Tag Archives: repairing flaws in the briar with super glue

Reclaiming a Beautiful Grain de Luxe Prince

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Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe is a really nicely grained Prince with a slender vulcanite taper stem. The classic Prince was made to hold in your hand and has a flat bottom on the bowl and shank so it can be a sitter as well. It is another light weight pipe with a taper stem and looks comfortable. We picked up this pipe off eBay on 02/10/18 from Manchester Township, New Jersey, USA. Jeff cleaned the pipe in 2018 and now I am working on it in 2022 so it has been sitting around here for over four years. The stamping is on the left side and reads Grain de Luxe and on the right side reads Algerian Bruyere. The exterior of the briar was filthy and had ground in dust and grime in the finish but the grain shone through the dirt. There was a thick cake in the bowl and a thick overflow of lava on the inner edge and rim top. It was hard to know what the edge looked like underneath the lava but the cleaning would make it very clear! The stem was oxidized, calcified and had tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe to give a clear picture of what we were up against with this pipe. He captured the cake in the bowl and the debris and lava on the rim top and edges in the next photos. It was very clear that it was another exceptional smoker! The stem is oxidized, calcified and shows the tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. There is an oval shaped mark on the top of the stem in the photos. It appears that there was a decal of something on the top of the stem that had long since disappeared. Jeff captured some of the beauty of the shape and the grain in the next photo. The mix of grains in the smooth portions and the rustication is quite lovely as can be seen in the photo of the heel. The second photo below shows the large flaw in the briar on the heel.    He took a photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank. It is clearly stamped on the right and left and reads as noted above.    I am enjoying a nice artisan Red Ale made by Luppolo Brewing here in Vancouver as I work on this next pipe. It is really a unique short snorter. Jeff had done a great cleanup on the pipe. He 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 bowl exterior with a tooth brush and Murphy’s Oil Soap to remove the grime on the finish of the bowl and the lava from the rim top. He rinsed it under running water. One of the benefits of this scrub is that it also tends to lift some of the scratches and nicks in the surface of the briar. He dried it off with a soft cloth. He cleaned the internals and externals of the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water and cleaned out the airway in the stem with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs. I took photos of the pipe as it looked when I put it on the table.   I took photos of the rim top and stem to show the condition. The rim top had some darkening and there was damage on the inner edge of the bowl. There were also some small nicks in the outer edge at the back of the bowl. The stem was vulcanite and there were tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The oval mark on the top of the stem was no longer visible.   I took photos of the stamping on the left and right side of the bowl to show the stamping that was there. It was clear and readable as noted above.    I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the proportions of the bowl and stem.I started my work on pipe by dealing with the roughening of the inner edge of the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper. I also smoothed out the damage and the darkening on the rim top and was able to smooth it out and remove the damage. The finished bowl top and inner edge looked much better.   I filled in the flaws in the bottom of  the bowl and left side with clear CA glue. Once it cured I sanded the spots smooth with 220 grit sandpaper to blend it into the surface of the briar.   I polished the bowl and shank with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down between pads with a damp cloth to remove the debris. I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes, then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The Balm did its magic and the grain stood out on the briar.  I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I “painted” the tooth marks with the flame of a lighter and was able to lift all of them. I sanded out the remaining chatter with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper and then started polishing it with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper.  I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I finished the polishing with Before & After Polishes – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a final rub down with Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry.  I checked the fit of the stem in the shank and found that it was a bit loose. I checked out the shank end and found some small cracks – multiple hairline fissures on the shank end but none worked their way up the shank. I went through my bands and found one that was the right size for the shank. I pressed it on to the shank end by pressing it against the place mat that I worked on. It tightened up the fit of the stem in the shank and added a nice touch to the pipe.    I took photos of the pipe with the stem on the shank end. The look works well with the wood and the vulcanite. It was a great final touch with this restoration.   This Grain de Luxe Algerian Bruyere Prince with a polished brass band and a vulcanite taper stem has beautiful grain around the bowl and shank. The rich browns and blacks of the contrasting stain makes the grain come alive with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 Grain de Luxe Prince really is unique looking and fits nicely in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¼ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.13 oz./32 grams. This pipe will soon be on the American Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store if you would like to add it to your collection. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

Breathing New Life into a Weber Short Snorter Oom Paul

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Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table came to us from an antique store in Bozeman, Montana, USA on 02/02/18. The pipe is a classic Oom Paul shaped pipe but almost a miniature. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank and reads Short [over] Snorter. On the right side of the shank it is stamped with the Weber oval logo. There was a lot of grime ground into the finish on the briar. The bowl was heavily caked with a thick overflow of lava on smooth rim top and inner edge of the rim. The inside and outer edges looked to be in good condition. The vulcanite saddle stem was dirty and lightly oxidized. It had tooth chatter and tooth marks on the top and underside near and on the button. It had promise but it was very dirty.  Jeff took some photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. He took photos of the rim top and bowl to give a clear picture of the thickness of the cake and tobacco debris as well as the thick lava on the smooth rim top. He also took photos of the top and underside of the stem to show the chatter and tooth marks. Jeff took photos of the sides and the heel of the bowl to give a sense of what the briar looked like. The finish was dark and through the obscuring dirtiness of the bowl you can see some nice grain peeking through. Jeff also included photos of the bowl with the stem removed showing more of the grain but also the stinger apparatus in the tenon.  The stamping on the sides of the shank is clear and readable as noted above.      The Short Snorter model from Weber was interesting. I remembered that Dal had done one earlier but I did not remember the connection to Weber. To find out information on the model I turned to Pipephil (http://pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-w2.html) and there was nothing listed for the Weber Short Snorter pipes. There were other pipes shown but not that one.

I turned then to Pipedia to see if I could find anything. There was a great summary of the history of the brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Weber_Pipe_Co.). There was nothing on the Short Snorter Model that I was working on. I quote the general information below:

Carl B. Weber was a German from Bavaria. Aged 21 he emigrated to the USA in 1911. In 1938 he established Weber Briars Inc. in Jersey City, New Jersey. Later renamed in Weber Pipe Co..

The firm grew to be one of the giants of American pipe industry focusing itself in the middle price and quality zone. Trademark: “Weber” in an oval. Beside that Weber – especially in the years after 1950 – was a most important supplier for private label pipes that went to an immense number of pipe shops. Alone in New York, exactly the same pipes were found at Wilke’s, Barclay Rex, Trinity East, Joe Strano’s Northampton Tobacconist in Ridgewood, Queens, Don-Lou in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn… Nearly all pipes for Wilke were unstained and many models, for example the “Wilke Danish Bent”, could hardly deny originating of Weber.

Among other well reputed pipe makers Anthony Passante[1] worked for Weber.

Weber Pipe Co. owned and manufactured Jobey pipes – when mainly sold in the USA by the Tinder Box from 1970’s – 80’s. In addition Jobey / Weber bought Danish freehands from Karl Erik (Ottendahl). These pipes were offered as Jobey Dansk. Ottendahl discontinued exports to the United States in 1987 and in the very same year – obviously only as a ghost brand – Jobey was transferred to Saint-Claude, France to be manufactured by Butz-Choquin.

Carl B. Weber is the author of the famous book “Weber’s Guide to Pipes and Pipe Smoking”.

Armed with that information I turned to work on the pipe itself. Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet pipe reamer and removed the rest of it 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 scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub and a tooth brush and rinsed it off with warm water. I took photos of the pipe before I started my part of the restoration work. The rim top cleaned up quite well but there was a lot of darkening on the rim top and the inner edge of the bowl. The outer edge of the bowl looks good. The vulcanite saddle stem had some tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The stamping on sides of the shank is clear and readable as noted above. I captured the stamping on the sides for the photos below. It is faint but still readable.   I removed the stem and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole. It is another proportionally pleasing pipe. I started my work on the pipe by addressing the sandpits or flaws in the briar by filling them in with clear CA glue. Once they had hardened I sanded them with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I polished the briar bowl with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth after each pad to remove the debris.     The bowl and rim looked very good so I rubbed it down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips and a horsehair shoe brush to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for about 10-15 minutes and buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. I set the bowl aside and turned to work on the stem. I removed the stinger from the stem to check on the cleanness of the airway. It was in good condition.I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. This Weber SHORT SNORTER Oom Paul is a great looking small pipe now that it has been restored. The brown stain on the briar highlights the grain around the bowl and shank. It works well with both the shape and the polished vulcanite saddle stem. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 SHORT SNORTER Oom Paul is another pipe that 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: 3 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 inch, Chamber diameter: 5/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 22 grams/.78 ounces.  I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the American Pipemakers Section shortly. If you are interested in adding this pipe to your collection send me a message or an email. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!

Breathing New Life into a Blatter of Montreal Dublin

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Blog by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table came to us from an antique shop on Jeff and Sherry’s recent Utah pipe hunt.  It is a nicely shaped Dublin that is stamped on the left side of the shank and read Blatter in script [over] Montreal. The finish was very dirty and worn but underneath the dirt and oils there was some amazing grain. The bowl was heavily caked and there was a lava overflow on the rim top obscuring the edges so I would have to see it after cleaning to know if it was round. The outer edge of the rim was clean and sharp with no damage. The stem had tooth chatter and marks on the top and a bite through on the underside near the button. There was a red dot on the left side of the taper stem. It had promise but it was very dirty. Jeff took some photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work.   He took photos of the rim top and bowl to give a clear picture of the thickness of the cake and tobacco debris as well as thick lava coat on the top. He also took photos of the top and underside of the stem to show the oxidation and the chatter and tooth marks on the topside and the bite through on the underside near the button. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to give a picture of what the briar looked like. There is some nice grain around the sides. You can also see the damage to the rim edges and the heel of the bowl in the photos below.    The stamping on the left side of the shank is clear and readable and read as noted above. It also appears to have been double stamped.   I turned to Pipephil’s site and looked up the brand (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-b5.html). I included a screen capture of the section on the red dot pipe. I quote a note that appeared at the bottom of the section.

… The green dot which appeared in 1964 and was continued until 1967. After 1968 Blatter pipes were marked with the red dot. I turned to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Blatter_%26_Blatter) and read the history of the brand. It is well worth reading.

I turned to their website which has a great summary of the history of the brand in both English and French (http://www.blatterpipes.com/English.html). I quote a portion of the history of the brand from that succinct summary.

In the late 1890’s Frederic Blatter owned and operated a pipe factory in London, England, home of some of the great pipemakers and smokers of the time. After a fire destroyed the Blatter pipe factory, the family made a decision to move to Cape Town, South Africa with the prestigious mandate to make pipes for certain French Generals. After opening a factory and several retail stores in the cities of Cape Town and Durban, the family was once again on the move. This time Montreal, Canada.

Ernest Blatter and family moved from South Africa to Montreal in 1907. Once again the brothers opened a pipemaking factory on St-Hubert street and a retail store at 190 St. Catherine street West. Cigars and pipes were very popular in the 1930’s and the Blatters operated five stores. The St. Catherine street location operated for sixty three years until  it moved to 365 President Kennedy avenue, in 1970.   Mr. Peter Blatter began working with his father, Henri-Georges, in 1964. Mr. Henri-Georges Blatter passed away in 1967. Mr. Robert Blatter, Peter’s brother,  joined the firm in 1968 and took over the pipemaking duties.

Today, the family business specializes in the finest briar pipes, which are all handmade on the premises, and the finest quality cigars from Cuba and around the world. In 1982 Pierre and Robert Blatter were inducted in the prestigious “Confrérie des Maîtres-Pipiers de Saint-Claude”.   After major renovations to their store, they have recreated that much sought after ambiance of their original location.

In the summer of 2000,  Patrick,  son of Pierre Blatter joins the family business and slowly learns the careful art of pipmaking under the watchful eye of his uncle Robert.   In 2013, Patrick is invited to Saint-Claude and finally is honored and inducted, just like his father and Uncle, into the prestigious Confrérie des Maîtres-Pipiers de Saint-Claude!…

I would recommend that you visit their site or even better, their shop and see some of beautiful pipes they make. They also make some great tobacco blends in their shop on 375 President Kennedy Avenue, Montreal, Quebec. They are a pleasure to do business with and are well worth a visit should you find yourself in Montreal.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet pipe reamer and removed the rest of it 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. I took photos of the pipe once I received it.     The rim top cleaned up really well. The rim top and outer edge of the bowl show some darkening over most of the surface. The stem surface looked very good with tooth marks and chatter on the top side and the underside near the button.  The stamping on the left side of the shank is clear and readable. It reads as noted above.     I removed the taper stem and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole.  Now it was time to work on the pipe. I wiped the bowl down with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the remaining finish before I started sanding. I filled in the flaw on the top of the shank with clear super glue. Once it cured I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to blend it into the surface of the shank. I worked on the rim top and edges with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the darkening and damage. It looked much better and it was ready to polish. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads and wiping it down after each pad with a damp cloth.      I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the bowl sides and shank with my fingertips to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for a little while and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The grain came alive and the finish looked rich.  I set the bowl aside and turned to work on the stem. I “painted” the stem surface with the flame of a lighter. The heat lifted the tooth marks. Those that remain will be sanded out. I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and started polishing it with 400 grit wet dry sandpaper. I polished the vulcanite stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem.    This smooth finish Blatter of Montreal Dublin is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The smooth finish around the bowl is quite beautiful and highlights the grain and works well with the polished vulcanite taper stem. The repaired flaws on the top of the shank and on the heel look much better and are now smooth to touch. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. 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 Blatter Dublin 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 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe was 30g/1.06oz. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store shortly. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. There are many more to come!