatter on both sides. He also took a photo of the side and bottom of the bowl and shank to show the beautiful grain around the bowl. The photos show the general condition of the bowl and dirt and wear on the rich oil finish. It is very dirty but this is another beautiful pipe. Jeff took a photo to capture the stamping on the left side of the shank. The photo shows the stamping “MALAGA”. The stamping is very readable under the heavy grime.Before I started working on the pipe itself I went back and reread what I had found when I had worked on many of the Malaga pipes that had come across my work table. I am including a few pieces of information that I have gathered in the process.

For those of you reading this blog who are unfamiliar with the brand, I am including the link to a previous blog that I wrote. It gives some of the history of the Malaga brand and the Malaga Pipe Shop in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA. Here is the link – https://rebornpipes.com/tag/malaga-pipes/.

I have also included a link to a catalogue and the history of the pipemaker George Khoubesser. If you are interested to learn more, then I invite you to follow the link to get a feel for the brand and the pipemaker.

George Khoubesser (picture to the left) started Malaga Briar Pipe Company and located it in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA in 1939. It closed its doors for the last time in 1999 after 60 years in business. I have an old Malaga Catalogue that I scanned and put on the blog (https://rebornpipes.com/2013/02/09/george-khoubesser-and-malaga-pipes/). The catalogue describes the manufacture of the pipes as follows:

Painstaking caution is exercised in selecting flawless, perfect briar wood for the purpose of making and Curing of the “Malaga.” You can be certain of this fact, because none other than the choicest and finest select briarwood will withstand the “Malaga” Curing process. Other than the choicest quality and grain, will split wide open in the Curing vats… The Curing method renders all “Malaga” pipes, light in weight… Most all “Malaga” Senior pipes are left in their natural state; except for a skillful waxing which brings out the rich beauty of the virgin grain. No artificial polishing stain, shellac or varnishes are added. Malaga closed in 1999 after 60 years in business.

Jeff reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl. He rinsed it under running water. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He was able to remove the lava build up on the rim top and the flat surface of the rim top and the inner edge had some burn damage on the front and back side. The outer edge was rough and nicked. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work on it. The stem also looked better. I took close up photos of the bowl and rim top as well as the stem. You can see the condition of the rim top and bowl in the first photo. Jeff was able to remove all of the tar and oils but you can now see the damage on the top and the edges of the bowl. The top of the rim is rough and there is some burn damage and darkening on the inner edge on the front. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button on both sides.I took a photo of the stamping on the shank to show the condition. The “MALAGA” stamp is clear and readable. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo to give a sense of how the pipe looked. I decided to address the rim top and damaged inner edge of the bowl first. To remove the damage on the rim top and edges of the bowl sanded the top with 220 grit sandpaper. That removed a lot of the damage on the rim top and outer edge. I used a piece of 220 grit sandpaper to work on the inner edge of the rim and remove the darkening and clean up the damage.I sanded the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to begin the process of removing the scratches and blending the restored rim top into the rest of the bowl. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the dust and debris. The photos tell the story. I polished the rim top and the briar with micromesh sanding pads. I dry sanded the bowl with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The following photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I am very happy with the results. Before turning to work on the stem I decided to bend the stem to match the angels of the bowl. I “painted” it with a lighter to soften the vulcanite enough to bend it. I pressed the rim top flat against the desk top and bent the stem to the same angle. I “painted” the stem surface with the flame and was able to lift the tooth marks significantly. I filled in the ones that remained with black extra strength CA glue. I set it aside to cure. Once it cured I flattened the repair with a small file and then sanded it smooth with 220 grit sandpaper. It began to look much better. I turned to the stem to address the issues on the surface of both sides at the button. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad. I think I finally beat the oxidation.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad Obsidian Oil. I finished by polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish both fine and extra Fine and then wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil. This is a beautiful “Malaga” Quarter Bent Egg with a vulcanite tapered stem. It has a great look and feel. The shape of the bowl, the rim top and the cut of the briar work well to highlight the grain around the bowl sides. I polished stem and the bowl with Blue Diamond polish 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. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The grain took on life with the buffing. The rich oil cured colour works well with the polished vulcanite stem. The finished Malaga Quarter Bent Egg has a rich look that is quite catching. Have a look at it with the photos below. The shape, finish and flow of the pipe and stem are very well done. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.41 ounces/40 grams. It is a beautiful pipe. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store shortly in the American Pipemakers Section if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for walking with me through the restoration.

Breathing new life in to a Beautiful “Malaga” Algerian Briar Canadian

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by Steve Laug

The “Malaga” Canadian is next pipe on the table. We purchased it off eBay on 08/22/24 from a seller in Harrison Township, Michigan, USA. The carver did a great job of shaping the pipe to follow the grain on the briar. The bowl, oval shank and straight tapered stem look very good. The bowl had a thick cake that overflowed with thick lava onto the rim so that it was impossible to see if there was damage on the inner edges. The sides of the bowl and shank are very dirty with grime and oils from prolonged use. The grain around the bowl and shank is very nice mixed grain. The stamping on the top of the shank read “MALAGA”. On the underside it is stamped ALGERIAN BRIAR. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on the top and the underside of the stem ahead of the button. There was some thick calcification and also some oxidation deep in the vulcanite of the stem surface. Jeff took these photos before he started the cleanup work on the pipe.Jeff took close up photos of the bowl and rim to capture the condition of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. The rim top had thick lava overflow. The outer edge looked to be in decent condition. The stem is oxidized, calcified and has light tooth marks and chatter on both sides. He also took a photo of the side and bottom of the bowl and shank to show the beautiful grain around the bowl. The photos show the general condition of the bowl and dirt and wear on the rich oil finish. It is very dirty but this is another beautiful pipe. Jeff took a photo to capture the stamping on the top and underside of the shank. The photos show the stamping “MALAGA” on the top and ALGERIAN BRIAR on the underside. The stamping is very readable both sides of the shank.Before I started working on the pipe itself I went back and reread what I had found when I had worked on many of the Malaga pipes that had come across my work table. I am including a few pieces of information that I have gathered in the process.

For those of you reading this blog who are unfamiliar with the brand, I am including the link to a previous blog that I wrote. It gives some of the history of the Malaga brand and the Malaga Pipe Shop in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA. Here is the link – https://rebornpipes.com/tag/malaga-pipes/.

I have also included a link to a catalogue and the history of the pipemaker George Khoubesser. If you are interested to learn more, then I invite you to follow the link to get a feel for the brand and the pipemaker.

George Khoubesser (picture to the left) started Malaga Briar Pipe Company and located it in Royal Oak, Michigan in the USA in 1939. It closed its doors for the last time in 1999 after 60 years in business. I have an old Malaga Catalogue that I scanned and put on the blog (https://rebornpipes.com/2013/02/09/george-khoubesser-and-malaga-pipes/). The catalogue describes the manufacture of the pipes as follows:

Painstaking caution is exercised in selecting flawless, perfect briar wood for the purpose of making and Curing of the “Malaga.” You can be certain of this fact, because none other than the choicest and finest select briarwood will withstand the “Malaga” Curing process. Other than the choicest quality and grain, will split wide open in the Curing vats… The Curing method renders all “Malaga” pipes, light in weight… Most all “Malaga” Senior pipes are left in their natural state; except for a skillful waxing which brings out the rich beauty of the virgin grain. No artificial polishing stain, shellac or varnishes are added. Malaga closed in 1999 after 60 years in business.

Jeff reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and followed up with a Savinelli Fitsall pipe knife to remove the cake. He scrubbed out the mortise and the airway in the shank and the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl, rim, shank and stem with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the oils and tars on the rim and the grime on the finish of the bowl. He rinsed it under running water. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He was able to remove the lava build up on the rim top and the flat surface of the rim top and the inner edge had some burn damage on the front and back side. The outer edge was rough and nicked. I took photos of the pipe to show its condition before I started my work on it. The stem also looked better.I took close up photos of the bowl and rim top as well as the stem. You can see the condition of the rim top and bowl in the first photo. Jeff was able to remove all of the tar and oils but you can now see the damage on the top and the edges of the bowl. The top of the rim is rough and the outer edges are chipped and rough. There is some burn damage and darkening on the inner edge on the left side. The stem had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button on both sides.I took a photo of the stamping on the shank to show the condition. The “MALAGA” stamp is and the ALGERIAN BRIAR stamp are clear and readable. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo to give a sense of what the pipe looked like.I decided to address the rim top and damaged inner edge of the bowl first. To remove the damage on the rim top and edges of the bowl sanded the top with 220 grit sandpaper. That removed a lot of the damage on the rim top and outer edge. I used a piece of 220 grit sandpaper to work on the inner edge of the rim and remove the darkening and clean up the damage.I sanded the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to begin the process of removing the scratches and blending the restored rim top into the rest of the bowl. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the dust and debris. The photos tell the story. With the sanding I found a fill on the left side of the shank that is solid. There also appears to be one on the lower right side of the bowl that is also solid. I polished the rim top and the briar with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded the bowl with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The following photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I am very happy with the results. I turned to the stem to address the issues on the surface of both sides at the button. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad. I think I finally beat the oxidation.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad Obsidian Oil. I finished by polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish both fine and extra Fine and then wiped it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil. This is a beautiful Malaga Algerian Briar Canadian with a vulcanite tapered stem. It has a great look and feel. The shape of the bowl, the rim top and the cut of the briar work well to highlight the grain around the bowl sides. I polished stem and the bowl with Blue Diamond polish 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. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The grain took on life with the buffing. The rich oil cured colour works well with the polished vulcanite stem. The finished Malaga Algerian Briar Canadian has a rich look that is quite catching. Have a look at it with the photos below. The shape, finish and flow of the pipe and stem are very well done. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.23 ounces/35 grams. It is a beautiful pipe. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store shortly in the American Pipemakers Section if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Send me a message or an email to slaug@uniserve.com  Thanks for walking with me through the restoration.