Tag Archives: staining

Reworking a No Name Brand Italian Billiard

I am definitely getting to the bottom of the refurbishing box – this pipe and one other left before it is empty and I need to start hunting again for more. This old-timer is only stamped on the left side of the shank with IMPORTED BRIAR over ITALY. There is no other stamping on the right side of the shank. The bowl was in pretty decent shape – no real dents or scratches other than around the rim. The edges of the rim were rounded over. The left side showed some nice birdseye grain and the front and the back of the bowl were cross grain. The right side of the bowl was a mess. There were at least a dozen putty fills in various states of coming out of the briar. There were two on the rim that took a bite out of the outer edge of the rim. The finish was gone and the stain had faded. The bowl did not come with a stem so I hunted through my can of stems and found one that would do the trick. It took very little work to get the tenon to fit into the shank. It was a wide blade stem that previously had been on a George Jensen pipe at sometime in its life but that pipe bowl had long since disappeared. With some minor adjustments to the diameter of the stem it would make a great stem for the Italian billiard.

I decided to top the bowl to clean up the rounded edges on the outer rim and to minimize the damage from the two fills on the right edge. I set up my sandpaper on the flat board and turned the bowl top into the sandpaper. I work at this slowly and turn and sand and then tip the briar dust into a container that I have saved for repairs to fills. The first photo below shows the set up as well as the condition of the rim before I worked on it.

I took the top down until the outer edges of the rim were sharp and clean. The damage from the fills is still visible but I stopped before I changed the overall shape of the bowl. I used a Dremel with a sanding drum to reduce the diameter of the stem to match the shank. I take it down as far as possible with the Dremel and then do the finish shaping by hand with sandpaper.

I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the oxidation and to finish shaping the area around the shank and stem junction.

I wiped down the bowl with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the remaining finish.

I dropped the bowl in an alcohol bath to soften the putty fills to make them easier to remove. It also removed the remaining finish to the bowl. The dark colour of the alcohol bath adds a patina to the bowl that is something that I appreciate. (I continue to use the bath and filter out the grit and grime from the alcohol every other month. The filtering removes the impurities but leaves the alcohol the colour of the stain that has been removed from the bowl. It is a uniform dark brown colour. I rarely change the bath, just refill it as the alcohol evaporates over time.)

When I removed it from the bath I picked out the softened putty fills with a dental pick and lightly sanded the bowl and shank with a fine grit sanding sponge.

I am continuing to experiment with wood glue and briar dust combined to replace the fills. I am finding that the mixture gives virtually the same darkening of the fill as the mixture of briar dust and superglue so I am not convinced. The drawback to using the wood glue is the slow drying time. That probably is not an issue for some of you but if the result is the same I will opt for the quick results of the superglue. I packed in the briar dust, dribbled the glue into the fills and then added more dust to the mixture. When it dried I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the buildup and smooth out the surface of the bowl. I then sanded the bowl with a fine grit sanding block to remove the scratches.

I am also continuing to experiment with the contrast staining process so I used it again on this bowl. I wanted to highlight the beautiful birdseye grain and cross grain on the bowl and hide the repaired fills as much as possible. I used a black aniline stain for the first coat of stain. I applied it and flamed it and repeated the process until I had good coverage on the bowl.

I wiped down the bowl with Everclear on a cotton pad to remove the heavy black stain from the surface of the bowl while leaving it deep in the grain. I notice in the process that the stain did not soak into the areas around the fills where there was remnant of wood glue on the surface of the briar. It left a shiny spot of unstained briar. To remedy that I would need to sand those areas of the bowl before applying the second coat of stain.

I sanded the bowl with a fine grit sanding sponge and also with micromesh sanding pads from 1500-2400 grit. I wet sanded with these grits as they work well to remove scratches in the surface and also to remove the remaining glue on the surface. Once I had the bowl sanded smooth I wiped it down with a damp alcohol pad to remove surface dust and then restained the bowl with an oxblood aniline stain. The next series of photos show the freshly stained bowl before I flamed it. The undercoat of black comes through and highlights the grain very nicely. Once the bowl was dry I buffed it lightly with White Diamond.

I sanded the bowl and stem with micromesh sanding pads to polish it further. I wet sanded with 1500-2400 grit and then dry sanded with 3200-12,000 grit pads. I find that the higher grit pads add a deeper level of shine with each successive grit. The next three photos show the stem and bowl after polishing with three grits of micromesh. The first photo shows 1500, 1800 and 2400 grit pads. The second photo shows 3200, 3600 and 4000 grit pads. The third photo shows 6000, 8000 and 12,000 grit pads.

I rubbed the stem down with Obsidian Oil and when it was dry I buffed the stem and bowl with White Diamond. I gave the pipe multiple coats of carnauba wax to protect the finish and give it a shine. The contrast stain worked well with this pipe. The birdseye grain really pops and the cross grain is also highlighted. The black undercoat also minimizes the eyesore of the fills on the right side of the bowl and the small one on the left side has virtually disappeared. The final four photos below show the finished pipe. I am happy with the way it turned out – far better than I expected when I took it out of the box to refurbish.

Reworking a Stetson Sport Zulu

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This pipe was gifted to me in exchange for a bit of stem work that I did recently for a friend of mine. It came in a box with the pipe to be repaired and two others. It was a brand that I knew absolutely nothing about. The pipe was obviously American made and had a coat of thick varnish on the bowl that was beginning to flake and peal. I decided to do a bit of research on the brand to see if I could find any information on it.

I found a document online for the John B. Stetson Company. Stetson is the manufacturer of Western hats but I was not aware that they also made pipes. One source seemed to point to the fact that the pipes were made by Marxman Pipe Company and branded with the Stetson name.

The document was written as a brand page for the company in application for a trademark. I have included that document below as I find the historical detail quite interesting. The source of the information is this website: http://www.legalforce.com/stetson-78583631.html I quote the following information in part from that site.

“John B. Stetson Company

Absorbent paper for tobacco pipes, ashtrays not of precious metal, chewing tobacco, cigar bands, cigar cutters, cigar humidifiers, cigar tubes, cigarette cases not of precious metal, cigarette lighters not of precious metal, cigars, cigarillos, hand-rolling tobacco, humidors, match boxes not of precious metal, match holders, matches, non-electric cigar lighters not of precious metal, pipe pouches, pipe tampers, pipe tobacco, tobacco, rolling papers…

This is a brand page for the STETSON trademark by John B. Stetson Company in Mt. Kisco, NY, 10549. Write a review about a product or service associated with this STETSON trademark. Or, contact the owner John B. Stetson Company of the STETSON trademark by filing a request to communicate with the Legal Correspondent for licensing, use, and/or questions related to the STETSON trademark.

On Wednesday, March 09, 2005, a U.S. federal trademark registration was filed for STETSON by John B. Stetson Company, Mt. Kisco, NY 10549. The USPTO has given the STETSON trademark serial number of 78583631. The current federal status of this trademark filing is ABANDONED – NO STATEMENT OF USE FILED. The correspondent listed for STETSON is BARRY A. COOPER of GOTTLIEB, RACKMAN & REISMAN, P.C., 270 MADISON AVE FL 8, NEW YORK, NY 10016-0601. The STETSON trademark is filed in the category of Smoker’s Products . The description provided to the USPTO for STETSON is Absorbent paper for tobacco pipes, ashtrays not of precious metal, chewing tobacco, cigar bands, cigar cutters, cigar humidifiers, cigar tubes, cigarette cases not of precious metal, cigarette lighters not of precious metal, cigars, cigarillos, hand-rolling tobacco, humidors, match boxes not of precious metal, match holders, matches, non-electric cigar lighters not of precious metal, pipe pouches, pipe tampers, pipe tobacco, tobacco, rolling tobacco, smokeless tobacco, smoking pipe cleaners, sm.”

I also found the following stamping photos on Pipephil’s Stamping and Logos site: http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-s12.html

Armed with the information I found I tackled the cleanup and restoration of this American Pipe from John B. Stetson! The pipe is stamped Stetson over Sport on the left side of the shank and Imported Briar over Italy on the right side of the shank. The finish was very rough and peeling off the surface of the briar on the bowl where the hands held it. The rim had a thick cake of tars and oils. The inner edge of the rim was nicked and burned and was slightly out of round. The bowl was heavily caked with a soft carbon cake that was crumbling in places. The stem had screw on tenon and was over turned to the right. It had tooth marks on the top and the bottom side of the stem and oxidation on the entirety. There was an S logo stamped in the left side of the saddle. The stinger apparatus in the stem was tarred and dirty and the inside of the stem was slightly clogged with tars.

I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer to take the cake back to bare wood. The crumbling cake toward the bottom of the bowl made this necessary so that the next owner can build up their own hard cake.

I topped the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper on a board and took off the damaged surface of the rim. I also cleaned up the inner edge of the rim with a folded piece of sandpaper. I wanted to smooth out the damage to the inner edge and repair the out of round shape of the bowl.

I wiped the bowl down with acetone on a cotton pad. The thick coat of varnish was hard to break down with the acetone. I wiped it until I had softened the varnish and then sanded the bowl and shank with the 220 grit sandpaper and then a sanding sponge. The putty fills were shrunken and formed small divots in the bowl. I filled these with superglue and briar dust and then sanded them down when I sanded the bowl. After sanding the bowl down I wiped it again with acetone to remove the sanding dust.

I sanded the bowl with a fine grit sanding sponge and then wet sanded it with 1500 and 1800 grit micromesh sanding pads. Once I had a smooth surface to work with I stained the bowl with a black aniline stain and then flamed it with a lighter. I wanted to set the stain deep in the grain.

When the stain was dry I wiped the bowl down with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the excess stain. I wanted the black to remain in the grain and highlight that while masking the fills.

I sanded the stained bowl with a medium grit sanding sponge to remove the excess. The next two photos show the bowl after sanding and then buffing with red Tripoli and White Diamond. The grain is standing out nicely from the black stain.

I restained the bowl with an oxblood coloured aniline stain and flamed it. I repeated the process until I had an even coverage on the bowl and shank. The next three photos show the bowl after staining with the oxblood.

I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper to remove the tooth marks on the top and bottom side of the stem. I followed that by sanding with a medium grit sanding sponge to remove the scratches left behind by the sandpaper.

I put the stem back on the pipe and took it to the buffer and buffed it with Tripoli. I buffed the bowl and stem with White Diamond. The next photos show the pipe after the initial buffing.

I wet sanded the stem with 1500, 1800 and 2400 grit micromesh sanding pads and then dry sanded with the remaining grits from 3200-12,000. I rubbed the stem down with Obsidian Oil and the waited for it to soak in. Afterwards I hand buffed with carnauba wax.

The next series of four photos show the finished pipe. The interior is shiny and new looking and the pipe bowl has a good contrast stain. The stem is shinier and the oxidation is pretty well gone. The photo of the stem looking down on the top shows a little oxidation around the saddle area. That area has been problematic on this pipe. In the daylight the stem looks better than this night photo with lights. My guess is that the oxidation is still there and in the glare of the flash it is very visible. This pipe will make a nice addition to someone’s rotation.

The Peculiar Particulars of the Pre-formed Pipe, and the Pleasures It Provides – Robert Boughton

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Thanks to Robert Boughton for his newest contribution to rebornpipes. It is always a pleasure to read about Robert’s work. He not only reworks old pipes but also does research to provide the historical background of the pipes – something I always have found fascinating.

This subject, that of the little-known unfinished, or pre-formed, pipe having nagged at me for some time to approach but for thinking I lacked suitable samples of previous completed efforts of the same type, which proved erroneous, and for assorted other excuses, all of these being of the good type (as if there were such an animal), at last I find the time to take a holiday, it seems, from my mounting responsibilities, to write it all out.

Guest Blog by Robert M. Boughton
Photos © by the Author

“Who be ye smokers?”
A bewildered crew member in Melville’s Moby Dick (1851), upon
going above-deck to find Ismael and Queequig smoking a peace
pipe (quoted with a nod to our good host, Steve)

Introduction
Let there be no misconception, from the commencement of this essay, as to the precise meaning of the modifier unfinished as I apply it to pipe. To be sure, I do not refer to the stylish, branded varieties sometimes called unfinished pipes in reference to certain fine lines – Savinelli and Baronet, to name a couple – whose pipes of that description are more akin to natural versions of pipe craft, and hence the term natural often applied to them. No, the unfinished, or natural, pipe by any brand name lacks only the final glaze and buffing with waxes with which to complete the process, and also sell for much more than that which I shall discuss with as much brevity as possible. Also, the variation of unfinished pipe of which I will soon find my way to addressing should by no means whatsoever be confused with pipe kits, those more typical introductions to the art of pipe making that involves chunks of briar, in general, with pre-drilled stems that the novice pipe maker then saws, chisels, sands, micro-meshes, buffs, stains, waxes and otherwise lovingly transforms from a veritable lump of wood to a finished mode of partaking of all the world’s smoking tobaccos, the degree of excellence depending on the innate talent of the individual woodworker and maybe some amount of luck.

Therefore, having discussed what I do not mean by unfinished pipe, I will re-name the oddity a pre-formed pipe. In this context, the difference between anything finished by minimum standards and the opposite, the mere basic elements to build one’s own pipe all but from scratch, is easier to comprehend. Thus, my meaning of pre-formed pipe is simply a pre-shaped piece of briar, un-sanded, un-glazed, un-waxed or polished or even showing the grain, in many instances – but with a stem, which may or may not fit as attached. Therein resides the fun and challenge for someone a step or two shy of ready to tackle the difficult enough task presented by even a pipe kit, but prepared to refinish, with considerable detail and elbow work, a pre-formed pipe in the rough.

The owner of my local tobacconist of most frequent choice is good enough to offer a small but ever changing selection of these pre-formed pipes for $12.50 each, with a nice variety of shapes from which to choose, even if those available often defy identification on any official chart of pipe shapes. To me, at least, that is just another part of the charm of these raw pipes in transition from mere rough wood and dull stems to greater things of beauty, regardless of how much or little work is invested by the restorer on the sample. The owner, by the way, tells me her supplier (whom she somewhat enigmatically declines to identify) calls these rough-hewn pipes “stubs,” which in an online search for “smoking pipe stubs” brings up such disparate references as the habit of some pipe smokers to stick a cigar stub in the bowl and puff on it, the usually distasteful dottle of wet, unsmoked tobacco remaining at the bottoms of wet smokers’ bowls, and, yes, Melville’s likeable character in the above quoted novel – which is as massive as the Great White Whale itself – Stubbs (whose greatest sign of character is his large collection of pipes). Again, thanks are due to Steve for pointing this out in an emailed attempt by me to determine the origin of the term stubs in relation to pipes, for upon further thought I recalled the other pipe-smoking characters in Moby Dick adopting the habit of shortening the lengths of their stems, as much as possible in order to tolerate the horrendous stench of rotted fish, through the closer proximity of the pipe smoke to their noses. Perhaps by coincidence, most of the samples of the pre-formed pipes I have seen are indeed on the short side.

And so, before our weekly meeting Friday night, I once again plumbed the dædal depths of Chuck Richard’s knowledge of pipe lore, and in so doing learned far more than I had anticipated – indeed, everything but a tag better than unfinished or pre-formed, although those adjectives turn out, in a vaguely sad way, to be far too apt: the unfortunate truth of the matter is that the German factory of their origin had never intended to leave these pipe shapes in any condition but complete to a degree noted to that European country. The factory, it seems, simply went belly-up in the 1970s with thousands of the pre-formed specimens sitting there, where most of them were at some point picked up by a U.S. distributor who continues to market them as-is, but not to individuals. (Aha! Thus, the tobacconist owner’s reluctance to disclose the name of her supplier thickens.) Later, a few German pipe interests procured the remainder of the lot and ever since have been selling them to anyone, for the most part in the European Community, who will bite. All of these unfinished pipes, therefore, were cut from decent briar that has aged in the 40-some years since the end of their official production – and are now perfectly suited for the consummation of the process. Perhaps these pre-formed pipes can, as a result, be compared to a fine wine that is left open to breathe. Based on the four or five of these finish-yourself pipes that I have now practiced the art of restoration, this example being the only one I can now document in full (although I am attempting to leave this latest restore pristine), they smoke wonderfully no doubt with or without any further work. But that would not only take away from the ultimate enjoyment of this likely unique and limited edition of unfinished pre-forms, barring the unlikely enthusiasm of a reader to strike out upon the task of building a finish-yourself pipe business; it would also deprive me of the opportunity to get on with the remainder of my tale.

And Now, for Page Two…
As anyone who has ever restored a pipe knows, there are restores, and then there are restores. In any case involving one of these unusual pre-forms, the only real tasks are choosing one with signs of good grain and lack of flaws such as cracks or fillings. In other words, to re-state a theme common to me, somewhat after the old man in Mrs. Robinson advised a memorably disinterested Dustin Hoffman, I have one word for you: sanding!

Here was my little pre-formed pot as I first saw it.

Unfortunately, I was forced to use my cell phone camera to snap these shots and the others that will follow, and so the clarity of the roughness of the plain briar, with bumps and pits and discolorations a-plenty, is somewhat wanting. But I hope you can see enough to get the general condition of my little pot. Again, I chose it over the assortment of others in more exciting shapes for the beauty of the grain I could hardly make out, and the lack of real blemishes.

Of course, after rigorous sanding – with 80-grit paper followed by 150 – I saw the beautiful grain for which I had purchased this particular pipe, in some places elegantly lined and others more spotted, but overall a clear potential for finishing. Then I used some micro-meshes, starting with 1500, then 2400 and at last 12000.

At that point, I was at a quandary. Should I use a stain, or skip it? The natural beauty of the pale briar attracted me very much. Still, I opted to use an alcohol-based shoe stain of a light brown color, which, as it was almost dry, I held a gentle match flame under the bowl and was gratified with the brief poof of blue as the alcohol in the stain ignited and dissipated.

The next step was an easy buff of Tripoli White Wax. Wow! was my initial thought after my first experience applying Tripoli. The immediate soft luster the preliminary wax bestowed upon the previously smooth but somehow flat bowl and shank gave the wood real dimension.

Again, I pondered long and hard on the idea of adding a coat of Tripoli Red, and during that pause remembered more of Chuck’s words to me before our Friday meeting: “Sometimes a little Red Tripoli on the wood is just what you need, especially to give it deeper color.” Still with more than a little flip-flopping in my stomach, I went for it:

Wow! was my initial thought after my first experience applying Tripoli Wax. The immediate soft luster the preliminary wax of Tripoli White bestowed upon the previously smooth but flat bowl and shank gave the wood real dimension. But my gentle blessing of the Tripoli Red gave the old briar absolute radiance.

Suddenly, all that remained were a buff with my new stick of carnauba and – come to think of it – quite a bit of work yet to go before the stem would be in order. I don’t know about the rest of you (and I know this places me with the troops in the rear as far as experience goes), but I have developed an undeniable case of what might only be apt to call stem loathing, if I may possibly coin a phrase. I just hate the buggers, as my British friend and fellow pipe smoker Leigh might say, if he didn’t have the habit of speaking the Queen’s English, and even in the tone and style of William, or His Royal Highness the Duke of Cambridge KG KT.

At any rate, with no way around the dirty deed, I went all-in, setting about the task of reducing a downright humongous overhang of the stem where it must, I repeat, must at all costs end up smooth and flush with the shank opening. I tried to be patient with the wretched thing, you see, I really did. Nevertheless, after a day of patiently trying the coarsest micromesh in my trusty box, getting nowhere with that approach and wearing my entire left arm, hand, four fingers and thumb into spasms of pain, there began to creep into my mind more direct and effective means of accomplishing the necessary duty. With far more grace and good sense than I in fact felt, I returned to the 80-grit sandpaper for a quick adjustment of the problem…and the approach actually worked!

That was about the time I realized I had another, nice and shiny, short straight stem I had stashed away with my spare pipe parts, assorted bowls needing serious work and assorted detritus. At the same time, I flashed on a diminutive Chinese pipe given to me by a friend as a joke owing to my known appreciation of certain specimens of that origin. That pipe, which had been covered in gaudy varnish and appeared at first touch to be made of balsa, would be a perfect match for the longer, curved stem I had adjusted as already described. Still, I finished repairing the original stem, micro-meshing away the rough surface where I had brutishly employed the bully force of abrasions, and then applying a good buff with Tripoli Red. But there I go again, off on a tangent, and when this initially homely Chinese pipe might be the subject of a forthcoming blog.

Without further delay, therefore, here are the final results:

Conclusions
The more I practice restoration as a fledgling, or novice, the higher level of understanding I acquire as to the years required to achieve anything close to master level. At least I am getting quicker on the uptake of that which I now comprehend is limitless information.

What more can I add, except the usual well-deserved thanks to my mentor, Chuck, and my sometime adviser and friend in pipe appreciation, Steve… and everyone else who holds any stock in my ability to learn.

A GBD Quantum 9438 Given a New Look and New Life

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I am always on the lookout for Rhodesian shaped pipes and 9438s in particular. I have a few that I picked up before they became so sought after. So when I picked up this 9438 Rhodesian for $9.99 on Ebay recently I figured I had a deal. I am pretty sure that the reason for the low price was the condition of the stem and the look of the pipe in the photos on the sale. I was hoping that the bowl was actually in better shape than it looked. I knew that the stem was ruined and a real mess but the bowl looked like it had some life left in it. To me the price it was listed at made it worth bidding on and I won it. I had several possible solutions in mind for the pipe if the bowl was as salvageable as it looked. One possibility is that I have a terribly over reamed 9438 that I could salvage the stem from and utilize on this pipe. If that does not work, my second possibility is to make a new taper stem for it. At the moment I am leaning toward the taper stem. I have included the photos from the seller to give an idea of the pipe’s condition.

When it arrived it was in worse shape than the photos alluded to, if that is possible. The bowl was badly caked and the rim was caked and slightly scorched. That part was actually not a big issue to me. I could easily take care of that. The finish was shot as expected so that was no surprise. But the stem was not only chewed and broken but also was quite brittle. It was almost as if it was rotted. To cut it off back to the solid material would make the stem very short and stubby. There were also no guarantees that the rest of the stem was not in the same condition once I removed the ruined portion. The shank was dirty and there was a lot of build up inside.

The stamping is actually quite unique. I have not seen a 9438 stamped this way. On the left side of the shank it is stamped with a letter G in a circle to the left of the GBD in the oval as normal. Underneath it is stamped QUANTUM, which is a line I am not familiar with in the GBD family. On the underside of the shank next to the stem is stamped with a J. On the right side it is stamped Made in London in a circle with the “in” inside the circle. Underneath it reads England. Next to that is the 9438 stamping. All of these stampings leave me with many questions. I know from previous study that the oval Made in London stamping, a Comoy’s like stamping, dates it as a Cadogan era pipe and that would likely put it in the 1980’s. The parts that leave me wondering are the G in a circle stamp on the left side and the line QUANTUM. I have never seen or heard of either of those stampings. I have included the next three photos to show the stamping on the shank for those of you who are interested.

I checked my over reamed GBD 9438 to see if it would work on this pipe. It is a Perspex stem and would look quite nice. However, the stem was already a repair and the shank diameter was slightly smaller so that was a no go. I was left with my second option mentioned above – to fit a new taper stem on it. Since the pipe was already in need of a lot of work fitting a taper stem on it would not be an issue. I was pretty sure that I had a vulcanite taper stem that would be a close fit. I went through my stem box until I found the fat taper stem I was looking for. The tenon was too large so I turned it with the PIMO Tenon Turning Tool until it was a close fit to the shank and then took it back to the work table to hand sand it to a snug fit. The two photos below show the new stem. The first photo shows the new stem alone and the second one shows it in comparison with the damaged stem. It is slightly shorter and the shape of the end of the stem tapers more than the original chewed one.

The diameter of the stem at the shank was slightly larger than the shank so I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to get a good fit between the shank and the stem. I carefully sanded the shank to clean up the fit and make a smooth transition. I wanted to avoid all of the stamping to leave it as pristine as possible.

The next two photos show the extent of damage to the old stem. I wanted to have those photos for comparison purposes and to give an idea of how short I would have to cut back the original stem to remove the damage.

I reamed the bowl with the PipNet reamer until it was bare wood. In doing that I found that underneath the cake, on the right side about half way down the inside, there was some charring on the wall. It was the beginning of a burn through in that area. I cleaned up around the area with sandpaper and picked at it with the dental pick. In doing so I found that it was still solid and not too deeply damaged. It would require some damage control and protection so I coated it with some pipe mud. The airway entered the bowl a bit high as well so I raised the bottom of the bowl with the pipe mud at the same time. I may well give it a bowl coating to further protect it but will decide that in the future.

The rim also needed to be lightly topped to remove some of the damage there that I could not steam out or repair. I did that with a piece of sandpaper on a board and lightly sanded the rim until it was smooth and the damage minimized. I used a folded piece of sandpaper to bevel the inner edge of the rim to match what remained in the undamaged portion of the rim.

I wiped the bowl down with acetone on a cotton pad to clean up the finish and remove the remaining stain. I have found that when I am planning to restain a bowl it is easier blend the sanded portions and the remainder of the bowl when I wash down the finish with acetone before restaining.

I removed the GBD oval from the old stem with a dental pick. I am still deciding whether to insert it on the new stem or to save it for later use on another old pipe in need of one. Time will tell. I always scavenge as much as is usable before discarding old pipe parts.

I washed the pipe down with acetone another time to further clean it up and prepare it for staining. This final wash removed the rest of the finish nicely and I sanded the bowl with micromesh sanding pads 1500-2400 grit to further prepare it.

I warmed the briar with a heat gun and then stained it with a dark brown aniline stain. I flamed it and reapplied the stain and reflamed it until it had an even coat of the brown stain. I mixed the aniline stain with isopropyl alcohol – 2 parts stain to 1 part alcohol. I wanted the grain on the pipe to show through the stain and I also was using it as the undercoat before giving it a slightly darker topcoat.

I buffed the pipe with White Diamond and then applied a Danish Oil Walnut stain as the top coat. It is a mixture of stain and linseed oil and gives a great finish when put over the top of the previous stain coat. The first three pictures below show the pipe while the stain is still wet. I wiped it down with a soft cotton cloth and hand buffed it to give it an initial shine (Photos 4-7).

Once the bowl was finished I put it aside and worked on the stem. I had already sanded it with a fine grit sanding sponge so now it was time to sand with the micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanded with 3200-12,000 grit pads. Each successive grit of micromesh deepened the shine in the vulcanite.

I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil, rubbed it down afterwards when it had dried and then buffed it lightly with White diamond. I reinserted it in the shank and then buffed the entire pipe with White Diamond and gave it multiple coats of carnauba to protect and give it a shine. I gave the bowl a second coat of pipe mud on the damage section to fill the shrinkage that had occurred as the pipe mud dried. It is drying and curing now but I look forward to firing up a bowl soon. I like the new look of the pipe and definitely like the taper stem. The shorter stem gives it a stubby look but it actually less than ¼ inch shorter than the saddle stem on my other 9438s.

Here are a couple of photos with the rondelle inserted in the stem and a bit more of a bend applied to the stem.

Restemmed Dr. Grabow Royal Duke Billiard

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Blog by Steve Laug

I am getting close to the bottom of the box of pipes to refurbish so I pulled out this Dr. Grabow bowl to restem and to refinish. It is stamped Royal Duke over Dr. Grabow on the left side of the shank and Imported Briar on the right side. I like taking the sealer coat of varnish off of these old Grabows and seeing what they look like refinished. I reamed the bowl with the PipNet reamer and cutting heads. I found a stem blank in my box and turned the tenon with a Pimo Tenon Turning Tool until it was close and then finnished the fit by hand. I ran a Dremel with a sanding drum on it down the sides where the overflow from the casting of the stem blanks left the sides and end rough. The next six photos show the fit of the new stem and the look of the pipe with its new stem.

I wiped the bowl down with acetone to remove the finish (photos 1-3 below). I then sanded the smooth surface of the bowl with a medium grit sanding sponge to break up the varnish finish on the rim and sides. I then wiped it down with acetone a second time and was more successful removing the varnish coat (photos 4-9 below). As can be seen from the progress of the photos the finish came off nicely and the rim darkening and bubbled varnish was also removed.

I decided to stain the pipe with a medium walnut stain in a linseed oil mixture. I rubbed it on the bowl and rubbed it off until the colour was solid and even over the bowl. The next series of three photos show the freshly stained bowl of the pipe. I was able to get into the grooves of the rustication with the cotton pads dipped in stain so that all surfaces were covered.

I rubbed off the stain and took the pipe to the buffer. I buffed it with White Diamond to polish the surface of the bowl and rim. The fibres from the pad also polished the grooves of the rustication as well. I put the stem back on the bowl and sanded it down with 220 grit sandpaper and a medium grit sanding sponge to remove the scratches left behind by the Dremel. I particularly worked on the shank stem union to make sure it was a smooth transition. I sanded the stem with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded with 1500-2400 grit and dry sanded with 3200-12,000 grit sanding pads. The progress of the sanding with micromesh pads is visible in the next series of three photos below. When I finished sanding the stem I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil and let it dry. I rubbed it down and buffed it with White Diamond on the buffing wheel.

The finished pipe is pictured below. I buffed the pipe with multiple coats of carnauba wax and then polished it with a clean flannel buff. This old timer is ready to go back into service and will be a nice addition to someone’s pipe rack.

A Dr. Grabow Special Rhodesian/Bulldog – A Makeover

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The last of the pipes from the Ebay lot below was the one in the bottom left corner of the photo. It was stamped Dr. Grabow over Special over Imported Bruyere on the left side of the shank. The finish was a varnish or polyurethane coat over the briar. It was bubbling and crackling. There was water damage on the edges of the rim. The briar itself was in good shape with no dents or roughening on the rim. The rim was slightly darkened but no dents or dings. The bowl was slightly out of round from poor reaming but very workable. The stem was a mess with chew marks on the top and the bottom for about an inch up the stem from the button. The stem was made of nylon and not vulcanite. The tenon was a push style and not a screw in stem. There was a shovel like stinger in the end of the tenon. The stem was loose in the shank and there was significant debris and buildup in the shank and in the stem. The second photo below shows the pipe as it was in the pictures from the seller.

I took it to my worktable this evening and went to work on it. I took the stem out and began to sand on the bite marks on the top and bottom of it. The next series of five photos show the progress of smoothing out the stem by sanding. I began with 220 grit sandpaper and worked up to a medium grit sanding sponge. By the fourth and fifth photo the bite marks are gone and some sanding scratches remain that will need to be worked out with micromesh sanding pads. I recut the edge of the button on the top and bottom with a needle file to clean up the angles. That is also visible in the last two photos. I also removed the stinger and cleaned it with 0000 steel wool and then polished it with micromesh sanding pads.

While I worked on the stem the bowl had been soaking in an alcohol bath to help loosen the varnish or urethane finish. My plan was to remove the finish totally and sand and restain the pipe once it was cleaned and sanded.

The alcohol bath softened the finish so when I dried it off the finish was cloudy. I have found that with this kind of finish I can use acetone on a cotton pad afterward to further remove the softened finish. The next two photos show the bowl with the finish removed. There is some nice looking birdseye grain coming through. Once the briar was clean I reglued the metal decorative band back on the shank and let it dry.

I sanded the bowl with the medium grit sanding sponge and then with 1500-2400 micromesh sanding pads. The next series of four photos are a little out of focus but the cleaned surface of the briar is visible and the grain that was underneath the finish is quite nice. I was also able to remove the water marks/damage that was along the outer edge of the rim and down the side of the bowl in the process of the sanding. I also cleaned out the shank with cotton swabs and Everclear. I did the stem as well and cleaned until the cleaners and swabs came out clean and white.

While the glue dried I worked on the nylon stem. I was able to remove all of the tooth damage. I wet sanded it with 1500-2400 micromesh sanding pads and removed the majority of the scratches left behind by the sanding sponge. I continued to rework the stem with these sanding pads until all of the scratches were gone and the stem began to take on a shine. (Photos 1-2 below show a top and bottom view of the stem).

I dry sanded with the remaining grits of micromesh sanding pads from 3200-12,000 grit. The stem took on its original shine. The next series of four photos show the stem as it moves through each level of polishing.

I wiped the bowl down a final time with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the sanding dust and grit. I dried it carefully and then it was ready to stain. I decided to use a linseed oil and medium walnut stain on this pipe. I felt it would make the grain show well and give the bowl a good protective coat. I applied the stain and wiped it off, reapplied and wiped it until I got the coverage I wanted on the bowl. The next series of four photos show the stained bowl.

I buffed the bowl and shank on the buffing wheel lightly with Tripoli and then with White Diamond to give it a shine. I then buffed it with carnauba wax and gave it several coats to protect the wood. I did not buff the stem on the wheel as the nylon heats too quickly on the buffing wheel and melts. I have made a mess out of more than one nylon stem. It does not seem to matter how light a touch I use the wheel and the nylon stems do not work well together. I gave the stem a coating of Obsidian Oil and rubbed it into the stem. I then hand applied several coats of carnauba wax and hand buffed the stem with a shoe brush and a soft cotton cloth. The finished pipe is pictured below. All in all it is not a bad looking old Grabow. It is clean and should smoke very well.

Restoring An Interesting Piece of Pipe History – An Art Deco C.B. Weber Streamliner

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Blog by Steve Laug

In a recent EBay purchase I picked up a unique pipe that has a flowing look to it. I was intrigued to figure out the history and any information I could find regarding it so I went on a hunt on the web. One of the first articles I came across is found in the link below. http://streamlinesdeluxe.wordpress.com/2012/06/01/weber-streamliner-pipe-2/ The author of the blog makes a brief reference the pipe I found and even has a picture of it. He speaks of the stem being made of something other than vulcanite. Other references I found in online pipe forums spoke of the fact that the bowl was not made of briar but of some composite material. Others said that the bowls were made of American hardwoods. Interestingly no one spoke of what hardwoods were used. I have hunted high and low on the web and can find nothing definitive on the pipe’s manufacture or composition.

I broadened my search to information on finned pipes. I did not want information on Porsche design pipes or metal finned pipes but was looking for anything on wooden finned pipes. I came across the following information on a patent taken by a carver/designer named Wayne Leser. His diagrams and patent application is included below and it can be seen that it is actually very close to CB Weber’s Streamliner. His patent was applied for through the US Patent Office in January of 1941. I assume the patent was granted as it is on the Patent website. Weber’s design seems to be elongated a bit more than the Leser design but the tear drop shape of the outer bowl and the similarly tear drop shape of the drilling match quite well.

I can find no further information on Wayne Leser so I have no idea if he sold his concept to Weber, or worked for Weber. If anyone has further information on that connection it would be great to learn about it. Please post a response below.

The pipe I picked up is pictured below in photos from the EBay seller. The photos were not very clear so I could not see the condition of the pipe very well but I was intrigued by it nonetheless. It looked like the bowl was in good condition. The stem however, appeared to be a replacement stem and the fit was poorly done. In the second photo below it is evident that the junction of the stem and shank does not meet.

When the package arrived from the seller I took the pipe to my worktable and photographed the condition of the pipe. The pipe was in fairly decent condition. The left side of the bowl was clean. It is stamped Streamliner in script over C.B. Weber & Co.

There were two small divots in the shank just below the stamping. I thought at first these might be dents but they are actually spots where the wood is missing. The right side of the bowl is also in good shape. The fins are intact all the way around the bowl with no chips or breakage. The rim was tarred and had a small burn spot on the point at the front of the bowl. The stem was definitely a replacement stem. In my reading I had found copies of the logo that was originally on the stem and also the fact that the stem had a stinger apparatus as part of the fitments. This stem had neither and the fit was wrong. The diameter of the stem was bigger; the tenon was off center therefore the fit was out of line with the left side being too large and the right side too small. The length of the stem was also too long and did not match the dimensions that I had found online regarding the overall length of the pipe. The bowl was in pretty decent shape though there was some kind of bowl coating on it that had broken free of the walls. It is a tear drop shaped bowl with a downward angle on the front portion so reaming it would be tricky. The wood on this one was definitely not briar. The bottom of the bowl has a foot that makes it a sitter and there is a rusticated pattern on the bottom of the bowl.

I carefully reamed the bowl to remove the bowl coating and the slight cake that was there. I used two different cutting heads on the PipNet reamer. The first head was the same diameter as the main portion of the bowl. For the angle teardrop end I used the smallest cutting head. Between the two of them I was able to clean up the bowl and remove all of the coating.

Removing the tars from the rim was a bit of a challenge and combined with burn mark on the point I decided to sand off the rim with a medium grit sanding sponge. I would then have to restain the bowl. I sanded it with the medium grit sponge and then with a fine grit sanding block to work on the burn mark and the darkening of the rim.

I finished the sanding by wiping down the bowl with acetone on a cotton pad. I was able to even out the finish on the bowl and rim so matching stain would be much easier to do. I was also able to lighten the burn spot with the same process to the point that a good coat of oxblood stain would make it fade into the surface of the rim.

I then set the bowl aside and went to work on fitting a new stem to the bowl and shank. In the first photo below I have the new stem blank fit to the shank. It still needs work to make the diameters match. The stem is about an inch shorter and brings the pipe back to the original length as noted from my online work. I also think that proportionally it works better with the elongated bowl and shank than the one that came with it.

In order to get the fit good and tight I used a sanding block to make sure that the transition between the bowl and shank was smooth. This entailed sanding the shank slightly in the process. In the next series of four photos below the fit is finished. The transition is smooth and the fit is good and tight.

I wiped the pipe down with acetone once again to even out the finish on the shank. The grain in the original wood is quite visible in these photos and it is not briar.

The flow of the taper on the stem was still too chunky in my opinion to match the Streamline concept of the pipe. I used 220 grit sandpaper and files to change the slope of the stem. When I had it the way I envisioned I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper, a medium grit sanding sponge and also a fine grit sanding block. The angle was right and the profile looked much more “streamlined”.

I sanded the stem, bowl and shank with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded them with 1500-2400 grit sanding pads and dry sanded with 3200-12,000 grit pads.

I decided to try to match the original stain using a Danish Oil (linseed oil with a cherry stain). I applied the stain with a cotton pad and wiped it down. When it had dried I was not happy with the coverage and appearance so I removed the stain with acetone to try a different stain.

Once I had the finish removed I restained it with an oxblood aniline stain. I had to apply it and flame it several times to the top of the bowl and shank to get the stain to set deeply and match the rest of the bowl. This was a hard one to get a good stain on. I decided to not apply the stain in the grooves of the fins but just on the surface of the bowl. It worked quite well with the original stain in the fins matching the surface colour really well.

I did some further polishing on the stem with the higher grits of micromesh from 3600-12,000. Once I had finished the sanding I polished the stem with Maguiar’s Scratch X2.0 to deepen the shine. I coated the stem with Obsidian Oil and then buffed it with carnauba wax to seal it and protect it. The final buff on the stem was done with a soft flannel pad.

I reinserted the stem and gave the pipe a final buff with carnauba wax and a soft flannel buffing pad. The finished pipe clearly shows some of the grain pattern of the alternative wood on the shank and the top and bottom of the bowl. The stem came out fitting nicely and giving the overall pipe a new “streamlined” appearance more accurately approximating the original stem. The bowl feels great in the hand and is uniquely attractive as a piece of pipe history. Time will tell if I smoke this one or just keep it around for display purposes. Below are photos of the finished pipe.

Royal Falcon Full Bent – Comoy’s Shape 17

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I purchased the Royal Falcon along with a Merchant Service pipe from an Ebay lot for a good price. They both looked quite good in the photos provided by the seller below. I was not familiar with the brand so I did some research on it and found that it was a Comoy’s line. The numbering and stamping on the right side of the shank were identical to Comoy’s stamping.

The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank, Royal over Falcon as pictured below. On the right side it is stamped Made in London in a Circle over England. Next to that is stamped shape number 17 which is a Comoy’s number. In checking on Pipephil’s site on logos and stampings it is clear that the pipe is definitely a Comoy’s brand. The stem has the same logo as Phil shows on his site (second photo below). The pipe I picked up is exactly the same pipe that Phil shows in his logo list (third photo below).

When the pipe arrived I took the following four photos to give an idea of the condition of the pipe. The finish on the bowl was in excellent shape. The rim was not as good. The bowl itself was gouged inside and the cake had been gouged away with what looked to be a nail. It would need to be reamed and sanded. The bowl was also out of round slightly. The outer edge of the rim toward the right front had a burn that damaged that part of the bowl. On the left back side the rim was dented and chipped from hitting the bowl against something. I would need to address the rim and the inner bowl damage when I worked on the pipe. The stem was in good shape but the white in the logo was gone. The underside of the stem had a gouge in it that at first glance looked like a breakthrough from a pipe cleaner (apparent as a white spot on the stem in the fourth photo below). Under a lens the gouge did not go all the way through the stem and would be easily repaired. The button and the exterior were in good shape with no bite marks or tooth dents. The tenon while dirty and tarry was nonetheless in good shape as well. It was a step down tenon like that used on Comoy’s pipes.

I reamed the pipe with a PipNet pipe reamer to try to smooth out the gouges that were on the inside of the bowl. I took back the cake to the bare wood to minimize the deep gouges. They still were evident after removing the cake but they were definitely less intrusive. I sanded the inside of the bowl to further smooth out the deep marks and to rework the out of round bowl and inner rim.

There was a burn mark on the outer rim right side toward the front of the bowl that damaged the outer roundness of the rim. It is visible in the poor photo below (first photo). There was also damage and chipping to the outer rim on the left side toward the back (second photo below). I could have ignored these in my restoration of the pipe and left them as marks of age but I decided against that given the relative good condition of the remainder of the bowl. It would need to be carefully topped and restained to match the rest of the bowl.

I set up my sanding board and topped the bowl. The next series of photos show the process of topping and after the first turn on the board the burn and roughening damage are more evident.

After topping the bowl I sanded it with a medium grit sanding sponge and then progressively sanded it with 1500-3600 grit micromesh sanding pads to smooth out the scratches from the topping process. After the surface was smooth I restained it with a dark brown aniline stain that I mixed with two parts isopropyl alcohol until it matched the colour of the bowl. I applied the stain, flamed it and repeated the process until the depth of the colour matched the remainder of the bowl. It took 5 or 6 applications of the stain until I was satisfied with the colour match.

I set the bowl aside and worked on the stem. The underside of the stem had a white spot that is visible midstem in the photo below. This spot was actually a gouge or divot. I was unsure whether it went into the airway on the stem. I have seen this kind of thing on pipes with this kind of bend in the stem. It can be caused by the pipe cleaner rubbing through the vulcanite at the bend on either the top or the bottom side of the stem. In this case it did not go all the way into the airway.

I cleaned it out with Everclear both internally and externally. I picked the white material from the divot and cleaned it a second time with alcohol. I used a small drop of superglue to fill the divot and then sanded it with a medium grit sanding sponge until it was smooth and even.

Once the stem was cleaned and only needing polishing, I used a correction/white out pen to refill the stamping on the logo. I have found that this works very well. I apply the white out with the pen tip and then let it dry before sanding with a micromesh sanding pad to remove the excess of the filler. I then sanded the entire stem with micromesh sanding pads from 1500-12,000 to polish the vulcanite. When I had finished sanding it I rubbed down the stem with Obsidian Oil and then buffed it with White Diamond.

The final four photos show the finished pipe. I buffed the pipe and stem lightly with White Diamond and then gave it several coats of carnauba wax to polish it. The restain of the top is visible in the third photo. The colour is a pretty good match to the bowl and I was able to redeem the out of round inner rim with the sanding and staining. It is ready to smoke.

Link

One of the pipes that I had been given years ago was stamped SmokeMaster Series 200 and was an acorn shaped rusticated bow with a smooth side on each side of the shank for stamping and a smooth rim. The left side bore the name and series number and the right side was stamped Imported Briar. The stem had been well chewed and the internal apparatus was missing. It was not useable on this pipe. I would have to restem it. I knew nothing of the brand name. My search on the internet gave me some information on the brand.

On the Dr. Grabow site ( http://drgrabows.myfreeforum.org/sutra13181.php ) I found some interesting information. I quote this post by Dave Whitney, the author of Old Briar, a book on refurbishing. “Smokemaster was a Briarcraft pipe. Richard Kliethermes Sr. was the founder of Briarcraft. First located on Pipetown Hill Rd, Spring Valley, NY, it moved later to 66 Central Ave., Spring Valley, NY. After the death of RK Sr., the business was run by Richard Kliethermes Jr. († 1943) and was quite prosperous between 1920 and 1940. The company closed in 1950. Briarcraft seconds are as follows: Airo, Arcadian, Briarmeer, Smokemaster, Cavalcade, Hallmark, Sterling Hall, and Wimbledon. The Orange off-center diamond was one of their logos.”

The link also had the following scan that shows the original design for the stems and the unique folded pipe cleaner filtration system of the original pipe. I decided to restem the pipe with a stem of my own choice rather than hunt down an original stem.

Please forgive the poor focus on the next three photos but they still give the idea of what the pipe looked like when it arrived to my work table. It was in rough shape. The bowl finish was spotty and the varnish was coming off. The rim was out of round and the back edge of the inner rim and top were beat up and rough. The stem was gnawed off and the short length would not work with this old pipe. The cake was thick and uneven with large flakes of tobacco stuck to the inner walls of the bowl.

I went through my stash of stems and found an old saddle stem with a built in brass band that would approximate the aluminum one on the original stem. I would need to do some work on the tenon length and the diameter of the saddle portion of the stem to get a correct fit but it was workable as the new stem.

I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer (Photo 1 below) and a plumber’s wire brush (Photo 2 below) to clean out the debris. I used a sharp knife (Photo 3 below) to reshape the inner edge of the bowl and bring it back to round. Photo 4 shows the reshaped and cleaned bowl. I would have to top the bowl to repair the roughness to the top of the rim.

I used a sanding drum on a Dremel to shape the saddle diameter to meet that of the shank. The sanding drum worked well on the vulcanite and the brass. Due to the difference in hardness of the two materials I had to be careful to not cut the vulcanite deeper than the brass. The idea was to make a smooth transition between the two materials on the stem.

The next photo shows the condition of the top rim of the bowl. I decided to top the bowl and then rework the rounded edge to keep the acorn shape intact. I set up a piece of sandpaper on my flat board and turned the bowl into the sandpaper. I worked it and sanded it, repeatedly checking the flatness of the rim and also the amount of briar I was removing from the rim.

Once the roughness was smoothed out I sanded the rim with 220 grit sandpaper and a medium grit sanding block to smooth out the top and to round the outer edge of the rim to make it less abrupt and more like the original shape. The next two photos show the rim after the sanding and shaping with the sanding block.

At this point in the process I put the bowl into an alcohol bath and let it soak overnight to remove the varnish finish that was spotty and damaged. The next morning I took it out of the bath, dried it off and cleaned out the shank and the shank. The first photo below shows the bowl after I removed it from the bath. The second, third and fourth photos show the bowl after drying.

I restained the pipe with a Danish Oil Cherry stain applied with a cotton pad. I need to be able to work the stain into the deep rustication and also on to the smooth portions of the shank and rim. The rim took several applications to match the rest of the bowl.

I put the bowl aside to dry and worked on the stem. I sanded out the remaining scratches around the brass band on the stem with 220 grit sandpaper and then reworked it with the medium grit sanding block. Once the scratches were no longer evident I worked on the stem using the micromesh sanding pads from 1500-12,000 grit to polish the stem and prepare it for waxing and buffing. Once I finished with the 12,000 grit pad I gave the stem a coat of Obsidian Oil to seal the surface and to soak deeply into vulcanite. I buffed the stem with White Diamond to finish the shine and then reinserted it into the shank.

I buffed the entire pipe with White Diamond and gave it a coat of Halcyon II wax for rusticated pipes. I then buffed it again with a clean flannel buff to raise the shine. The photos below show the finished pipe.

When I saw it I thought it was a Sasieni one dot billiard

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I came across this little billiard in an antique shop last weekend and when I saw the blue dot on the stem and saw the classic English shape of the bowl I truly thought I had found an elusive Sasieni one dot pipe. Lots of things about it seemed to signal that is what I had. The stamping was hard to see under the grime but there were i’s and an e. I was hopeful and I guess also wishful in my thinking. The pipe was dirty as can be seen below. The stem had obviously been damaged and cut off by the previous owner and a new button filed into the stem. The bowl was badly caked and the rim was damaged with dents and chips. I took the picture below while I was relaxing in a pub near the shop and looking over the finds of the afternoon.

When I got home I took it to the basement and wiped down the bowl with acetone on a cotton pad to remove some of the grime. Once the outside was wiped down I tried to read the stamping with a magnifying lens. I could not make out the stamping – it was too faint. There was no stamping on the right side of the shank. On the underside it appeared that there had been stamping but it was no longer visible. The next three photos give a good idea of what the pipe looked like before I did a cleanup on the bowl and stem.

I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer and took it back to bare wood. I picked at the inside of the bowl to check out the solidity of the walls and to check for potential burns. Everything looked and felt like it was solid so I dropped the bowl in an alcohol bath to soak over night.

The next day I took it out of the bath and dried it off. The bath had removed the old finish for the most part. I finished by once again wiping it down with acetone on a cotton pad. After soaking part of the stamping had become visible. I was disappointed that it appeared that the pipe was not a Sasieni. The stamping that showed up after it was dry read Genuine Briar, which seemed to point to an American made pipe post WW2. I believe it is post war as that is when it became necessary to identify genuine imported briar in contrast to the Manzanita and other alternatives used by American manufacturers during the war years due to a shortage in briar. The briar was a nice piece – birdseye on one side, nice grain on other parts of the pipe and a clean shape to the bowl. I knew it would clean up nicely.

I topped the bowl using my normal method of anchoring a piece of sandpaper on a flat board and twisting the top of the bowl into the sandpaper until the top is smooth. I started with 220 grit sandpaper and then used a medium and fine grit sanding block to smooth out the rim.

When I had finished topping the bowl I wiped it down with acetone and a soft cotton pad to remove the sanding dust and the grime from the topping process.

The stem had a poorly cut button on the end and the button as well as the taper on the stem needed to be reworked. I used a rasp and file to shape the taper on the stem and to take out the pinched look of the angle to the 90 degree cut on the button. The button was also not straight and not squarely cut so I also straightened out the flat edge of the button while I worked with the rasp and files. The next three photos show only the initial work on the stem and not the finished work. I removed quite a bit of the material and smooth out the slope of the taper so that it flowed evenly into the button on both the top and the bottom of the stem.

I sanded the newly shaped stem with 220 grit sandpaper and a medium grit sanding sponge to remove the scratches left by the rasp and files. Once I had the basic shape in place I decided to restain the bowl. I warmed the briar and then gave it several coats of a dark brown aniline stain thinned 1:1 with isopropyl alcohol. I flamed it between each coats to set the stain. The rim took extra coats to match the colour of the rest of the bowl.

I buffed the newly stained bowl lightly with White Diamond and then gave it a coat of a light cherry coloured Danish Oil. Once dry I buffed it by hand and then also gave it a light buff with White Diamond to polish it.

I then removed the stem and worked on the slot in the button. When the end of the stem had been cut off some of the flair of the original airway remained leaving the end of the button with a small rectangular opening. I used needle files to open the flair and widen the slot into more of an oval that extended the width and height of the button end.

Once I had the slot opened the way I like it I sanded the inner edges with a folded piece of sandpaper to smooth it out. I also did some more shaping with files to the taper of the stems. I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper until I had the slope well-defined from the tenon back to the button. I also shaped the externals of the button to clean up the angle at the point the button and stem taper met. I also sanded it with a medium grit sanding sponge to remove the scratches left behind and to also remove the oxidation at the stem shank junction.

When I had the scratches removed as far as possible with the sanding sponge I went on to sand the stem with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded the stem with 1500, 1800 and 2400 grit sanding pads and the dry sanded with the remaining grits.

I rubbed the stem down with Obsidian Oil and rubbed it into the surface of the vulcanite. I took it to the buffer and buffed the stem with White Diamond. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax and polished the pipe with a clean flannel buff to bring up the shine. The finished pipe is pictured below. I still wish I knew what the stamping says in full. That blue dot certainly is a symbol of some unknown to me brand of pipe. The mystery remains but in the mean time I have a great little billiard to enjoy.

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