Tag Archives: super glue

Cracking the Mystery of an Alluring Gourd Calabash

by Kenneth Lieblich

This is a wonderful gourd calabash with a long history, and I hope that one of you will fall in love with it. There is an elegance to the lines of this pipe, with its swan-like curves. It is a classic, and looks (and feels) satisfying in one’s hand. It had been well-loved by its previous owner, and understandably so. This calabash hid a big secret and it was my job to uncover and repair it. Sometimes I bite off more than I can chew and this might be one of those times. Maybe this should have been called Kenneth’s Krazy Kalabash Kure. No markings at all on this pipe, but no matter. Let’s take a closer look at it. The gourd has a deep, rich colour that I really like. The size is really pleasing too. It is more modestly sized than most calabashes – and that’s a positive. I bought this pipe in an auction and, because the auction was away from my home, I didn’t get to inspect the pipe closely beforehand. Boy, was I in for a surprise! The pipe was in dirty but decent condition. The vulcanite stem had quite a bit of wear: lots of tooth marks, oxidation, calcification, etc. The acrylic shank extension was dirty, but otherwise fine. The gourd, similarly, was dirty, but in good shape. BUT, as soon as I removed the meerschaum bowl from the gourd, I saw the problem. At some point in the past, the bowl had cracked in half: northern and southern hemispheres, if you like. That’s a big deal! This was a tough repair, but I am pleased with the results and the pipe is good to go now.As the photo above shows, the bottom part of the bowl was embedded into the gourd. I gave a preliminary and somewhat half-hearted attempt to pry it out with a dental tool. That didn’t work and it’s probably just as well. In attempting to pry it out, I was quite concerned about either cracking the gourd or cracking the bowl further – or both. I ended up heating the gourd and bowl with my heat gun – hoping that ancient tars were holding it in place. And that did the trick: I was able to extract the bottom bowl chunk (plus a few fragments) safely from the gourd without causing further damage to either. You can see the results below.At this point, I figured that I would restore the stem while I thought about what to do with the bowl. I used a disposable lighter and ‘painted’ the stem with its flame. The gentle heat of the flame can cause the dents in the vulcanite of the stem to expand back into shape. In this case, some improvement occurred – but not a lot. The stem’s calcification was quite substantial. I used an old butter knife and gently scraped some of the thicker accretion off. Doing this now helps later in removing the oxidation. I used isopropyl alcohol on a few cotton rounds and wiped down the stem to provide an initial cleaning of filth before moving on to the next steps. The primary cleaning came next. I disinfected the inside of the stem with both pipe cleaners and cotton swabs dipped in lemon-infused 99% isopropyl alcohol. I scrubbed thoroughly to make sure the interior was very clean. The goal of the next step is the removal (or minimization) of oxidation. Going to my sink, I used cream cleanser, cotton rounds, and a toothbrush, and scoured the stem to remove as much surface oxidation as possible. As the photos show, the result was a hideous, ochre-coloured mess – but better off the stem than on it.Once the stem was reasonably clean, I soaked it overnight in some Briarville Stem Oxidation Remover. This solution works to draw oxidation in the stem to the surface of the vulcanite. This is a major aid and an important step in ensuring a clean stem. The following day, I drew out the stem from its bath and scrubbed the lingering fluid with a toothbrush. Due to the severity of the oxidation, I then repeated the scrubbing with the cream cleanser for maximum effect.While the stem was soaking, I also cleaned the acrylic shank extension. I followed the same cleaning procedure as with the stem. It took a while, but I got it clean.As the stem was now clean and dry, I set about fixing the marks and dents in the vulcanite. This was done by filling those divots with black cyanoacrylate adhesive, impregnated with carbon and rubber. I left this to cure and moved on.The penultimate step for the stem is sanding. First, with my set of needle files, I reduced the bulk of the cyanoacrylate repairs. I removed the excess adhesive as near to the surface as possible, without cutting into the vulcanite. Following that, I used all nine of the micromesh sanding pads (1,500 through 12,000 grit) to sand out flaws, even out the vulcanite, and provide gentle polishing of the finished surface. I also applied pipe-stem oil while using the last five micromesh pads. There was a wonderful, deep black shine to the stem when I was done. I did the same with the shank extension. I moved on to the gourd. I cleaned the exterior of the gourd with some pH-neutral detergent and some distilled water, on a few cotton rounds. I cleaned inside of the gourd gently by scraping with my reaming knife, tube brushes, and some other tools. I was pleased with the results. I gave the gourd a thorough going-over with some beeswax polish and let that sit. I buffed it with a microfibre cloth and then, much later, I rubbed some LBE Before & After Restoration Balm into the gourd and let it sit for 30 minutes or so. I then buffed the gourd again with a microfibre cloth. On to the bowl. Meerschaum is too fragile for a proper reamer, so I used 220-grit sandpaper on the end of a wooden dowel to clean out the bowl and it turned out well. One of the frustrations of cleaning meerschaum is that once smoked, the stains never go away – and this pipe was heavily smoked. However, I did what I could and it definitely improved.Now with the stem, shank extension, gourd, and meerschaum cleaning done, it was time to put Humpty Dumpty back together again. Before repairing the separated chunks of the bowl, I needed to secure the two hemispheres together. This was not intended to be the critical attachment point, but just a solid method of marrying the two pieces. I used an adhesive for ceramics and clay – not because meerschaum is ceramic or clay (it isn’t) – but it does mimic certain characteristics of those insofar as it is very porous. This adhesive worked perfectly – it did exactly what I wanted it to. I was also able to attach the small shards of meerschaum that were left over (as seen in photos above).Now to go ‘all in’ on the repair of those missing chunks. I taped off the areas of the bowl that I didn’t want affected by the repair medium. This was a long and challenging repair and went through several failed attempts (which I won’t bore you with). Some failures included plaster of Paris, amalgams involving primarily calcium carbonate, and other ingredients (like leather dye). In the end, I came up with a good solution that maintains the integrity of the bowl shape, gives an incredibly resilient (and hard) repair, is resistant to high temperatures, and is completely inert when cured. After much trial and error, I settled on a particular type of epoxy mixed with a combination of the aforementioned calcium carbonate and briar dust. You might reasonably ask, ‘Why calcium carbonate?’ Good question. It is a material that best acts as a repair medium for meerschaum and I encourage you to read an important article I wrote about the issue here. You may also ask, ‘Why briar dust?’ Also a good question. This provided a slight brownish tint to the epoxy and CaCO₃ mixture. Matching the surrounding colour was always going to be an impossibility, but I wanted to do the best I could.

I mixed my concoction and applied it liberally to the affected areas. During this process, the epoxy mix was much less viscous than I had hoped it to be. This was a big problem as it was oozing in ways that I didn’t want it to! However, like the trooper I am, I fiddled and fixed and floundered until I got it just right. It needed a full 24-hour cure and I was only too happy to leave the frustrating thing alone for a while!In the meantime, I glued the shank extension back into place in the gourd. Looks great.On the morrow – no surprise – the bowl was pretty darn ugly, but I can fix ugly. I donned a tight-fitting dust mask and went to work. My goal, of course, was to sand down excess epoxy and bring it to the level of the surrounding meerschaum, while simultaneously not reducing the bulk of the meerschaum. This took a lot of hard and careful work (plus a few touch ups), but we got there in the end. I am satisfied with the results, since the repair was never going to look invisible. The benefit of this pipe is that the repair is hidden from view, below the rim of the gourd. I then sanded down the entire piece of meerschaum with my Micromesh pads. I also rubbed two different beeswax polishes into the meerschaum. Then I let it sit for 20 minutes, buffed it with a microfiber cloth and then repeated the beeswax process. Worked like a charm! Before I went off to the buffer, I gave the meer and the gourd another going over with Clapham’s beeswax rub. This really worked well. I only took the stem to the buffer, as meerschaum and gourds don’t tolerate those high speeds very well!

This gourd calabash was a delightful can of worms right from the start and its beauty only increased through the restoration process. 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 ‘Calabash’ 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 6½ in. (165 mm); height 4½ in. (115 mm); bowl diameter 2⅛ in. (54 mm); chamber diameter ⅞ in. (21 mm). The weight of the pipe is 2⅜ oz. (68 g). I hope you enjoyed reading the story of this pipe’s restoration as much as I enjoyed restoring it. If you are interested in more of my work, please follow me here on Steve’s website or send me an email. Thank you very much for reading and, as always, I welcome and encourage your comments.

The third of a foursome of Beautiful pipes sent to me with Potential Burn Out Issues

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

On November 29 I received an email from a fellow regarding a Moretti that came to him from a dear friend. He stated that it had a burnout and that he had someone ream it for him. I have included his first email below.

Steve, I have a Moretti pipe that belonged to a dear friend. It had a burnout and I had the bowl reamed, but I’m afraid to smoke it. Can you offer a suggestion of how the inside of the bowl can be treated against possible future burnout, or can you fit the bowl with either a meerschaum or graphite liner? – Michael

We talked back and forth regarding the pipe and various options for repair. I agreed to work on them and told him to mail it to me. Once he packed it he added another three pipes to the box that he was sure had the same issues. He mailed them to me on December 8 and sent me another email.

You have convinced me that you’re the person who can help restore my pipes! I shipped 4 pipes to you today by USPS, and declared their value at $5 each for a total of $20 as you requested. I’m embarrassed to admit it, but all four have had burnout issues and I’m hoping that you can clean them out and coat the inside of the bowls as you described. If you feel that more effort is needed, please let me know.

On December 28^th I received the package from Michael. I opened the box and inside there were four beautiful Italian Made pipes. I have listed them below and included photos of the pipes.

Savinelli Autograph Sandblast Bent Cherrywood
2008 Ardor DR bent Dublin
Mastro Beraldi 2 Bent Dublin
2005 Moretti 1 Bent Rhodesian

The third pipe I brought to the table is a Savinelli Autograph Sandblast Bent Cherrywood. Overall it looks very good. It is stamped on smooth heel of the bowl and reads Savinelli [over] Autograph [followed by] Made in [over] Italy and to the right it is stamped with a 2. The stamping is clear and very readable. The pipe has a mix of black, brown and oxblood stains on a sandblast finish and the blast shows amazing grain that the shape follows well. The crowned rim cap is also sandblast and the heel of the bowl is smooth in a patch that bears the stamping. The shank end is a blue/white acrylic. The finish was very clean and the bowl had a light cake on the walls but the rim top was clean. I inspected the walls of the bowl and could not find any issues or divots in the walls. I spoke with Michael and he mentioned that it looked like it had some small checking/cracking on the walls of the bowl. Initial inspection reveals that the light cracking in the cake on the bowl walls. I would need to examine it further once it had been reamed and cleaned. The acrylic black original saddle stem is on the pipe and has an autograph on the top of the taper. The stem showed light tooth marks or chatter on both sides. I took photos of the pipe to show what it looked like before I started working on it. I took photos of the bowl and rim top to show the clean finish on the bowl. The photos show a moderate cake in the bowl and a very clean rim top. The stem photos show the condition of the taper stem ahead of the button. I took photos of the stamping on the left and underside of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the pipe to give a sense of the proportions of the pipe.I wanted to remind myself a bit about the Autograph line from Savinelli so I reread a blog I had written on a previous Autograph restoration (https://rebornpipes.com/2019/01/05/restoring-a-savinelli-autograph-3-rhodesian-dublin-long-shank/). I quote a portion of the blog now:

I turned first to the Pipephil website (http://www.pipephil.eu/logos/en/logo-savinelli1.html) to get a brief overview of the Autograph line. There I found out that the Autographs were hand made and unique. The Autograph Grading system is ascending: 3, 4, … 8, 0, 00, 000.

I turned then to Pipedia to get a more background on the Autograph line. I had the outline I needed from pipephil for the pipe but wanted more (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Savinelli). I quote in part from the article on that site.

While Savinelli’s serially produced pipes account for around 98% of annual production, the marque also creates a number of artisanal, handmade pieces as well. The Autographs, the Creativity line, and the Mr. A. line are all the result of Savinelli’s unique handmade process, with the Autographs reflecting the larger Freehand aesthetic, the Creativity line delving into more complex hand carving, and the Mr. A. line sidestepping the standard shape chart for remarkable and unusual pipes.

All of the briar for Savinelli’s Autographs and other freehand pipes is sourced specifically for those pieces. While the majority of the marque’s serial production is made from extra grade ebauchon blocks, Savinelli keeps a separate supply of Extra Extra plateau blocks for Freehands. This variety of briar is much larger, and of a higher quality, which explains why so many Autographs and Savinelli handmades are naturally larger designs.

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

“When we choose to make Freehand pipes we must stop production on the standard shapes. The process for Freehands is much more involved and takes much more time. Finding the best people from the production line and pulling them to make Freehands is challenging since it’s not an assembly line, but rather a one or two man operation.

After the rough shaping of the stummel, we must get together and brainstorm which style of stem will be paired before the pipe can be finished since we do not use pre-shaped stems. All accents and stems for the Freehands are cut from rod here in the factory. A lot of care goes into the few pieces lucky enough to make the cut; to end up with a certain number of Autographs, for instance, means that many, many more will be made, and only the few will be selected.”

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

I turned to work on the pipe itself. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the cutting heads 2 and 3. I finished the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls of the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a piece of dowel. I turned to work on the pipe itself. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer using the cutting heads 2 and 3. I finished the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. I sanded the walls of the bowl with 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a piece of dowel. I then thoroughly cleaned the bowl walls, shank and the airway in the stem. I used cotton swabs, pipe cleaners (both bristle and regular) and Isopropyl alcohol.I scrubbed the bowl and shank with a tooth brush and some undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap. I rinsed it off with warm water to remove the dust and soap from the finish. I dried it off with a soft cloth and it looked much better. I rubbed the briar down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the briar with my fingertips to work it into the finish. The product works to clean, enliven and preserve the briar. I let it sit for 10 minutes then I buffed it with a cotton cloth to deepen the shine. The briar really comes alive with the balm. I examined the cleaned walls of the bowl and found a divot on the left side of the bowl half way down across the side. I could feel it with my fingers. I wiped the bowl clean with a cotton pad and alcohol to remove any debris on the surface. I mixed a batch of JB Weld to repair the divot on the bowl wall. I pressed it into the damaged area with a tooth pick and a dental spatula. I set the bowl aside for the repair to cure. Once it cured I sanded it smooth with a piece of 220 grit sandpaper wrapped around a piece of dowel to smooth out the repair. I wiped it down with a damp pad to remove the sanding debris.I mixed a bowl coating of sour cream and activated charcoal powder. I inserted a pipe cleaner in the airway entrance to the bowl to keep it open. I applied it to the walls of the pipe with a folded pipe cleaner and repeated it until I had the walls thoroughly covered. I set the bowl aside and worked on the stem. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch pads. I wiped the stem down with an Obsidian Oil cloth after each sanding pad. I polished the acrylic 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. I the polished mottled brown acrylic taper stem and the Savinelli Autograph 2 Cherrywood bowl with Blue Diamond to polish out the remaining small scratches and raise the shine. I gave the stem and the bowl several coats of Carnauba Wax then 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. This turned out to be a beautiful Savinelli Autograph 2 with a black acrylic saddle stem. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches wide x 1 ¾ inches long, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 2.08 ounces/58 grams. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked this beautiful Bent Dublin. This one will join the first one I restored both will await my completion of the work on the other two pipes Michael sent me. Thanks for looking.

Rethinking the Repair of Damaged Stems

4 Replies

by Kenneth Lieblich

Welcome to another installment of my Pipe Incident Reports. The idea, in general, is to provide a brief write-up – focusing on a particular pipe-restoration-related issue – rather than an entire restoration story. I’ve been blessed by a precious few God-given talents in my life, but innovation is not among them. I’m not usually able to come up with groundbreaking ideas to do things differently. Having said that, I do try and improve my repair/restoration skills, techniques, and procedures wherever I can. One can call it kaizen or whatever, but I try to find better ways of restoring pipes.Today, I am attempting to improve the process of repairing stem bite-throughs by incorporating steel mesh. Now, you might be thinking, ‘That’s not a sentence I ever expected to read’, and you are justified in that thought.

Many pipe repairmen have used various methods for repairing bite-throughs (holes) in vulcanite. Normally, this involves mixing cyanoacrylate adhesive with activated charcoal or powdered vulcanite. Some fellows have also tried some sort of epoxy to bring the stem back to life. In fact, when I started doing pipe repairs, I used that mixture of cyanoacrylate adhesive and activated charcoal. Then I discovered a black-tinted cyanoacrylate adhesive that came pre-mixed with rubber and charcoal. I introduced this product to Steve and it’s what he and I have been using ever since. However, I have always wondered about the durability of these repairs – especially against the bite of a man’s jaw. I wondered, could there be a better way?

Maybe. Read on, but please note: what I am proposing is NOT a complete solution. This is an idea that I hope someone will take and turn into a workable method.

I decided to test a pipe-stem repair with the aforementioned adhesive built around a stainless-steel wire-mesh structure. My thinking is that this would enhance the strength and durability of said repairs. For any engineers or scientists reading this article, please know that I have no scientific background and I am not equipped to conduct accurate tests of compressive or tensile strength. I am merely running an idea up the proverbial flagpole and seeing who salutes it. I hope that someone reading this will take the idea and, either, discredit it or expand upon it. The experiment I describe below is just that: an experiment. It is, possibly, a proof of concept – but certainly not the final step.

The idea came to me one day as I saw some sort of wire mesh being used in a concrete foundation. This mesh is used in construction to control cracking, to distribute stress, and add tensile strength. Perhaps it can be used, in like manner, where a large vulcanite repair is needed. My encounter with the concrete was providential because I had recently acquired a large lot of pipes, many of which had damaged stems. There was one stem in particular that stood out as a candidate for this experiment. Here it is: This is a stem that I would normally likely toss in the garbage, unless a customer specifically asked me to repair it. The damage is obviously serious. Ironically, this brutal damage actually makes this stem the perfect patient for this type of surgery.

Here is the stainless-steel woven wire mesh. For those of you who know such things, this mesh has a mesh number of 200. It can be acquired inexpensively and comes in various mesh numbers. The larger the number, the finer the holes in the mesh. To be frank, my selection of 200 was pure guesswork. I didn’t really have a sense of what would be best – other than to say that it needed to be fine enough to prevent the adhesive from pouring straight through.On with the work! I first needed to create a platform upon which the adhesive and mesh could rest. This was obviously essential in order to maintain the draught hole in the bit. In the first photo below, you’ll see that I used cardboard, but I immediately abandoned that idea (I’ll explain why momentarily). I am displaying this photo in order to demonstrate my use of a pencil to scribe the precise shape of the missing section of vulcanite.I quickly eliminated the cardboard idea because it just isn’t as useful a material for this purpose. Instead, I used several layers of duct tape as my substrate. I can still scribe a line on the duct tape, but – more importantly – cyanoacrylate adhesive doesn’t stick to it. In other words, once the work had fully cured, I could readily remove the duct tape without affecting the repair.

With my scribed line, I was able to transfer the pattern of the absent vulcanite on to the wire mesh and cut it to shape. Truth be told, it would probably be better to use welded wire mesh, but I have no idea where you acquire that in such a small mesh number. Anyway, before cutting the wire mesh, I took the critical steps of (1) gently sanding the mesh with sandpaper to provide a slightly rough surface to maximize the adhesive bond, and (2) cleaning the mesh thoroughly with acetone, to remove any sanding grit and any other substance that would inhibit a good adhesive bond.

And away we go! It is important to apply the cyanoacrylate adhesive in thin layers, rather than one thick blob. I chose to apply a layer, spray it with an accelerator, apply another layer, etc. – until I was satisfied. Once complete, I left it to sit overnight and came back the next day. I freely admit that I am still concerned about the brittleness of this repair, but I think this is definitely a step in the right direction. Naturally, shaping and sanding was the next step – and this took a while. I should emphasise at this point that I didn’t employ the same attention to detail on this stem, as I would on a stem for a customer. I just wanted to get this done and see if it would work. As I sanded with needle files and sanding pads, I shaped the button and melded the repair into the surrounding vulcanite. You can see the results below. It’s pretty good and I’m sure it would look even better if I was doing it for sale or for a customer.

Some final thoughts: I think there is a rudimentary idea here. I feel confident in saying that the repair itself is likely stronger and more resilient with the mesh than without. However, I am apprehensive about whether the brittleness of the cyanoacrylate adhesive is improved or not – and I’m not sure how to reasonably overcome that issue (other than trying epoxy). Another problem that still exists is that there is no direct connection between the mesh and the pre-existing vulcanite. This surely isn’t helpful. It is at the edges – where the adhesive meets the vulcanite – that the bond must be weakest. Next steps might include (1) embedding the wire mesh in an epoxy – this might be the best way of addressing brittleness; (2) overlaying the wire mesh on the original vulcanite to create a bridge structure (although this creates its own big problems); (3) developing a way of affixing the mesh to the vulcanite.

Now, over to you! What do you think of this idea? How would you improve it? What are the next steps? What colossal errors have I made? Please let me know what you think in the comments below. If you make use of the ideas from this experiment in your pipe work, please let me know how it goes. I hope you enjoyed reading this installment of my Pipe Incident Reports – I look forward to writing more. 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.

New Life for a Republic Era Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky 15 Rusticated Billiard

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table is a sandblast Peterson’s Rusitcated Billiard shaped pipe that we purchased from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 11/21/2023. It was stamped on the underside of the bowl and shank and on the heel, it was stamped Peterson’s [over] “Donegal” Rocky [over] the shape number 15. Following that it read, Made in the Republic of Ireland (in three lines). There is a band on the shank that is stamped on the left side and reads K&P in shields [over] Sterling Silver. Under those stamps there are three hallmarks – Hibernia seated, Crowned Harp for country of manufacture and a date letter in this case that was not readable. It has a rusticated finish around the bowl and shank that has a lot of oils, debris and grime in the finish. The pipe had been recently reamed and there was a light cake in the bowl and a lava overflow in the rustication on the rim top. The inner edge of the bowl looks to be in good condition. There was a very beautiful pipe underneath all of the buildup of years of use. The stem was a Peterson’s style P-Lip Taper Stem. It had light chatter on both sides ahead of the button. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show the thin cake in the bowl and the light lava build up on the rusticated rim top and the edges of the bowl. The rim top and edges looked good. Jeff took photos of the top and underside of the stem showing the tooth chatter on an otherwise good looking stem. More would be visible once Jeff cleaned it up. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the condition of the finish. You can see the dust and grime around the sides of the bowl and shank in the rusticated finish. Jeff took photos of the stamping on the underside of the bowl and shank. The stamping was faint but readable as you can see from the photos. It read as noted above. The Sterling Silver ferrule is actually clearly stamped and readable. The hallmarks are worn and hardly readable.I am including the information from Pipedia’s article on Peterson pipes. It is a great read in terms of the history of the brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Peterson). I have included a bit of the pertinent history here.

1950 – 1989 The Republic Era – From 1950 to the present time, the stamp for this era is “Made in the Republic of Ireland” in a block format generally in three lines but two lines have been used with or without Republic being abbreviated.

During the 1950’s and 60’s the Kapp & Peterson Company was still in the ownership of the Kapp family. However 1964 saw the retiral of the company Managing Director Frederick Henry(Harry) Kapp.

Jeff had done a great job cleaning up the pipe as usual. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet reamer and cut back the cake back to the bare briar. He cleaned up the walls with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the interior of the bowl and shank with pipe cleaners, cotton swabs and alcohol to remove the tars and oils. He scrubbed the exterior of the pipe with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime from the finish. He worked on the rim top lava and darkening with the soap and tooth brush. He scrubbed the inside of the stem with alcohol and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the exterior of the stem with Soft Scrub and then soaked it in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer. He rinsed it off with warm water to remove the Deoxidizer. The pipe looked far better when it arrived. The silver tarnished once again and would need to be polished because it had been sitting here for awhile. I took some close up photos of the rim top and also of the stem surface. I wanted to show how well it had cleaned up. The rim top and edges look quite good. I also took close up photos of the stem to show the light tooth marks on the surface near the button.I took a photo of the stamping on the underside of the shank and the band. You can see that it is stamped as noted above. It is faint but still readable. I took the pipe apart and took a photo of the pipe. It is a good-looking pipe and has a rugged rustication around the bowl. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my fingertips and a horsehair shoe brush to clean, enliven and protect the briar. I let the balm sit for 10 minutes and then buffed with a cotton cloth to raise the shine. The photos show the bowl at this point in the restoration process. I polished the Sterling Silver band on the shank with a jeweller’s cloth to remove the tarnish and polish it. I touch up the P stamp on the left side of the saddle stem with some white acrylic fingernail polish. I pressed it into the stamp with a toothpick and scraped off the excess with the pick and then lightly sanded it with a worn 1200 grit sanding pad. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. It works to protect the stem from oxidizing. I set it aside to dry. I am excited to finish this Republic Era Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky 15 Billiard. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Conservator’s Wax and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I hand buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with the rugged rustication all around it. Added to that the polished Sterling Silver band and the black vulcanite stem was beautiful. This rusticated Classic Peterson’s “Donegal” Rocky Billiard is nice looking and the pipe feels great in my hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 5 ½ inches, Height: 1 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 29 grams/1.06 ounces. It is a beautiful pipe and one that will be on the Irish Pipe Makers Section of the rebornpipes store soon. If you are interested in adding it to your collection let me know. Thanks for walking through the restoration with me as I worked over this pipe. Thanks to each of you who are reading this blog.

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

Restoring a Osman Tall Meerschaum Billiard with a Bakelite Stem

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

Last evening but for quitting for the night I decided to work on another pipe that I no longer know where or when we purchased it. It is another pipe from a large box of Meerschaum pipes that is sitting in my storage that I need to clean up and restore. I have honestly avoided them for years but now was the time to start my work on some of them. The one I chose was a Tall Billiard or almost a stack. It is a smooth meerschaum with what appears to be a Bakelite stem. It is a beautifully shaped meer with nicks and scratches from its journey and some nice patina developing around the shank and sides. The meer is very dirty from use with a thick cake in the bowl and an overflow of lava on the inner edge and rim top. The stem fit well against the shank end and had a threaded tenon in the shank that aligned with properly with the stem in place. The tenon was a Kaywoodie type threaded one that had been clipped. The stem was stamped OSMOND on the left side and the shank band has the marks of a repair band. On the underside of the name F. Wright was scratched into the surface but it was almost worn away. I took photos of the pipe before I started my clean up work on it. I took photos of the rim top and the stem to show the condition of the pipe when I brought it to the worktable. You can see the cake in the bowl and the build up of lava and debris on the edge and top of the rim top. It is another dirty pipe but still a charmer. The orifice button Bakelite taper stem has light chatter and deep tooth marks on both sides near the button. I took a photo of the stamping on the left side of the taper stem. It is clear and readable as noted above. I removed the stem from the shank and took a photo of the parts.I started my work on the bowl by reaming the thick cake out of the bowl. I started with a PipNet reamer and the 2nd and 3rd cutting heads to take back the cake to the walls of the bowl. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and scraped the rim top at the same time. I sanded the bowl walls with a piece of dowel wrapped with 220 grit sandpaper. Once finished it looked much better. I scrubbed the bowl and shank with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush. I rinsed off the soap and debris with warm water and repeated the process until the pipe was clean. I dried it off with a soft towel. It really began to look better. I cleaned out the airway in the shank and mortise as well as in the stem with pipe cleaners (both bristle and regular). I used a brass bristle wire brush to further clean up the metal tenon. It was much better.I polished the meerschaum with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the bowl down after each pad with a damp cotton cloth. The bowl took on a shine by the last pads. I gave the bowl multiple coats of Clapham’s Wax that blends both carnauba and beeswax in a soft wax. I rubbed the wax on the bowl sides and the shank end with my fingers and set it aside to dry. Once the wax cured I buffed the bowl with a clean buffing pad and then with a soft microfibre cloth. The bowl has a rich glow. I polished the polished nickel band with a jeweller’s cloth to clean and protect the finish and to remove the remaining oxidation and dullness. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I filled in the tooth marks with some clear CA glue. When it cured I flattened the repairs with a small flat file to blend them into the surface of the stem. I then sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to smooth it out. I continued sanding the stem surface with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each pad with a damp pad to remove the debris. By the end it was quite shiny and ready for polishing.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – wet sanding it 1500-12000 pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each pad to protect it and preserve it. I polished it with Before After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I am really happy with the way that this Osman Meerschaum Tall Billiard with a Bakelite Stem turned out. It really is a beautiful looking pipe with a unique shape and smooth meerschaum bowl. The taper stem is really nice. The rich patina on the meerschaum came alive with waxing and buffing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of beeswax/carnauba wax and 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 Osman Meerschaum Tall Billiard 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: 6 ¼ inches, Height: 2 ¼ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches, Chamber diameter: 1 inch. The weight of the pipe is 51 grams/1.80 ounces. The pipe will be going on the rebornpipes store soon. It will be in the Ceramic and Meerschaum Pipes 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!

Irish Seconds Made in the Republic of Ireland Rusticated Bent Billiard loose stem

2 Replies

by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table came to us from a seller in Brazil, Indiana, USA on 11/12/2020. It is a nicely rusticated Irish Second Bent Billiard with a tapered vulcanite stem. The pipe is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads IRISH SECONDS [over] Made in the Republic of Ireland. Irish Seconds were a Peterson’s Second Line that usually did not make the grade because of flaws in the briar or sandpits. The rusticated finish hid any of those and there was a lot of grime ground into grooves on the bowl and shank. The bowl was heavily caked and there was lava on the rim top and the inner edge of the rim. The edges looked okay but we would know more after the cleanup. The stem was oxidized, calcified and had tooth chatter and deep tooth marks on the top and underside ahead of an on the button. There were not markings or a logo on the taper stem. The pipe showed promise but it was very dirty. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work. He took photos of the rim top and bowl to give a clear picture of the thickness of the cake and the condition of the rim top and edges. He also took photos of the top and underside of the stem to show the oxidation, calcification and chatter and tooth marks. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to give a picture of what the briar around the pipe looked like. There is a great rustication under the grime. He took photos of the stamping on the shank. It reads as noted above and is clear and readable.I am including the information from Pipedia’s article on Peterson pipes. It is a great read in terms of the history of the brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Peterson). I have included a bit of the pertinent history here.

I knew that I was dealing with a Republic Era pipe made between 1950-1989. It was a Rusticated Bent Billiard with an interesting pattern. The finish was stained with a combination of brown and black stains. Now it was time to work on the pipe.

Jeff had cleaned up the pipe with his usual penchant for thoroughness. He reamed the pipe with a PipNet Pipe Reamer and cleaned up the remnants with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He rinsed it under running warm water to remove the soap and grime. He cleaned out the inside of the shank and the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He soaked the stem in Briaville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer and rinsed it off with warm water. I took photos of the pipe once I received it. The fit of the stem to the shank was off and shank end had some damage from scuffing and some sanding it looked like. Because of that the stem did not seat against the shank end in a clean way. I decided to clean up the shank end by fitting it with a thin brass band that would provide a straight edge for the stem surface to sit against and also give the rusticated bowl a bit of bling. There were no cracks in the shank so it was purely a cosmetic fix. I chose the band from my bands and pressed it on the shank end to have a look at the pipe with the band. I liked what I saw so I removed the band and coated the inside with a layer of white glue and pressed in place on the shank. I fit the stem on the shank and took photos of the pipe with stem and band in place. I turned my attention to the damage on the inner edge of the rim. The bowl was quite out of round with burn damage on the front right and the back left. I used a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to smooth out the edge and remove the roughness. I was able to make it look better even thought it is still not perfect. You can also see the burn damage on the right front rim top where the rustication is quite smooth.I used a Philips Screwdriver that I had converted into a four-prong rustication tool to rework the smooth portion of the rim top. It looked better when I had finished. I touch up the stain on that portion of the rim top with a black stain pen to blend the work into the surface. I was happy with the progress. Though it did not change the damage on the rim edge it did hide it a bit and make it less visible.I rubbed the bowl and rim down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the briar with my fingertips and with a shoe brush to get into the grooves. The product works 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. I really like watching the Balm do its magic and bring the briar alive. I set the bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I filled in the deep grooves on the surface of the stem with black rubberized CA glue. Once it cured I flattened the repairs and recut the button edge with small needle files. I sanded the repaired areas further to blend them in with 220 grit sandpaper. It really began to look quite good. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I blended in the tooth marks and chatter in the surface and after the final pad a deep shine began to develops.I polished the stem with 1500-12000 grit micromesh sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. It works to protect the stem from oxidizing. I set it aside to dry. Once again at this point in the restoration process I am excited to be on the homestretch. I look forward to the final look when the Republic Era Peterson’s Irish Seconds Bent Billiard is put back together, polished and waxed. I put the bowl and stem back together. I lightly polished the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond to polish out the scratches in the briar and the vulcanite. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up nicely. The depths of the rustication really pop along with the thin brass band after the wax and polish. The shiny black vulcanite stem is a beautiful contrast to the browns of the bowl and thick shank. This Republic Era Peterson’s Irish Second Bent Billiard was another fun pipe to work on. The pipe feels great in the hand will be better when warmed up while smoking. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 2.36 ounces/67 grams. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the Irish Pipemakers Section if you would like to add it to your rack and carry on the previous pipeman’s legacy. This is an interesting estate to bring back to life.

Rejuvenating a Peterson’s Republic Era System Standard 307 Huber Munchen

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

The next pipe on the work table is Peterson’s System pipe that we purchased from our contact in Copenhagen, Denmark on 04/11/2023. It was stamped Peterson’s [over] System [over] Standard on the left side of the shank vertically below the nickel ferrule. On the right it is stamped Made in the Republic of Ireland (in three lines) [over] the shape number 307. The underside of the shank was stamped Huber [over] Munchen. It has a smooth finish around the bowl and shank have oils, debris and grime ground into the finish. There was a thick cake in the bowl and a lava overflow on the rim top that was heavier toward the back side. The top and edges of the rim were well hidden under the tars and lava. There was a very beautiful pipe underneath the buildup of years of use. The ferrule on the shank end was oxidized and is stamped on the top and left side K & P [over] Peterson. The stem was a Peterson’s style P-Lip. It was oxidized and calcified toward the end with some tooth marks and chatter. There were tooth marks on the button itself as well. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his cleanup work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl and rim top to show the thick, hard cake in the bowl and lava build up on the top of the rim and the edges of the bowl. The front outer edge has some damage from being knocked against a hard surface. Only clean up would tell the full story. Jeff took photos of the top and underside of the stem showing the tooth chatter, scratching, calcification and oxidation on the stem surface and wear on the edges of the button. Jeff took photos of the sides and heel of the bowl to show the condition of the finish. You can see the grime around the sides of the bowl and shank. Even under the dirt and debris of the years it looked very good. Jeff took photos of the stamping on the underside of the bowl and shank. The stamping was faint but readable as you can see from the photos. It read as noted above. The nickel Ferrule is clearly stamped and readable. I have included the information on the shape number on this pipe that I picked up on researching the previous pipes. I have included a page from a Petersons Catalogue that I have on rebornpipes (https://rebornpipes.com/tag/peterson-hallmark-chart/). I have put a red box around the 307 shown in the catalogue page shown below. That should give a clear picture of the size and shape of the pipe. I am also including the information from Pipedia’s article on Peterson pipes. It is a great read in terms of the history of the brand (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Peterson). I have included a bit of the pertinent history here.

During the 1950’s and 60’s the Kapp & Peterson company was still in the ownership of the Kapp family. However, 1964 saw the retiral of the company Managing Director Frederick Henry (Harry) Kapp.

Pipedia also included a section of information on the System pipes including a diagram of the systems look (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Peterson#Republic_Era_Pipes). I quote a section of the article in part and include a link to another article on Pipedia on the System pipe.

The Peterson System pipes are the standard bearers of the Peterson pipe family, famous for the excellent smoking pleasure they provide. Often imitated but never equalled, the Peterson System smokes dry, cool and sweet, thanks to the scientiﬁc effectiveness of the original design. The heart of the System is the unique graduated bore in the mouthpiece. This makes the suction applied by the smoker 15 times weaker by the time it reaches the tobacco chamber. The result is that all the moisture ﬂows into the reservoir and, thus cannot reach the smoker’s mouth. The Peterson Lip further enhances the effectiveness of the graduated bore by directing the ﬂow of smoke upwards and away from the tongue. This achieves a uniquely even distribution of smoke and virtually eliminates any chance of tonguebite or bitterness. Furthermore, the shape is contoured so that the tongue rests comfortably in the depression under the opening. Each “PLip” mouthpiece is made from Vulcanite. For the Peterson System pipes to work properly, the stem/tenon has to have an extension, the tip of which will pass by the draft hole from the bowl and into the sump. Upon the smoker drawing in smoke, this extension then directs the smoke down and around the sump to dispense a lot of the moisture before the smoke enters the extension and stem. On the System Standards and other less expensive systems, this extension with be made of Vulcanite turned integrally with the stem. On the more expensive System pipes this extension will be made of metal which screws into the Vulcanite stem. This extension on the earlier pipes will be of brass and the newer pipes will be of aluminium. Most smokers not knowing this function of the metal extension, assumes that it is a condenser/stinger and will remove it as they do with the metal condensers of Kaywoodie, etc. Should you have a System pipe with this metal extension, do not remove it for it will make the System function properly and give you a dryer smoke (https://pipedia.org/wiki/A_closer_look_at_the_famous_Peterson_Standard_System_Pipe).

Finally, on the underside of the shank it is stamped Huber [over] Munchen. From a past restoration I did a lot of work on the stamping (https://rebornpipes.com/2023/10/14/petersons-kildare-special-hg-republic-of-ireland-10-canadian/). Have a look if you are interested.

To learn more about the Huber Munchen stamp I turned to page 300 of “The Peterson’s Pipe” by Mark Irwin and Gary Malmberg as noted by him in the previous blog and found a great paragraph on the stamping. I quote in full.

GH Retailer’s Monogram (c. 1960s) George Huber of Munich, Germany, a Peterson distributor and retailer for decades, stamped their monogram on pipes sold in their store, G overlaid on H. Peterson shared in the 1988 commemoration of Huber’s 125^th year in business by producing a special pipe with a sterling rim cap, stamped HUBER over CELEBRATION.

The pipe I have is one that does not bear that monogram and does not appear to have ever had the sterling rim cap and was not stamped HUBER over CELEBRATION. It was however, stamped Huber [over] Munchen – the city where the shop was located. With that information I turned my attention to working on the pipe.

Jeff cleaned this filthy pipe with his usual clean up process. He reamed it with a PipNet pipe reamer and cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed out the internals with alcohol, pipe cleaners and cotton swabs until the pipe was clean. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with Murphy’s Oil Soap and a tooth brush to remove the grime and grit on the briar and the lava on the rim top. The finish looks very good with great looking grain around the bowl and shank. Jeff soaked the stem in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer to remove the oxidation on the vulcanite. When the pipe arrived here in Vancouver for the second stop of its restoration tour I was amazed it looked so good. I took some close up photos of the rim top and also of the stem surface. I wanted to show what an amazing job Jeff did in the cleanup of the rim top. The rim top and inner edge were in good condition. There was some darkening and slight damage to the inner edge. The rim top also had some roughening on the front edge. I also took close up photos of the stem to show the condition of the vulcanite. It was quite clean and the tooth marks on the button and on the stem ahead of the button were very visible in the photos.One of the things I appreciate about Jeff’s cleanup is that he works to protect and preserve the nomenclature on the shank of the pipes that he works on. The stamping on this one was faint in spots to start with so I was worried that it would disappear altogether with the cleanup. He was able to preserve and maintain its condition in the process. It did not become worse but the photos give an accurate picture of the stamping. I have noticed that many restorers are not careful to protect the stamping in their cleaning process and often by the end of the restoration the nomenclature is almost destroyed. I would like to encourage all of us to be careful in our work to preserve this as it is a critical piece of pipe restoration! I took the stem off the shank and took a photo of the pipe. I decided to start my work on the pipe by cleaning up the rim top and inner edge of the bowl with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I removed the damage on the inner edge and the nicks on the rim top. I worked on the damage on the rim front – not removing it but minimizing it. The rim looked significantly better. I wiped the bowl and shank down with cotton pads and alcohol to further remove some of the darkening in the bowl and to better blend the stain that was present on the bowl. I sanded the bowl and shank with 320-3500 grit 2 x2 inch sanding pad. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth. The grain can be seen through the finish. I polished the briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it with 1500-12000 grit sanding pads. I wiped it down with a damp cloth after each sanding pad to remove the dust. The briar was really shining by the final pad. I rubbed the bowl and rim down with Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface of the briar with my fingertips 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. I really like watching the Balm do its magic and bring the briar alive. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2 inch sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I blended in the tooth marks and chatter in the surface and after the final pad a deep shine began to develop.I polished the stem with 1500-12000 grit micromesh sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I polished it with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it a coat of Obsidian Pipe Stem Oil. It works to protect the stem from oxidizing. I set it aside to dry. Once again at this point in the restoration process I am excited to be on the homestretch. I look forward to the final look when the Huber Munchen Peterson’s System Standard 307 is put back together, polished and waxed. I put the bowl and stem back together. I lightly polished the bowl and stem with Blue Diamond to polish out the scratches in the briar and the vulcanite. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine. I hand buffed it with a microfiber cloth to deepen the shine. The pipe polished up nicely. The depths of the grain really pop with the wax and polish. The shiny black vulcanite stem is a beautiful contrast to the browns of the bowl and thick shank and polished nickel ferrule. This Republic Era Peterson’s System Standard 307 Bent Billiard was another fun pipe to work on. The pipe feels great in the hand will be better when warmed up while smoking. The finished pipe is shown in the photos below. The dimensions of the pipe are Length: 6 ½ inches, Height: 2 inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 2.43 ounces/69 grams. I will be putting it on the rebornpipes store in the Irish Pipemakers Section if you would like to add it to your rack and carry on the previous pipeman’s legacy. This is an interesting estate to bring back to life.

Restoring a Mystery Made in Denmark Freehand

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

This particular smooth Freehand pipe was purchased on 05/01/2022 from an antique store in Bozeman, Montana, USA. It is a bit of a mystery Freehand that combines a plateau rim top and shank end with a smooth bowl and shank. It is stamped on the left side of the shank and reads Made in Denmark. That is the first part of the mystery – Made in Denmark by who? The second part is the wood of the pipe. It does not feel like briar and is very light and oddly grained. I am truly unclear as to the wood. The dark finish is dirty and spotty with shiny varnish on the plateau on the shank end and rim top. The pipe had a thick cake in the bowl and a lava overflow in the plateau rim top and inner edge of the bowl. There was grime ground into the smooth finish and dust and debris in the plateau valleys on the top and the shank end. The fancy vulcanite saddle stem was heavily oxidized, calcified and had some deep tooth marks and chatter on both sides ahead of the button. The pipe must have been a great smoker judging from the condition it came it. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his work on it. Jeff took photos of the bowl, rim top and the stem to show the condition of the pipe when we received it. You can see the cake in the bowl and the lava on the plateau rim top and inner edge of the bowl. The stem was dirty and had chatter and tooth marks on both sides near the button. He took photos of the sides of the bowl and the heel to give an idea of the shape and condition of the wood around the bowl. As you look at it do you have any ideas on what the wood is? Please let me know. It really is a nicely shaped pipe that has the classic look of a Danish Freehand. The next photo Jeff took shows the stamping on the left side of the shank. The stamping is faint in places but still readable as noted above. Jeff had cleaned up the pipe following his normal cleaning process. In short, he reamed the bowl with a PipNet pipe reamer and then cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife. He scrubbed the exterior of the bowl with undiluted Murphy’s Oil Soap with a tooth brush. He worked over the lava and debris on the plateau rim top and shank end and was able to remove it. 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, shank brushes and pipe cleaners. He scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub and cotton pads to remove the debris and oils on the stem. He soaked it in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Deoxidizer to remove the remaining oxidation. He rinsed it with warm water and dried it off. I took photos of the pipe once I received it. It looked much better at this point. I took close up photos of the stem and the rim top to show both how clean they were and what needed to be addressed with both. The rim top and bowl look good. The stem looked better and the tooth marks and chatter were still present. I would need to remove those to bring the stem back.I took a photo of the stamping on the left side of the shank. You can see from the photo that it is faint but readable. It is clearer on the top half of the stamp than the lower but it is still readable. I removed the stem from the bowl and took a photo of the parts to give a sense of the beauty of the pipe. I also took a photo of the plateau on the rim top and shank end. I started my work on the pipe by wiping down the bowl and shank with acetone on a cotton pad to remove the heavy dark stain and release the grain through the more transparent stain on the finish. I sanded the bowl and shank with 320-3500 grit 2 x2 inch sanding pad. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth. The grain began to show through the finish. I polished the bowl and shank with 1500-12000 grit micromesh sanding pads. I wiped the bowl down after each sanding pad with a damp cloth. The pipe is beginning to look very good. I worked some Before & After Restoration Balm into the surface of the briar with my finger tips and a horse hair shoe brush to get into the crevices of the plateau portions. The product is incredible and the way it brings the grain to the fore is unique. It works to clean, protect and invigorate the wood. I set the bowl aside and started working on the stem. I filled in the tooth and chatter marks with black, rubberized CA glue. Once it cured, I used some small flat files to flatten out the repairs. I cleaned up the flattened spots with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper to finish blending it into the surface of the stem. I sanded the stem with 320-3500 grit 2×2-inch sanding pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with an Obsidian Oil cloth. I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding it 1500-12000 pads. I wiped it down with Obsidian after each pad to remove the dust and polishing debris. I polished it with Before After Pipe Polish – both Fine and Extra Fine. I gave it another coat of Obsidian Oil. I am happy with the way that this unique wood Made in Denmark Freehand turned out. It really is a beautiful looking pipe with a great shape and mix of smooth and plateau on the rim top and shank end. The rugged plateau on the rim top and shank end are beautiful. The fancy original vulcanite saddle stem works well with the black and brown of the stained mystery wood. The pipe really came alive with the buffing. The rich stains of the finish gave the pipe a sense of depth with the polishing and waxing. I put the stem back on the bowl and carefully buffed the pipe with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel using a light touch on the briar. I gave the bowl and the stem multiple coats of carnauba wax on the buffing wheel. 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 Made in Denmark Freehand 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: 7 ¾ inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ½ inches wide x 2 ¼ inches long, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 65 grams/2.26 ounces. The pipe will be going on the rebornpipes store in the Danish Pipe Makers 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!

New Life for a Preben Holm Hand Cut Circle 2 Freehand Copenhagen Denmark

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

This particular Freehand pipe was purchased from a seller in Santa Cruz, California, USA on 05/28/2024. It really is a very Preben Holm style Freehand pipe that is Dublin like in its shape. It is carved in a way that chases the grain and a rounded shank extension. It is stamped on the underside of the shank and reads Preben Holm [over] Hand Cut [over] Hand Made [over]In [over] Denmark. On the left side of the shank it is stamped near the bowl with a 2 enclosed in a circle. The smooth Dublinish shaped pipe is dirty but the grime does not hide the beautiful looking combination around the bowl and shank. The stain is a black understain that brings out the grain highlighted by a top coat of walnut stain. The pipe had a thick cake in the bowl and a thick lava overflow on the plateau rim top and inner edge of the bowl. There was grime ground into the smooth finish. The shape of the rim is a narrow rectangle that is concave/bevelled into the bowl. It is smooth around the inner edge and plateau on the rest. The fancy vulcanite saddle stem is oxidized. Added to that the stem surface was also calcified and had light tooth marks and chatter on both sides near the button. The pipe must have been a great smoker judging from the condition it came it. Jeff took photos of the pipe before he started his work on it. Jeff took photos of the plateau rim top and the stem to show the condition of the pipe when we received it. You can see the thick cake in the bowl and the lava on the plateau rim top and inner edge of the bowl. The turned vulcanite stem was dirty and had light chatter and tooth marks on both sides near the button. He took photos of the sides of the bowl and the heel to give an idea of the shape and the condition of the briar around the bowl. It really is a nicely shaped pipe that has the classic look of a Freehand carved by Preben Holm. The next photos Jeff took shows the stamping on the underside of the shank. It is clear and readable as noted above. He did not get a photo of the circle 2 stamp on the left shank side.There is some great historical information on Pipedia regarding the Preben Holm carved pipes and the history of the brand and the maker (https://pipedia.org/wiki/Holm,_Preben). Take some time to give the article a read. There was nothing specific on the Hand Cut line like this one was stamped. But it is a great read. I took close up photos of the stem and the rim top to show both how clean they were and what needed to be addressed with both. The rim top and bowl looked great and the valleys in the plateau were faded and washed out. The stem looked better and the tooth marks and chatter though light were still present. I would need to remove those to bring the stem back.I took photos of the stamping on the underside of the shank and the left side ahead of the bowl. You can see from the photos that it is clear and readable. I removed the stem from the bowl and took a photo of the parts to give a sense of the beauty of the pipe. I started my restoration work on this pipe by retaining the valleys and low spots on the plateau rim top with a black Sharpie pen. It really looked good.I sanded the smooth finish on the rim top and the sides of the bowl and shank with 320-3500 grit sanding pads. I also sanded the rounded shank end at the same time. It worked very well. I wiped the bowl down with a damp cloth after each pad to get a sense of the progress in the process. I sanded the smooth briar with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped it down after each pad with a damp cloth. It really began to take on a rich shine. I rubbed down the briar Before & After Restoration Balm. I worked it into the surface with my fingertips and into the plateau rim top with a shoe brush. 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 finished bowl aside and turned my attention to the stem. I filled in the few deeper tooth marks that showed on the stem with black CA glue. Once it cured I used a small flat file to recut the button edge and flatten the repairs. I sanded the repairs further with a folded piece of 220 grit sandpaper. I wiped the stem down with Obsidian Oil and took the following photos of the stem. 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. I am really happy with the way that this Preben Holm Hand Cut Circle 2 Hand Made in Denmark Freehand turned out. It really is a beautiful looking pipe with a great shape and smooth finished bowl and smooth spots in the plateau of the rim top. The fancy original acrylic saddle stem is really nice. The black vulcanite colour of the stem works well with the briar. The briar really came alive with the buffing. The rich black and brown stains of the finish gave the pipe a sense of depth with the polishing and waxing. 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 Preben Holm Hand Cut Circle 2 Freehand 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: 6 inches, Height: 2 ½ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 2 inches long x 1 ½ inches wide, Chamber diameter: 7/8 of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 54 grams/1.90 ounces. I will be adding it to the rebornpipes store in the Danish Pipe Makers 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 and Cleaning a Clogged Savinelli Tortuga 128 Billiard yet again

Leave a reply

by Steve Laug

Last week I received a phone call from Brian in Victoria about a few more clogged pipes. He sent them by courier and I received them on Wednesday this week. The first pipe I worked on was a Lorenzo that I restemmed and blogged on (https://rebornpipes.com/2025/10/24/restoring-and-restemming-a-clogged-and-filthy-italian-lorenzetti-billiard/). The second one was a Savinelli Tundra 802 Canadian that was clogged and had no airflow once again. I had restored and cleaned it for him and written a blog on July 29, 2025 (https://rebornpipes.com/2025/07/29/restoring-and-cleaning-a-clogged-savinelli-tundra-802-canadian/). It is finished and has been blogged.The third one is a Savinelli Tortuga that I had also restored at the same time and written a blog on (https://rebornpipes.com/2025/07/30/restoring-and-cleaning-a-clogged-savinelli-tortuga-128-billiard/). He asked if I would clean and open them up for him once again.

I chose to work on the last of the three, a Savinelli Tortuga Billiard. I had restored it late in July and it had been a wreck. Other than being clogged it was better. It was stamped on the left side of the shank and read Savinelli [arched over] Tortuga. On the right side it has a Savinelli S shield followed by Italy [over] the shape number 128. The finish was still pretty clean. The bowl already had a thick cake and some wet sticky dottle that completely covered the airway at the bottom of the bowl as it had before. The rim top had was covered by light coat of lava that was sticky. The taper stem was amber coloured acrylic. There were deep tooth marks that were once again on the top and underside ahead of the button. The shank and airways in both the mortise and stem were very dirty. I blew through the stem and it was clear and unclogged. I tried to blow through the shank and it was constricted with tars. I took photos of the pipe before I started my work. It amazed me how quickly the pipe had clogged again. I took photos of the rim top and the stem to show the condition. You can see the cake and dottle in the bowl and the clean rim top. The photos of the stem show that the repairs on the tooth marks and chatter on the top looks to be in great condition.I took photos of the stamping on the sides of the shank to capture it. The was faint in spots but readable as noted above. I removed the stem and took a photo of the parts to give a sense of the look of the pipe. I started my work on the pipe by cleaning out the dottle in the bottom of the bowl. It was thick and wet. I reamed the bowl with a PipNet reamer. I used the first cutting head and took the cake back to bare briar. I cleaned up the reaming with a Savinelli Fitsall Pipe Knife and removed all the remnants of the cake. I sanded the walls of the bowl with a piece of dowel wrapped in 220 grit sandpaper. The walls look very good at his point in the process. I used the drill bit in a Kleen Reem pipe reamer and twisted it into the shank in the shank until it went to the bowl. It cleaned out more of the debris and opened the airway. I cleaned out the shank, the airway and the mortise as well as the airway in the stem with alcohol, cotton swabs, hard bristle and soft bristle pipe cleaners. It was a very dirty pipe which just meant that Brian really enjoyed it. 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 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. With the shank clear and the airway open it was time to work on the stem. It was clear once again just dirty and I needed to clean up my repairs on the stem. Once the repair cured I used some small files to recut the button edge, reshape the surface and flatten the repair on the stem surface on both sides. I sanded it with 220 grit sandpaper to minimize the visibility of the solid repair. I sanded the surface of the acrylic taper stem with the 2 x 2-inch sanding pads – 320-3500 grit pads to clean up the sanding marks on the stem surface. By the final 3500 grit pad the stem started to really shine. The repairs are visible but they are smooth. It is hard to patch Cumberland style stems.I polished the stem with micromesh sanding pads – dry sanding with 1500-12000 grit pads. I wiped the stem down after each sanding pad with Obsidian Oil. I gave the stem a final polish with Before & After Pipe Stem Polish both Fine and Extra Fine. I rubbed the stem with them and then gave them a final coat of Obsidian Oil. I set it aside to dry. I finished reworking Brian’s Savinelli Tortuga 128 Billiard with an acrylic taper tortoise shell stem. I put the pipe back together and buffed it with Blue Diamond on the buffing wheel. I gave the bowl multiple coats of carnauba wax. I buffed the pipe with a clean buffing pad to raise the shine and then by hand with a microfibre cloth to deepen it. It is fun to see what the polished bowl looks like with beautiful grain on the smooth bowl and shank. The polished grain on the pipe looks great with the repaired acrylic stem. This reworked Savinelli Tortuga 128 Billiard is has a wide open airway now and feels great in the hand. It is light and well balanced. Have a look at it with the photos below. The dimensions are Length: 6 inches, Height: 1 ¾ inches, Outside diameter of the bowl: 1 ¼ inches, Chamber diameter: ¾ of an inch. The weight of the pipe is 42 grams/1.45 ounces. This third pipe that Brian sent is another beautiful pipe. I will soon be sending all three pipes back to him. I look forward to hearing what he thinks of hese resurrected beauties. Both should be great smoking pipes.