Tag Archives: removing tooth marks

Breathing New Life into a Stanwell Straight Grain 50 Oval Shank Billiard

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by Steve Laug

It is a beautiful chilly day in Vancouver yesterday an no rain so I decided to go to the basement and work on another pipe that was purchased on 02/16/2023 in a lot of pipes that came to us from a seller in Copenhagen, Denmark. It was part of a group of Danish Made Stanwell pipes that are quite beautiful. The grain around the bowl and shank of this oval shank Billiard has a mix of birdseye, straight and flame grain. The pipe is stamped on the topside of the shank and reads STANWELL [over] Straight [over] Grain. On the underside of the shank it is stamped with the shape number 50 [over] Made in Denmark. The pipe was dirty when Jeff received it. There was dust and grime ground into the finish. It is finished in the warm brown stains that highlights some nice grain around the bowl and shank. The bowl was heavily caked and there was some darkening and lava on the rim top. The inner edge shows some damage and darkening around the bowl. The stem is vulcanite and is dirty with light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button and on the button itself. There is a Crown S logo in bras inlaid on the topside of the taper stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the thick cake in the bowl and the darkening and lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The acrylic stem was in decent condition with light tooth chatter and marks that are visible in the photos below.
The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the sides of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Diplomat line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115 000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). The list did not clarify who designed the shape so that was still a bit of a mystery. Whoever did so, created a beauty. I now knew that the shape 50 was made in two versions: a) Bent Dublin with an ovular rim and a saddle stem (late 1950s – see catalog), b) Straight billiard with an oval stem and a trapezoidal saddle, or tapered, stem (1960s – see catalog).

The pipe I am working on is a shape 50 as noted above. It was the shape 50b as noted above. It is a Straight Billiard with an oval stem and a tapered stem. There was no other information. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and it looked pretty incredible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl are very obvious now that it is clean. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the shank side was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe. I started my work on the pipe by addressing the damage on the inner edge of the bowl with a piece of 220 grit sandpaper and a sphere to remove the damage. I then used a half sphere to further shape the rim top to bring the edge back into round and it looked much better. Over all the rim top and edges looked much better.I sanded the outside of the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to remove the scratching and marks on the briar. I wiped the bowl down between pads with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris. I polished the smooth bowl and rim top with micromesh sanding pads using 1500-12000 grit sanding pads and wiping it down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust and debris. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the vulcanite stem. I sanded the tooth marks and chatter with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth them out and blend them in. I wiped it down with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris. I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the vulcanite. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. This Stanwell Made in Denmark Straight Grain 50 Oval Shank Billiard with a vulcanite taper stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The beautiful finish really highlights the straight grain and the polished finish is stunning. I put the 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 Stanwell Straight Grain 50 Billiard with an oval shank 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: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 48 grams /1.69 ounces. I will be adding the pipe to the Danish Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store. If you are interested in purchasing this pipe send me a message or an email.

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 a Stanwell Dorado 175 Stack

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by Steve Laug

It is a beautiful chilly day in Vancouver without rain so I decided to go to the basement and work on another pipe that was purchased on 02/16/2023 in a lot of pipes that came to us from a seller in Copenhagen, Denmark. It included a group of Danish Made Stanwell pipes that are quite beautiful. The grain around the bowl and shank of this Stack has a mix of birdseye, straight and flame grain. The pipe is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads STANWELL [over] Made in Denmark [over] Dorado. On the right side of the shank it is stamped with the shape number 175. The pipe was dirty when Jeff received it. There was dust and grime ground into the finish. It is finished in the warm stain that highlights some nice grain around the bowl and shank. The bowl was heavily caked and there was some darkening and lava on the rim top. The inner edge shows some damage and darkening around the bowl. There was a ferrule on the end of the shank with two think black lines around the band. The stem is acrylic and is dirty with light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button and on the button itself. There is no logo on the sides or top of the taper stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the thick cake in the bowl and the darkening and lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The acrylic stem was in decent condition with tooth marks that are visible in the photos below. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the sides of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Diplomat line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115 000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). The list did not clarify who designed the shape so that was still a bit of a mystery. Whoever did so, created a beauty. I now knew that the shape 175 was a Tall Billiard or Chimney with tapered stem. There was no other information. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and it looked pretty incredible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl are very obvious now that it is clean. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the shank side was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe.I started my work on the pipe by addressing the damage on the inner edge of the bowl with a piece of 220 grit sandpaper and a sphere to remove the damage. I then used a half sphere to further shape the rim top to bring the edge back into round and it looked much better. Over all the rim top and edges looked much better.I sanded the outside of the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to remove the scratching and marks on the briar. I wiped the bowl down between pads with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris. I stained the sanded and polished rim top with a Maple stain pen and it matched the colour of the rest of the pipe. I polished the smooth bowl and rim top with micromesh sanding pads using 1500-12000 grit sanding pads and wiping it down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust and debris. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the acrylic stem. I tried to raise the tooth marks on the acrylic stem. I “painted” the stem surface with the flame of a Bic lighter and was not able to lift any of the marks. I filled in the tooth marks with black CA glue (I forgot to take photos of the repairs once I glued them). Once the repairs cured, I used a small flat file to smooth out the repairs. I then sanded the areas with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth them out and blend them in. I wiped it down with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris. I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the acrylic. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I polished the acrylic stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. This Stanwell Made in Denmark Dorado 175 Stack with an acrylic taper stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The beautiful finish really highlights the straight grain and the polished finish is stunning. I put the 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 Stanwell Dorado 175 Stack 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: 6 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 38 grams /1.34 ounces. I will be adding the pipe to the Danish Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store. If you are interested in purchasing this pipe send me a message or an email.

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.

Restoring a Jess Chonowitsch Stanwell Jubileaum 1942-92 Made in Denmark 69 Brandy

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by Steve Laug

I moved on to work on another pipe. The next one I chose was another Stanwell. We purchased this from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 02/16/2023. The stamping on the pipe was very clear and readable. On a smooth panel on the underside of the shank it reads Stanwell [over] Jubilaeum followed by 69 the shape number [over] 1942-92 [over] Made in Denmark. The stem had a gold inlaid Crowned “S” Stanwell logo on the topside of the taper stem. The Jubilaeum series was the 50th Anniversary line. The shape is a classic 69 Sandblast Straight Brandy/Tulip Design by Jess Chonowitsch and is easily recognizable as such. The bowl had a moderate cake but there was lava and burn damage on the rim top. The finish was in dirty condition and was dull. The taper stem was vulcanite and had light tooth chatter on both sides ahead of the button. It showed a lot of promise through the grime. It came with a gold 50th Anniversary box and pipe sock. I took photos of the pipe before I started my clean up work. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the cake in the bowl and the darkening and light lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain through the sandblast around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the underside of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Jubilaeum line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115,000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). There was a section in the article was a piece on the Jubilaeum pipes. I have included it and the list of shapes.

‘Jubilee’ (Danish: Jubilaeum) pipes

On occasion, Stanwell released special ‘Jubilee’ pipes, most notably in 1982 (40th), 1992 (50th), and 2002 (60th), though ‘Jubilee’ pipes do exist from Stanwell’s ‘registration era.’

For the 40th and 50th Jubilee, a number of iconic shapes were chosen from Stanwell’s back catalog (including shapes no longer produced). Pipes could be purchased individually, or as a full set. Different shapes featured in the Jubilee ranges. In the 1982 range, pipes were offered in natural, red, and golden contrast stains. In the 1992 Jubilee range, stems could be either standard black vulcanite, or cumberland ebonite.

For the 40th (1942-1982) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 71. Sixten Ivarsson’s 71, a straight pear-billiard with a saddle stem.
  • 118. Sixten Ivarsson’s 118, a slightly bent volcano with a flush flared stem.
  • 119. A quarter-bent Dublin, with an oval rim, and a saddle stem.
  • 64. Sixten Ivarson’s 64(a), a quarter-bent Dublin with a plateau rim and a flush flared stem.
  • 64M. Sixten Ivarsson’s 64M, a version of the 64(a) shape, but with a vulcanite ferrule and a push flared stem.
  • 07. A quarter-bent apple with a diamond shank and a saddle stem.
  • 53. A straight billiard of medium size, with a saddle stem.
  • 108. Tom Eltang’s quarter-bent horn/scoop hybrid with a flared flush stem.
  • 113. A Canadian with a wide, short bowl.
  • 156. Jess Chonowitsch’s 156, a quarter-bent bulldog with a forward cant.
  • 12. A large billiard with a tapered stem (12b).
  • 57. A medium billiard with a tapered stem.

For the 50th (1942-1992) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 06: Sixten Ivarsson’s 06(a) bent Dublin, released in 1951.
  • 70: Sixten Ivarsson’s 70(a) bent volcano, released in 1967.
  • 35. Anne Julie’s 35(b) bent egg, released in 1975.
  • Jess Chonowitsch’s 169 straight brandy/tulip, released in 1986
  • Tom Eltang’s 190 hexagonal-shank billiard, as featured in the ‘Sixtus’ range, released in 1992.

A six-day set of Stanwell’s 1992 Jubilee pipes in their original case. Image courtesy Nicholas Gutierrez of NG Pipes.

The Straight Brandy, shape 69 is a Jess Chonowitsch Design which was a Brandy/Tulip originally released in 1986. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and the damage to the rim top was very visible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl look much better. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the underside of the shank was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe.The top and inner edge of the bowl were burned and damaged. I used a wooden sphere and some 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the rim top and the inner edge and bring it back to life. It looked much better after the smooth and shaping. Now the question is whether to leave it smooth or to use a very simple rustication to match the sandblast. I decided to use burr on my Dremel to rusticate the rim top to match the sandblast around the bowl and sides of the shank. I worked it over and used a wire brush to clean off the rustication. Once it was finished I stained it with Cherry/Mahogany/Maple stain pens to match the colour of the stain around the bowl. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I “painted” the surface of the stem with the flame of a Bic lighter to lift the tooth marks. I was able to lift them all. I sanded the stem surface with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. It looked much better.I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the vulcanite. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. I am excited to put the finishing touches on this Jesse Chonowitsch Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Brandy 69 (169). I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, fancy turned vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Jesse Chonwitsch Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Straight Brandy 69 is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 6 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.34 ounces/38 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemakers Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

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

A Pair of Stunning Savinelli Hand-Made Pipes

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by Kenneth Lieblich

When these beauties came into my possession, I was gobsmacked. What an amazing set of pipes this is! These are two Savinelli Hand-Made, Mixed-Finish pipes. One is a Dublin shape, the other is a Horn shape. These were clearly the prized possessions of a distinguished pipe man who has left them behind for the next person to take them on. I am offering them as a pair (and I hope they go as a pair), but I will also sell them separately, if desired. Are you familiar with the meme below? That was my reaction when I saw these pipes. As you can see, both pipes have an incredible sandblast over most of the stummel, with a gorgeous straight-grain accent. You can see why I think these are a pair. The horn has an oval, handmade, vulcanite saddle stem. The Dublin has a round, handmade, vulcanite, combination saddle-and-taper stem (with a subtle 6 mm filter, but it also includes a Savinelli adaptor so you can ignore the filter if you wish). Beautiful! The markings on these pipes are quite interesting. On the underside of both stummels are the words Hand [over] Made – and to the right of that, Italy. On the stem, is a crowned snake logo used by Savinelli – reminiscent of the city crest of Milan. There was some suggestion, in certain circles, that the Hand Made line was below the Autograph line, but Steve is not convinced of that – and neither am I. These two pipes are near-flawless. Pipedia had some very illuminating things to say on the Hand Made line:

These handmade pieces are shaped much like traditional Danish Freehands: they are shaped first and drilled second. Using this method, Savinelli’s team of artisans is able to showcase their own creativity, as it maximizes flexibility and facilitates a more grain-centric approach to shaping. The resulting Freehand designs are at once both a departure from the marque’s classical standard shapes, yet very much still “Savinelli” in their nature—i.e. proportioned so that the bowl is the visual focus when viewed from the profile, juxtaposed by the comparatively trim lines of the shank and stem. To provide a little more insight into the differences between Savinelli’s standard production and freehand lines, Luisa Bozzetti comments:

“When we choose to make Freehand pipes we must stop production on the standard shapes. The process for Freehands is much more involved and takes much more time. Finding the best people from the production line and pulling them to make Freehands is challenging since it’s not an assembly line, but rather a one or two man operation. After the rough shaping of the stummel, we must get together and brainstorm which style of stem will be paired before the pipe can be finished since we do not use pre-shaped stems. All accents and stems for the Freehands are cut from rod here in the factory. A lot of care goes into the few pieces lucky enough to make the cut; to end up with a certain number of Autographs, for instance, means that many, many more will be made, and only the few will be selected.”

The quality control process for Savinelli handmades is even more rigorous than that employed in the standard lineup. Many blocks are started and later discarded because of pits or defects. While Savinelli’s briar sourcing is a constant process, working with some of Italy’s top cutters to ensure only the finest and most suitable blocks make their way to the factory, it’s impossible to source plateau briar that’s completely free from flaws. That’s just nature. Savinelli creates the standard for quality by working through the rough (a very high-quality rough, mind you) to find that shining diamond with the potential to become a Savinelli handmade.

In addition, Pipephil had a brief write-up on the Hand Made line:We’ll move on. The pipes are in generally great condition. Both stummels are relatively clean inside and have no notable blemishes. The stems have a lot of oxidation and calcification, but very little in the way of tooth marks, etc. Let’s get into it. Both stems’ 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 used isopropyl alcohol on a few cotton rounds and wiped down the stems 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 stems with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. I scrubbed thoroughly to make sure both interiors were very clean.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 stems to remove as much surface oxidation as possible. As the photos show, the result was a hideous, ochre-coloured mess – but better off the stems than on them.Once the stems were reasonably clean, I soaked them overnight in some Briarville Stem Oxidation Remover. This solution works to draw oxidation in the stems 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 both stems from their bath and scrubbed the lingering fluid with a toothbrush.Despite masking the logos when cleaning and soaking the stems, the colour of the logos was surprisingly fugitive and came off despite my efforts. So, I touched up the logos on the stems with some enamel nail polish. I let this fully set before proceeding. This didn’t turn out perfectly, but it was still pretty good. As the stems were now clean and dry, I set about fixing the small marks 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.The penultimate step for the stems 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 surfaces. I also applied pipe-stem oil while using the last five micromesh pads. There was a wonderful, deep black shine to both stems when I was done.As the stems were (nearly) complete, I moved on to the stummels. The first step was to ream out both bowls – that is to say, remove all the cake inside the bowls. This accomplished a couple of things. First (and most obviously), it cleaned the bowls and provided a refurbished chamber for future smoking. Second, when the old cake was removed, I could inspect the interior walls of the bowls and determine if there was damage or not. I used a pipe knife and a piece of sandpaper taped to a wooden dowel. Collectively, these ensured that all the debris was removed.Similar to the stems, I then cleaned the stummels with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. They were dirty, but not too bad.I then decided to ‘de-ghost’ the pipes – that is to say, exorcize the remaining filth from the briar. I filled the bowls and the shanks with cotton balls, then saturated them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. I let the stummels sit overnight. This caused the remaining oils, tars and smells to leach out into the cotton.To tidy up the briar, I wiped down the outside, using a solution of a pH-neutral detergent and some distilled water, with cotton rounds. I also used a toothbrush in the sandblast crevices. 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 stummels with the same mild detergent and tube brushes. This was the culmination of a lot of hard work in getting both pipes clean.I used several of the micromesh pads to sand the smooth sections of the stummels and finish them 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 them sit for 30 minutes or so. The balm moisturizes the wood and gives a beautiful depth to the briar. I then buffed the stummels with a microfibre cloth. For the final step, I took the pipes to my bench polisher and carefully buffed them – first the stems with a blue diamond compound, then the stummels with three coats of carnauba wax. This procedure makes the pipes look their best – the stummels sing and the stems glow.All done! This pair of Savinelli Hand Made pipes (horn and Dublin) are ready to be enjoyed by their next owner. I am pleased to announce that these pipes are for sale! If you are interested in acquiring them for your collection, please have a look in the ‘Italian’ section of the store here on Steve’s website. You can also email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. The approximate dimensions of the horn are as follows: length 6⅛ in. (157 mm); height 2¼ in. (58 mm); bowl diameter 1½ in. (38 mm); chamber diameter ⅞ in. (22 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1⅝ oz. (47 g). The approximate dimensions of the Dublin are as follows: length 5¾ in. (145 mm); height 2½ in. (63 mm); bowl diameter 1⅔ in. (42 mm); chamber diameter ⅞ in. (22 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1⅞ oz. (56 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of these pipes’ restoration as much as I enjoyed restoring them. 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.

Restoring an Anne Julie Design Stanwell Jubileaum 1942-92 Made in Denmark 35 Bent Egg

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by Steve Laug

I moved on to work on another pipe. The next one I chose was another Stanwell. We purchased this from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 02/16/2023. The stamping on the pipe was very clear and readable. On a smooth panel on the underside of the shank it reads Stanwell [followed by] 35 over Jubilaeum [over] 1942-92 [over] Made in Denmark. The stem had a gold inlaid Crowned “S” Stanwell logo on the topside of the taper stem. The Jubilaeum series was the 50th Anniversary line. The shape is a classic 35 Sandblast Bent Egg design by Anne Julie and is easily recognizable as such. The bowl had a moderate cake but there was light lava in the sandblast of the rim top. The finish was in dirty condition and was quite polished. The taper stem was vulcanite and had light tooth chatter on both sides ahead of the button. It showed a lot of promise through the grime. It came with a gold 50th Anniversary box and pipe sock. I took photos of the pipe before I started my clean up work. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the cake in the bowl and the darkening and light lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain through the sandblast around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the sides of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Jubilaeum line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115 000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). There was a section in the article was a piece on the Jubilaeum pipes. I have included it and the list of shapes.

‘Jubilee’ (Danish: Jubilaeum) pipes

On occasion, Stanwell released special ‘Jubilee’ pipes, most notably in 1982 (40th), 1992 (50th), and 2002 (60th), though ‘Jubilee’ pipes do exist from Stanwell’s ‘registration era.’

For the 40th and 50th Jubilee, a number of iconic shapes were chosen from Stanwell’s back catalog (including shapes no longer produced). Pipes could be purchased individually, or as a full set. Different shapes featured in the Jubilee ranges. In the 1982 range, pipes were offered in natural, red, and golden contrast stains. In the 1992 Jubilee range, stems could be either standard black vulcanite, or cumberland ebonite.

For the 40th (1942-1982) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 71. Sixten Ivarsson’s 71, a straight pear-billiard with a saddle stem.
  • 118. Sixten Ivarsson’s 118, a slightly bent volcano with a flush flared stem.
  • 119. A quarter-bent Dublin, with an oval rim, and a saddle stem.
  • 64. Sixten Ivarson’s 64(a), a quarter-bent Dublin with a plateau rim and a flush flared stem.
  • 64M. Sixten Ivarsson’s 64M, a version of the 64(a) shape, but with a vulcanite ferrule and a push flared stem.
  • 07. A quarter-bent apple with a diamond shank and a saddle stem.
  • 53. A straight billiard of medium size, with a saddle stem.
  • 108. Tom Eltang’s quarter-bent horn/scoop hybrid with a flared flush stem.
  • 113. A Canadian with a wide, short bowl.
  • 156. Jess Chonowitsch’s 156, a quarter-bent bulldog with a forward cant.
  • 12. A large billiard with a tapered stem (12b).
  • 57. A medium billiard with a tapered stem.

For the 50th (1942-1992) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 06: Sixten Ivarsson’s 06(a) bent Dublin, released in 1951.
  • 70: Sixten Ivarsson’s 70(a) bent volcano, released in 1967.
  • 35. Anne Julie’s 35(b) bent egg, released in 1975.
  • 169. Jess Chonowitsch’s 169 straight brandy/tulip, released in 198

A six-day set of Stanwell’s 1992 Jubilee pipes in their original case. Image courtesy Nicholas Gutierrez of NG Pipes.

  1. Tom Eltang’s 190 hexagonal-shank billiard, as featured in the ‘Sixtus’ range, released in 1992.

The Bent Egg, shape 35 is an Anne Julie Design which was a Danish Bent Egg originally released in 1975. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and it looked pretty incredible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl look much better. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the underside of the shank was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe.The inner edge of the bowl was slightly out of round. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the inner edge and bring it back into round.I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the vulcanite. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. I am excited to put the finishing touches on this Anne Julie Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Bent Egg 35. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, fancy turned vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Anne Julie Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Bent Egg 35 is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.59 ounces/45 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemakers Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

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

Restoring a Poul Stanwell Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Sandblast 32 Bulldog

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by Steve Laug

I moved on to work on another pipe. The next one I chose was another Stanwell. We purchased this from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 02/16/2023. The stamping on the pipe was very clear and readable. On a smooth panel on the left underside of the shank it reads Stanwell in over Jubilaeum [over] 1942-92. On the right underside it read Made in Denmark with the shape number 32. The stem had a gold inlaid Crowned “S” Stanwell logo on the topside of the diamond saddle stem. The Jubilaeum series was the 50th Anniversary line. The shape is a classic 32 Sandblast Bulldog design by Poul Stanwell and is easily recognizable as such. The bowl had a moderate cake but there was light lava in the sandblast of the rim top. The finish was in dirty condition and was quite polished. The stem was vulcanite and had light tooth chatter on both sides ahead of the button. It showed a lot of promise through the grime. It came with a gold 50th Anniversary box and pipe sock. I took photos of the pipe before I started my clean up work. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the cake in the bowl and the darkening and light lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the sides of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Jubilaeum line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115 000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). There was a section in the article was a piece on the Jubilaeum pipes. I have included it and the list of shapes.

‘Jubilee’ (Danish: Jubilaeum) pipes

On occasion, Stanwell released special ‘Jubilee’ pipes, most notably in 1982 (40th), 1992 (50th), and 2002 (60th), though ‘Jubilee’ pipes do exist from Stanwell’s ‘registration era.’

For the 40th and 50th Jubilee, a number of iconic shapes were chosen from Stanwell’s back catalog (including shapes no longer produced). Pipes could be purchased individually, or as a full set. Different shapes featured in the Jubilee ranges. In the 1982 range, pipes were offered in natural, red, and golden contrast stains. In the 1992 Jubilee range, stems could be either standard black vulcanite, or cumberland ebonite.

For the 40th (1942-1982) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 71. Sixten Ivarsson’s 71, a straight pear-billiard with a saddle stem.
  • 118. Sixten Ivarsson’s 118, a slightly bent volcano with a flush flared stem.
  • 119. A quarter-bent Dublin, with an oval rim, and a saddle stem.
  • 64. Sixten Ivarson’s 64(a), a quarter-bent Dublin with a plateau rim and a flush flared stem.
  • 64M. Sixten Ivarsson’s 64M, a version of the 64(a) shape, but with a vulcanite ferrule and a push flared stem.
  • 07. A quarter-bent apple with a diamond shank and a saddle stem.
  • 53. A straight billiard of medium size, with a saddle stem.
  • 108. Tom Eltang’s quarter-bent horn/scoop hybrid with a flared flush stem.
  • 113. A Canadian with a wide, short bowl.
  • 156. Jess Chonowitsch’s 156, a quarter-bent bulldog with a forward cant.
  • 12. A large billiard with a tapered stem (12b).
  • 57. A medium billiard with a tapered stem.

For the 50th (1942-1992) Jubilee, these shapes were:

  • 32: Poul Stanwell’s 32(a), the first shape designed for Stanwell, a classical straight bulldog, released in 1942.
  • 06: Sixten Ivarsson’s 06(a) bent Dublin, released in 1951.
  • 70: Sixten Ivarsson’s 70(a) bent volcano, released in 1967.
  • 35. Anne Julie’s 35(b) bent egg, released in 1975.
  • 169. Jess Chonowitsch’s 169 straight brandy/tulip, released in 198

A six-day set of Stanwell’s 1992 Jubilee pipes in their original case. Image courtesy Nicholas Gutierrez of NG Pipes.

  1. Tom Eltang’s 190 hexagonal-shank billiard, as featured in the ‘Sixtus’ range, released in 1992.

The Bulldog, shape 32 Bulldog is a Poul Stanwell which was a classical straight Bulldog original released in 1942. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and it looked pretty incredible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl look much better. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the shank sides was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the vulcanite. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. I am excited to put the finishing touches on this Poul Stanwell Design Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Straight Bulldog 32. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and hand buffed it with microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished black, fancy turned vulcanite stem was beautiful. This Stanwell Jubilaeum 1942-92 Straight Bulldog 32 is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.23 ounces/35 grams. It is a beautiful pipe and one that I will be putting in the Danish Pipemakers Section on the rebornpipes store. Thanks for walking through the cleanup with me as I worked over this pipe.

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

Breathing New Life into a Stanwell Diplomat 83 Bent Billiard

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by Steve Laug

It is a beautiful chilly day in Vancouver without rain so I decided to go to the basement and work on another pipe that was purchased on 02/16/2023 in a lot of pipes that came to us from a seller in Copenhagen, Denmark. It included a group of Danish Made Stanwell pipes that are quite beautiful. The grain around the bowl and shank of this shape that I have decided to call a Bent Billiard has a mix of birdseye, straight and flame grain. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank and reads STANWELL [over] Diplomat.  On the right side of the shank it is stamped with the shape number 83. On the underside of the shank it is stamped Made in Denmark. The pipe was dirty when Jeff received it. There was dust and grime ground into the finish. It is finished in the warm stain that highlights some nice grain around the bowl and shank. The bowl was heavily caked and there was some darkening and lava on the rim top. The inner edge shows some damage and darkening around the bowl. The stem is vulcanite and was dirty with light tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button and on the button itself. There is a brass/gold crown S logo stamped on the left side of the taper stem. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show what they looked like before the clean up. You can see the thick cake in the bowl and the darkening and lava on the inner edge and top of the rim. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show the grain around the bowl and shank. The stain adds depth finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a real beauty. The stamping on the sides of the shank are shown in the photos below. It is clear and readable as noted above. I turned to Pipephil’s site to see if I could find any information on the Diplomat line of Stanwell pipes (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-stanwell.html). There was nothing specific on the line but the summary of Stanwell History is quite helpful. I quote it below.

Brand & factory were established in 1942 by Poul Nielsen. The company has been owned since 2000 by Nordisk Tobaks Kompagni A/S.

The factory in Borup crafted all Stanwell pipes from 1965 until 2009. From 2010 on the pipes are crafted by Barontini (Italy) exept for the limited editions.

Production (2007): 115 000 Pipes/year – Denmark

I turned to Pipedia to an article that originally was posted here on rebornpipes and written by my late friend Bas Stevens (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell_Shape_Numbers_and_Designers). The list did not clarify who designed the shape so that was still a bit of a mystery. Whoever did so, created a beauty. I now knew that the shape 83 was a Bent Billiard of medium size with tapered stem made in the late 1950s. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife.  He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. It came in Stanwell Box with Pipe Sock. I removed it from the sock and took photos of the pipe once I received it. I took close up photos of both the rim top and the stem. Jeff had been able to get the grime and lava off of the rim top and it looked pretty incredible. Even the darkening and marks on the rim top on the right side and the back of the bowl look much better. The stem looked very clean. The tooth marks and chatter were minimal and should be easy to remove.The stamping on the shank side was readable as noted above. I also took a photo with the stem removed to give an idea of the perspective and design of the pipe. I started my work on the pipe by addressing the damage on the inner edge of the bowl with a piece of 220 grit sandpaper and a sphere to remove the damage. I then used a half sphere to further shape the rim top to bring the edge back into round and it looked much better. Over all the rim top and edges looked much better. I sanded the outside of the bowl and rim with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to remove the scratching and marks on the briar. I wiped the bowl down between pads with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris. I polished the smooth bowl and rim top with micromesh sanding pads using 1500-12000 grit sanding pads and wiping it down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust and debris. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the finish of the bowl and shank with my fingers. I want the product to go deep into the finish because it works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. Once I was confident that it was deeply worked into the finish I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth to polish it. The pipe really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. The grain really stands out on the pipe in the photos below. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I “painted” the stem surface with the flame of a Bic lighter and I was able to lift the light tooth marks to the surface. I sanded what remained with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth them out and blend them in. I wiped it down with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris. I sanded the stem with 320-1500 grit sanding pads to further blend the sanding marks into the surface of the vulcanite. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian cloth to remove the debris from the sanding.I touched up the gold Crown S Stanwell logo stamp on the left side of the stem with Antique Gold Rub’n Buff. I worked it into the stamping with a tooth pick and then buffed off the excess with a soft cloth.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Polish – both the Fine and Extra Fine polishes. I gave it a final coat of oil and set it aside to dry. This Stanwell Made in Denmark Diplomat 83 Bent Billiard with a vulcanite taper stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The beautiful finish really highlights the grain and the polished finish is stunning. I put the 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 Stanwell Diplomat 83 Bent Billiard 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: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 38 grams /1.34 ounces. I will be adding the pipe to the Danish Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store. If you are interested in purchasing this pipe send me a message or an email.

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.

What an Elegant Charatan’s Make London England Authentic 373X Acorn

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by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table is another one that came to us from the seller in Caldwell, Idaho, USA on 07/12/2025. It has an Acorn shaped smooth bowl. It is in dirty but in good condition other than that as can be seen in the photos below. The sides of the shank are clearly stamped, faint in spots but still readable. The left side is stamped Charatan’s Make [over] London.England [over] Authentic. To the left of the stamping it had a cursive L in a circle that tells me that the pipe is a Lane era pipe. On the right side it is stamped with the shape number 373X. That helps to date this to the time after the patent was filed in 1970. The shape works very well with the great grain around the bowl. The finish was dusty and dirty with grime deep in the finish but grain really stands out. The bowl had a thick cake and there was tobacco debris in the bowl. The rim top had a thick lava coat on the rim top and edges. The fish tail vulcanite stem is calcified, oxidized and has tooth marks and dents on the top and underside of the stem and button. There is no stamping on the stem. I took photos of the pipe to show what it looked like before I started working on it. I took a closer photo of the rim top and bowl to show the condition of the bowl and rim. You can see the cake in the bowl and the darkening and lava on the top and inner edge. The stamping on the sides of the shank is faint in spots but still readable as noted above. I took a photo of the pipe with the stem removed to give a sense of the proportions of the pipe. To try and figure out the era of the Charatan’s pipe I was working on I turned to the pipephil website on Logos and Stampings. There is some really helpful information on each of the lines of Charatan’s Make pipes that entered the market. Here is the link to the section of the site that I turned to, http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-charatan.html. The Authentic line is not shown on the site but it does give a short history of the brand. I quote the portion that is most pertinent. The brand was founded in 1863 by Frederik Charatan. When his father retired in 1910, Reuben Charatan took over the family business. All the pipes were handmade until 1973. The brand name has been overtaken by Dunhill in 1978 and sold in 1988 to James B. Russell Inc. (NJ, USA). During the period 1988-2002 Charatans were crafted by Butz Choquin in St Claude (France). Dunhill re-purchased Charatan brand name in 2002 and Colin Fromm (Invicta Briars, Castleford) followed up on freehand production.

I turned to Pipedia to see if I could find more information on the brand and possibly a link to the Executive line (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Charatan) but once again in the general article it was not listed.  It did give a little more historical information and is worth reading. I am including a few sections from the site.

In 1863 Frederick Charatan, a Russian/Jewish immigrant, opened a shop in Mansell Street, located in the borough of Tower Hamlets, London E1, where he began to carve Meerschaum pipes. These pipes got very popular soon, and thus Charatan moved to a bigger workshop in Prescot Street, just around the corner. Here he began to make briar pipes which should make the name famous the world over. Charatan was the first brand to make entirely hand-made briars from the rough block to the finished pipe including the stems. The nomenclature “Charatan’s Make” refers to this method of production and was meant to differ Charatan from other brands who “assembled” pipes from pre-drilled bowls and delivered mouthpieces.

Being the undisputed No. 1 in English pipemaking, Charatan was approached by Alfred Dunhill who was unsatisfied with the quality of the pipes he imported from France. During 1908 – 1910 Dunhill bought pipes from Charatan paying exorbitant prices to ensure he had some of the very best pipes for sale in England. In 1910 he lured away Joel Sasieni, one of Charatan’s best carvers, and opened his own small pipe workshop on 28 Duke Street. On the retirement of his father in 1910 Reuben Charatan took over the family business…

…The pre-Lane period (prior to 1955) and the Lane era pipes (1955 to until sometime between 1979 – 1984) are of primary interest the collector. The Lane era is often quoted as beginning about 1950… Charatan records are almost non-existent before Lane due to a factory fire, making it difficult to date pre-Lane pipes. Charatan used 4 basic grades prior to 1950: Supreme, Selected, Executive, and Belvedere. After 1950 Herman Lane’s influence began, and the grades started to expand. In 1955 Lane took over sole distributorship of Charatan in the US. In 1957 he introduced the Supreme S. Most of his other introductions were from the 60’s and early 70’s…

The section called Miscellaneous Notes had some interesting information.

Charatan records indicate the DC (Double Comfort) bit was introduced in the 50’s, but some report seeing them in earlier production. Still others indicate they were introduced by Lane in 1960. Regardless, the DC bit is not an accurate way to date a pipe because many Charatan’s were made with regular and saddle type bits throughout the “Lane Era”…

…The Lane Trademark serif and circled L indicates the pipe is from the “Lane Era” (approx. 1955 to 1979 -1984?), however it appears that both the English factory or Lane themselves sometimes, or perhaps even often forget to stamp the L on a pipe. The Charatan factory was known for inconsistencies, especially in stampings. Therefore, although an L on the pipe definitely defines it as a Lane Era pipe, the lack of it could simply mean the pipe missed receiving the stamp from the factory. The lack of the trademark could also mean the pipe was destined for the European market.

…The total script nomenclature “Made by Hand in City of London” evolved over this period of time, so many pipes had variants, such as Made By Hand in block letters and City of London in script, or some other variation of the terms or stampings. The Charatan Logo (CP) on the pipe bit was changed over the years.

From all of the historical data I could work through this Charatan’s Make Authentic was a bit of a mystery pipe from the mid 1970’s Lane era. I continued digging further into the dating of the pipe, but what I had found was a good start for me. If some of you would like to try your hand at dating it more accurately as to the time period it came out you might want to check out the article on Pipedia on Dating Charatans (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Dating_of_Charatans). I had enough for me to start working on the pipe itself and see what lay beneath the heavy tars and oils.

I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer. I used the third and fourth cutting heads to clean out the cake. I cleaned up what remained in the bowl with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and scraped it back to bare briar. I finished by sanding the inside of the bowl with a dowel wrapped in sandpaper. The inside walls are free of burn damage or checking. I scraped the lava on the rim top with a Savinelli Pipe Knife. I worked over the inner edge and rim top with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper.I cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and both bristle and regular pipe cleaners.I scrubbed the bowl and shank with a tooth brush and some undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the dust and soap from the finish. I dried it off with a soft cloth and it looked much better. I sanded the bowl with 320 – 3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads and wiped it down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris. I polished the bowl with 1500-12000 grit micromesh sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth to remove the dust and debris. The pipe began to look very good. The gouge in the bowl was repaired and looked better. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips to work it into the finish. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes then I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The briar really comes alive with the balm. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I scrubbed the vulcanite stem with some Soft Scrub and cotton pads to remove as much of the oxidation as I could, especially around the tooth marks. I wiped the tooth marks down with isopropyl alcohol and a cotton swab and then filled in the tooth marks with black CA glue. Once the repairs cured I used a small flat needle to smooth out the repaired areas on both sides of the stem. I sanded them with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the surface of the vulcanite. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch pads to further adjust the fit of the stem to the shank. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad.I polished the vulcanite with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. With the stem polished I put it back on the Charatan’s Make London England Authentic 373X Acorn and lightly buffed the bowl with Blue Diamond. I buffed the stem with a more aggressive buff of Blue Diamond. I gave the bowl several coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem several coats of carnauba wax and buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. This Charatan’s Make Authentic Acorn 373X will soon be on the rebornpipes store in the British Pipe Makers Section if you want to add it to your rack. The dimensions are Length: 6 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.52 ounces/44 grams. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over this Charatan’s Make.

Restoring an Elegant Savinelli Punto Oro 104

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by Kenneth Lieblich

What a handsome pipe this is! When I first saw it, I thought, ‘Oh, someone’s going to love this pipe’. As you can see, this is a Savinelli Punto Oro 104. It is a beautifully sandblasted billiard, with a sterling silver band, and a vulcanite military mount stem. I acquired it in a recent auction and was pleased to get it. It’s a wonderful pipe and it deserves to be part of someone’s collection again. This pipe promises to be a great smoker. Let’s look at the markings. The underside of the shank reads Savinelli [over] Punto Oro. Savinelli, of course, is an Italian pipe company, and the words Punto Oro mean, literally, ‘gold point’. To the right is the Savinelli coat of arms, showing a stylized ‘S’ on a shield, topped by two pipes. Next to this are the marks 104 [over] Italy. Naturally, the number refers to the shape – a billiard – and the three digits tell us that the pipe dates from the 1970s or later. The sterling silver mount on the shank also has markings. On one side it reads 925 [over] Savinelli, and on the other side it reads Sterling [over] Mounted. The photos show an almost gold look to this mount, but that’s just the coating on top of the silver. The coating is peeling off. Finally, there is a gold-coloured dot on the stem (made of brass) – a very nice touch. Savinelli is one of the most recognized names in pipe smoking and they have a long and storied history. You can read about them from their own website or from Pipedia’s article about them. I was particularly interested in learning more about the Punto Oro line. Sadly, Pipedia had nothing on this subject. I checked with Pipephil and they did have a bit of information, which I display below.I also found a bit of information on the Punto Oro line from Savinelli’s own website. They write:

PUNTO ORO pipe was the first pipe created by Achille Savinelli after the opening of the factory in 1958; a pipe that has always distinguished the Savinelli brand, its elegance, reliability and tradition. It is a top quality pipe with a wonderful grain. It is important to know it is very difficult to find a briar piece suitable to become a PUNTO ORO: just 1,2% of the whole choice is selected for this series, therefore not all our shapes are always available for these pipes.What’s the condition of the pipe? Very good, I’m pleased to say. The stummel is in beautiful shape – no damage or significant lava. There’s some cake in the bowl, but nothing of note. The silver mount looks like it has scratches – but it doesn’t. This is where the old coating on the silver was coming off. The stem is a bit oxidized and heavily calcified, but we can sort that out. 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 used isopropyl 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.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, ochre-coloured mess – but better off the stem than on it.Once the stem was reasonably clean, I soaked it overnight in some Briarville Stem Oxidation Remover. This solution works to draw oxidation in the stem to the surface of the vulcanite. This is a major aid and an important step in ensuring a clean stem. The following day, I drew out the stem from its bath and scrubbed the lingering fluid with a toothbrush.The penultimate step for the stem is sanding. 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.Similar to the stem, I then cleaned the stummel with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. It took quite a while and much cotton to clean.I then decided to ‘de-ghost’ the pipe – that is to say, exorcize the remaining filth from the briar. I filled the bowl and the shank with cotton balls, then saturated them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. I let the stummel sit overnight. This caused the remaining oils, tars and smells to leach out into the cotton.To tidy up the briar, I wiped down the outside, using a solution of a pH-neutral detergent and some distilled water, with cotton rounds. I also used a toothbrush in the crevices. This did a good job of cleaning any latent dirt on the surface of the briar. The last step of the cleaning process was to scour the inside of the stummel with the same mild detergent and tube brushes. This was the culmination of a lot of hard work in getting the pipe clean.I 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 the stem with a blue diamond compound, then the stummel with three coats of conservator’s wax. This procedure makes the pipe look its best – the stummel sings and the stem glows. When I was done, I use my jeweller’s cloth and buffed the silver mount – wow!

All done! This Savinelli Punto Oro 104 billiard 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 ‘Italian’ 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 5⅔ in. (144 mm); height 1¾ in. (45 mm); bowl diameter 1⅓ in. (34 mm); chamber diameter ¾ in. (18 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1⅛ oz. (33 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this pipe’s restoration as much as I enjoyed restoring it. If you are interested in more of my work, please follow me here on Steve’s website or send me an email. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

Restoring a Charatan’s Make Freehand Relief Extra Large Sandblast Dublin

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by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table is another one that came to us from the seller in Caldwell, Idaho, USA on 07/12/2025. It is a large, tall Dublin bowl with a sandblast finish. It is in dirty but in good condition other than that as can be seen in the photos below. The underside of the shank is stamped and readable. It reads Charatan’s Make [over] London.England [over] Freehand Relief [over] Extra Large in script. There is also a cursive L in a circle that connects it to the Lane Era. It has rugged sandblast finish that is very tactile on both the shank and the bowl. The shape works very well with the sandblast grain. The finish was dusty and dirty with grime deep in the finish that is darkened heavily mid bowl from hand oils. However, the grain really stands out. The bowl had a moderate cake and there was tobacco debris in the bowl. The rim top had a lava coat on the top and edges. The Double Comfort vulcanite stem is oxidized and has tooth marks and dents on the top and underside of the stem. There is a faint and damaged CP stamping on the left side of the stem. I took photos of the pipe to show what it looked like before I started working on it. I took a closer photo of the rim top and bowl to show the condition of the bowl and rim. You can see the light cake in the bowl and the darkening and lava on the top and the inner edge.The stamping on the smooth panel of the underside of the shank is clear and readable as noted above. I took a photo of the pipe with the stem removed to give a sense of the proportions of the pipe. To try and figure out the era of the Charatan’s pipe I was working on I turned to the pipephil website on Logos and Stampings. There is some really helpful information on each of the lines of Charatan’s Make pipes that entered the market. Here is the link to the section of the site that I turned to, http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-charatan.html. There is an alphabetical listing of the lines but nothing on the Freehand Relief Line. The site did give a short history of the brand. I quote the portion that is most pertinent.

The brand was founded in 1863 by Frederik Charatan. When his father retired in 1910, Reuben Charatan took over the family business. All the pipes were handmade until 1973. The brand name has been overtaken by Dunhill in 1978 and sold in 1988 to James B. Russell Inc. (NJ, USA). During the period 1988-2002 Charatans were crafted by Butz Choquin in St Claude (France). Dunhill re-purchased Charatan brand name in 2002 and Colin Fromm (Invicta Briars, Castleford) followed up on freehand production.

I turned to Pipedia to see if I could find more information on the brand and possibly a link to the Freehand Relief line (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Charatan) but once again in the general article it was not listed.  It did give a little more historical information and is worth reading. I am including a few sections from the site.

In 1863 Frederick Charatan, a Russian/Jewish immigrant, opened a shop in Mansell Street, located in the borough of Tower Hamlets, London E1, where he began to carve Meerschaum pipes. These pipes got very popular soon, and thus Charatan moved to a bigger workshop in Prescot Street, just around the corner. Here he began to make briar pipes which should make the name famous the world over. Charatan was the first brand to make entirely hand-made briars from the rough block to the finished pipe including the stems. The nomenclature “Charatan’s Make” refers to this method of production and was meant to differ Charatan from other brands who “assembled” pipes from pre-drilled bowls and delivered mouthpieces.

Being the undisputed No. 1 in English pipemaking, Charatan was approached by Alfred Dunhill who was unsatisfied with the quality of the pipes he imported from France. During 1908 – 1910 Dunhill bought pipes from Charatan paying exorbitant prices to ensure he had some of the very best pipes for sale in England. In 1910 he lured away Joel Sasieni, one of Charatan’s best carvers, and opened his own small pipe workshop on 28 Duke Street. On the retirement of his father in 1910 Reuben Charatan took over the family business…

…The pre-Lane period (prior to 1955) and the Lane era pipes (1955 to until sometime between 1979 – 1984) are of primary interest the collector. The Lane era is often quoted as beginning about 1950… Charatan records are almost non-existent before Lane due to a factory fire, making it difficult to date pre-Lane pipes. Charatan used 4 basic grades prior to 1950: Supreme, Selected, Executive, and Belvedere. After 1950 Herman Lane’s influence began, and the grades started to expand. In 1955 Lane took over sole distributorship of Charatan in the US. In 1957 he introduced the Supreme S. Most of his other introductions were from the 60’s and early 70’s…

The section called Miscellaneous Notes had some interesting information.

Charatan records indicate the DC (Double Comfort) bit was introduced in the 50’s, but some report seeing them in earlier production. Still others indicate they were introduced by Lane in 1960. Regardless, the DC bit is not an accurate way to date a pipe because many Charatan’s were made with regular and saddle type bits throughout the “Lane Era”…

…The Lane Trademark serif and circled L indicates the pipe is from the “Lane Era” (approx. 1955 to 1979 -1984?), however it appears that both the English factory or Lane themselves sometimes, or perhaps even often forget to stamp the L on a pipe. The Charatan factory was known for inconsistencies, especially in stampings. Therefore, although an L on the pipe definitely defines it as a Lane Era pipe, the lack of it could simply mean the pipe missed receiving the stamp from the factory. The lack of the trademark could also mean the pipe was destined for the European market.

…Generally, block letters “MADE BY HAND” and some of the other nomenclature in script (i.e. City of London or Extra Large next to the MADE BY HAND) means the pipe was made sometime between 1965 and the mid 1970’s. The total script nomenclature “Made by Hand in City of London” evolved over this period of time, so many pipes had variants, such as Made By Hand in block letters and City of London in script, or some other variation of the terms or stampings. The Charatan Logo (CP) on the pipe bit was changed over the years.

From all of the historical data I could work through this Charatan’s Make Relief Grain was a sand blast finished pipe from the mid 1970’s Lane era. I continued digging further into the dating of the pipe, but what I had found was a good start for me. If some of you would like to try your hand at dating it more accurately as to the time period it came out you might want to check out the article on Pipedia on Dating Charatans (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Dating_of_Charatans). I had enough for me to start working on the pipe itself and see what lay beneath the heavy tars and oils.

I began working on the pipe by reaming the bowl with a PipNet reamer. I used the third and fourth cutting heads to clean out the cake. I cleaned up what remained in the bowl with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and scraped it back to bare briar. I finished by sanding the inside of the bowl with a dowel wrapped in sandpaper. The inside walls are free of burn damage or checking so the gouge does not go all the way through. I cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and both bristle and regular pipe cleaners.I worked the sandblast rim top with a brass bristle wire brush to remove the debris in the finish. While there was some darkening it looked much better,I scrubbed the bowl and shank with a tooth brush and some undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the dust and soap from the finish. I dried it off with a soft cloth and it looked much better. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips to work it into the finish. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes then I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The briar really comes alive with the balm. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I ‘painted’ the surface of the stem with the flame of a lighter to lift the tooth marks. I was able to lift almost all of them. What was left I sanded the surface of the stem with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the oxidation and tooth chatter on both sides. I scrubbed the stem surface with some Soft Scrub cleanser on cotton pads to remove more of the oxidation. It worked quite well.I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch pads to further adjust the fit of the stem to the shank. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad.I polished the vulcanite with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. With the stem polished I put it back on the Charatan’s Make Freehand Relief Extra Large Lane Era Dublin and lightly buffed the bowl with Blue Diamond. I buffed the stem with a more aggressive buff of Blue Diamond. I gave the bowl several coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem several coats of carnauba wax and buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. This Charatan’s Make Relief Freehand Extra Large Dublin will soon be on the rebornpipes store in the British Pipe Makers Section if you want to add it to your rack. The dimensions are Length: 6 inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.16 ounces/34 grams. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over this Charatan’s Make.