Tag Archives: Stem repairs

Cleaning Up a Ben Wade Burnsbury Made in London England 283 Zulu Stack

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By Steve Laug

I thought it was time in this write up, to take you through my process of working on each pipe that we purchase. Jeff has set up a spread sheet to track where the pipe came from, the date of purchase and what we paid for it so that we know what we have invested in the pipe before we even work on it. This takes a lot of the guess work out of the process. This particular pipe was purchased on 06/24/2023 from an online auction in Garland, Texas, USA. I also want you to understand why we take the photos we do. If you have followed for a while then you will see the familiar pattern of the photos we include both in the before and midstream process of working on a pipe. It is not accidental or chance as the photos have been taken to help me assess the pipe Jeff sees before he starts his clean up work. We do this to record the condition that the pipe was in when received it and to make decisions about what kind of work will need to be done on. When I look at these photos this is what I see.

  1. The first thing I see is the graceful tall bowl and an oval shank with some interesting grain around the sides. It is well proportioned and well made with a classic English shape.
  2. The finish is dirty and there are oils from the smoker’s hands on both side of the bowl. There is grime ground into the finish as well but even so there is also some great grain peeking through.
  3. The rim top had a thick lava overflow from the cake in the bowl. It is hard to know if there is darkening or damage under the lava. Sometimes the lava protects the rim top and edges and sometime it hides issues. Its is very dirty looking.
  4. The bowl has a thick cake in it that hides the walls and the inner edge of the bowl but once it is clean we will know what the edges look like. The outer edges look good and there does not appear to be any obvious burn damage to the top or bowl edges.
  5. The vulcanite taper stem is in rough condition – dirty, oxidized, calcified and has tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button and on the button surface itself.

Overall my impressions of this pipe is that it is a beauty that once cleaned up will look pretty amazing. The exterior of the bowl does not show any hot spots or darkening. The pipe is very English looking and is a classic tall bowled ¼ bent oval shank Stack that has the distinctive cut of other Ben Wade pipes that I have worked on. The photos below confirm the assessment above.Jeff took close up photos so that I could have a clearer picture of the condition of the bowl, rim edges and top. The rim top photos confirm my assessment above. The cake in the bowl is quite thick and the rim top has lava and debris on it. You can also see the condition of the outer edge but the inner edge is a bit of a mystery at this point. This is what I look for when assessing a pipe. While there is lava and darkening there is no visible burn damage at this point. The bowl looks to be fairly round. The next photos show the grain around the heel and the sides of the bowl. Tell me what you see? Are there any visible problems that stand out to you? Are the cracks or scratches? Are there visible flaws or fissures in the briar? What kind of grain stands out around the bowl and heel? Any visible issues on the heel of the bowl? Even the questions should help you to see what I am looking for when I see these photos. You have read it a few times now in the previous blogs. What am I looking for when I look at the shank stamp? In this case it is stamped on the top and underside of the shank. On the top side it reads Ben Wade in script [over] Burnsbury. On the underside it reads Made in [over] London England in 2 lines. That is followed by the shape number 283 next to the bowl/shank union. How does the stamping look to you? Is it clear and readable? Is it faint in spots or is it uniform? I know you are looking at photos but so do I at this point in the process. The topside of the stem is also stamped though it is faint and worn. It reads BEN [over] WADE. The same questions apply here as well. An added part of pipe restoration for me is to try to gather as much background on a brand and maker as I can find. With Ben Wade it is an enjoyable web to untangle. There is a lot of information and it can lead to understanding what era a pipe was made in. To try to figure out the era of the Ben Wade pipe I was working on I turned to the Pipephil website, Logos and Stampings (http://pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-benwade.html). There is some really helpful information on the brand. There is an alphabetical listing of the lines but there was none listed that matched the one on the table. The site did give a short history of the brand. I quote the portion that is most pertinent. Brand founded in the 1860’s at Leeds (GB). Lane Ltd. (NYC) bought the brand in 1962 and closed the factory in Leeds in 1965. The pipes were then manufactured in London at Charatan’s. During the period 1972 (about) – 1989 Ben Wade pipes were mass produced for Lane Ltd. by Preben Holm‘s workshop in his very personal style. Peter Wilson owner of Duncan Pipes bought the rights of the brand in 1998.

Next, I turned to Pipedia to see if I could find more information on the Ben Wade brand there (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Ben_Wade). The article gives a great sense of the history of the brand from its inception until the time Preben Holm made pipes for them. I quote a few sections from the article below.

In the second World War the factory was destroyed by German air raids on Leeds. But the Ben Wade family decided to re-build it immediately after the war and pipe production was re-started soon and successfully linked to the fame from the pre-war years.

Before the second war Ben Wade clustered their offerings into three price points: “Ben Wade” included the higher end pipes (eg the Larnix, Super Grain, Selected Grain, etc), “BW” included the mid-level pipes (eg Statesman, Natural Grain, County, etc), and “BWL” were the least expensive (eg Hurlingham, Adelphi, Tense Grain). Champion was in the last group, and in the 1930s at least retailed for 2/6.

The Champion disappeared during the War when the Ben Wade line was materially slimmed down, presumably to reflect difficulties of supply. The name continued to appear in brand directories at least through the early sixties, however it’s unclear whether production was actually resumed.

Even though the owner family decided to leave pipe business and sell off the firm. The family went into negotiations with Herman G. Lane, president of Lane Ltd. in New York at about the same time as the Charatan family. Lane Ltd. bought both firms in 1962.

Herman G. Lane had been Charatan’s US sole distributor since 1955 and Charatan always remained his pet child. But Ben Wade was treated in another way by it’s new owner. The fabrication of pipes was reduced and the factory in Leeds was closed in 1965 finally.

So, this was the end of Ben Wade pipes stamped “Made in Leeds, England”.

Lane had the pipe making machines brought from Leeds to London and used the well esteemed name Ben Wade to start the fabrication of entirely machine-made pipes at Charatan’s Prescott Street factory. (Some sources say “not earlier than 1973” but proven by catalogues this isn’t true.) Alas the “new” Ben Wades were quite usual series pipes, copies of well known standard shapes. The pipes often showed hardly masqued fillings and were processed quite coarsely with hardly polished pre-moulded Ebonite stems. Therewith Ben Wade degenerated definitively to a second brand. The stamping now read “Made in London England” or just “London”. Nothing was left from the quality of the pipes once made in Leeds!

Quotation of an American pipe dabster: “It’s a shame to see how a famous old family name can be dragged into the mud by people who want to capitalize on a good reputation earned by men who are long dead. This sad little story was not one of Charatan’s or Lane’s proudest moments!”

Herman G. Lane’s heirs had no special interest in either Charatan or in Ben Wade and sold it to Dunhill Pipes Limited in 1978. Now, Dunhill had no need of machine-made series pipes like the Ben Wade as performed by Charatan / Lane since their own Parker–Hardcastle factory in Walthamstow had abounding capacities to turn out secondary pipes. Thus this was Ben Wade’s second end. Charatan’s Prescott Street factory was closed by no later than March of 1982 and Charatan was allowed to languish and discontinued in 1988.

Now I had some parameters regarding the time frame of the pipe. It was made after the closing of the Leeds factory in 1965 and made in London as early as 1973. It was definitely made before Lane sold the factory to Dunhill in 1978. That is helpful to know the time frame as well as the connection to Charatan during that time period. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

I am sure many of you will shake your head and ask maybe even out loud, “Why is he including this again?” However, please remember that the point of these blogs is not to wow your with the work or make you shake your heads but I want you to know the details of the work we do so you can do your own. Back in 2020 Jeff wrote a blog about his cleaning process. I am including a link to that now so you can see what I mean about his process. Do not skip it! Give it a read (https://rebornpipes.com/2020/01/20/got-a-filthy-estate-pipe-that-you-need-to-clean/). Here is the introduction to that blog and it is very true even to this day.

Several have asked about Jeff’s cleaning regimen as I generally summarize it in the blogs that I post rather than give a detailed procedure. I have had the question asked enough that I asked Jeff to put together this blog so that you can get a clear picture of the process he uses. Like everything else in our hobby, people have different methods they swear by. Some may question the method and that is fine. But it works very well for us and has for many years. Some of his steps may surprise you but I know that when I get the pipes from him for my part of the restoration they are impeccably clean and sanitized. I have come to appreciate the thoroughness of the process he has developed because I really like working on clean pipe!

For the benefit of some of you who may be unfamiliar with some of the products he uses I have included photos of three of the items that Jeff mentions in his list. This will make it easier for recognition. These three are definitely North American Products so you will need to find suitable replacements or order these directly on Amazon. The makeup pads are fairly universal as we were able to pick some up in India when we were with Paresh and his family.

In the blog itself he breaks his process down into two parts – cleaning the stem and cleaning the bowl. Each one has a large number of steps that he methodically does every time. I know because I have watched him do the work and I have seen the pipes after his work on them. He followed this process step by step and when the pipe got to me it was spotlessly clean and ready for my work. The inside of the stem, shank and bowl were clean and to me that is an amazing gift as it means that my work on this end is with a clean pipe! I cannot tell you how much difference that makes for my work.

  1. The thin oval shank and the tall bowl look very good and are well proportioned and have a classic English Bent Stack and almost a modified Zulu shape.
  2. The finish is clean and the oils have been removed from both sides of the bowl. The grime ground into the finish is gone and there is some great grain around the bowl sides. There also appear to be some sandpits showing up on the shank.
  3. The thick lava coat on the rim top has been removed and there are some nicks and damage on the top and inner edges of the bowl.
  4. The walls of the bowl are clean and I do not see any checking or burn damage. The inner edge of the bowl had some nicks and burn damage on the edges. The outer edges look good and there does not appear to be any obvious burn damage there.
  5. The vulcanite taper stem is clean and has tooth chatter and marks on both sides. Ben Wade stamped logo on the top of the stem – it is barely visible.

Hopefully the steps above show you both what I look for when I go over the pipe when I bring it to the work table and what I see when I look at the pipe in my hands. They also clearly spell out a restoration plan in short form. My work is clear and addressing it will be the next steps. I took photos of the whole pipe to give you a picture of what I see when I have it on the table. This is important to me in that it also shows that there was no damage done during the clean up work or the transit of the pipe from Idaho to here in Vancouver.  I carefully went over the bowl and rim top to get a sense of what is happening there. In this case once the lava was removed light damage and darkening to the edge and top was revealed. I think there is some light burn damage to the edge that extends around the inner edge and some darkening on the rim top. It is clean but will need to be worked on to bring it back to normal. I also go over the stem carefully. There were light tooth marks or dents in the stem. I could see faint marks on the top of the stem that I could see with a lens – BEN WADE. The trouble was it was so light that it was not redeemable. I took photos of the rim top and stem sides to show as best as I can what I see when I look at them.I always check to make sure that the clean up work did not damage the stamping on the shank in any way. It looks good and is very readable. I love just looking at the beauty of the lay of the pipe with the grain and the proportion of the pipe. I like to remove the stem from the shank to get a sense of what was in the mind of the pipe maker when he crafted the pipe. It is a beauty in flow and shape. By this time, you should know that I almost always start with the bowl in my restoration because I truly do not like the tedious work of stem repairs and polishing. I always leave that until last even though I know that it needs to be done. For me the encouragement of seeing a rejuvenated bowl is the impetus I need to attack the stem work.

Today I started working on this pipe by turning to the bowl. I chose to deal with the nicks, darkening and burn damage on the rim edges and top. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the damage on the edges and the rim top. It took a little work but I was able to remove most of the darkening. I stained the rim top with a Cherry and a Maple stain pen to match the rest of the bowl colours. It is a beautiful piece of briar with some great grain.I used some briar dust and clear CA glue to fill in the sandpit on the left side of the oval shank. I put the glue in the hole and pressed briar dust into the glue. I wiped off the excess and once it cured sanded that area with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads (1500-12000 grit pads). I choose to dry sand the briar rather than wet sand it. Again, it is a matter of personal preference. I prefer to use the pads dry and find they work very well on the briar. I sand with each pad (9 in total) and group them by threes for ease of reference. I also work over the rim top at the same time. I wipe the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris and check the briar. I love seeing the developing shine on the briar as I move through the pads which is why I include so many photos of this step. For the past few years now I have been using Before & After Restoration Balm. It is a paste/balm that is rubbed into the surface of the briar. The product works to deep clean the nooks and crannies of finish, enliven and protect the briar. I worked it into the briar with my finger tips and let it sit for 10 minutes to do its work. I wiped it off with a soft cloth then buffed it with a cotton cloth. The briar really began to have a deep shine in the briar and the grain shone through. The photos I took of the bowl at this point mark the progress in the restoration. It is a gorgeous pipe. Now it was time to address the part of the restoration I leave until last. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I started with the tooth marks. I “painted” the surface dents with a Bic lighter flame and was able to lift them significantly. I filled in the deep marks that remained with black CA glue. Once it cured I used a small file to flatten the repairs, recut the button edge and start the process of blending them into the stem surface. I sanded the stem with 220 grit sandpaper to further blend them into the vulcanite. I dry sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to further smooth out the finish and also remove any remaining oxidation and scratches on the surface. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil afterwards.I touched up the light stamping on the top of the stem with Rub’n Buff Antique Gold. I worked it into the stamp with a folded pipe cleaner. I buffed it off with a soft cloth and then gave it another coat of Obsidian Oil. It is faint but readable Ben [over] Wade.I use micromesh sanding pads and water to wet sand the stem with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil on a cotton rag after each sanding pad as I find it does two things – first it protects the vulcanite and second it give the sanding pads bite in the polishing process. After finishing with the micromesh pads I rub the stem down with Before & After Fine and Extra Fine stem polish as it seems to really remove the fine scratches in the vulcanite. I rub the Fine Polish on the stem and wipe it off with a paper towel and then repeat the process with the extra fine polish. I finish the polishing of the stem down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set the stem aside to let the oil absorb. This process gives the stem a shine and also a bit of protection from oxidizing quickly.The final steps in my process involve using the buffer. I first buff the stem and the briar with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. Blue Diamond is a plastic polish but I find that it works very well to polish out the light scratches in the vulcanite and the briar. I work the pipe over on the wheel with my finger or thumb in the bowl to keep it from becoming airborne. It works well and I am able to carefully move forward with the buffing. The briar and stem just shone!I finished with the Blue Diamond and moved on to buffing with carnauba wax. Once I have a good shine in the briar and vulcanite I always give the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I have found that I can get a deeper shine if I following up the wax buff with a clean buffing pad. It works to raise the shine and then I follow that up with a hand buff with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. It is always fun for me to see what the polished bowl looks like with the polished vulcanite stem. It really is a beautiful pipe. The smooth finish around the bowl sides and shank show the grain shining through the rich brown stains of this Lane Era Ben Wade, Made in London England 283 Zulu Stack. The finished 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: 2 ¼ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, 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 on the rebornpipes store in the British Pipe Makers section.

Hopefully the shape the writing of this blog is helpful to you in some way. In it I wanted to show both what I am looking for and how I move forward in addressing what I see when work on a pipe. Let me know if it is helpful to you. It is probably the most straightforward detailed description of my work process that I have done. 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 pipemen and women who hold our pipes in trust until they pass on into the trust of those who follow us.

Getting Creative with this Weber Golden Walnut Imported Briar Apple

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by Steve Laug

The next bowl on the table is a classic shaped Apple. It has been sitting here and I have looked at it over and over again and today I decided to restem it. I wanted to try something a little different with this restem and see if I could come up with an interesting restem. I think when you see it you will either love it or hate it! But there you go. Here is what I did! I cleaned up the bowl and matched a stem with briar bowl. It is a cleanup and restore and is a break from my work on the Freehand pipes. The bowl is dirty and somewhere in its life before it came to us the stem was lost. The finish was coated with varnish that left it shiny even under the grime. It showed promise under the grit and grime of the years. It was stamped on the left side of the shank and read Weber in an oval [over] Golden Walnut. The right side of the shank it is stamped Imported Briar. The bowl had a thick cake and a thick lava overflow on the rim top. There was some lava and tars coming down the bowl sides from the top. It is a pretty pipe with some great grain under the grime. I am hoping to match a nice stem to it. I took some photos of the bowl before I started my work on it. I took a close up photo of the rim top and bowl to give more of a sense of what I see and noted above. It is a dirty pipe but seems to have no damage on the rim top or edges.I took a photo of the snapped tenon in the shank end. The end of the tenon is quite smooth so it was a clean snap. I will need to pull it before I can fit a new stem to it.I took a photo of the stamping on the left and right side of the shank. The stamping looks blurry and double stamped in the photos but in person it is clear and readable. Recently I picked up some unused acrylic stems. There was an acrylic amber/orange variegated saddle stem in the lot. It was drilled for a new tenon and was clean. This stem had a close diameter to the shank end of the Weber and would work well I think.I put the bowl in the freezer for 30 minutes then used a drywall screw to pull out the broken tenon. I screwed it into the tenon and wiggled it free from the shank. I used the tenon piece to fit a new tenon in the shank end.I fit the new tenon in the shank end and it was a little tight. I used a Dremel and sanding drum to reduce the diameter just enough for a snug fit. I painted the threaded tenon with black CA glue and turned it into the end of the new stem. The fit was good. I set it aside and let the glue cure. I put it in the shank and the fit against the shank end was slightly off. I used a file to make the transition between the shank and the saddle portion of the stem very smooth. I liked the look of the variegated orange acrylic stem with the browns of the briar bowl. I cleaned up the file marks on the shank and avoided the stamping on both sides with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. Once finished the transition and both the briar and the acrylic were smooth. I set aside the stem and turned my attention to reaming the pipe. I used a PipNet Reamer with the first and second cutting heads to take back the heavy cake to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and finally sanded the bowl walls with 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel. I like to remove all the cake to examine the walls for damage and checking. Great news is that this one is free of any damage. With the bowl reamed it was time to work on the rim top. The lava was hard and thick. I started the process with a topping board and 220 grit sandpaper. Once I had smoothed off the top outer edges it was clear that the inner edge of the rim top was slightly bevelled inward. I used a wooden half sphere and 220 grit sandpaper to clean up the bevel and remove the damage to that portion of the rim top and edges. I cleaned up a few spots with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. To remove the shiny varnish coat on the bowl and to use the stain on the bowl to colour the rim top and sanded shank end I wiped the bowl and shank down with acetone. I used cotton pads with the acetone and was able to easily remove the varnish and move some of the stain to the sanded portions of the shank and rim. I would need to restain but it definitely looked much better. I matched the stain on the bowl and shank with a Maple Stain Pen. I put it on the smooth sanded rim top and shank end. I wanted it to start matched before I started sanding the bowl and shank with sanding pads. I was very happy with the match. I worked on polishing out the sanding marks with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I worked particularly on the transition between the shank and the stem surface. I also worked over the briar of the bowl and rim top at the same time. The bowl and stem looked very good once I finished. I took the stem off the shank and turned to the bowl first. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. After each sanding pad I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth to remove the sanding debris and dust. It began to take on a deep shine. I rubbed down the briar Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface with my fingertips. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 15 minutes then I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The briar really comes alive with the balm. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads to remove them. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. I rubbed it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and let it dry. This is another pipe that I am really happy about the finished restoration. This reborn Weber Golden Walnut with a newly fitted golden acrylic variegated stem turned out really well to my eye. After restemming I think that it is unique and beautiful looking classic apple with a twist. The bowl is a classic Bent Billiard and the “new” horn stem is a great match. The polished horn stem works well with the briar and the nickel ferrule. The briar really came alive with the buffing. The rich reddish brown stains of the finish make the grain really pop with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and 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. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Weber Golden Walnut Apple really has a unique beauty and feels great in the hand. It looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 45 grams/1.62 ounces. The pipe will be going on the rebornpipes store soon. It will be in the American Pipemakers Section 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. It was a fun one to work on!

Restoring a JHW (Jack H. Weinberger) Fluted Tulip freehand with a saddle stem

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By Steve Laug

When Jeff and I were contacted about an estate in Santa Cruz, California, USA for sale I was excited to see what was in the lot. There were several with no other stamping on the shank than JHW. I have to say that I have seen very few JHW pipes and my heart skipped a beat when I saw not just one but 7 pipes with that stamping. All were Freehands and all were very unique – maybe even odd you might say! We purchased the estate on 05/28/2024.I am working on the last of the seven pipes. By now you know who JHW is. But maybe not so I ask again why so excited about three initials? Well I have to tell you right up front that JHW is Jack H. Weinberger. Who is that? That does not help either? Jack H. Weinberger was a pipe maker in West Caldwell, New Jersey. Still not helping? He hired young lads from the local high school to help him out as he carved 10-12 hours a day. Two of these are none other than Curt Rollar and Mark Tinsky went on to become the American Pipe Company. There was a long list of pipe carving luminaries who came through Jack’s shop and JHW pipes but these two you probably have heard of. So JHW or Jack H. Weinberger was an important part of the American Pipemaking scene and gave many carvers a start and they have continued to this day. Now maybe you understand my excitement – being able to work on a few of Jack’s pipes and bring them back to their former glory.

This pipe I chose to work on was another unusual one. It is a great piece of briar with a mix of grain all the way around the bowl and shank and a tulip shaped incorporated into the fluted and smooth portions of the bowl. It is a beautiful piece of briar! He made a carved, fluted style Tulip Billiard shaped pipe. The front, back and sides of the bowl have some nice straight grain. The rim top has the points of the petals around a thin flat rim top edge. Very unusual but something just calls out to you. When the pipe came to us it was dirty with grime ground into the finish. There was a thick cake in the bowl and lava on the rim top and inner edge. There appeared to be some darkening around the inner edge of the rim, the top and on the sides of the bowl. It was dirty but that did not hide the beauty of the briar. The stem is a saddle made out of vulcanite. There was light chatter on both sides just ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe as a whole before he started his cleanup work. I include them below. Jeff took some close up shots of the rim top to show the bowl and cake. You can see the lava on the rim top and the inner edge. The stem photos also show the condition it was in when we received it. Lots of promise with the pipe but some work too! Jeff took some photos of the sides – top, bottom, left and right to give a sense of the lay of the pipe on the block of briar. It is certainly unusual and unique. Here are some photos of the stamping on the left side of the shank. I think this must be an older stamp of JHW as the J is a part of the uppercase HW. It is the only one I have that has this stamping. Otherwise the J is a stylized pipe followed by the HW.Take some time to read the great writeup on Pipedia and JHW pipes and influence they had on the American pipe making scene. It is a well written and enjoyable read. Here is the link: (https://pipedia.org/wiki/JHW_Pipes).

Armed with that information I turned to work on the pipe itself. Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual 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 and shank brushes. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer 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 really well. The rim top and inner edge of the bowl look good. There is some darkening on the inner edge and the top as well as on the insides of the points on the tulip petals. The bowl itself was very clean and the pipe smelled fresh. The stem surface had light tooth chatter on both sides near the button.The stamping on the left side of the shank is faint but still readable. It is stamped as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the whole.I wiped the bowl down with some acetone to see if I could lighten the darkening around the bowl sides and on the rim top and inside edge of the petals at the top. It worked quite well. I wonder as I am doing this if the top and inside edge of the petals was stained black. I sanded the briar flutes and smooth surface with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. There was still some darkening on the bowl sides and rim edges. There were also some scratches in the briar on the sides, but nothing to deep so this process would take care of the issues. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth after each pad. I take photos of the three groups of pads for my own viewing primarily as I am looking for progress in polishing. Once again, by the end of the process it looked quite good.  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. It works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 15 minutes and buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The grain came alive. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I “painted” the surface of the stem to raise the tooth marks on the vulcanite. I filled in what remained in the surface with black CA glue and set it aside to cure. Once the repair cured I used a flat needle file to smooth out the repairs on the stem surface. I followed that up with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the surface of the stem. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with an Obsidian Oil soaked cloth. The process helped remove the lingering oxidation.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads to remove them. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. I rubbed it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and let it dry. This Jack H. Weinberger (JHW) Tulip Billiard with a vulcanite saddle stem is a great looking pipe with some beautiful grain around the front and sides of the bowl. The grain around the bowl is quite stunning and 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 wheel and followed by buffing the pipe with a clean buffing pad. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Jack H. Weinberger (JHW) Tulip 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 ¾ inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 1.90 ounces/54 grams. 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. I appreciate your support and time!

Restoring a Knute of Denmark Sandblast Freehand with Plateau Rim Top

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by Steve Laug

Jeff and I purchased this pipe on 05/28/2024 from a fellow in Santa Cruz, California, USA. It is well used freehand with a sandblast finish and a plateau rim top. The pipe is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads Knute [over] of Denmark. The stem has no stamp on it and is a fancy turned vulcanite one that fits the shank well. There was a heavy cake in the bowl and lava and debris overflowing onto the plateau rim top filling in the valleys. The finish showed some nice grain around the bowl and shank even through the grime that was ground into it. The stem was oxidized and there were tooth marks and chatter on both sides of the stem ahead of the button. It was a beautiful looking, well carved pipe. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work. He took photos of the rim and bowl to give a sense of what he was dealing with. It is heavily caked and the rim top is filled in with lava and debris. Judging from the condition it is a fine smoking pipe. He also took photos of the stem surfaces to show the condition of the stem when it arrived. The photos of the sides and heel of the bowl show beautiful shape and the way the sandblast flows with that around the bowl and shank sides. The combination of stains adds depth to the finish on the pipe. Even under the grime it is a unique piece. He also took a photo of the stamped name on the underside of shank. It reads as noted above. Before I started my work on the pipe I wanted to remind myself of the provenance of the pipe. I remembered that it was linked to Karl Erik as I have worked on quite a few Knute Freehands. I wanted to know where this pipe fit into the Karl Erik lines so I turned to the first of two sites that I always check to gather information on a brand.  I turned to the first source of information site – Pipephil’s (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-k3.html) got a quick overview on the brand once again connecting it to Karl Erik.I turned to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Karl_Erik). Pipedia had this great picture of Karl Erik Ottendahl and I decided to include it here as a reminder of the artisan who first carved and released this pipe. Reminded of the tie to Karl Erik, I knew a bit about the pipe at hand. I turned to address the pipe itself. There it is clearly identified and linked to Karl Erik Ottendahl. It is designated as a second and frequently having rustication. The interesting thing is that his pipe does not look like a second at all and I wonder if the Knute is a line of Karl Erik’s rather than a second. Who knows? This one is a very well done sandblast and shaped pipe.

Jeff cleaned up the pipe for me. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned it up with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the exterior with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to clean off the grime off the finish and the heavy overflow of lava on the rim top. The cleaning had removed some of the black stain on the rim top. He cleaned up the internals of the shank, mortise and stem with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol to remove all of the oils and tars in the pipe. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and was able to remove much of the oxidation. When it arrived here in Vancouver it was a clean pipe and I knew what I had to work with. I took photos of it before I started my part of the restoration. I took photos of the rim top and the stem to show their condition once it arrived in Canada. Jeff was able to clean up the incredibly thick cake and lava overflow that was shown in the rim and bowl photos above. The plateau and the inner edge of the rim look quite good. He was also able to get rid of the grime and grit in the surface of the briar. The stem looked better, though there were tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button.I have noticed sometimes newer refurbishers don’t seem to pay much attention to the stamping when they are restoring a pipe. To me this is a critical part of the restoration to leave it undamaged as it is the only link we have to who made the pipe. I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank to show that it was readable and undamaged by the cleanup work.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the parts to give a sense of what the pipe looks like. The bowl looked so good at this point, I rubbed it down with Before & After Restoration Balm to deep clean the finish on the bowl and shank. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I worked it in with my fingers to get it into the briar. I used a horsehair shoe brush to work it into the plateau top and shank end.  I let it sit for 10 minutes then I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth. The briar really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. It is a beautiful bowl. I set the bowl aside and worked on the stem at this point in the process. I “painted” the stem surface with the flame of a lighter to lift the tooth marks as much as possible. I filled in the small marks that remained with black CA glue. Once it cured I used a small file to flatten the repairs and reshape the button edge. I sanded the repairs with a folded piece of 220 to start the process of blending them into the surface. I wiped it down with Obsidian Oil. I sanded the stem surface with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to smooth the repairs out further and work out the remnants of oxidation. It is also a way I start polishing the stem. Between each sanding pad I wipe the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I polished the stem with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both fine and extra fine. I finished by wiping the stem down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. I put the stem back on the Knute of Denmark Sandblast Freehand pipe and took the pipe to the buffer. I buffed the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond to polish the briar and the vulcanite. Blue Diamond does a great job on the smaller scratches that remain in the vulcanite. I gave the bowl multiple 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 really nicely with a great contrasting stain look to the briar. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. This is a beautiful Karl Eric Made Knute of Denmark Freehand – the fancy turned stem and plateau rim top give the pipe a great look. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 7 inches, Height: 2 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 2 inches, Chamber diameter: 1 inch. The weight of the pipe is 2.75 ounces/76 grams. This is another pipe that I will be putting on the rebornpipes online store in the Danish Pipemaking Companies Section shortly, if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me on this beauty!

Nording “N” Handcrafted Made in Denmark Freehand with fancy turned vulcanite stem

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by Steve Laug

It was time to turn back to one of the pipes that Jeff and I picked up. This pipe was purchased from an auction on 10/03/21 in Lacon, Illinois, USA. The pipe is Freehand take on a Rhodesian. The grain around the bowl sides, the plateau on the rim top and the rusticated almost leaf pattern on the underside of the bowl. The shank end has a vulcanite shank extension. You can see the flow of straight and flame grain around the bowl and shank. It is stamped on the underside of the shank with a hollow letter N [over] Handcrafted [over] Made in Denmark. There is no other stamping on the pipe. The stem does not have the expected Nording N anywhere on the sides or top. The pipe was very dirty with a thick cake in the bowl and some lava overflowing on to the plateau rim top. It was hard to know what the inner edge of the rim looked like because of the lava and cake. Other than being dirty the finish appeared to be in good condition. The fancy, turned stem was lightly oxidized and had come calcification ahead of the button. There was some tooth chatter and marks on both sides of the stem ahead of the button and on the button surface. Jeff took the following photos of the pipe before he started his clean up work on it. He took a photo of the rim top to show the thick cake in the bowl and the overflow of lava. The cake is thick and hard and the lava overflow is in the plateau. The bowl is dirty but it must have been a great smoking pipe. The stem looked dirty and oxidized with the calcification. The bite marks and tooth chatter on the stem were not too bad and the edge of the button was worn down. The mark on the back side of the bowl is actually more of the plateau running down the side rather than a flaw in the briar. The next photos show the sides and heel of the bowl to give a clear picture of the beauty of the grain around the bowl of the pipe. Under the grime there is some great grain peeking through. Jeff took photos of the stamping to capture the clarity of it even under the grime. The stamping is faint in spots but still readable. It reads as noted above.Before I started my work on the pipe I wanted to learn more about where this pipe fit into the Nording lines so I turned to the first of two sites that I always check to gather information on a brand. I turned first to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/N%C3%B8rding). Nording’s were exclusively freehand shapes, graded from A, B, C, D, up to its highest grade, extra. Later an “F” grade was added—less expensive than the “A.” I could find no other information on the rest of the stamping on the pipe.

I did find a great collage of photos of Erik Nording that I have included below.I turned to the second information site – Pipephil’s (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-n2.html) did not find any more helpful information on the Nording N stamp.

Armed with that information I actually knew no more about this Freehand. I turned to address the pipe itself. Jeff cleaned up the pipe for me. He reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned it up with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the exterior with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to clean off the grime off the finish and the heavy overflow of lava on the rim top. The cleaning had removed some of the black stain on the rim top. He cleaned up the internals of the shank, mortise and stem with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol to remove all of the oils and tars in the pipe. He soaked the stem in Before & After Deoxidizer and was able to remove much of the oxidation. When it arrived here in Vancouver it was a clean pipe and I knew what I had to work with. I took photos of it before I started my part of the restoration. I took photos of the rim top and the stem to show their condition once it arrived in Canada. Jeff was able to clean up the incredibly thick cake and lava overflow that was shown in the rim and bowl photos above. You can see the spots where the black stain had been removed from parts of the plateau top. He was also able to get rid of the grime and grit in the surface of the briar. The inner edge of the bowl was in very good condition and was smooth to the touch. The rim top and edges looked very good. The stem looked much cleaner. There was tooth marks and chatter on both sides on and near the button.I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank. It was clear and readable as noted above.I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the appearance of the parts. You can see how large the pipe is in the photos.I decided to start with polishing the briar and the vulcanite shank extension with micromesh sanding pads. I wet sanded it with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth. The bowl began to take on a rich shine and grain was beginning to stand out.  I paused the polishing to touch up the stain on the plateau rim top and shank end. I used a black stain pen and was able to match the black perfectly. It looks much better.I rubbed the bowl and shank down with Before & After Restoration Balm to deep clean the finish on the bowl and shank. The product works to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I worked it in with my fingers to get it into the briar. I used a horsehair shoe brush to work it into the plateau top.  After it sat for a little while I wiped it off and buffed it with a soft cloth. The briar really began to have a rich shine. I took some photos of the bowl at this point to mark the progress in the restoration. It is a beautiful bowl. I set the bowl aside and worked on the stem at this point in the process. I “painted” the tooth marks in the stem with the flame of a Bic lighter to lift them. I filled in the remaining tooth marks on the stem surface and button edge with black CA glue (forgot to take photos). I set the stem aside to let the repairs cure. I used a small file to flatten the repairs and recut the button edge. I sanded the repairs with 220 grit sandpaper to blend them into the stem surface. I sanded out the scratches in the vulcanite with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with a cloth impregnated with Obsidian Oil. It started to take on a deep shine.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-2400 grit pads and dry sanding with 3200-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with a damp cloth to remove the sanding dust. I used the Before & After Pipe Polish to remove the small minute scratches left in the vulcanite even after the micromesh regimen. I finished by wiping the stem down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and set it aside to dry. I put the stem back on the Nording Made N Handcrafted Made in Denmark Large Freehand and took the pipe to the buffer. I buffed the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond to polish the briar and the vulcanite. Blue Diamond does a great job on the smaller scratches that remain in both. I gave the bowl 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 really nicely with a great contrasting stain look to the briar. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. This is another unique Nording for me – the combination of plateau, rustication and smooth finish along with a vulcanite shank extension. The polished black vulcanite extension and stem looks really good with the reds and blacks standing out in the grain. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches wide x 2 long, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 77 grams/2.79 ounces. This is another pipe that I will be putting it on the rebornpipes online store shortly, if you are interested in adding it to your collection. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me on this beauty!

Restemming and Reclaiming a London Tower Made in London ¼ Bent Bulldog

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by Steve Laug

The next bowl on the table is a classic English looking ¼ Bent Bulldog that I decided to restem. I cleaned up the bowl and matched a stem with briar bowl. It is a cleanup and restore and gives me a break from the routine of my other work on pipes. The bowl is dirty and somewhere in its life before it came to us the stem was lost. The finish was a bit dull and lifeless even though there was a shiny varnish coat. It showed promise under the grit and grime of the years. It was stamped on the left side of the shank and read London Tower in block text. On the right side it read Made In London [over] England. The bowl had a thick cake and some lava overflow on the rim top. The bowl also had some dust and oils ground into the finish of the bowl. There were a few small fills in the shank but the bowl seemed to be free of them. It is a pretty pipe with some great grain and I am hoping to match a nice stem to it. I took some photos of the bowl before I started my work on it. I took a close up photo of the rim top and bowl to give more of a sense of what I see and noted above. It is a dirty pipe but seems to have no damage on the rim top or edges.I took photos of the stamping on the left and right side of the shank. You can see that it is quite clear and readable. There were also some interesting water spots on the briar that are visible in the photos. There may well have been a shape number after the England stamp below and near the bowl but it not clear… potentially some remnants of numbers.I found a stem in my cans of stems that would work well with the pipe. It is interestingly a worn The Everyman Pipe by Comoy’s three bar logo stem and the shape was right for the pipe. The tenon was a Delrin replacement tenon that had been done before I had it and I would need to clean up the tenon end a bit and smooth it out for a clean fit but I think it would look good! Now it was time to learn about the brand itself. I was unfamiliar with the London Tower Brand but there was something about the shape and the way it looked with the Comoy’s Everyman stem above that made me think there was a Comoy’s Connection. Of course, I found nothing on either PipePhil’s site or on Pipedia. Pipedia had a listing for the brand but showed a few photos and asked for information. In essence it asked for the same thing I was looking for.

So, I turned and just did a general Google search for the London Tower Made in London England pipe. Low and behold I was given a link on Smokingpipes.com and two on eBay that connected the pipe to Comoy’s.

Here is the link to the Smokingpipes link that included a phot of the pipe they were selling. (https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/estate/england/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=257202). The description highlighted the stamping and the single photo shows the stamping clearly. I quote below and also have included the photo. The LONDON TOWER stamp is identical to the one I am working on though above it there is a Comoy’s stamp. The little bulldog I am working on does not currently have a Comoy’s stamp and honestly I do not think it did in my case.

A tall-bowled straight Billiard, this Comoy’s may not be amongst those that collectors spend countless waking hours pouring over listings in search of, but it’s still a fine representative of the English school nonetheless. Lightly smoked, but otherwise good condition. – Daniel BumgardnerThe first eBay item listed next was of a saddle stem, sandblast pot that bore the same stamp as the smokingpipes billiard. Here is the link (https://www.ebay.com/itm/145100770839). I include two photos of the pipe and its stamping. London Tower stamp is the same though this one just says Made in England where the one I am working on says Made in London England. The second eBay sale was for a different shaped pipe but the stamping was the same as the smokingpipes billiard – Comoy’s [over] London Tower. And like the one I have here it had some obvious fills (https://www.ebay.com/itm/195608835371?mkevt=1&mkcid=1&mkrid=711-53200-19255-0&campid=5338722076&customid=&toolid=10050).From the information I learned that the London Tower classic shape was in all probability made by Comoy’s and was a seconds line. Now it was time to work on the pipe itself.

I began by reaming the pipe. I used a PipNet Reamer with the first and second cutting heads to take back the heavy cake to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and finally sanded the bowl walls with 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a dowel. I like to remove all the cake to examine the walls for damage and checking. Great news is that this one is free of any damage! I scraped off the rim top and edge of the bowl with the Savinelli Fitsall knife. The inner edge and the top looked to be undamaged.I moved on to using the folded sandpaper to clean up the rim darkening on the pipe as well as further addressing the build up on the rim top. I was definitely looking better when I finished.I cleaned off the shiny coat of varnish on the bowl and shank with a cotton pad and acetone. I also used a dental pick to clean out the twin rings around the cap of the bowl. Once finished it looked better. Surprise, even what I thought was a fill on the top of the shank turned out to be a fleck of paint and it disappeared. I sanded the bowl to blend in the remaining fills to the surface of the bowl and to continue to clean up the rim top and remove any remnants of varnish. I used 320-3500 grit sanding pads and wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cloth to check on the progress. It came out looking much better. I used alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners to clean out the internals of the shank and the new stem. Once finished the pipe smelled as clean as it looked.I decided to put a narrow diamond shank band on the pipe. It is polished nickel and would work well with the three bars on the stem side.  The band came quite deep and I used a Dremel and sanding drum and a topping board to reduce the depth of the band. The first photo below shows the amount of band that I removed from the original band and the shorter band on the shank. I heated the band and pressed it in place on the shank end. It was short enough in depth to no hide any of the stamping. I polished the briar bowl and nickel band with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each pad to remove the debris. The bowl and the band took on a rich glow. I rubbed down the briar Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface with my fingertips. I used a shoe brush to work the balm into the twin rings around the cap. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 15 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 worked on the fit of the stem against the shank as it was slightly larger than the shank. I also worked on removing the tooth indentations and oxidation on the stem surface. I started with 220 grit sandpaper to do the majority of the work and it began to look much better.I sanded out the scratches in the vulcanite with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with a cloth impregnated with Obsidian Oil. It started to take on a deep shine.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – 1500-12000 grit pads to remove them. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil after each sanding pad. I used Before & After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine to further polish the stem. I rubbed it down with a final coat of Obsidian Oil and let it dry. This is another pipe that I am really happy about the finished restoration. This reborn London Tower Made in London England Bent Bulldog turned out really well. I used a vulcanite stem I had here to fit the pipe with a new stem. After restemming I think that it really is a great looking pipe with a great shape and grain. The bowl is a classic English Bent Bulldog that appears to have been made by Comoy’s and the “new” vulcanite stem is close to the original stem. The polished black of the stem works well with the briar. The briar really came alive with the buffing. The rich brown stains of the finish make the grain really pop with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and 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. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished London Tower Bulldog really has a unique beauty and feels great in the hand. It looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 40 grams/1.41 ounces. The pipe will be going on the rebornpipes store soon. It will be in the British Pipemakers Section 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. It was a fun one to work on!

Salvaging a Beautiful Royal Danish from Sixten Ivarsson

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by Kenneth Lieblich

I picked this pipe up recently and was immediately charmed by it. This is a really good-looking Royal Danish 990, designed in 1951 by Sixten Ivarsson. It’s got that lovely tomato shape, with a lovely sandblast, and a lovely smooth panel on each side of the bowl. The combination of smooth and sandblasted briar is very attractive. When I got my hands on it, it was one dirty, dirty pipe. But I was sure this one was going to shine once I worked my magic on it. This is a Royal Danish ball-shaped freehand with a saddle mouthpiece –that’s what the description of Stanwell pipes calls it, though I’ve called it a tomato. I learned from previous research that “Royal Danish” is a Stanwell sub-brand. As is typical of Stanwell sub-brands, the quality is immaculate and it’s not at all obvious why this wasn’t a full-blown Stanwell. This ball is a very attractive shape and it really makes an impression. The underside of the shank reads 990 Royal Danish [over] Made in Denmark and, on the stem, a lovely crown.Both Pipedia and Pipephil list Royal Danish as being a Stanwell sub-brand (and not much else), as per the photo below.The Royal Danish line uses the same shape numbers as Stanwell, but adds a 9 in front. That’s why this pipe corresponds to Stanwell 90. Meanwhile, Pipedia has a good amount of nformation on the Stanwell brand and its history. I certainly recommend looking it over: https://pipedia.org/wiki/Stanwell.

Anyway, this really is a good-looking pipe. No major issues to resolve – just a few minor ones. The stem was very dirty, and had some small dents. There was also some oxidation on the vulcanite. The stummel was sooooo dirty. Inside and outside the bowl were pretty gross. The stummel would need some considerable work to clean. The stem was first on my list. I wiped down the outside of the stem with oil soap on some cotton pads. I also took a BIC lighter and ‘painted’ the stem with its flame in order to lift the bite marks and dents. This worked reasonably well, but I would still need to sort out the dents. The stem was clogged enough that I actually needed to scoop out gunk from inside with a dental tool. Then, I cleaned out the insides of the stem with pipe cleaners and isopropyl alcohol. Once this process was done, I used some cleanser and cotton pads to wipe down the stem before throwing it in the oxidation remover overnight. The following day, I cleaned all of the de-oxidizing mess and again scrubbed with the cleanser on some cotton pads to remove the leftover oxidation. This worked well. I used some silver Rub’n’Buff to restore the crown logo on the stem. I painted the area carefully and let it fully set before proceeding. Before I moved on to the Micromesh pads, I built up the dents on the stem with black, carbon-and-rubber-infused cyanoacrylate adhesive and let them fully cure.At this point, I turned my attention to the bend in the stem – or, rather, the lack of bend. Over time, the stem had gradually uncurled and straightened, so that it now no longer looked quite right. To correct this, I gradually heated the stem with my heat gun and then carefully bent it bank into shape, using a large wooden dowel as my guide. Worked perfectly!I sanded the adhesive down with my needle files to meld seamlessly into the stem. I then used all nine Micromesh pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to bring out the lovely black lustre on the stem. I also used pipe stem oil in between each pad scrubbing (from 3600 on up). On to the stummel, and the usual cleaning procedures were in order for this pipe. I used both the PipNet reamer and some 220-grit sandpaper (taped to a dowel) to remove the enormous amounts of cake and take the bowl down to bare briar, as I wanted to ensure there were no significant flaws in the walls of the bowl. Fortunately, there were none.I then proceeded to clean out the insides of the shank with cotton swabs, pipe cleaners, and isopropyl alcohol. There was considerable filth inside this stummel.I decided to de-ghost the pipe, so I thrust cotton balls into the bowl and the shank and saturated them with 99% isopropyl alcohol. I let the stummel sit overnight. This caused any remaining oils, tars and smells to leach out into the cotton. I followed that up by cleaning the insides with some dish soap and tube brushes. The bowl was nice and clean after this. I then moved on to cleaning the outside of the stummel with oil soap, some cotton pads, and a toothbrush. That removed any latent dirt hidden in the lovely recesses of the sandblast.There were a few nicks on the smooth section of briar on either side of the bowl. In order to try and improve this, I took a wet piece of cotton cloth, draped over the affected area, and used a hot iron to produce steam. This steam can sometimes cause the dents to swell back into place. Since this was a partial sandblast, I only needed to use the Micromesh pads on the smooth sections near the rim and shank. I applied some Before & After Restoration Balm to the wood and let it sit for 20 minutes or so. I then used a horsehair brush to ensure the balm got into those lovely sandblast grooves. The balm does wonderful things to the wood and really emphasizes how beautiful this pipe is. I’m going to be sorry to see it go. I took the pipe to my bench polisher and gave it a thorough going-over with my buffing compound and conservator’s wax. This pipe was a delight from the start and its beauty only increased through the restoration process. This Royal Danish 990 freehand ball is elegant, light, and incredibly comfortable to hold. Finally, 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 ‘Danish’ pipe section of the store here on Steve’s website. You can also email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. The approximate dimensions of the pipe are as follows: length 5 in. (127 mm); height 1½ in. (37 mm); bowl diameter 1¾ in. (44 mm); chamber diameter ¾ in. (19 mm). The weight of the pipe is 1½ oz. (46 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this 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.

Having Fun Restoring Four Charming Pipes

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by Kenneth Lieblich

A great customer of mine recently sent me some pipes for repair and restoration. I was happy to help out and the pipes were sent to me post-haste. There were some surprises to be discovered and challenges to be overcome. On this occasion, I did something different than I usually do: I restored all four at once, rather than one at a time. This blog is more of a show-and-tell than my usual restoration stories. This blog post is going to give a good overview of the restorations but doesn’t need to provide detail on each individual pipe. Let’s jump right in and see what we’ve got.First is a Comoy’s Castleton 126 large straight pot. Second is a Savinelli Oscar 622KS Lucite king size bent pot. Third is a GBD London Made 1978 bent Dublin. Fourth is a Peterson Sherlock Holmes Watson P-lip. All four are very attractive and I’m sure will be good smokers. A first glace at them all suggests that everything is fine, but things are not always what they seem… As I was inspecting the Comoy, I noticed, to my chagrin, that the shank was completely snapped. Someone had glued it back together, but it wasn’t well done and I was going to have to redo it. Similarly, when I dug deeper into the Savinelli, I noticed that there was a lot of damage to the inside of the bowl. That’s a problem! But I’ve got a solution. Fortunately, the GBD and Peterson didn’t have any major issues. That was good news. With all four stems, I wiped down the outside with some oil soap on some cotton rounds. Naturally, the insides needed to be cleaned too, and I did that with some pipe cleaners and 99% isopropyl alcohol. Two of the stems were vulcanite and two were acrylic, so I only needed to soak the vulcanite stems in the deoxidizing liquid. When they were done, I wiped them down with some cleanser on cotton rounds. After that, I sanded all four stems with my Micromesh pads – and I used the pipe stem oil towards the end of the sanding. They all looked so much better when I was done. Next step, of course, was removing all the cake from inside the bowls. I took out my PipNet reamer and my KleenReem and went to work. There was plenty of filth inside and it took a little while to get it all out of four bowls. I followed that up by sanding the insides with a piece of 220-grit sandpaper on a wooden dowel. I also gently scaped down the bowl rims in order to remove any lava there. Working through these pipes reminded me that most of my cleaning techniques for these pipes came from Steve and his brother, Jeff. They personify the standard for which all pipe restorers should strive. Thanks again Jeff and Steve for all your help to me.Before I moved on to cleaning the inside of the stummels, I decided that it made sense, at this point, to take apart the broken shank. This would make it easier to clean. I used my heat gun, softened the glue, and it came apart easily. I wiped down the ends with acetone to ensure that no glue remained.Now, it was time to clean the insides. As usual, I used a truck load of pipe cleaners, cotton swabs, and isopropyl alcohol to get everything spick and span.Following that, I set all four stummels up for a de-ghosting session. The bowls were stuffed with cotton balls and then socked with alcohol. This works to draw out any remaining filth. It really makes things look and smell better. When that was done, I used some soap and tube brushes and scoured the insides. They looked fabulous. I also cleaned the outsides with some oil soap on some cotton rounds.Next, I needed to repair the broken shank on the Comoy and the gouges in the Savinelli. The location of the break on the shank was awkward and wouldn’t allow for a strengthening tube to be installed. So, I simply had to glue it with great care. I used wood glue, as it has the best strength for what was needed. I also coated a couple of cotton swabs with petroleum jelly and shoved them down the shank to prevent any glue from dripping into the shank. I clamped the two parts together and left them overnight. I was quite pleased with the results.Meanwhile, I needed to mix up some heat-resistant epoxy for the Savinelli. I stuck a petroleum-jelly-coated pipe cleaner into the draught hole of the pipe and applied a thin layer of epoxy. I also let this cure overnight. I then sanded down the excess and made the bowl a new coating – a mixture of yoghurt and activated charcoal. This also sat for some hours to try and it makes a wonderful coating for a new cake to build on. I then moved on to sanding down the wood on all four stummels. I used all of my Micromesh pads and endured that everything was smooth and lovely. There was, however, considerable burn damage on the Comoy. After topping the pipe and reshaping it, I decided that this one needed a new stain on the wood. With the broken shank, burns on the rim, and topping, it needed a beauty treatment. I ended up staining this one with Fiebing’s mahogany stain – it turned out absolutely beautifully, but, for whatever reason, the photos here show it as being much darker than it is in person. Trust me: in person, it looks great. All four pipes got a nice coating of the restoration balm and were left to sit for 20 minutes or so. I then buffed them by hand with a microfibre cloth. I took the pipes to my bench buffer and spiffed them all up with some White Diamond and carnauba wax. My last step was to polish the sterling silver band on the Peterson with my jewellery cloth. And voilà! These beauties are already on their way back to their owner. I trust that he will enjoy their new and improved status. I hope you enjoyed reading this quick write-up of this lovely bunch of pipes. If you are interested in my work, please follow me here on Steve’s website or email me directly at kenneth@knightsofthepipe.com. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

Restoring a unique Astley’s Root Briar Specialty Sitter Freehand

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by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the table is a rugged almost primitive looking sitter with unique rustication and carving around the bowl. We picked up from a friend in Santa Cruz, California, USA on 05/28/2024. It is stamped on the flat underside of the bowl and shank and read Astleys [over] 109 Jermyn St [over] London. The rim top was smooth as was the bottom of the bowl and shank. The shank was also smooth. It is a pretty pipe. The bowl had a moderate cake and there was some darkening on the inner edge but no real damage. The rusticated grooves that ran vertically on the bowl were mixed with carved lines and swirls. It was very unique and almost primitive looking. The briar was dirty from use and the bowl looked dull. The stem is a vulcanite saddle stem. It was oxidized, calcified and had tooth marks on the top and underside ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his work on it. He took photos of the rim top and the stem to show the condition. You can see the thick cake in the bowl and lava, darkening and grime on the rim edge. The photos of the stem show the tooth marks and chatter on the top and underside ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the finish around the bowl sides to show carving and rustication around the bowl and the smooth shank. It is very unique looking. You can see the dust and debris in the finish. Jeff took some photos of the stamping on the heel of the bowl to give a sense of the condition. It is faint but still readable with a light. It reads as noted above.I had never seen an Astley’s like this one before. It was a first for me and I took some time to examine it carefully then spent time online seeing what I could find out about the pipe. I turned to Pipephil’s site (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-a8.html) and found a picture of a similar pipe. It is labelled the “Rock Briar” line. To be honest that did not help me much. I think it was not quite right in its labelling so I saved the screen capture below and kept digging.I turned next to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Astley’s) and found a great historic article about the shop and the brand. There was nothing specifically listed about what Pipephil call the Rock Briar line.

Astley’s was both a brand and name of a famous London tobacconist. The first shop was founded in 1862 and was located at 109 Jermyn Street, just down the road from the Charatan’s shop. They sold meerschaum pipes and later classic pipe shaped briar pipes. The owner of this shop was Mr. Paul Bentley whose family owned and ran the shop since the 1930’s. The shop closed some time ago, and the name of the brand was bought by Mordechai (Moty) Ezrati, who also owns the James Upshall pipe brand.

Astley’s served as an extremely exclusive and renowned shopping outlet for outstanding pipes for the British royalty and London gentry alike. Visitors to London sought out this shop as a ‘must visit’ during their stay. Although they never made their own pipes, the Astley branded pipe was made on contract by Charatan (until the 1980’s), James Upshall, Dunhill, L&JS, and Bill Taylor of Ashton pipes. Some sources (The Piperack for instance) say that Comoy’s and GBD had also made pipes for Astley’s. The shop always commanded extremely high prices for their much sought after specimens.

After Charatan had changed hands and was sold to Herman Lane Limited in the United States, Astley’s continued with their high grade pipe sales by presenting some of the best examples of British pipe manufacturing to pipe connoisseurs around the world.

Stamping: Astley’s, 109 Jermyn St, London (before, Wm Astley & Company, 109 Jermyn St S.W. London). Symbol: Styled white ‘A’.

One helpful link sent me to an Astley’s Catalogue I have on rebornpipes. I also have a hard copy here but somehow forgot about it (https://rebornpipes.com/2012/08/10/astleys-pipe-catalogue/). I flipped through the catalogue a page at a time hoping to find a listing of some sort for the “Rock Briar” line that Pipephil noted. Instead I found an almost identical pipe called an Astley’s Root Briar. It was described as follows:

These pipes are made of actual Roots of Briar and are not only unique in shape but can be relied upon to give a cool smoke. Each pipe is flattened underneath to rest upright on almost any surface. Only Astley’s can supply these.

I have included a copy of the page below showing the pipe and the Root Briar Line.Now I knew what I was working on. It is the first of these I have seen. I don’t know if they are rare but it is a first for me. I knew it was Root Briar Sitter that was uniquely carved and very individual in both its shape and look. Now it was time to work on it.

Jeff had done an amazing cleanup of the pipe. He reamed the cake with a PipNet reamer and cleaned up that with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the internals of the bowl and stem with alcohol, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the externals with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and rinsed the bowl off with running water. He soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe stem Deoxidizer and once it had soaked rinsed it off with warm water to remove the residual solution. He dried it off and rubbed it down to remove any oxidation that was still on the stem. The pipe looked very good when I received it. I took photos of the bowl and the rim top as well as both sides of the stem to show the condition of the pipe before I started my work. The rim top was very clean and the inner edge and top look much better. The stem showed light tooth marks on the top and underside near the button. I took the stem off the bowl and took a photo of the parts. It is an interesting pipe. I sanded the smooth portions of the bowl with 320-3500 grit sanding pads carefully avoiding the stamping on the heel. I dry sanded with each pad and wiped it down with a damp cloth afterwards.I polished the briar bowl and shank with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each pad to remove the debris. The bowl took on a rich glow. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the plateau rim top surface with my fingertips and a shoebrush. 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 tooth marks with the flame of a Bic lighter. I was able to lift the majority of them. One remained on the button surface on the top side and on the blade ahead of the button on the underside. Once the repairs cured I used a small file to smooth them out. I sanded repair further with 220 grit sandpaper and blended them into the stem surface. I smoothed out the repaired surface and the rest of the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with Obsidian Oil.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 unusual Astley’s Root Briar Specialty Sitter with a saddle vulcanite stem is a great looking pipe now that it has been restored. The briar is clean and the carving and rustication on the sides and the grain on the rim top and heel really came alive. The rich stains gave the finish a sense of depth on the rustication with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed the pipe with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The finished Astley’s Root Briar Sitter really is a beauty and feels great in the hand and looks very good. Give the finished pipe a look in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches x 2 inches, Chamber diameter: 1 inch. The weight of the pipe is 67 grams/ 2.36 ounces. This beautiful Freehand pipe will soon be on the rebornpipes store in the British Pipemakers Secton. It should make a great smoker for the next trustee. Thanks for reading this blog and my reflections on the pipe while I worked on it. It was a fun one to work on.

New Life for a Royal Demuth Mixed Finish Silver Rim Cap Patriotic 44 Billiard

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by Steve Laug

I decided work on this interesting Royal Demuth mixed finish billiard next. Jeff pick up from an auction in Blue Springs, Missouri, USA on 05/07/20. So, it has been here for a while. It had a silver rim cap and band on the shank. The bowl has some unique rustication on the sides of the bowl and a carving of an eagle standing on a shield with the stars and stripes inside. The eagle has its wings extended. The carving is well done and very tactile. The pipe is stamped on the left side of the shank and reads WDC in a triangle [followed by] Royal [over] Demuth. On the right side it is stamped Imported Briar [over] Briar Root [followed by] the shape number 44. On the underside of the shank it is stamped FILTER PAT’D [over] 1934. The stem has no markings or stampings. The stem is a replacement I believe as it does not have the filter tenon as noted on the shank. It is vulcanite with a fishtail taper stem. It is lightly oxidized and has some tooth marks on the top and underside of the stem near the button. The bowl had a thick cake in it and some bits and bobs of tobacco stuck to the walls. There was a thick lava coat on the rim top and edges. The silver rim cap is tarnished as is the silver band on the shank end. The finish was dirty but still winsome in some strange way. Jeff took some photos of the pipe before he started working on it. He took photos of the rim top and stem to show the general condition of the pipe. The bowl is heavily caked and the rim top and edges have a heavy coat of lava overflowing on to them. The silver rim cap is also tarnished as is the band on the shank. The stem is oxidized and has tooth chatter and marks on both sides ahead of the button end. He took photos of the finish and carving around the sides and heel of the bowl. It is a combination of rustication carved between smooth bands on the bowl sides and the shank. It is unique and very interesting. He took photos of the carving on the bowl front and the stamping on the sides of the shank. You can see that it is clear and readable. It reads as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the parts to show how the pipe looks.   I looked on Pipephil’s site and though there were many WDC pipes there was nothing stamped Royal Demuth and nothing with any of the other stamping on the shank sides of this pipe. I turned then to Pipedia (https://pipedia.org/wiki/William_Demuth_Company). As always there is a great history of this American brand. If you are interested be sure to turn there and take time to read about it.

Royal Demuth example with box and filters, courtesy of Doug Valitchka

There was an interesting example of the Royal Demuth provided by Doug Valitchka that has identical stamping to the one that I am working on. It is a different shape but it identical in terms of the stamping. It also looks like it takes a filter that is similar to the Medico filter but I will double check that once it is thoroughly cleaned. This series of photos confirm that the stem on the pipe I am working on is a replacement as it is a push stem. There was also an advertisement for the WDC Changeable Filter Pipes that included the Royal Demuth. I have included that below. There is also a great article by Ben Rapaport on the Demuth – Dunhill Connection that is an enjoyable read (https://pipedia.org/wiki/A_Demuth%E2%80%94Dunhill_Connection%3F).

I now knew that the pipe was part of a line of Filter Pipes that WDC put out and that the filter system was patented in 1934. The stamping that the Filter was Pat’d 1934 tells that it came out after the patent was granted. However, I could not fine tune the date more than that. I also knew that the pipe I was working on was an older one but that it had been restemmed sometime in its life.

I did a bit more digging to see if I could find anything on the Royal Demuth pipe I was working on with the same stamping but also with a carved Eagle and Shield on the front of the bowl. I googled that and found two examples of the same type of carving on Worthpoint. I have included both descriptions given by the seller as well as photos.

Here is the first of the sale pipes listed: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/world-war-ii-wdc-royal-demuth-filter-1797860035

World War II era WDC Royal Demuth, says “Filter Patent’d 1934 on the bottom, “Imported Briar Root’ and the number 28 on the left side, has an Eagle and Shield motif carved into the bowl, this was on of the patriotic pipes they came out with during the war. In pretty good shape, some minor chatter on the stem, a little bit of wear on the rim. The Royal Demuths are generally considered some of the best WDC pipes.Here is the second of the sale pipes listed: https://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/estate-royal-demuth-pipe-carved-american-eagle

I have up for auction estate Royal Demuth pipe. It is marked on both sides and the bottom. The side that has the name also has a triangle with the letters, W, C, D inside. The other side has, Imported Briar Root, # 11. The bottom has, Filter Pat’d 1931. I am unsure of the actual date mark is does have some wear. The bowl has a beautiful American Eagle standing on a shield with 4 stars and stripes. The bowl has a strip of sterling on the rim and a band on the stem. The band is marked Sterling and has a square with a sideways anchor in it, a T in a square, and a lion in rectangle. I do not know the name of this company. The pipe is a well loved pipe and has been used. Some of the pictures were taken before I cleaned the silver.

From these sale sites I learned that the pipe I was working on was a World War II era WDC Royal Demuth. The patent date gave a start date and thus I knew it was made after that. It also has an Eagle and Shield motif carved into the bowl and the first seller surmised that it was one of the patriotic pipes that came out with during the war. I also knew that the stem was replaced sometime later and did not have the filter system expected on this pipe.

When I received it from Jeff it did not look like the same pipe. It was clean and the finish had life. He reamed it with a PipNet pipe reamer and got rid of the cake. He cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife so that we could see the walls of the bowl and assess for damage. It was in good condition. He cleaned the internals of the shank and stem with cotton swabs, pipe cleaners and alcohol. He scrubbed the exterior with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush. He rinsed the pipe under warm water. He dried it off with a cloth and then let it air dry. He scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub and soaked it in Briarville’s Stem Deoxidizer. He rinsed it with warm water and dried it off with a soft cloth. It came out looking very good. The finish on the bowl and the rim top cleaned up nicely. I took pictures of the pipe to show how it looked when I brought it to the table. I took some photos of the rim top and stem to show the condition of them both when the pipe arrived. The rim top had some damage to the inner edge of the bowl and some marks on the top surface. Overall it looked very good. The oxidation on the stem had come off very well and the tooth marks chatter in the surface of the stem were visible. I took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank. It was clear and readable as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the appearance of the parts. It is a beauty. I started my work on the pipe by polishing the metal rim cap, edges and shank band. I polished it with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to polish out the scratches in the metal. It looked much better at this point in the process. I polished the metal cap and band with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each pad to remove the debris. The metal took on a rich glow. I rubbed the bowl down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the briar with my fingertips and a horse hair shoe brush to clean, enliven and protect it. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. Mark Hoover’s Balm is a product that I have come to appreciate and one I use on every pipe I have been working on. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I had been thinking about the replacement stem and went through my cans of stem to see if I could find a WDC stem with the triangle logo on the left side. The amazing thing was I found one!!. The metal tenon (made for the WDC filters) was misshaped and was larger next to the stem than the mortise end. I used a small file and a Dremel and sanding drum to even us the diameter of the tenon all the way from the end to the stem end. It took some work but it worked well and the end result was the stem fit in the shank well. The diameter of the metal spacer was taller at the top than at the bottom. The measurements showed that from the tenon to the stem top was larger than the distance from the bottom edge. I would need to shape and work out that shape.  I took off some of the metal and vulcanite on the top half of the stem with the Dremel and sanding drum. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the sanding marks from the Dremel. Once I had smooth them out I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit sanding pads to further blend them in and smooth out the surface of the stem.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with some Obsidian Oil. I finished hand polishing it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – Fine and Extra Fine. I rubbed it down with another coat of Obsidian Oil and let it dry. The stem really was beginning to look very good. This is a beautiful WDC Royal Demuth Silver Capped and Banded Billiard with a fitted filter vulcanite stem. The flat bottom makes it a sitter that is well balanced. The shape fits well in the hand with the curve of the bowl makes it a great pipe to hold. I polished stem with Blue Diamond polish on the buffing wheel. I gave the rusticated bowl and carvings on the bowl front multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax. I gave the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up pretty nicely. The rich combination of black and dark brown stains gave the sandblast a sense of depth. The pipe took on life with the buffing. The rich colour of the briar and the polished silver rim cap and shank band works well with the polished stem. Have a look at it with the photos below. The shape, finish and flow of the pipe and stem are very well done. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 1/8 inches, Chamber diameter: 5/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 33 grams/1.16 ounces. This American Made Silver Capped and Banded Filter Billiard is a real beauty. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over another beautiful pipe. This one will be going on the rebornpipes store in the American Pipe Makers Section shortly if you would like to add it to your collection. Thanks for your time.