B P JUM

January 31, 2016 pipesrevival Leave a comment

B P JUM Imported Briar.

I have a few in my collection some of my favorites, they smoke cool and comfortable in the hand. I have yet to find any information or advertisement for these pipes. Bill Unger suspected they could have been produced by Mincer but there was no evidence.

As Received.

Over all she was in good shape. The stem was oxidized with a little chatter, a bridle cake, rim tar and char. There was also embedded metal in the stem which gave the stem a rough oxidized surface. The embedded metal is something I’ve run into before and tells me the pipe was produced during war-time late 40’s -50’s, they were using recycled rubber to manufacture the hard rubber stems.

First I started with my Pipnet Reamer and the smallest attachment working up to the largest that the chamber would except in this case it would accept the largest. I smoothed things out with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a finger.

After completing the chamber my attention turned to the internals of the mortise and stem, they were pretty caked with tar, oils and old tobacco. I decided a retort was in order. Using EverClear and cotton balls I ran the pipe though the process. After the retort loosened the internal debris I did a cleaning using EverClear, Q-tips, un-rolled cotton balls and stiff/soft pipe cleaners. I cleaned the internals until the pipe cleaners came out as they went in.

Now for the caked rim. I applied a generous amount of Method Good For Wood Polish to the rim and set it aside to allow the polish to soften the build-up. After sitting, I removed the build-up with Q-tips and a rag working until the rim free of debris. I did repeat this process a few times.

With the stummel ready for the wheel, I could now concentrate on the stem oxidation. I applied non-bleach Soft Scrub to the stem with a children’s toothbrush and left it aside to penetrate the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to introduce the old elbow grease and scrub vigorously with a rag until the oxidation is removed, finishing up with a damp Magic Eraser to remove the leftover oxidation.

I now ran the stem through the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh. I removed the chatter with 1000 grit sandpaper wet and then moved on to the first three micro-mesh pads 1500 mesh wet, 1800 mesh wet, 2000 grit sandpaper wet and 2400 mesh wet. I ran it though the last six micro-mesh pads dry 3200-12000. The metal flecks are still are still visible, I have many in my collection from the same war-time era where the flecks are apparent.

Just before hitting the wheel I applied Howard’s Butcher Block Conditioner with a rag and let it penetrate for a few minutes, hand buffing off the excess with a clean rag. She was now ready for the final buffing.

Complete.

Finished up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing. Buffing the stem with blue compound.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Custom-Bilt/Custombilt, Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Custombilt ( Rare Stamping )

January 30, 2016 pipesrevival 1 Comment

This stamping was a puzzler for Bill Unger, as he wrote in his book. It’s equally as puzzling for me, out of the thirty or so in my collection this is the only one with this stamping. Bill found that the stamping was used on what he thought was a Eugene Rich Era and Wally Frank Era Custombilt pipe. My example I could swear is Tracy Mincer Era.

I received two pipes from the same seller one marked with the standard Mincer stamp and shape stamp of a triangle, the other pipe has the rare stamp and a shape stamp of a square. Both pipes are of similar medium size and deep rustication. I have seen sets with two pipes in a claim shell case and I think that’s what I have here, minus the case. Any Custombilt collectors with more information please leave a comment.

Pipe As Received.

Very well-loved, thick cake, oxidation, worn button, rim char, rim tar and worn finish.

I started with my Pipnet Reamer and the smallest attachment working up to the second largest. Finished with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a finger.

The rim was embedded with tars ,oils and char. I applied a generous amount of Method Good For Wood Polish to the rim and set aside to penetrate the build-up. I removed the build-up with Q-tips. I removed the rim char and darkening with worn micro-mesh until it faded.

The pipe was heavily smoked, I decided to run a retort using EverClear and cotton balls. I would repeat the process twice to get a good clean.

After the retort I cleaned the internals of the stummel and stem with EverClear, Q-tips, stiff/soft pipe cleaners, a mortise brush and a shank brush. Cleaning until the last pipe cleaner came out clean.

I now turned to the oxidized stem, I applied non-bleach Soft Scrub to the stem with a children’s toothbrush and left it to penetrate the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color, I scrubbed vigorously with a rag until the oxidation was removed, finishing up with a damp Magic Eraser to remove the leftover oxidation.

The button was worn down and would have to be built back up. I first taped off the button portion of the stem with blue painters tape so my work would remain in one area. I mixed thick black CA glue and activated charcoal power into a paste .

I applied the paste to the button with a toothpick, then removing the tape just before hitting with the accelerator. I left it aside for a few hours to cure.

Once the repair had time to cure, I could begin to form the new button. Using needle files I shaped the button to a suitable thickness. I finished up with 400 grit sandpaper wet to remove the file marks.

I now ran the stem through the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh. 1000 grit sandpaper wet, 1500 mesh wet, 1800 mesh wet, 2000 grit sandpaper wet and 2400 mesh wet. Then finishing up with the rest of the micro-mesh pads 3200-12000 dry.

Just before hitting the wheel I applied Howard’s butcher block conditioner to the stummel with a rag and let it penetrate for a few minutes hand buffing off the excess with a clean rag. The change in coloring of this pipe was incredible after applying the Howard’s Conditioner. I use Howard’s butcher block conditioner on all my Custombilt, Tom Howard, BP Jum and Kaywoodie Handmade pipes before buffing.

Complete

I finished her up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing. Buffing the stem with blue compound.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Pipe Tobacco review

Peterson – Wild Atlantic

January 28, 2016 pipesrevival Leave a comment

Spot on ,You can’t ask for more from a tobacco review.

pipe scoundrel

Blend Type	English
Contents	Latakia, Oriental/Turkish, Virginia
Flavoring	None – spice/pepper
Cut	Ribbon
Packaging	40g pouch
Overall Rating	4.5 out of 5

I’m still alive… I’ve just been so damn busy the last few weeks I just haven’t had time to really sit down and write anything let alone muster the incredible mental focus *pfft* required to come up with a quality review. But today I decided to bite the bullet; sit down, focus and write a freaking review even if it killed me. To make it easy on myself I have decided to review Peterson’s Wild Atlantic but don’t be fooled, I’m not reviewing this because it’s a weak product or an uninteresting blend. I’m reviewing Wild Atlantic because it’s absolutely-freaking-awesome so it’s pretty easy to write about.

Years ago, when I started getting serious about pipe smoking I did what a lot of people do, bought a cheap basket pipe and some bulk tobaccos…

View original post 1,250 more words

Custom-Bilt/Custombilt, Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Custom-Bilt (Mincer Era)

Gallery January 26, 2016 pipesrevival 5 Comments

. Mincer Era Custom-Bilt .

I love when auctions go this way , I only wish I was the one who won it. My wife took a chance on this one and gave it to me for Christmas. Sure enough its a Custom-Bilt, the nomenclature is worn or lightly stamped but its there. I have so many in my collection and I talk about them constantly she knows exactly what to look for.

As Received

She was in rough shape when received, thick crumbling cake, stem oxidation and the tennon was glued into the mortise. Once the the glue was removed from the tennon and mortise, I realized the glue was the previous owners attempt to fix a loose fitting stem. In my excitement Christmas morning I had already removed the glue. Using EverClear I filled the chamber and left it to soak, eventually I was able to free the stem from the stummel.

I set the stem aside to come back to and started with the stummel. I started with my Pipnet Reamer and the smallest attachment and worked up to the third attachment, finishing up with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a finger. The chamber was well preserved from the thick cake, no cracking or pitting.

Next the rim tar and char, I applied a generous amount of Method Good For Wood Polish with a Q-tip and allowed it to penetrate the residue. I had to repeat the process a few times to remove all the build up, using Q-tips.

After freeing the tennon from the mortise Christmas morning there was still glue leftover one the stem, mortise and tennon. I used EverClear Q-tips and makeup pads to remove the rest of the glue.

I did a quick internal cleaning to remove the loose debris using EverClear, Q-tips and stiff/ soft pipe cleaners. I then did an alcohol and cotton ball soak on the chamber allowing it to absorb the oils and tars, leaving it overnight.

The following morning I decided to run a retort using EverClear and cotton balls. I then cleaned the internals of the stummel and stem with EverClear,Q-tips,cotton balls and stiff /soft pipe cleaners, cleaning until the pipe cleaners came out as they went in.

The stummel was pretty caked with dirt and oils. I wiped down the stummel with EverClear and makeup pads making sure I got into the crags.

Next the rim dings, using a household iron on medium /high heat and damp rag. I covered the rim with the damp rag and applied the rim to the hot iron working in intervals until the imperfections were almost gone.

Happy with the rim, I now applied Howard’s butcher block conditioner to the stummel using rag and Q-tip to get into the deeper crags and left it aside for a few minutes to penetrat. Hand buffing off the excess.

The stem was heavily oxidized, I applied non-bleach Soft Scrub to the stem with a children’s toothbrush and left it aside to penetrat the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to scrub vigorously with a rag until the oxidation is removed. I would repeat this process a few times and finish with a damp Magic Eraser to remove the leftover oxidation.

The loose fitting tennon, I heated the tennon with a Bic Lighter (moving the flame at all times never leaving it in one spot too long) and inserted the tip of round tipped jewelry pliers into the tennon and slowly expanded the tennon from the inside out until a snug fit between mortise and tennon was achieved.

I now ran the stem through the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh. I tapped off the shank with blue painters tape so my sanding would remain on the stem. I removed what little chatter there was with 1000 grit sandpaper wet and then moved on to the miro-mesh pads 1500-2400 wet and 3200-12000 dry. She was now ready for the wheel.

Complete

Finished her up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing. Buffing the stem with blue compound.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Peterson’s DeLuxe 608S

January 24, 2016 pipesrevival 5 Comments

Peterson’s DeLuxe 608S

My pipe refurbishing companion, shes in need of some TLC herself. I will admit when I’m working on a pipe I have a bad habit of puffing away like theres no tomorrow, the P lip seems to helps in this area as not to cause tongue bite. The flat, saddle, P lip bit is also comfortable clenched in jaw for hours on end. She was picked up as an estate and has been in service for myself going on six years. While refurbishing my last pipe it dawned on me that my little DeLuxe hasn’t been cleaned property by me ever, my skills have changed much since its cleaning almost six years ago and I thought now would be a good time to do right by her and give her a good once over.

My DeLuxe

I’m a little embarrassed with the upkeep of one of my favorites or lack their of but this is the only pipe in my possession that has been overlooked, it has always rested on my work desk there in a pinch when needed. Oxidation, rim tar&char and the stain has since faded .

I started with the rim tar/oils there was no need to ream, I wipe my chamber clean after each smoke, what cake has built I’m keeping. I applied Method Wood For Good Polish to the rim build up with a Q-tip and allowed it to penetrate the tars and oils for a few minutes, removing the debris with a Q-tip.

I cleaned the internals of the stummel and stem with EverClear ,Q-tips and stiff/soft pipe cleaners working until the pipe cleaners came out as they went in.

The stain was faded and dull it would have to be re-stained. I gave the stummel a good wipe down with an alcohol dampened makeup pad, removing the worn stain and oils from handling.

I would re-stain with Fiebings leather dye. I mixed a little EverClear,a little red dye and dark brown together.

I inserted a Bic pen end into the mortise so I could apply the stain, using an old homemade brush I applied a generous amount of the mixed stain , being careful not to get in the chamber. I then hit it with a Bic Lighter to set the stain, removing the excess with a alcohol dampened rag. I now left it aside to dry while I worked on the stem.

The stem was oxidized and had a little chatter, I applied non-bleach Soft Scrub to the stem with a children’s toothbrush and left it aside topenetrate the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to introduce the old elbow grease and scrub vigorously with a rag until the oxidation is removed, finished up with a damp Magic Eraser to remove the leftover oxidation.

I removed the chatter with 1000 grit sandpaper wet, I then ran the stem through the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh , 1500mesh, 1800mesh, 2000 paper and 2400mesh wet and 3200-12000 dry. With the stem polished and stummel stained and dry she was ready for the buffer.

Complete.

She’s ready for six more years and a bowl of Royal Yacht.

Finished her up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing ,Buffing the stem with blue compound.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Peterson Captain Pete XL80

January 22, 2016 pipesrevival 7 Comments

I was gifted this Captain Pete for Christmas by my wife its one that has pasted me by a few times and I didn't think I'd get in the shape I wanted the XL80, a shape I'm very found of.  The Captain Pete XL80 is chunky and has a shorter stem then the standard 80 shape and thats what was so eye catching for me, short and fat like many of the pipes in my collection. Jim Lilley connoisseur and collector of Peterson Pipes wrote a post on the Captain Pete on his blog, he has also contributed to Pipedia The Peterson Page , the Peterson's in his collection are amazing.

As Received

The Captain was in was in decent shape when I received it, rim build up, tight tennon fit, a little chatter, worn stain and the start of an uneven cake.

After looking over and disassembling the pipe, I set aside the stem and started with the stummel. First reaming the chamber with my Pipnet reamer starting with the smallest attachment and working up to the second attachment, smoothing things out with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a finger. The chamber was free of burn or pitting. Now my attention turned to the rim build up, I applied a generous amount of Method Wood For Good Polish with a Q-tip and allowed it to penetrate the oils and tars.

After the Method Polish had time to penetrate the build it was easily removed with Q-tips. Some of the stain was removed along with the build up, which doesn't typically happen with Method polish.

With the rim free of oils/tar I began my internal cleaning of the stem, chamber and mortise using EverClear, Q-tips, makeup pads and stiff/soft pipe cleaners, cleaning until the pipe cleaners came out as they went in.

After my internal cleaning, I did a EverClear and cotton ball soak on the chamber allowing it to absorb the tars and oils while I worked on the stem.

The stem was in good condition aside from a a little chatter and a couple of tooth impressions. To remove some of the shallow tooth chatter I heated the area with a Bic Lighter ( moving the flame at all times never leaving it in one spot too long) all but a couple of impressions raised.

I now applied non-bleach Soft Scrub to the stem with a children's toothbrush and left it aside to penetrat the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to scrub vigorously with a rag until the oxidation is removed, removing the leftover oxidation with a damp Magic Eraser.

The couple of tooth impressions that were left I would remove with 1000 grit sandpaper wet. I tapped off the bit/button portion of the stem with blue painters tape so my rough sanding would remain in one area.

Before polishing the stem with the finial three Micro-Mesh pads I touched up the P with Rub'n Buff. I applied it with a Q-tip and buffed off the excess with a rag and continued with my final polishing with the last three micro-mesh pads.

The  rest of the stem would not need as much work as the bit/button portion, as the Soft Scrub and Magic Eraser removed all the oxidation. I left the painters tape on the stem and  ran the button area though the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh 1500, 1800, 2000 paper, 2400 wet then 3200-4000 dry, I removed the painters tape just before sanding the entire stem with the last three Micro-Mesh pads 6000-12000 dry.

Raising rim dents with steam. Using a household iron on medium/high heat and damp rag, I covered the rim dents with the damp rag and applied it to the hot iron working in intervals until all the dents raised.

This is the first time I had results work this well and would not have to sand the area afterwords.

When I received the Captain the red stain on the rim was faded to an almost pink color and after cleaning the debris from the rim it was more so. I decided to re-stain the whole stummel with Fiebings Red leather dye. I gave the stummel a wipe down with an alcohol dampened rag, allowing it to dry then appling the red stain, I hit it with a Bic Lighter to set the stain, removed the excess stain with a alcohol dampened rag and left it overnight to dry completely before buffing.

Captain Complete

 

I Finished up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing. Buffing the stem with blue compound and buffing the spacer with black emery before gluing it back in place.

I had fun taking photos of this one, My Pop was a Navy Man so I’m also a collector of vintage nautical item’s as well.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Custom-Bilt/Custombilt, Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Custombilt Convertibole

January 20, 2016 pipesrevival 5 Comments

20160119_202249~2 — Advertisement courtesy of Bill Unger’s book. “As Individual As A Thumbprint” The Custom-bilt Pipe Story.

Custombilt Convertibole

The elusive Convertibole, its taken two long years to hunt this oddity down. They were always just out of reach. I have an addiction to Custom-Bilt / Custombilt Pipes but I’m not willing to brake the bank to add one to my collection. So I was pretty happy when this one went out cheap on EBAY. The Convertibole first appeared in 1946 and was distributed by Eugene Rich, the interchangeable bowls made ease in changing between blends.

As Received

She was in rough shape, well used but the price was right and I was up for a challenge. The shank was cracked, a band would have easily fixed the problem but it would also take away from the pipe itself. So a little unconventional fix would have to do.

Starting with the bowls chamber and my Pipnet reamer, I reamed the cake back to briar starting with the smallest attachment and working up to the third, she was free of any defects. I finished up with 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a finger.

With the chamber reamed, I moved on to the rim and shank. There was a build up of tar/oils on the rim and where the bowl and shank met. I applied Method Wood For Good Polish to the rim and shank area with a Q-tip and let the Method penetrate the build up. Once the Method penetrated the tars/oils it was easily removed with Q-tips and makeup pads.

I did an EverClear and cotton ball soak on the bowls chamber, leaving it aside to allow the cotton balls to absorb the oils and tars.

The internals were next . I did an initial internal cleaning of the mortise and stem with EverClear,Q-tips and bristle/soft pipe cleaners to remove the loose debris. Now I un-rolled cotton balls to form a long swab , using the swab I twisted it into the mortise tightly and added EverClear until the cotton swab absorbed the alcohol and left it aside to pull the tars/oils out. After sitting I did one more good internal cleaning of the mortise and stem, cleaning the exterior of the stem with EverClear and makeup pads.

Now my unconventional shank fix. I cleaned the area of the crack with EverClear and Q-tips and allowed it to dry. I applied Gorilla Glue to the crack on the outer side of the shank and inner of the mortise with a toothpick then packed the outer shank side with briar dust and applied a hose clamp to the shank and tightened the clamp until the crack was closed. I now left it to dry overnight.

The following morning the repair had cured and I was able to begin work on removing the excess glue, first the mortise,leaving the hose clamp in place I used needle files and sandpaper to remove the excess glue until I had a clean surface for the tennon to be inserted once again. The crack had gone through a rusticated area of the shank which was good luck on my part as I was hoping I could blend the repair into the craggy rustication.( Above photo was attempt one to blend.)

(Top photo was attempt two.) I used touch up markers ,briar dust ,Gorilla Glue and a X-Acto knife to recreate the rustication lost by the repair patch. By my third try I was happy ,it seemed to blend well.(lower photo)

Happy with the repair my attention now turned to the oxidized stem. I applied a generous amount of non-bleach Soft Scrub with a children’s toothbrush and left it aside to begin softening the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to introduce the old elbow grease and scrub vigorously with a rag until the oxidation is removed. Finishing with a damp Magic Eraser to remove the leftover oxidation.

Using a bic lighter I heated the bit/button portion of the stem to raise some of the chatter ( moving the flame at all times never leaving it in one spot too long). There were two impressions that wouldn’t raise with heat but were shallow enough to remove with sanding.

I tapped off the shank with painters tape so my sanding would remain on the stem and not damage the shank. Starting with the bit/button area and 1000 grit wet sandpaper I removed the stubborn impressions that didn’t raise with heat. I now ran the stem through the various grits of micro-mesh 1500-12000.

Just before hitting the wheel I applied Howard’s butcher block conditioner with a rag and let it penetrate for a few minutes removing the excess with a clean rag.

Complete

Finished her up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing. Buffing the stem with blue compound .

Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Supply List

January 18, 2016 pipesrevival 14 Comments

A great post for this site would be one highlighting the different tools, products, etc. that y’all use.

Recently I received a question on my supplies. Everyone who’s into estate pipe refurbishing has his or her own list of tools and products ,these are the products and tools I reach for in the restoration of my pipes. I try to keep things as cheap as possible. I didn’t list prices as they have changed some since my purchasing them. Also my equipment was purchased over a five year period as it was needed it was added.

Castleford Reamer(EBAY)– I started out with this reamer, was on my second when I switched to a Pipnet.
Shank Brushes(plastic tips) – Smokingpipes.com / Pipes&Cigars.com
Retort(EBAY)– seller 4Ziggy20
Pipnet Reamer– Smokingpipes.com I as well as many others recommend this reamer.
Round Tip Jewelry Pliers– Big box store. I use the round tip pliers to expand the tennon on a loose stem.
Needle Files– Harbor Freight.
Mortise Brush– Smokingpipes.com
Pick Set– Harbor Freight

EverClear– Local Liquor Store
BJ Pipe Cleaners(soft/bristle)– Amazon.com
Gorilla Glue– Big Box Store
Accelerator(EBAY)– seller thebillofwrites
Nature’s Way Activated Charcoal Powder– Amazon.com
Micro-Mesh(EBAY)– seller thebillofwrites
400,1000,2000 wet/dry sandpaper– Home Depot
Thick Black CA Glue(EBAY)– seller thebillofwrites

1300 RPM Hand Drill and Drill mounted buffing kit– Amazon.com . I have my drill mounted to an adjustable hobby vice also from Amazon.com I started out with this drill five years ago and up graded to a veritable speed bench buffer that has since burnt out so I’m back to old reliable.
Buffing Weels(loose/Sewn)– Amazon.com, Harbor Freight
Buffing Rake– Amazon
Carnauba Wax– Amazon.com
Blue Compound– Harbor Freight, Amazon.com
White Diamond Compound– Amazon.com
Brown Tripoli-Amazon.com

8. Black Emery-Amazon.com

Non-bleach Soft Scrub– Big Box Store
Howard’s Butcher Block Conditioner– Home Depot. Used on natural or deeply rusticated pipes.
Household Iron– Big Box Store
Cotton Balls– Dollar Tree/ Dollar Store
100% pure Acetone– Big Bix Store
Makeup Pads– Dollar Tree/Dollar Store
Q-tips Cotton Swabs– Dollar Tree/Dollar Store
Method Wood For Good Polish-Big Box Store

Painters Tape– Big Box Store
Touch up furniture markers– Amazon.com
White out pen– Big Box Store. Touch up on Stem logos
Fiebings leather dye– Amazon.com
Magic Eraser– Big Box Store
Microfiber cloth– Big Box Store

Children’s Toothbrush– Big Box Store
Long Q-tips– Amazon.com
Bic Lighter– Big Box Store.
Heat Gun– Home Depot. Stem bending.

5. Rub & Buff– Joanns Craft. Touch up on stem logos

I also hold on to every spare container ,old tee-shirt and medicine dropper that I can get my hands on.

My small work area in the corner of our bedroom its changed a little since this photo was taken. My wifes pretty cool and supportive of my hobby.

Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

A New Look For A Poker Made By Brian Doran

January 16, 2016 pipesrevival Leave a comment

I received this stubby poker made by Brian Doran for Christmas its a shape I’ve wanted for some time. I couldn’t find much information on the pipe maker, other then his EBAY actions. He’s from West Virginia and makes affordable pipes for the working man. My wife purchased the pipe as an estate from a separate seller it was listed as clean and ready to smoke. The pipe it self seemed it had more to offer.

The facelift

The pipe was pretty clean but the chamber had cracks/pits that would need mud, the rim had a strange rustication done with a dremal tool. It had more potential it just had to be uncovered.

I started by topping the bowl with 150, 220, 400 grit sandpaper then 1000 to finish the rim off. I uncovered imperfections in the wood, it seemed insects may have made there home here first. I was able to remove all but one on the rim, I’ll say it adds character.

After topping the bowl I decided to sand the stummel with 1000 grit sandpaper to add a little depth in color. I restained the rim and stummel with a light brown touch up marker, allowing it to dry and removing the excess with a alcohol dampened makeup pad. The stummel and stem were now ready for a buff.

Before hitting the wheel I wanted to address the chamber, I mix a batch of pipe mud to fill in the pits, using cigar ash and a little water and smoothing it around the chamber with my finger.

Complete

Finished her up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing.

Tobacco Pipe Refurbishing

Kaywoodie HandMade

January 15, 2016 pipesrevival 9 Comments

I’m a sucker for a fat bottom and that’s exactly what we have here in the Kaywoodie Hand-Made Over-size line of pipes. They’re getting harder to find, so when one pops up I have to jump on it. My search for a chunky Kaywoodie lead me to this line of pipes and about a year ago I had the pleasure of refurbishing two, there thick walls and chunky shape not only make it comfortable in the hand but it produces a cool smoke.

As Received

The nomenclature was lightly stamped or worn.

Over all she was in nice condition and seemed well cared for. Heavy stem oxidation, chatter and a little rim tar&char.

I started by reaming the chamber with my Pipnet reamer, first with the smallest attachment and working up to the third taking it back to briar, the chamber was free of any imperfections. I smoothed out the chamber with 400 grit sandpaper. The rim, I applied a generous amount of Method Good For Wood Polish and set aside to penetrate the debris. Using Q-tips I removed the oils and tars from the rim.

The char/rim darkening was removed with worn micro-mesh.Using EverClear, Q-tips and stiff/soft pipe cleaners I gave the mortise and chamber a quick once over to get out the loose debris. Now the soak, I unrolled a cotton ball, twisted it together to form a long swab and inserted it tightly into the mortise and filled the chamber with EverClear a quarter of the way. I allowed the swab to absorb the alcohol, then I filled the chamber with two cotton balls and added EverClear until the cotton balls were saturated. I left it aside to allow the cotton balls and alcohol to absorb the oils and tars.

The stem was heavily oxidized and had quite a bit of chatter. I started first by appling Soft Scrub with a children’s toothbrush to the stem and left it to penetrate the oxidation. Once the Soft Scrub turns from white to a brownish color its time to start the vigorous scrubbing with a rag, I would repeat this process a few times to get the bulk of the oxidation off. To get the rest of stubborn oxidation I used heat. Heat can be your best friend or your worst enemy and doesn’t work on all stem materials.(Nylon & Acrylic stems do not respond the same and melt or burn, I have had success with ebonite swirled cumberland stems in the past) In this case I’m working with vulcanite which is more resilient and responds well to heat. I heated the oxidized portions of the stem with a Bic Lighter (moving the flame rapidly never leaving it in one spot too long) working carefully around the clover logo inserted in the stem, In the past I’ve had a few inserts on Kaywoodie and Dr. Grabow pipes pop out using this method of heat. At this time I heated the bit/button portion of the stem to raise some of the chatter.

With the oxidation removed I could begin sanding.

After giving the stummel time to sit to allow the cotton balls and EverClear to absorb the tars and oils I could do a good internal cleaning of the chamber,mortise and stem. Using cotton balls,Q-tips and stiff/soft pipe cleaners I cleaned the internals of the stummel and stem until the pipe cleaners came out as they went in.

After removing the chatter with 1000 grit sandpaper there was still one indentation on the button that did not raise with heat and would need filling. I mixed a paste using thick black CA glue and activated charcoal power, I taped off the button area so the fill would remain in one spot. I applied the paste with a toothpick allowed it to set up a bit, then removed the painters tape and hit it with the accelerator, setting it aside to cure.

After the fill had time to cure I began to form the new button with needle files and sandpaper. The stem could now be run though the various grits of micro-mesh.

I ran the stem through the various grits of sandpaper and micro-mesh. 1000 grit sandpaper wet, 1500,1800, 2000, 2400 wet and 3200-12000 dry. There were a few pieces of metal or aluminum embedded in the rubber which tells me it was wartime recycled rubber. You can see the embedded imperfections in my final photos. Tho not very noticeable.

I gave the stummel a wipe down with Howard’s butcher block conditioner and let it penetrate for a few minutes hand buffing off the excess. She was now ready for the wheel.

Fin

Finished up on the wheel with white diamond, a few coats of carnauba and a microfiber hand buffing, buffing the stem with blue compound & carnauba.

PipesRevival

Monthly Archives: January 2016

B P JUM

B P JUM Imported Briar.

I have a few in my collection some of my favorites, they smoke cool and comfortable in the hand. I have yet to find any information or advertisement for these pipes. Bill Unger suspected they could have been produced by Mincer but there was no evidence.

As Received.

Complete.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Custombilt ( Rare Stamping )

Pipe As Received.

Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Peterson – Wild Atlantic

Custom-Bilt (Mincer Era)

. Mincer Era Custom-Bilt .

As Received

Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Peterson’s DeLuxe 608S

Peterson’s DeLuxe 608S

My DeLuxe

Complete.

She’s ready for six more years and a bowl of Royal Yacht.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Peterson Captain Pete XL80

Captain Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Custombilt Convertibole

Custombilt Convertibole

As Received

Complete

Supply List

A New Look For A Poker Made By Brian Doran

Complete

Kaywoodie HandMade

As Received

Fin

B P JUM Imported Briar.

I have a few in my collection some of my favorites, they smoke cool and comfortable in the hand. I have yet to find any information or advertisement for these pipes. Bill Unger suspected they could have been produced by Mincer but there was no evidence.

As Received.

Complete.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Share this:

Like this:

Pipe As Received.

Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

. Mincer Era Custom-Bilt .

As Received

Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Share this:

Like this:

Peterson’s DeLuxe 608S

My DeLuxe

Complete.

She’s ready for six more years and a bowl of Royal Yacht.

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Share this:

Like this:

Captain Complete

Thanks For Taking A Look.

Share this:

Like this:

Custombilt Convertibole

As Received

Complete

Share this:

Like this:

Share this:

Like this:

Complete

Share this:

Like this:

As Received

Fin

Share this:

Like this: