Tag: repairing a Vulcanite pipe stem

A Jeantet Leather Clad Panelled Apple Restoration

January 7th, 2026

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

I kind of think who ever came up with leather clad pipes either had some structurally sound but ugly briar blocks or they were hallucinating due to taking Ambien and took a break from walking their frozen turkey while wearing a tangerine Speedo and a sombrero long enough to wrap a piece of briar in leather. Yeah, let that vivid mental image marinate before continuing. Either way, they do show up on the estate market and can be pretty pipes. This Jeantet with a faux alligator-skin texture for example is a pretty pipe. Once again, I can’t recall how it came to me other than as part of an estate lot. Below are some photos of the pipe before work began.

The stem showed signs of oxidation and tooth chatter. The stem’s stinger was well lacquered with smoking residue indicating frequent use. The tobacco chamber had a bit of cake and the rim was lava encrusted. The seams of the leather looked good and intact and the condition of the leather, overall, was good. There was some discoloring of the edges of the leather around the rim which I thought would be difficult at best to remove. Overall though the pipe looked like it had great potential.

Background

Jeantet is an old name in briar pipes and harkens back to southern France in the late 1800s. My first stop on the research train was to pipedia.org. Here I found the following:

“The firm of the Jeantet family in Saint-Claude is first mentioned as early as 1775. By 1807 the Jeantets operated a turnery producing in particular wooden shanks for porcelain pipes and wild cherry wood pipes. The firm was named Jeantet-David in 1816, and in 1837 the enterprise was transformed into a corporation as collective name for numerous workshops scattered all over the city.

The manufacturing of briar pipes and began in 1858. 51 persons were employed by 1890. Desirous to concentrate the workers at a single site, the corporation began to construct a factory edifying integrated buildings about 1891 at Rue de Bonneville 12 – 14. This took several years. In 1898 Maurice Jeantet restructured the business. He is also presumed to enlarge Jeantet factory purchasing a workshop adjoining southerly. It belonged to the family Genoud, who were specialized in rough shaping of stummels and polishing finished pipes. (In these times it was a most common procedure to carry goods from here to there and back again often for certain steps of the production executed by dependant family based subcontractors. Manpower was cheap.)

Jeantet was transformed to a corporation with limited liability in 1938. By that time a branch workshop was operated in Montréal-la-Cluse (Ain), where mainly the less expensive pipes were finished. 107 employees – 26 of them working from their homes – were counted in Saint-Claude in 1948 and 18 in the Ain facility.

The Saint-Claude factory was considerably modernized by ca. 1950 installing (e.g.) freight elevators. In 1952 the southern workshop was elevated. 80 workers were employed in 1958. The factory covered an area of 2831 m²; 1447 m² of the surface were buildings.

The climax of the pipe production was reached around 1969, when thirty to thirty-five thousand dozens of pipes were made by 72 workers (1969). But then the production continuously dwindled to only six or seven thousand dozens in 1987 and only 22 workers were still there. Even though, around 1979 a very modern steam powered facility for drying the briar had been installed in the factory’s roofed yard.

Yves Grenard, formerly Jeantet’s chief designer and a great cousin of Pierre Comoy, had taken over the management of Chapuis-Comoy in 1971. Now, to preserve the brand, the Jeantet family went into negotiations with him, and resulting from that Jeantet was merged in the Cuty Fort Group (est. 1987 and headed by Chacom) in 1988 along with the pipe brands of John Lacroix and Emile Vuillard. Chacom closed the Jeantet plant, and the City of Saint-Claude purchased it in 1989. After alternative plans failed, the buildings were devoted to wrecking. The southerly workshop was wrecked before 1992.

Today Jeantet pipes were produced as a sub-brand by Chapuis-Comoy who’s mainstay is Chacom of course.” (Jeantet – Pipedia). If you were wondering, 2831 m² is about 0.7 acres. That doesn’t seem like much by today’s standards but I am sure in southern France that was expansive for its time. I am going to assume that this pipe was made some time prior to the demolition of the Jeantet plant in 1992, that is a pretty easy conclusion to draw. Moor likely it was produced prior to the closing of the plant in 1988.

Leather wrapping of briar has an equally interesting history and again pipedia.org details one of the most renowned leather workers who specialized in pipes. “In 1948 Jean Cassegrain inherited a small shop near the French Theater on the Boulevard Poissonnière in Paris, called “Au Sultan”. Articles for smokers and fountain pens were offered there.

Now, the absolute bulk of the pipes Cassegrain found in the inventory was from war-time production and due to the sharp restrictions on pipe production the French government had enforced in 1940, these pipes were of very poor quality and showed large fills. Strictly speaking, they were not marketable now that the French pipe industry produced pipes of pre-war standards again. In this situation Cassegrain had the probably most enlightened moment in his life: he took some of these pipes to a leather worker who clad bowls and shanks in leather. Only the rims of the bowls and the shanks’ faces remained blank.

E voila – the pipes looked pretty good now and were eye-catching enough to become an instant success in sale. Above all among the thousands of Allied soldiers who populated Paris in those days. The thing worked well, and even unexperieceid pipesters liked the covered pipes very much for they did not transmit the heat to the hand. Very soon Cassegrain had sold the old stock of pipes, and the leather-clad pipes became his only product. He began to place orders with renowned firms like Ropp or Butz-Choquin.

Because the name Cassegrain was already registered as a trade name for one his relatives, Cassegrain, a big fan of horse races, named his newly created firm after his favorite race course Longchamp near Paris. Hence an outlined galopping race horse with jockey was chosen as logo. The wind mill – see the frontpage of the catalog – symbolizes the name Cassegrain.

The numerous contacts with American soldiers bestowed an official contract on Cassegrain to supply the PX shops with his leather-wrapped pipes. According to his grandson, also named Jean and now CEO of the family firm, “There wasn’t an American GI in Europe who didn’t have one of these pipes at the time. They were exported and sold in PXs worldwide. That’s how it all started.”

In the course of the following years Cassegrain enlarged and refined the Longchamp pipe program continuously. More precious kinds of leather like calf and suede came in use. The top range was clad in alligator leather and even pony fur was used. In addition, many models showed vibrant colors now, and small sized pipes, the “Royal Mini”, made that also women interested themselves in the pipes. The hype was pushed furthermore, when well-known persons of public interest, like TV moderators or pop icon Elvis Presley, began to flaunt with a Longchamp put on.

The Cassegrain family expanded their business in 1955 starting a sortiment of pipe bags, tobacco pouches, pipe stands, ashtrays, tampers, lighters – all made of or clad in leather. (Going from there Longchamp turned to other gentleman’s leather-goods around 1960 and finally established itself as a global brand at the end of the 1960’s introducing the Xtra-Bag for ladies.)

After 1970 the interest in leather-clad pipes slowly diminished. The Longchamp pipes were offered for the last time in the 1978 catalog though previously placed orders were delivered until 1980.

The splendid success inspired many other renowned producers to offer their own lines Ropp, Butz-Choquin, Gubbels, GBD, Sasieni… Maybe Savinelli was the very last producing them for the label of the famous designer Etienne Aigner.” (Longchamp – Pipedia). Now there is no reference to Jeantet in the Longchamp article above but, it is pretty easy to imagine that the number of companies specializing in covering briar pipes in leather, with attractive results, would not have been an extensive list. The dates also coincide nicely with the heyday of pipe production during the 1950-1980s period. This would narrow down the production of this particular pipe to a product produced prior to the late 1970s.

The Restoration

After the before photos the pipe made it to the workbench.

The stem was a tight fit and not wanting to force things unnecessarily, I began work on the stem. The stinger was fouled with smoking residue and quite stuck in the stem. I used a strip of thick leather to protect the aluminum of the stinger from the jaws of the pliers.

Well I’ll be, the stinger was threaded. A nice touch showing a higher quality of workmanship than I was expecting.

I dropped the stinger into a medicine cup of 99% ethyl alcohol to soften the residue and proceeded to clean the vulcanite threads of the stem.

The airway of the stem was scrubbed using a nylon shank brush and the ethyl alcohol.

Numerous bristle pipe cleaners joined in the fun of removing the yuck from the airway.

The bite zone of the stem was filed with a small flat file to remove the tooth chatter and reestablish the button.

Below is a close-up of the top surface of the stem after filing.

And the bottom surface also after filing.

The stem was then suspended into Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer (deox). I planned to leave it in the solution for at least 12 hours but more likely 18.

I retrieved the stinger from the ethyl alcohol and scrubbed it with a brass brush, cotton swabs, bristle pipe cleaners, and regular pipe cleaners. It eventually looked pretty good.

I then took the stinger to the buffer to make it look even better by polishing it with white buffing compound. I hoped that I could not launch the stinger across the room as I lost a grip on it.

When, I didn’t lose my grip and the stinger now looked better than good.

The reaming gear was gathered.

The #1 PipNet blades proved too narrow for use but the #2 blades were about perfect.

The “about perfect” did require me to do a bit more clean-up with the Smokingpipes Low Country reamer and the General triangular scraper.

The reaming done, it was time to sand the tobacco chamber and assess for any heat damage.

The sanding was done with 320 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel. The bare briar showed no signs of any heat damage. The rim on the other hand, needed a good scraping.

The lava was moistened with saliva and scraped with the edge of a very sharp pocket knife.

I used a wood sphere and a sanding sponge to restore the inside edge bevel and to remove most of the charring from lighting the pipe.

To clean the leather I went looking for my saddle soap. I could have sworn I had some but could find none. After a little research, I discovered that Castile soap could be diluted with water and used as a leather cleaner.

Below is the result of the stummel being scrubbed with the diluted Castile soap. The soap was rinsed with warm water and dried with a cotton hand towel.

I had Mink Oil and Neatsfoot oil. I opted to use the Mink Oil since I liked the smell of it better.

The leather was liberally coated with Mink Oil and the rim with Before and After Restoration Balm. These were allowed to sit for 30 minutes. It was about here that I realized that I had not cleaned the shank airway. DOH!

The excess Mink Oil and Restoration Balm was wiped away using an inside out athletic sock after 30 minutes.

The shank cleaning then began, completely out of order and with extra caution as to not get the newly cleaned leather dirty. A good number of cotton swabs dipped in alcohol were used as was scraping with a dental scraper.

I was pretty sure there was still a good deal of yuck in the airway so a cotton/alcohol treatment was prescribed. The bowl and airway were packed with cotton and 12 ml of 99% ethyl alcohol measured into a medicine cup.

The alcohol was slowly added to the cotton with a disposable pipette until the cotton was thoroughly saturated. This would be allowed to evaporate overnight. The goal was to allow the alcohol to dissolve the residues and move them to the cotton as the alcohol evaporated. Since the stem was in deox overnight and the stinger was clean, I had only some Mark Twain reading to keep me occupied and sleep, of course.

The next day after lunch I returned to find the alcohol evaporated and the cotton stained.

The cotton was removed using forceps.

The cleaning of the shank proceeded again but much faster this time around.

I gave the leather a second coating of the Mink Oil and allowed it to absorb into the leather briefly before hand buffing with the athletic sock.

The stem was removed from deox and allowed to drip excess solution back into the jar.

A coarse shop rag was used to vigorously rub the stem to remove the loosened oxidized vulcanite and to absorb the solution. You can see from the stains on the rag how effective this was.

The stem was then scrubbed with Soft Scrub cleanser on make-up pads. One pad was used on each face of the stem.

The bite zone, top and bottom, were sanded with a 320 sanding sponge.

I wanted to keep the squared shape as much as possible. To do this I used a piece of 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a wooded block. This was in an attempt to keep the square shank preserved as much as possible.

Mineral oil was rubbed onto the stem and wiped from the stem with a paper towel.

The stem was then sanded with a series of sanding sponges from 600-3500 grits. Again, the stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with paper towels between each sponge.

The stem was then worked with micro-mesh pads 4000-12000. In place of mineral oil, Obsidian Oil was used between micro-mesh pads.

The stem was then buffed with a blue buffing compound on a dedicated blue wheel on the buffer.

The stem was then given several coats of carnauba wax on the buffer.

The final step was to hand buff the pipe with a microfiber polish cloth.

I can’t say that I am a user of leather clad pipes, I actually don’t think I have ever tried one. I can appreciate their appearance and their feel in the hand. They do feel good with their softer texture and in this case the faux reptile skin texture. The stem of this pipe polished up very nicely; this is a credit to Jeantet’s use of quality vulcanite. The glossy black stem is a beautiful contrast to the rich brown leather and the briar rim looks very nice together. The stitching and seams of the leather are niche and tight and show little wear. The dimensions of the Jeantet Leather Clad Panelled Apple are:

Length: 5.88 in./ 149.35 mm.

Weight: 1.70 oz./ 43.18 g.

Bowl Height: 1.74 in./ 44.20 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.42 in./ 36.07 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.73 in./ 18.54 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.53 in./ 38.86 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Jeantet Leather Clad Panelled Apple.
A Peterson Croydon Square 42 Apple Restoration

September 25th, 2025
Photographed and written by

John M. Young

I remember reading my first Sherlock Holmes in middle school, The Hound of the Baskervilles by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. I loved the idea of a mystery, even though I knew about the great detective, the solution to the mystery was all new to me. I feel that way about this pipe, a Peterson Croydon Square 42. I had above average knowledge of Peterson pipes but had not heard of the Croydon Square line. Where would this mystery lead me?

The pipe was another single target eBay acquisition. I paid more than I really wanted to but it was a specimen that I had not seen before and I wanted to work on it. After a quick trip from LaGrange, Georgia to the wilds of southeast Nebraska, I had my prize. The photos below show the pipe prior to any work.

The Croydon Square looked like a well loved and used pipe. The restoration looked straight forward; cleaning, reaming, sanding of the stummel, deoxidation of the stem with sanding and polish. There did not appear to be any glaring issues with this old pipe, just use and time.

Background

Being unfamiliar with London, I’d not heard of Croydon nor of Croydon Square. I am familiar with Peterson pipes though, yet Croydon was an unfamiliar line of Petersons to me. I first wanted some information about the geography.

(London Borough of Croydon – Wikipedia)

Apparently Croydon dates back to:
- Croydon was first recorded in 809 CE as the site of a Saxon minster church. It later grew into a major medieval market town.
- Surrey Street Market has traded since 1276, making it one of the UK’s oldest continually operating markets.
- Croydon Palace and Addington Palace served as archbishops’ residences for over 500 years, notably under John Whitgift.
- Croydon Aerodrome pioneered international passenger flights and established the world’s first air traffic control tower.
- Modern Croydon blends cultural venues, a tram network and major office space, anchored by Fairfield Halls and St George’s House.
(Croydon’s History | Saxon Settlement to South London Hub)

With my curiosity settled on that account, I turned my gerbil-like attention to the pipe. I cannot give Kapp and Peterson the credit they are due. In the most comprehensive guide to the history of Peterson Mark Irwin and Gary Malmberg wrote a wonderful book The Peterson Pipe (Irwin, Mark and Malmberg, Gary. The Peterson Pipe; The Story of Kapp and Peterson. 2018, Briar Books Press, Canada. First edition, second printing.). According to Irwin and Malmberg, the legacy of Peterson as “the world’s oldest continuously operating briar pipe maker” (Irwin, p. 3). This is a treasure trove of information for those interested in Peterson pipes. It is currently “sold out” from The Peterson Pipe Book (Softcover) | Smokingpipes.com.

As complete a guide to Peterson pipes as this book is, it was lacking in much information regarding the Croydon pipe in hand. I was able to glean additional information from Mark Irwin’s Peterson Pipe Notes (PPN) (Peterson Pipe Notes – Peterson Pipe Notes: Celebrating Peterson Pipes). Within the blog entry, “136. Filling the Gap: The 1939 Rogers Import Peterson Catalog & Download” (136. Filling the Gap: The 1939 Rogers Import Peterson Catalog & Download – Peterson Pipe Notes), I read the following:

“I’m also happy to report that a few revisions of the book are now in order. That didn’t take long, did it? So get out your pencil, it’s time to annotate your copy: (1) The Croydon Square origin date is given as 1949 in the book, as we only had an RDTA Almanac an unhallmarked specimen to go by. But now—surprise!—it’s clear that the line was being made as early as ’39. (The similarity between the name of Croydon Square and Trafalgar Square also has me wondering if the latter didn’t replace the former at some point.) (2) We can also pencil in ’39 as the earliest documented date (so far) for the Captain Pete. (3) The ad copy in the catalog also suggests that, at this date, the line was made exclusively at the London factory. (4) And if that’s not enough, at the beginning of the “N” section in the Information Guide, you can write, “An N prefacing two-digit shape numbers of English-made pipes refers to a natural finish.”” (136. Filling the Gap: The 1939 Rogers Import Peterson Catalog & Download – Peterson Pipe Notes)

In the above quote from Mark Irwin, the “RDTA” refers to “Retail Tobacco Dealers of America. The forerunner of the current Premium Cigar Association with a few name changes in between.” (Mark Irwin, personal communication. September 22, 2025). Don’t worry, I had no idea what it meant either. I emailed Mark and got a quick reply. The PPN blog also had the following page from a 1939 Roger’s catalog:

(136. Filling the Gap: The 1939 Rogers Import Peterson Catalog & Download – Peterson Pipe Notes)

AHA, specific historical information about the Croydon Square pipe was at hand. This put the pipe’s provenance from at least 1939 to ? and also the shape 42. Although this information led to more questions. There is no mention or illustration of fishtail stems, only P-lips. The pipe in hand had been smoked quite a bit leading me to the thought that the stem of this pipe may be a replacement.

In The Peterson Pipe, where the London production of pipes is discussed at length, was another interesting piece of information. Here, Irwin and Malmberg say, “Apparently, the London factory did not order a MADE IN ENGLAND die until after the war. Any Peterson stamped with an English COM must be no older than the later 1940s” (Irwin, p.150). If it is assumed that this pipe was not stamped due to there not being a stamp available then it would date from 1939-late 1940s. If it was merely not stamped with a COM then it is assumed to be made during the years of pipe production at the London factory 1936-1962. I prefer to think that it is due to the former. This is actually a selfish desire to have the dates of production to be a more definitive late 1930s-late 1940s. I know, too much conjecture…

The Restoration

The restoration began with a clean denim piece protecting both the work surface and the pipe.

I began with the stem. This was cleaned with bristle pipe cleaners and 99% ethyl alcohol.

The stem was then submerged in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Oxidation Remover (deox). It bathed for 18 hours.

In the meantime, I worked on the stummel. The ream team was gathered.

The PipNet #1 and #2 blades were both put to use. The General triangular scarper was also used to do some cleanup of the tobacco chamber and the rim.

Below is a photo of the tobacco chamber after the reaming.

The chamber was then sanded with 320 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel. No damage to the chamber was observed.

The rim however was encased in a layer of lava.

The lava was softened with saliva and scraped with the blade of a sharp pocket knife.

Next came the shank airway cleaning. Again the 99% ethyl alcohol and bristle pipe cleaners were used. There was also a good deal of scraping with a dental scraper and use of a nylon shank brush.

I was not completely happy with my efforts to rid the airway of the residue of tar and general yuck. I thought an alcohol and cotton treatment would do the airway some good. The tobacco chamber and the airway were stuffed with cotton.

99% ethyl alcohol was applied via a disposable pipette to the cotton until it was saturated. This took about 10 ml of alcohol.

The alcohol was allowed to evaporate overnight. This allowed the alcohol to dissolve the tars and transfer them to the cotton as the alcohol evaporated. The next day the cotton was stained, telling me the process worked.

The cotton was removed and the airway was cleaned again. The below photo shows the 2nd cleaning and the tars that were removed after the overnight cotton alcohol treatment.

The stummel was then taken to the sink for a scrubbing with a nylon brush and undiluted Murphy Oil Soap. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

Returning to the workbench, the stummel was wiped with a make-up pad dipped in ethyl alcohol.

The stem was removed from deox and rubbed with a coarse shop rag. This removed a good deal of the oxidized rubber from the stem.

The stem was then worked with Soft Scrub cleanser on make-up pads to remove more of the oxidation.

I then oiled the stem with a liberal coating of mineral oil and let the stem sit for several hours. Oh yeah, I also ran a pipe cleaner through the stem and oiled the interior as well.

The rim looked far better but still rather rough. I thought that a light topping was in order.

The topping was done with 320 sandpaper laid on a flat counter top followed by a piece of 400 sandpaper. This revealed two additional areas of concern. A deeper dent or ding in the inner rim (about 5:00) and a hairline crack (at about 7:00).

I used a wood sphere wrapped in sandpaper to reestablish the inner rim bevel and smooth the rim.

I deemed the crack to be superficial and not structurally important. It was given a dab of Thin cyanoacrylate (CAl super glue) to seal it and was topped a second time with the 400 sandpaper. The ding was filled by packing it with briar dust and then applying a small drop of CA. This was repeated a second time. The wooden sphere and sandpaper was used to smooth the fill and the rim was topped again with the 400 sandpaper.

The stamps were taped off with masking tape to protect them from sanding.

I prefer asymmetrical pieces of tape because they leave a less noticeable mark on the briar where sanding was not done.

The first two sanding sponges used were the 320 and 400 grit. Sanding with these two showed me where several dents and pits were. All of these blemishes were small so they were filled by placing a tiny drop of Thin CA on the spot and sanding it with a very dirty sanding sponge. By dirty, I mean a sponge that has a large amount of briar dust on it. Even with the extra briar dust sometimes the CA gets onto the sanding sponge. This can be seen below as the dark spots on the sponges.

The small fills were sanded with 324 and 400grit sponges.

Below are some photos of the fills after they’d been filled.

The pipe was then sanded with the full series of sanding sponges from 320 -3500 grit. Between each sponge the stummel was wiped with a make-up pad wetted with alcohol. The stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a dry paper towel.

The pipe was then worked with micro-mesh pads 4000-12000. The wiping of the stem and stummel was done as with the sanding sponges except the stem was rubbed with Obsidian Oil.

I took the pipe to the buffer and buffed it with blue buffing compound.

After wiping any remaining buffing compound from the pipe it was given a coating of Before and After Restoration Balm and allowed to sit for an hour. Why an hour? Because I got side-tracked with another project.

The excess balm was wiped away using an inside out athletic sock.

The pipe was then taken to the buffer for several coats of carnauba wax.

The final step was another hand buff with the microfiber polishing cloth then off to the final photo shoot.

This beautiful Peterson’s Croydon Square 42 is a great example of Peterson’s English workmanship. The stain of the original pipe was maintained and gives the pipe a slight contrast-dye look. It was finished with careful sanding and just carnauba wax. The stem sanded and polished to a gorgeous glossy luster. Though lacking any stunning briar grain there is some nice flame grain on the rear left. The dimensions of the Peterson’s Croydon Square 42 are:

Length: 5.67 in./ 144.02 mm.

Weight: 0.95 oz./ 26.93 g.

Bowl Height: 1.43 in./ 36.32 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.25 in./ 31.75 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.71 in./ 18.03 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.37 in./ 34.80 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Peterson Croydon Square 42.
A Peterson Captain Pete Made in England Restoration

September 12th, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

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My affection toward Peterson pipes is hardly a secret, you could even say that I wear it on my sleeve. Though it is more literally on my hat.

That said, I have restored dozens of Peterson pipes and I always enjoy doing it even when it is more of a pursuit of folly trying to salvage a very abused old implement rather than refreshing someone’s dear old frien.The subject of this blog is a Captain Pete I found last May on eBay. I probably paid more for it that I’d like to admit and certainly more than what I would have 3 years ago. Regardless, after a short trip from Englewood, Florida the not so lovely old pipe arrived. The stampings were mostly clear and read “CAPTAIN (0ver) PETERSON” on the top left shank. I’m not sure why the Peterson stamp folks like their quotation marks but they seem to. The stem was stamped with a worn and paint worn-off circled C. On the right shank the stamp read “A PETERSON PRODUCT” over MADE IN ENGLAND with an offset 046. The country of manufacture (COM) stamp is what intrigued me the most. More on that in the “Background”. The photos below show the pipe prior to any work.

This pipe appeared to look rough. The stem was severely oxidized, I feared saving the logo would be difficult at best. The bowl had been reamed but not very well. There was a layer of lava on the rim which looked like it had been removed and redeposited. I think what was thinking is that this l pipe appeared to have been smoked a lot but kind of kept up and cleaned on occasion.

Background

Back on December 21, 2023 I wrote a blog about a Captain Peterson apple. That blog is linked for those interested. In that blog I said the following about the Captain Peterson line:

“I highly recommend the book The Peterson Pipe, by authors Mark Irwin and Gary Malmberg as well as a reading of pipedia.com’s Peterson pages. According to Mark Irwin and Gary Malmberg, the Captain Pete:

“This line’s name was derived from the nickname of Charles Peterson, known affectionately as “Captain Peterson.” The first issue, c. 1940-62, was in a smooth finish produced for Rogers Imports with a white stamped P inside C, or a circled P on the mouthpiece. CAPTAIN over PETE on shank, and a MADE IN IRELAND in a circle. English made versions show CAPTAIN over PETE on shank or “CAPTAIN PETERSON” and A PETERSON PRODUCT over MADE IN ENGLAND or LONDON MADE over ENGLAND. The second issue (1998-), features an XL bowl with Sherlock Holmes shapes and compact stems, in rustic or combination of smooth and rustic, with a nickel band between two narrow brass bands.” (Irwin and Malmberg p.295)” (A Peterson Captain Pete Restoration – NebraskaPeteGeek)

This example of a Captain Peterson is described above and likely dates from 1940-62 and was made in London. These dates can be further narrowed down by reading p.149-150 in The Peterson Pipe, where the London production of pipes is discussed at length. Here, Irwin and Malmberg say, “Apparently, the London factory did not order a MADE IN ENGLAND die until after the war. Any Peterson stamped with an English COM must be no older than the later 1940s” (Irwin, p.150). This would mean that this pipe dates from 1945-1962 as 1962 was when Peterson shuttered the London factory.

The Restoration

After the before photos the pipe made its way to the workbench and a clean denim piece.

I began work with the stem due to thinking that the stem would require the greatest amount of time. The cleaning was done with bristle pipe cleaners and 95% ethyl alcohol. The stem was very fouled with tar and smoking residue.

The stem has some tooth chatter on the bit above the button on both the top and bottom surfaces as the two below photos show in all of their poorly focused glory.

The bits of the top and bottom surface were filed with a small slat file to remove most of the chatter.

The stem was suspended in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Oxidation Remover solution and allowed to soak for 24 hours. This solution is lovingly referred to as deox.

The next day the stem was removed and rubbed with a coarse shop rag. This removed a great deal of the oxidized vulcanite and can be seen on the rag in the photo below.

The airway of the stem was again cleaned with alcohol dipped bristle pipe cleaners.

I was pleased to see that the logo stamped on the stem remained intact after the time in deox.

To further reduce the amount of oxidized vulcanite, I rubbed the stem with Soft Scrub cleanser on make-up pads. The oxidized vulcanite can be seen darkly coloring the pads.

The stem was oiled with mineral oil to keep the vulcanite from further oxidation.

The tooth chatter that was not filed from the bite zone was filled with black cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue). This was spritzed with a CA drying accelerator. The hardened CA was then filed with a small flat file to smooth and reshape the stem.

The shank of the pipe was wrapped with masking tape to protect the briar and allow me a handle while sanding. The stem logo was also masked for its protection. The stem was sanded with a series of sanding sponges from grits 400-2000. Between each sponge the stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a paper towel to remove sanding debris.

The sanding continued through the 3500 grit sponge with oiling and wiping as above.

The stem was buffed using blue buffing compound on a low speed buffer with a flannel wheel dedicated to the blue compound.

The stem was wiped of any residual buffing compound and the logo area cleaned with alcohol on a cotton swab. I used a white acrylic model paint to repaint the imprint of the logo.

The white acrylic dried quickly and was hand buffed with a soft cotton cloth to remove the paint from the stem outside of the stamp.

The sequence of this restoration had me a bit out of sorts, but it was apparently time for the reaming. The tools were gathered.

The Pipnet #2 blade was the only one that fit and did most of the reaming. Both the Smokingpipes Low Country reamer and the General triangular scraper were used but just for clean-up.

Below the reamed tobacco chamber can be seen.

The chamber was sanded with 320 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel. I saw no signs of damage within the chamber. The lava on the rim was softened with saliva and allowed to soak for a couple minutes.

The rim was then scraped using the edge of a sharp pocket knife blade. There were some rough spots on the rim but they looked superficial and easily removed with a light topping.

The stummel was taken to the sink for a scrubbing with a nylon brush and undiluted Murphy Oil Soap. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

I packed the stummel with cotton and saturated it with 99% ethyl alcohol. This was allowed to sit overnight.

The next day the cotton was stained telling me the treatment had worked.

The cotton was removed and was far dirtier than I was used to. I could have sworn that I had cleaned the shank, yet I had no recollection of doing it. Remember when I said the sequence of this restoration had me out of sorts? It was apparently worse than I thought.

The airway was filthy and tar infested. The good news was that the tar was very soft due to the extended soaking in alcohol. The scraping with a dental scraper was very productive. The cotton swabs eventually started to lighten as more of the tars were removed.

I cannot say if this was a superior order to use than my normal sequence; reaming the chamber, then, clean the shank airway then alcohol/cotton treatment is needed for ghosting of severe dirtiness. In this case it worked well. The softening of the tar did make for easier cleaning.

There were several small dents, scratches or pits on the surface of the stummel. These revealed themselves more and I had started sanding. I had covered the stamps with masking tape for their protection. For the fills, I applied small amounts of thin CA using a long narrow applicator on the CA bottle. Immediately after application I used a dust sanding sponge to sand the fill area. The sanding sponge supplied the briar dust to join with the CA and for a fill. This method only works if the spots to be filled are very small and the sander has total disregard for their sanding sponges as some of the CA and briar dust will certainly get on the sponge making it have nonabrasive spots. I wonder if I will ever learn to use a piece of sandpaper like I did before I had sanding sponges. The next three photos show the fills.

The stummel was then sanded with the full series of sanding sponges from 400-3500 grit. The stummel was wiped with a make-up pad wetted with alcohol between each sponge

I removed the masking tape and cleaned any adhesive left behind by the tape. I then worked the stummel with micro-mesh pads 4000-12000. Again I wiped the stummel between pads with alcohol on a make-up pad.

The stummel was coated with Before and After Restoration Balm and allowed to sit while I went out in search of a couple of evening Largemouth bass. This is also called my stroll with a pole and of course a pipe.

About an hour and a half later I returned and wiped the remaining Restoration Balm from the stummel with an inside out athletic sock. There is the photobombing fishing pipe lurking in the background. If you are curious it is a Peterson 127.

The pipe was taken to the buffer where a couple of coats of carnauba wax were applied.

I carefully dragged a knife blade around the beading to remove accumulated wax from the grooves. The final step was another hand buff with the microfiber polishing cloth then off to the final photo shoot.

This beautiful English made Captain Peterson 046 bulldog is a great example of post World War Two English workmanship. The walnut stain of the original pipe was maintained and was finished with careful sanding and just carnauba wax. The stem was deoxidized, sanded and polished to a gorgeous glossy luster. Though lacking any stunning briar grain the wood is solid and the few dents from wear were filled with minimal disruption to the original. The dimensions of the Peterson Captain Peterson Made in England 046 bulldog are:

Length: 5.71 in./ 145.03 mm.

Weight: 1.62 oz./ 45.93 g.

Bowl Height: 1.96 in./ 49.78 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.65 in./ 41.91 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.73 in./ 18.54 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.64 in./ 62.89 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Peterson Captain Peterson Made in England 046 bulldog.

I did not want to affect the stamps here, so the existing scratches were not sanded away like I would have preferred to do.
A Peterson Kapp-Royal 01 Bent Pot Restoration

July 1st, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

It seems like I haven’t worked on a Peterson pipe for a while but, that’s not true. I did that Captain Pete commission just a couple of weeks ago. Oh well, I’ll use my newly created meme anyway:

This restoration is on a Peterson I have never worked with a Kapp-Royal bent pot 01. This beauty was spotted on eBay back in April of 2025. I remember when I wouldn’t pay more than $45 dollars for a Peterson pipe. Then Inflatron (the inflation monster) attacked like Godzilla. Sadly this Irish lass was a bit more than the $45 but all things considered it was still reasonable. The stampings are all clear and read as follows: Peterson’s over “KAPP-ROYAL” on the left shank, with MADE IN THE over REPUBLIC over IRELAND, offset 01, on the right shank. Below are some photograph taken prior to work on the pipe.

The Kapp-Royal was in very good condition. The stem had light oxidation and no tooth chater, to speak of. The briar looked very nice with fine birdseye’s on both flanks. The gap where the stem met the stummel was an annoyance which would have to be addressed. Other than a few minor fills and some sanding/polish this beauty would be ready for a new owner in no time.

Background

For the first three pieces of Peterson history I turned to the official Peterson website. Here, I chose quotes from the general history of Peterson, the “Classic” shape range, and the 01 shape in particular:

As the oldest continuously operating briar pipe factory in the world, we at Peterson have a certain tradition to uphold, a legacy of craftsmanship dating back over 150 years. Whether you’re browsing for your very first pipe or are a seasoned collector in search of a rare gem, know that every pipe in our catalogue carries with it that same preservation of tradition. A Peterson pipe isn’t just a utilitarian tool; it’s a piece of history you can carry with you in your travels, a faithful companion to accompany you through all that life offers. (Peterson.ie: Pipes)

One of our most popular shapes, our signature take on the bent Pot enhances the inherently muscular design with a broad, squat bowl and extra-sturdy proportions through the shank and transition, as well as an elegant quarter bend. (Peterson Pipes: Army Filter Heritage (01) Fishtail (9mm))

Since our inception, we’ve offered a range of specific tiers suited to our customers’ tastes and price requirements. Our Classic range represents non-System pipes crafted for the Everyman, unique and timeless designs that capture our House Style and quality craftsmanship at a price any smoker can enjoy. Rather than relegating production to one or two lines, we offer a variety of styles, shapes, and finishes among these entry-level series, including traditional navy mounts (flush-fitting stems), P-Lip mouthpieces, and army mounts. (Peterson.ie: Classic Pipes)

Next I looked into the big The Peterson Pipe book (Irwin, Mark and Malmberg, Gary (2018). The Peterson Pipe The Story of Kapp & Peterson, First edition, second printing 2021. Briar Books Press, Canada.) for a more specific account of the Kapp-Royal line.

“Kapp-Royal (1969. 1976-79, c. 1988, 2004-) First appearance as a line introduced 1969. In 1976-79 Iwan Ries catalog offering identical with non-System Dunmore line. Second appearance the late eighties as a high-grade Italian-market line with briar band inset into mouthpiece. From c. 2004, Italian line available in the US as high grade, orange finish, sterling band, amber-colored acrylic fish-tail stem or sometimes vulcanite, embedded aluminum P.” (Irwin and Malmberg p. 306)

According to the above description by Irwin and Malmberg, this pipe is likely a Kapp-Royal from the “c. 1988” period and made in the Dublin factory.

The Restoration

The Kapp-Royal made its way to the workbench after the “Before” photo shoot. Here it received a cleaned denim piece and a more thorough examination.

Below you can see that gap I was referring to earlier. I couldn’t see an obstruction to a tight fit but there certainly was one.

The original fills had failed and would need fixing. Fortunately they were a distance away from the stamps.

Another old fill was located on the heel.

The reservoir, well not really a reservoir since this is a Classic 01 and not a System pipe, was surprisingly dirty. That could definitely be the culprit for the ill fitting stem.

The tobacco chamber looked very clean. I could even make out the chuck marks from the Peterson factory. How could a chamber this clean have a shank that is fouled so badly?

Below is another shot of the chamber prior to work done. It had obviously received some scraping by the marks at the bottom of the chamber yet the rim looked pristine.

I figured there was no reason to ream this tobacco chamber so proceeded directly to sanding it. I could see no damage to the chamber other than the scraping marks at the bottom of the chember.

The shank cleaning was far more difficult. Here I used the following techniques: Nylon shank brush scrubbing with alcohol present, Folded bristle pipe cleaners dipped in alcohol, cotton swabs dipped in alcohol and dental scraper scraping.

The stem was, like the tobacco chamber, surprisingly clean requiring only a couple bristle pipe cleaners wetted with alcohol. The stem did not need to be treated with either Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer or Briarville Pipe Stem Oxidation Remover. I thought sanding/polishing would suffice. I did apply a coating of mineral oil to the stem though.

The stummel made its way to the sink for a scrub with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon brush. The soap was rinsed with warm water and dried with a cotton hand towel.

Back at the workbench the stummel was wiped with a make-up pad wetted with 95% ethyl alcohol. Very little color came off indicating that the stummel was clean.

The disturbingly dirty shank bothered me so, I decided to give it an overnight cotton-alcohol treatment. The bowl was stuffed with cotton balls while the airway was stuffed with more cotton.

The cotton was saturated with 95% ethyl alcohol until no additional alcohol could be absorbed with a disposable pipette.

The next day the cotton was removed.

The logo area was de-oiled with alcohol on a cotton swab. Yeah, I tried to mask it without de-oiling at first – unsuccess!

The stamps and logo were masked with painters tape to protect them from the upcoming sanding.

The fills were redone using a dab of brown cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue) applied with a fly tying bodkin. Briar dust was then pressed onto and into the wet CA. A quick dab of additional CA was applied to the top of the new fill.

The new fills were filed with a small flat file and smoothed with a 400 grit sanding sponge.

The pipe was then worked with a series of sanding sponges from 400-3500 grits. The stummel was wiped with a make-up pad wetted with alcohol between each sponge. The stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a paper towel between each sponge.

I then worked the pipe with 4000-12000 grit micro-mesh pads. Between each pad I repeated the above wiping except Obsidian Oil was used in place of mineral oil.

The pipe was then buffed with white buffing compound at the buffer.

The remaining buffing compound was removed with hand buffing and a rag then wiped with a make-up pad wetted with alcohol. The stummel then received a coat of Before and After Restoration Balm and was allowed to sit for 15 minutes.

The excess Restoration Balm was wiped from the stummel with an inside out athletic sock.

The stem logo was again cleaned with alcohol and a cotton swab.

To re-do the gold logo, I used Gold Leaf Rub’nBuff applied with a fly tying bodkin.

The excess gold leaf was wiped away with a paper towel.

The stem was then polished with Before and After Fine Polish followed by their Extra Fine Polish. Both were applied and hand buffed using a soft cotton cloth.

The pipe then received several coats of carnauba wax at the buffer.

The final step was another hand buff with the microfiber polishing cloth then off to the final photo shoot.

I don’t think I’ll ever tire of working on Peterson pipes. This pipe started out not needing much but in the end it is absolutely beautiful. The bird’s eyes on both sides are gorgeous. The vulcanite stem polished very nicely and with that briar band looks amazing. I have nothing against the 01 shape, it is just not my favorite but this pipe could change my mind on that. The hand feel and balance while clenching is very comfortable. The dimensions of the Peterson Kapp-Royal 01 Bent Pot are:

Length: 5.56 in./ 141.22 mm.

Weight: 1.74 oz./ 49.33 g.

Bowl Height: 1.79 in./ 45.47 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.57 in./ 39.88 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.84 in./ 21.34 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.44 in./ 36.57 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Peterson Kapp-Royal 01 Bent Pot.
A James J. Fox Irish Bulldog Restoration

April 24th, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

You know when you see something and the little voice in your head says, “Wait! There’s something peculiar about that”? That is exactly what happened when I was perusing eBay and saw this pipe. I can’t recall if it was the photo or the header, “James J Fox Made in Dublin Ireland Pipe” that caught my eye but one of them gave me a temporary case of whiplash. Now, we all know what a pipe made in Dublin actually means but what is this James J Fox stamp? A distant relative of Wileward Ethelbert Coyote, perhaps? (Wile E. Coyote for those non-cartoon-culture savvy). Even with less than stellar photographs, I knew I had to lay hands on this lass. The button was clicked, money sent and the pipe arrived. Well, it was a bit slower than that but you get the idea. Upon arrival, I got a good look at the stampings. Top left, Fox over Special in a flowing script. This one was faint, not worn, just faint. The top right shank had MADE IN DUBLIN over IRELAND. Again the stamp was faint but only in the middle top portion. Almost as if the stamp was not flat. The final stamp was on the lower left face of the shank and it read, JAMES J FOX over DUBLIN LONDON. The photos below show the pipe as it appeared before any work was done.

This looked like it would be a straightforward restoration with no real obstacles. Yeah, the stem was oxidized and there was some weird stain on the front left of the bowl but the stem fit was great and the rim indicated that the previous owner took care of this pipe or hadn’t used it extensively.

Background

I went directly to the James J. Fox website as the start of the background search. Here it states the following:

“We have been trading in fine tobacco and smokers’ accessories from 19 St James’s Street since 1787 and our customers have included discriminating smokers from all walks of life – from commoners to kings. Among them have been Sir Winston Churchill, Oscar Wilde, British and Foreign Royalty, the officer’s mess of famous British regiments, and the leading lights of the stage, film, sport, tv, radio, music and literature.

Our world famous tobacco business started with Robert Lewis, who began trading fine tobacco in St James’s Street in 1787. James J Fox was formed in Dublin in 1881 and opened its first tobacco shop in London in 1947. Fox acquired the business of Robert Lewis on 14 September 1992, uniting two of the most respected names in the cigar world. Both companies now trade as JJ Fox (St James’s) Ltd and run the cigar departments of Harrods and Selfridges.” and about their founder, Frederic James Fox (1913-1990) “Born in 1913, Frederic (Freddie) was the fourth of five children and the youngest of James Fox’s three sons.He found himself in charge of the family business, a single cigar shop on Dublin’s Grafton Street, after the untimely death of his two brothers. Stanley Fox was shot dead by armed thieves thought to be members of the IRA in 1926, while Ronald (Biffy) was missing in action over the Dutch coast in 1942 during an RAF mine laying mission. Freddie, not content with just one shop, took the business from strength to strength. He established a successful import and wholesale business in Ireland alongside the world’s first Duty Free outlet which expanded the retail cigar business into London. He developed numerous brands including Punch Nectares, Bolivar Amado, Hoyo Royal Hunt and La Corona Policromia, and established the Astor Tobacco Company. His enterprising nature also saw Freddie acquire and develop a successful import and wholesale business in the Channel Islands; and he oversaw the origin of the business’s entry into the property markets, developing several high profile office buildings in St Helier, Jersey including Sir Walter Raleigh House on the Esplanade. Freddie Fox died in 1990. He is still sorely missed by his family, friends and colleagues from the cigar industry. Were he to be asked to comment on his career achievements, he might say :

“Not bad for a beginner.” We would agree.” (Heritage | Welcome to the History of James J. Fox)

For a far more complete history of the James J, Fox shops and their history I will refer to Mark Irwi’s Peterson Pipe Notes blog, 157. The James Fox – Peterson Small Batch Lines: An Interview with Yiorgos Manesis (157. The James Fox – Peterson Small Batch Lines: An Interview with Yiorgos Manesis – Peterson Pipe Notes). Yiorgos Manesis says in Irwins blog, “They used to make their own pipes here, a small factory for a few years. It didn’t last long, and only two or three people worked there. I don’t know if they were turning bowls, or just getting bowls and finishing them here. They were involved in all parts of the tobacco business—they were making pipes, hand-blending their own pipe tobaccos. And Freddie Fox, who was Robert and Stuart Fox’s [the 5th generation owners] grandfather, was a very intelligent, savvy man.” (157. The James Fox – Peterson Small Batch Lines: An Interview with Yiorgos Manesis – Peterson Pipe Notes). Now is this pipe one of those made by Fox?

I sent some photos to Mark Irwin asking him what he thought of this pipe soon after it arrived. His response was, “Boy oh boy! Isn’t this COOL? Does it look like the Peterson 493 shape to you? It pretty much does to me. These James Fox / Peterson pipes are really scarce. Yes, please let me know when you run the blog post, as I want to point everyone out to it as well as include at least one of these photos to help them get to your blog.” (Mark Irwin, personal email). I cannot say that I was terribly familiar with the 493 shape so that is where I went hunting.

Mark’s Peterson Pipe Notes provided me with two wonderful posts describing the development of Peterson’s bulldog shapes. Blogs 388 (1891-1919) and 390 (1920-1947) detail the development of shaps during the years in parentheses.

“Two years after hostilities ended and bringing our survey of the IFS and Éire eras to its conclusion is the fullest flowering of bulldogs in K&P’s history, before or since: the distributor’s catalog c. 1947. Three squat bulldogs, the 493, 494 and 495, all reintroducing the “Cad” name. The 170 / 175 and 150 /155 don’t appear to be different shapes, but merely different stems—one saddle, one bent.”

(https://petersonpipenotes.org/390-a-visual-history-of-petersons-bulldog-shapes-part-2-from-the-end-of-the-patent-through-the-irish-free-state-and-eire-eras/ highlight added by me). In examining the James J. Fox and comparing it to the 493 from the diagram above the shape looked very similar. Mark appeared correct but one thing which struck me was the saddle stem. The 493 looks to have a saddle that tapers slightly from the shank towards the button.This narrowing is completely absent in the Fox Special, if anything the Fos pipe has a reverse taper. Using my micrometer I checked the width at the shank, 0.72 (18.4 mm) inches and at the opposite end of the saddle, .74 inches (18.8 mm). This is far from definitive proof that the pipe was made in the short lived James J. Fox shop but it does make me say, “Hmmm.”

Though lacking a shape number, the Fox Special must be regarded with some suspicion. Mark thought it looked like a Peterson 493, and I concur with estimated measurements from the shape charts the dimensions do fit nicely. The 493 shape existed through the 1970s as evidenced in a chart and description, “This shape chart from Associated Imports point-of-sale brochure leUS pipe smokers know what shapes they might expect in non-System pipes. Note several rare, currently sought-after shapes by collectors: the XL02, XL999, XL493s, 124 and 120F.” on page 170 of The Peterson Pipe The Story of Kapp Peterson (Irwin, Mark and Malmberg, Gary. Briar Works Press. 2018, First Edition, second printing 2021. Printed in Canada).

In 1983 Peterson published a point-of-sale catalog, the Peterson-Glass catalog. I can find no reference to the 493 shape in this catalog, with only the 80S,150 and 999 bulldog or Rhodesian shapes remaining. (petersonpipenotes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Peterson-Glass-Catalog-1978-79-PETERSON-PIPE-NOTES.ORG_.pdfpetersonpipenotes.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/Peterson-Glass-Catalog-1978-79-PETERSON-PIPE-NOTES.ORG_.pdf)

The final thing I’ll mention here is a listing of a Peterson 493 from the Estates section of smokingpipes.com:

(https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/estate/ireland/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=239789)

So, we are left with little but supposition, assumptions and conjecture, three great words, but hardly a definitive date of birth nor maker for this lovely pipe. Ath the end of this blog I show the measured dimensions of the Fox Special. If you compare the dimensions of this pipe to the listing of a Peterson 493 from smokingpipes.com there remains little doubt of this pipe’s heritage.

The Restoration

As usual the pipe was introduced to the workbench with a cleaned denim piece. I say cleaned because though laundered, stains aplenty remained.

I began with a quick prep of the stem for a bath in Briarville’s Pipe Stem Oxidation Remover. This product was sent to me by Richard Messineo of Briarville to try. Again I wish to thank Richard for the chance to test this product. The stem was lightly sanded with a 400 grit sanding sponge.

I then cleaned the airway with bristle pipe cleaners dipped in 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stem was submerged in the Briarville solution. The label instructions say 2-24 hours. I allowed this stem 13 hours of exposure.

In the meantime I began reaming the tobacco chamber.The tools of choice were the PipNet, Smoingpipes Low Country Reamer and the General triangular scraper (with the tip ground round).

The number 3 blades of the PipNet did the lion’s share of the work with the General coming in for clean-up.

The tobacco chamber was sanded with 220 sandpaper scraped around a wood dowel. The chamber appeared free of any heat damage or charring.

Next came the cleaning of the airway. This was done with numerous cotton swabs and bristle pipe cleaners both dipped in 95% ethyl alcohol as well as some scraping with a dental scraper.

The stummel was taken to the sink for a scrubbing with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon brush. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

Back at the workbench the stummel looked better but the stain at the front right remained.

A wipe with 95% ethyl alcohol on amake-up pad removed a bit of color, probably old wax and stain.

The stain persisted.

As a remede, I thought maybe oxalic acid would bleach the stain.

I used a saturated solution of oxalic acid applied with a cotton swab on the stain. The swab assumed an orangish color.

After the oxalic acid had sat for 30 minutes I returned the stummel to the sink for another scrub with Murphy Oil Soap. I figured the basic nature of the soap and copious rinsing would neutralize the acid and rinse any remnants. Once dry the stummel appeared as below. The stain was vanquished.

The next day I returned to the stem. The Briarville Pipe Stem Oxidation Remover is getting darker in color. I am not sure how many stems this product is able to treat. I think this was number 3 or 4.

The stem was removed and was vigorously rubbed with a coarse shop rag. Below you can see that some of the oxidized vulcanite was removed onto the rag.

The stem looked much better.

I scrubbed the stem with Soft Scrub cleanser on make-up pads to remove more of the oxidized vulcanite.

The stem was then coated with another product, Before and After Hard Rubber Balm. This product was sent to me from Mark Hoover to try. Thank you, Mark. I really like this balm for treating vulcanite stems after they have been restored. It is more viscous than Obsidian Oil and I think it lasts longer than Obsidian Oil in protecting polished stems.

In preparing the stummel for sanding, I covered the stampings with masking tape. I prefer to cut slightly irregular pieces of tape for this as they do not give as blocky a look to the unsanded areas under the tape.

The stummel and stem were united during the sanding to avoid rounding the joint between the two materials at their seam. The sanding was done with a series of sanding sponges in grits of 400-3500. Between each sponge the briar was wiped with a make-up pad dipped in alcohol to remove sanding debris. The stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a dry paper towel between sponges.

The tape was removed and the pipe micro-meshed with pads 4000-12000. The above between pad wiping was done as with the sanding except I used Obsidian Oil rather than mineral oil.

The stem was polished with Before and After Fine followed by Extra Fine Polish.

Each was applied by finger then hand buffed using a soft cotton cloth.

The stummel was then covered with a liberal coat of Before and After Restoration Balm. I let the balm work its magic for 20 minutes.

The excess balm was hand buffed with an inside out athletic sock to remove it and reveal the revived briar grain.

The pipe was then taken to the buffer for several coats of carnauba wax. I used a fly tying bodkin to remove the xa deposits from the beading around the rim. The final step was a hand buffing with a microfiber polishing cloth further deepening the shine.

I think this Fox Special turned out very well. This stained spot and stem were the two areas I was most concerned about, both turned out exceptionally well. The high gloss black vulcanite really accentuates and contrasts the briar grain. The condition of the rim makes the pipe look like it is a brand new specimen rather than a restored old beauty. The stampings, though faint, can all be made out and add to the mystery of this pipe provenance. Peterson product or not, it is a beautiful Irish Lass.

The dimensions of the James J. Fox, Fox Special are:

Length: 5.77 in./ 144.53 mm.

Weight: 1.30 oz./ 51.60 g.

Bowl Height: 1.55 in./ 45.97 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.24 in./ 39.37 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.73 in./ 20.32 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.78 in./ 42.16 mm.

Below is an image of a Peterson 493 estate pipe:

(the above image is taken from https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/estate/ireland/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=239789).

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Royal Guard 522.
A Marseille Oval Shank Volcano Restoration

April 4th, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M Young

I don’t understand how the red in pipes is so difficult to capture in photographs. The oxidation is easy to capture and this stem had plenty of that. The rim was coated in a layer of lava indicating a fair amount of use but the tobacco chamber was pretty clean. Perhaps the previous owner liked to keep the cake to a minimum but was not concerned about rim maintenance. I did not like the look of the clear coat on the pipe and hoped that would be easily removed. Overall this looked like a straightforward restoration.

Background

I can barely say anything about this pipe. Pipedia.org has nothing on Marseille. Pipephil.eu has the following:

Which, in all honesty, is the same as nothing. The pipe has no country of manufacture (COM) stamp but, if I were a betting man, I’d bet on France. Marseille makes me think of Marsielle Marso but I kind of dislike bringing that up due to the dislike of mimes in general by AMericans. At least in my experience mimes are not appreciated.

Smokingpipes.com has two old estate pipe listings. One by Butz-Choquin

(https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/estate/france/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=200428) and the other by Chacom.

(https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/estate/france/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=558385)

Both Butz-Choquin and Chacom are French pipe makers although the lack of any maker’s stamps or COM on the Marseille at hand opens any conclusion I make to pure speculation.

The Restoration

This is the second pipe of the double restoration. The first was the E. Wilke Squashed Apple. If you missed that restoration there is the link. I said in that one that I do not normally like to work on more than one pipe at a time. Anyway, here is the Masrielle situated on a clean denim piece.

I lightly sanded the stem with a 400 grit sanding sponge. I was careful to avoid the stem logo.

Next the tooth marks were filed smooth with a small flat file.

The stemairway was cleaned with 95%ethyl alcohol and pipe cleaners. The button was a little bit constricted so I used a Vermont Freehand Slot Funneling Tool to clean up the slightly off-center drilling. I also used a piece of emery board (fingernail file) to sand the airway at the button.

The stems of both project pipes were suspended in Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer (deox). The stems were left in the solution for four hours.

I returned to the stummel and cleaned out the airway within the shank. 95% ethyl alcohol with cotton swabs and a nylon shank brush were the tools of choice here.

Next came the ream team: The PipNet with #2 blades, the Smokingpipes Low Country Reamer and the General triangular scraper with the tip ground off, round were called up for duty.

They all served valiantly with the PipNet doing the lion’s share of the work.

Once sanded Chuck marks within the tobacco chamber could be observed. This told me that the pipe, though used, had not experienced a lot of use.

The stummel made her way to the sink for a scrubbing with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon brush. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

The scrubbing did not remove the lava from the rim as well as I had hoped. Back at the workbench a wipe with ethyl alcohol on a make-up pad barely touched the clear coat and the lava.

The rim required a bit of scraping with a sharp knife. Saliva was applied to soften the deposits on the rim prior to and during the scraping.

It was looking better.

The problem with a good scraping was what it uncovered. The absence of the lava highlighted some dings on the rim. Topping would be my solution to this.

I wondered if wiping the stummel with acetone on a make-up pad would be sufficient to dissolve away the clear coat.

The acetone was working but oh, so slowly.

Light sanding helped etch the coating but it was still a slow process.

I decided to give the stummel a 30 minute bath in acetone.

After 30 minutes the stummel was removed and wiped with another make-up pad.

The shininess of the clear coat was gone and with it most of the red stain.

The four hour deox bath ended and both stems were set up to drip excess deon solution back into the jar.

The Marseille stem was vigorously rubbed with a coarse shop rag to remove both the remaining deox solution and some of the oxidized vulcanite.

The stem was scrubbed with Soft Scrub cleanser on a few make-up pads to remove more of the stubborn oxidized vulcanite.

Both stems were oiled with mineral oil and set aside overnight.

I returned my attention to the stummel. I wanted to try to return it to the reddish brown. I assembled the materials needed to dye the stummel; Dark Red Fiebing’s Leather Dye, a lighter , a wine bottle cork and a pipe cleaner. The cork was to be both a plug, keeping dye out of the tobacco chamber and a handle. The lighter, for flaming the wet dye, allowing the alcohol solvent to burn off and set the dye to the briar and the pipe cleaner as an applicator.

Below is the freshly dyed stummel in red.

The stummel was allowed to air dry another 30 minutes at the workbench.

A second dying was done with mahogany Fiebing’s Leather dye and the same process as with the red dye.

Below is the freshly dyed stummel with mahogany over the red dye.

This too was allowed to dry for 30 minutes before lightly wiping the stummel with a make-up pad wetted with 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stamps were taped with painters tape to protect them during the sanding to come.

The stem and stummel were reconnected and sanded together. A series of sanding sponges in grits of 600-3500 were used. Between each sponge the stummel was wiped with an alcohol dampened make-up pad to remove sanding debris. The stem was rubbed with a light coating of mineral oil and wiped with a paper towel between sanding sponges. You can see in the photo below where I wiped the sponges off on the denim. It not only protects the workbench surface but is a great place to wipe sanding sponges.

The stummel was then worked with micro-mesh pads 4000-12000. The wiping of the stummel with a make-up pad was repeated as was the oiling and wiping of the stem.

The pipe was taken to the buffer for several coats of carnauba wax. The final step was a hand buffing with a microfiber polishing cloth.

I said it before and I say it again, I am developing an appreciation for the oval shank. It is a feature that provides a more robust feel in the hand while retaining a more elegant contour in profile. I am sure the extra briar also provides additional strength for those who are a bit more hard on pipes. The oval shanked volcano of this Marseille restored beautifully. The dye turned out lovely and the factory staining was fairly well mimicked. The stem oxidation was problematic with the loss of the logo disappointing. I admit that I am not finished with this restoration. I am waiting for another brand of stem deoxidizer which a supplier has sent me to try. I want to try it on this stem and report the findings when I have used the product. Stay tuned for updates. Overall I am very pleased at how well this pipe turned out. The dimensions of the Marseille Oval Shank Volcano are:

Length: 5.05 in./ 128.27 mm.

Weight: 1.47 oz./ 41.67 g.

Bowl Height: 1.84 in./ 46.74 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.47 in./ 37.34 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.76 in./ 19.30 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.56 in./ 39.62 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Marseille Oval Shank Volcano.
An E. Wilke Squat Apple Restoration

April 1st, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

I will probably catch grief for calling this a squat apple and be corrected by some saying it is a tomato or an author but to my eye, it looks like an apple and to be specific an Cortland Apple sans the anthocyanins and their red. Sorry, my previous life as a chemistry teacher emerged and demanded recognition. This plump little darling caught my eye along with its long shanked Marxman coconspirator. The eBay listing only had two photos, the below is a screenshot of one of them:

Those adorable chubby cheeks demanded that I buy the pair. There was a little bit of drama but I’ll leave that to the blog about the Marxman but after a few days wait, the E. Wilke and Marxman both arrived.

Below are some photos of the pipe prior to working on it.

Yeah, it had some issues but that shape, that amazingly round bowled shape. I was smitten. The stem looked like a Weber that had been left out in the sun. The pipe had obviously been smoked and showed the signs of moderate use, as shown by the charring and lava on the rim. There was also that strange dark streak of the right shank and that truly dreadful fissure on the bottom of the shank but those chubby cheeks could not be denied. I would reclaim this dilapidated doll and make her mine.

Background

E. Wilke stamped on the shank of this pipe refers to Edwin Wilke. According to pipedia.org,

“Edwin Wilke founded Wilke Tobacco in 1872. As the story goes, according to a 1937 New York World-Telegram article, he had no sons, and so he taught his two daughters, Anna and Louisa Wilke, how to make pipes and blend tobacco, and by his death in 1930 they were well versed in both trades, and adamant about only using quality briar. In 1950, when they were the focus of an article in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune, they were the only women pipe makers in the United States, and had sold pipes to Herbert Hoover, Lord Halifax, John Steinbeck and others. The sisters also blended pipe tobacco and repaired pipes. They did not, however, smoke pipes.

Wilke prided itself on “unpainted pipes”, and promised that only Macedonian briar was used, without paint, varnish, plug, or putty of any kind. As of 1950, some of their pipes were selling for up to $100.00, or just under $1,000.00 dollars today. By the release of a 1970 New York Magazine highlight of the shop, that claim had risen to $500.00, or over $3,000.00 today.

The Wilke Pipe Shop was located for decades at 400 Madison Avenue and 48th, in New York City, and in the 1970s opened a satellite store in the famed Wanamaker’s department store in Philadelphia, selling Wilke pipes made by Steven Johnson. In 1983, the brand was purchased by pipe maker Elliott Nachwalter and his wife, Carole Burns. They continued to operate the Madison Avenue store until the early 1990’s, at which point the couple moved to Vermont and Pipeworks & Wilke was born as a mail-order business.

Carole Burns^[1] continued blending tobacco in Montpelier, Vermont till July 2017. Now John Brandt looks to continue blending Wilke’s traditional blends and bringing back some of the older blends from the early days to keep the 145 year old brand alive and growing.^[2^]“ (Wilke – Pipedia)

Now, this pipe did seem to fit a couple of the characteristics from the pipes.org article; it was unvarnished and it did not seem to have any putty filling imperfections in the briar. I cannot speak to the “Macedonian briar” as there is no stamp indicating the origin of the briar. I still think that the stem of this pipe reminds me of Weber made pipes from the same era. In researching further I found an old Google Groups discussion of E. Wile pipes from 2002. Here the user “” started a thread with the following,

“Can anyone give me a brief history about this manufacturer or brand? I

am curious about… if this was a NY company that made pipes, still in

business, overall quality…etc. thanks!” (https://groups.google.com/g/alt.smokers.pipes/c/w34OVfPNFfE?pli=1)

The interesting part came from another user named “LDaneman”. LDaneman, states the following”

“As a former employee and pipemaker for Edwin Wilke Company, I can give you a

little history. The little shop on Madison Avenue was purchased by a Stanley Becker, a jewish NY lawyer. Some pipes were left over from Wilke’s hey-day, . . . I forget the name of the Italian pipemaker who did extra-large art deco shapes.

Through the 80’s the old (80+) tobacconist still blended up on the 4th Floor
and I have fond memories of ‘time-traveling’ with him. The 524 blend was better
than Dunhill, and the 400 was pretty good as well. The key was an unflavored
golden Cavendish and a dark fine cut Cavendish in the 524.

I started a new pipemaking workshop in Philadelphia for Wilke’s concession shop
in John Wanamaker’s department store. Our pipes made national news and we
shipped tobaccos to European customers. My pipes sold from $65 to $1000 but our
main pipemaker was Stephen Johnson. Last I heard Steve worked for Zino
Davidoff.

Steve made some sweet smoking pipes and I smoke a few of my own make with the Wilke stamp, but still own a couple by Steve as well.

I was fired under dubious circumstances. The management of Wanamakers hated me since I successfully marketed Eltron razors when they failed, pens, and really
hit the roof when I began blending a men’s fragrance.

Wilke in Philly folded less than a year after my departure into the perfume
business and the New York shop was sold soon after that. I heard Wilke finally
vanished after the buyer was hit with unpaid employee taxes and was bankrupted,
but that is just a rumor to me, . . . I don’t know if that is true or not.

Most the Wilke pipes are not especially good, mass-manufactured by a factory
whose name escapes me. Unless made by the old Italian fellow (an indented tenon
is usually an indication of his make) or by Steve Johnson, . . . well just
forget it.

A grand history in the 20’s through 50’s. The 60’s brought on a slow demise.” (https://groups.google.com/g/alt.smokers.pipes/c/w34OVfPNFfE?pli=1)

In a later post LDaneman writes,

“. . . ., and if anyone is interested, most of the post Wilke sister pipes were

mass-produced by Weber pipe company. I think anyway. Trying to remember the

name of that company. They were crap and that’s why I set up the new pipemaking

shop on the mezzanine level at Wanamakers. It was in the original teak paneled

Tobacco Shop John Wanamaker used to hang his hat and coat in. Was lost when

they enlarged an underground parking garage.” (https://groups.google.com/g/alt.smokers.pipes/c/w34OVfPNFfE?pli=1)

Now, I have no reason to doubt anything that LDanman writes. The pipeda.org information indicates that the location of the Wanamaker’s in Philadelphia occurred in the 1970s and that LDaneman “Set up a new pipe making shop” on Wanamakers mezzanine. This too would likely be during the 1970s. His knowledge of the company is interesting but his jumping around in time, frustrating. The part about the Weber made pipes was particularly interesting as I thought the stem of this pipe looked like a Weber made stem.

The Weber connection is further supported by information again from pipedia.org,

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

So, the question remains, “who made this pipe and when?” I honestly do not know. I feel pretty sure of my original thought that this was a Weber made pipe, likely from the 1970 or later. Produced for the E. Wilke company.

The Restoration

As usual the pipe made its way to the workbench and a clean denim piece. I actually undertook the restoration of two pipes during this project. That is not something I really like to do but my schedule has been filled with essential time sucking activities. Okay, I’ve been doing a bit of fishing and have not been at the workbench as much as I should.

The stem required some work before I could put it into the Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer solution (deox). This will be called pre-deox and involved; some scraping of calcium/oxidation, filing tooth dents and light sanding with a 400 grit sanding sponge.

The stem was also cleaning out internally with bristle pipe cleaners dipped in 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stem had trouble passing a pipe cleaner through the button so I did work on opening the airway a little bit. I used a tapered piece of an emery board to sand the interior of the airway.

The resulting airway was much better.

The stems of the two project pipes, the E. Wilke and another oval stemmed piece were suspended in deox with pipe cleaners as hangers. They each spent about four hours in the solution.

During this time I continued work on the E. Wilke stummel. The shank was cleaned out using a dental scraper, nylon shank brush, cotton swabs and pipe cleaners with 95% ethyl alcohol.

Once the shank was clean I turned to the tobacco chamber. The PiNet #1 and #2 blades along with the General triangular scraper and the Smokingpipes Low Country Reamer were used.

The below photo shows the results of each tool.

After reaming the chamber was sanded with 220 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel. The tobacco chamber showed no signs of charring or heat damage.

Next, the stummel went to the sink where it was scrubbed with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon scrub brush. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

The scrubbing revealed an unsightly charred rim and a dark stain I thought was accumulated grime.

A second scrubbing of the stummel was done with no effect on the supposed grime.

Back at the workbench I got a good look at the two areas of concern. The charred rim would require topping and then some.

The rest of the stummel looked pretty good.

An alcohol wipe confirmed that there was no finish on the stummel.

I took the stummel to the counter where I laid a piece of 320 sandpaper flat on the counter.

Using a figure 8 motion I topped the rim removing the charred wood.

The results of the topping are shown in the photo below.

The charred area below the rim was lightly filed and I attempted to blend the filing to minimize the noticeability of the filing.

The dark streak on the lower right shank was some strange stain on the briar.

I have had good results using a saturated oxalic acid solution to bleach stains from wood and thought it might be useful for both the rim and the shank.

The oxalic acid was applied to the darkened areas with a cotton swab and allowed to sit for 20 minutes.

After the initial 20 minutes I applied more oxalic acid to the entire stummel. This was allowed to sit for another 30 minutes.

After the stummel was scrubbed a third time using Murphy Oil Soap and a copious amount of rinsing the stummel was dried using the cotton hand towel. Once dry the results of the oxalic acid were observed. The stummel looked better but not as good as I had hoped.

The darkened areas had been lightened but they remained darker than the surrounding briar.

I started repairing the blemish on the bottom of the shank. I know E. Wilke was proud of their “no putty” but that pit was unacceptable to me.

I applied brown cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue) to the pit with a fly tying bodkin.

A dental scraper was used as a spoon to scoop a small amount of briar dust and place it on the wet CA.

The back of the dental scraper was used to press the briar dust into the wet CA in the pit.

Additional brown CA was applied to the pit after the dust had been brushed off.

A second application of brown CA was applied once the first had cured.

After the second application had cured and set up, I filed the fill using a small flat file to remove the new fill material and smooth the surface.

The new fill was then sanded with a 400 grit sanding sponge.

I sanded the entire stummel with a 400 sanding sponge followed by a sanding with a 600 sponge. I was looking for additional spots which might require CA filling. I found none.

I figured the best way to conceal the darker areas caused by the charring or staining was to give the stummel a contrast dye. I thought a black undercoat of dye might be the perfect camouflage. I covered the stamp with painters tape hoping this would prevent the dye from dying the stamp area. It didn’t.

The stems were removed from deox and allowed to drip excess solution back into the jar.

The E. Wilke stem was vigorously rubbed with a coarse shop rag to remove both remaining solution and oxidized vulcanite.

The stem was then scrubbed with Soft Scrub cleanser applied to make-up pads. This removed more oxidized vulcanite.

Below you can see the E. Wilke and the other restoration victim. Both stems had been oiled with mineral oil after their Soft Scrub ordeals.

The dye kit was gathered. It consisted of Fiebing’s Black Leather Dye, a cork to keep dye from the tobacco chamber, a lighter and a pipe cleaner as an applicator.

The Fiebing’s Dye was applied and flamed, burning away the alcohol solvent of the dye and fixing it to the briar.

The stummel was then rinsed with 99% isopropyl alcohol and wiped with a paper towel.

Back at the workbench the results of the black dye can be seen. The dye penetrated the softer grained briar more than the harder grain. A light sanding removed the outermost layer of briar revealing lighter and darker areas due to penetration depth.

Below is a photo of the sanded stummel.

The stem and stummel were then sanded with a series of sanding sponges from 400-3500 grit. The stummel was wiped with an alcohol dampened make-up pad between each sponge while the stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a paper towel between sanding sponges.

The stem and stummel were then worked with micro-mesh pads from 4000-12000. Again stummel wiping with an alcohol make-up pad between micro-mesh pads was done. Between pads the stem was runned with Obsidian Oil and wiped with a paper towel.

The pipe was then taken to the buffer where it received several coats of carnauba wax.

The final step was a hand buffing with a microfiber polishing cloth.

Overall, I am very pleased at how well this E. Wilke pipe turned out. Though it is likely not an example of the highest quality E. Wilke pipe of the company’s heyday, still is a lovely little piece. The contrast stain did a good job of concealing the blemishes that the pipe accumulated over the years of use. The stem polished up nicely and the glossy black accentuated the light and dark grain from the contrast dye. The thick walls and the cheekiness that they provide are even more pronounced with the finished pipe than they were when it arrived and I think it is far more attractive now. The dimensions of the Carlyle Oval Shank Dublin are:

Length: 5.00 in./ 127.00 mm.

Weight: 1.08 oz./ 30.62 g.

Bowl Height: 1.42 in./ 36.07 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.06 in./ 26.92 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.72 in./ 18.29 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.58 in./ 40.13 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished E Wilke Squat Apple.

.
A Carlyle Oval Shank Dublin (by Comoy’s) Restoration

March 27th, 2025

Photographed and written by

John M. Young

Background

I have good news and bad news: The good news is that this pipe’s provenance is pretty certain – it is a Comoy’s second. As seen here from pipephil.eu:

(Can-Car — Pipes : Logos & Markings)

This brings me to the bad news, the bad news is that it is a Comoy’s. I suppose I should explain, Comoy’s is really a collaboration between the Chapuis and Comoy’s families and centered in two locations, the Saint-Claude region in France and London, England. There are many names involved over a 150 year period. The various people are related and moved between countries over the years. This is why I said, “The bad news”. It is because I find this all confusing.

In a nutshell Henri Comoy was from the Sainte-Claude region. As many folks did, he followed his father as a wood turner. He ends up married and living in London, making pipes from briar. His wife’s sister provides the connection to the Chapuis name. His wife’s sister, Fanny Beausire was married to Charles Pierre Chapuis, a Swiss watchmaker. They had seven children, three of which are important to this story; Charles Chapuis dies leaving the children partially orphaned, Emile (21 years old when Charles dies), Louis (19) and Charles (15). Louis and Charles are adopted by their Aunt Anna, Henri Comoy’s wife, and moved to London. Here they are taught the Comoy family business of pipe making alongside Henri and Anna’s two biological children, Paul and Adrien Comoy. The four boys, Louis Chapuis, Charles Chapuis, Paul Comoy and Adrien Comoy are treated equally regarding inheritance within the business.

This leads to the start of the start of the company. “H. Comoy & Co. Ltd was established in 1914. It was a partnership between Henri, his sons Adrien and Paul and his nephews Louis and Charles.” (Comoy’s – Pipedia) By 1921 the company expands to the United States. Now the adopted brothers remain in contact with the older Emile. He is in the pipe business as well selling pipes wholesale in Paris, according to the pipedia.org article. In the early 1922 Emile, Louis and Charles started another company, Chapuis-Comoy, in Saint-Claude. This company serves the French market for briar pipes. I know, this nutshell is becoming larger and larger. Old man Henri Comoy died in 1924 and within 5 years H. Comoy & Co. Ltd became part of Cardogan Investments Ltd. In 1928 the two pairs of brothers created Chacom in Saint-Claude. Now Chacom can have the French and European market while Comoy’s deals with England and the US. Here is where things get weird, both companies use the same shape charts thus all the overlap in Comoy’s and Chacom shapes.

As pipedia explains, “In 1929, H. Comoy Co. Ltd became part of Cadogan Investments Ltd, created by the Oppenheimer Group, which at that time already owned a number of very important and well-known brands such as Maréchal & Ruchon (GBD), Civic & Co Ltd, BBB de Frankau, Sina, Verguet Frères, Orlik and Loewe.” (Comoy’s – Pipedia). Comoys are apparently allowed to manage their own business affairs and continue with business as usual. Of course there is an “UNTIL” coming. Comoys was left alone until the 1980s when Cardogan took over and quality went downhill.

Chacom had their ups and downs as well, with mergers with La Bruyere in 1932. Then the war, the recovery, the reassertion or market share, the regaining of their own name Chacon from Le Bruyere and eventual integration with Ropp. For the much longer version please see some of the following links:

Chacom – Pipedia

Comoy’s – Pipedia

Comoy — Pipes : Logos & Markings

Document: GBD Comoy Chacom — Pipes: Logos & Markings

Hopefully this all kind of explains why CARLYLE from the pipephil.eu photos is an English maker while the pipe is sporting a country of manufacture (COM) stamp clearly saying FRANCE. I told you it was confusing…

The Restoration

After all that background it’s good to get back to the easy stuff, for me anyway – the restoring. The Carlyle began the procedure with a clean denim piece on the workbench.

The airway of the stem was cleaned with bristle pipe cleaners and 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stem was then lightly sanded with a 500 grit sanding sponge and a pipe cleaner was inserted into the tenon to act as a hanger for suspending the stem in Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer solution (hereafter called deox).

The stem was immersed in deox for two hours.

The reaming tools were gathered.

The PipNet and the #1 blade was only used to clear the bottom of the tobacco chamber as this chamber was quite conically bored. The #2 blade did most of the work reaming the chamber. The Smoingpipes Low Country Reamer and the General triangular scraper were used for some light clean-up work. The chamber was then sanded with 220 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel.

The tobacco chamber showed no signs of heat damage or charring.

Another view of the chamber, below.

Scrubbing with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon brush came next. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

Returning to the workbench the stummel was wiped with 95% ethyl alcohol on a couple of make-up pads. This removed some of the finish and stain.

I then wiped the stummel with acetone on new make-up pads. This removed more of the clear coat finish and more stain.

With the clear coat removed, I started picking the old fill material from the largest of the three fills. Additional acetone was used to soften the old fill material for picking with a fly tying bodkin.

There was one other large fill at the front of the bowl. This too was picked out.

The airway of the shank was cleaned using a dental scraper, bristle pipe cleaners and cotton swabs along with a healthy dose of 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stummel was then lightly sanded to reveal any additional areas where old fills may have been hiding.

The depth of the front fill was minimal and was filled with brown cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue).

The two pits on the right side were deeper. These were filled with brown CA applied into the pit with a fly tying bodkin.

Briar dust was then scooped with a dental scraper and a small pile placed on top of the wet CA. The back of the dental scraper was used to press the dust into the CA filled depression.

The briar dust cured almost immediately with the briar dust. The resulting fill was then filed with a small flat file.

The front fill received a second coat of brown CA. and was filed after it had cured.

The new fills had slightly lighter areas around them from the filing. I wanted to blend the color to match the existing stain.

I first used a Cherry Furniture Touch-up Marker and allowed the stain to dry. The area was lightly wiped with a make-up pad moistened with 95% ethyl alcohol.

The color was close but not close enough. I used the Mahogany marker over the area, allowed it to dry and re-wiped with the alcohol. I was happy with the results of the second stain.

The stamp was taped with painters tape for protection from the sanding.

After two hours, the stem was allowed out of deox. The drip-dry-o-matic (patent pending) was deployed to allow excess solution to join it’s jarred brethren.

I used a coarse shop rag to vigorously rub the remaining deox solution from the stem. This removes some of the oxidized vulcanite from the surface.

Back at the workbench I used Soft Scrub cleanser on make-up pads. This removed a great deal of the oxidized vulcanite.

And, some more.

The COM stamp and the “maybe” logo were taped with painters tape to protect them from sanding.

Ready for sanding.

The stem and stummel were sanded intact to avoid the rounding of the edges of each part. A series of sanding sponges from 400-3500 grit. Between each sponge I wiped the stummel with a make-up pad moistened with alcohol. The stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a paper towel.

The painters tape was removed and wiped with alcohol to remove any adhesive remaining. The pipe was worked with micro-mesh pads from 4000-12000. Again, between each pad I wiped the stummel and stem between each pad as with the sanding sponges except in place of mineral oil I used Obsidian Oil.

The stummel received a coating of Before and After Restoration Balm. The balm was allowed to stay on the stummel for 15 minutes.

The remaining Restoration Balm was wiped from the stummel using an inside out athletic sock.

The pipe was then taken to the buffer where the pipe was given several coats of carnauba wax.

The final step was a hand buffing with a microfiber polishing cloth.

I am developing a new appreciation for the oval shank. It is a feature that provides a more robust feel in the hand while retaining a more elegant contour in profile. I am sure the extra briar also provides additional strength for those who are a bit more hard on pipes. This oval shank Carlyle Dublin restored in beautiful fashion. The briar grain grain is lovely and the factory staining was preserved. The stem lost the oxidation without losing the FRANCE stamp though I would have liked to see the factory fresh top stem logo but that appears to have been lost years ago to wear and buffing. Overall I am very pleased at how well this pipe turned out. The dimensions of the Carlyle Oval Shank Dublin are:

Length: 5.43 in./ 99.57 mm.

Weight: 1.20 oz./ 18.71 g.

Bowl Height: 1.84 in./ 38.10 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.57 in./ 27.69 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.74 in./ 16.00 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.35 in./ 28.45 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Carlyle Oval Shank Dublin.
A Lorenzo Spitfire 8497 Restoration

March 4th, 2025
Photographed and written by

John M. Young

As a child of the 1970s I grew up with the series The Six Million Dollar Man. For those who never heard of this, it was a TV series where an astronaut crashes his ship and is badly damaged. He is rebuilt using “bionic” parts allowing him superhuman abilities. During the title sequence a narrator explains, “”We can rebuild him. We have the technology. We can make him better than he was. Better . . . stronger . . . faster.” For some reason this line kept going through my head during this restoration. Given the “faster” doesn’t work but the other two, most definitely. The pipe was one of 13 pipes won in an eBay auction from Germany. I was hoping to acquire some lesser known makers or lines of pipes to the US market.

The shape of this pipe is a tough one for me, it is a dainty pipe with a curved bowl. Is it a bent tulip, a chimney, a billiard? Heck, I don’t know, I’ll just use the 8497 stamped on the shank to identify the shape. As for the other stamps there was “Spitfire” in a flowing cursive script and GENUINE over BRIAR as a circle on the underside of the shank. Below is a screenshot of this pipe from the original eBay listing. It shows a repaired stem from a break, a chipped shank end and a good deal of excess glue, perhaps a failed clenching experience while mowing the lawn.

Below are some photos of the Spitfire before work had begun. Well, that is not entirely true. The break was held together by the glue until I tried to remove the stem. The stem was quite stuck. Unaware of my incredible strength, the glue broke while I tried to free the stem. Umm, there may have been a slight exaggeration there about my strength. The stem remained stuck within the shank piece as seen in the photos below.

Ok, you can see there are some issues here that will have to be addressed; the stem stuck in the broken shank and the broken shank being the greatest. The lesser issues include general dirtiness, stem oxidation, excess glue removal, tobacco chamber reaming and other typical restoration stuff. This is going to be a fun project.

Background

The first place that I searched was pipephil.eu for the name “Spitfire”. There I found the following:

(Sn-Ss — Pipes: Logos & Markings). Here you can see the same script style in the “Spitfire” stamping. The GENUINE BRIAR stamp is not represented but the four digit shape number is present. There is also a slight difference in the logo coloration of the bottom image from pipephil.eu. The bullseye shown is more indicative of the colors used by the British Spitfire fighter aircraft in World War Two.

(https://www.history.co.uk/articles/britains-most-heroic-spitfire-pilots-from-world-war-ii)

I assume that the blue coloration of the logo in this Spitfire had merely faded over the years.

The next search site was pipedia.org. There “Spitfire” resulted in:

(Italian Pipe Brands & Makers R – S – Pipedia). The Lorenzo link took me to a nice bit on the history of the predecessors of and the formation of Lorenzo Pipes in 1969. Also, there was the following quote specific to the Spitfire line:

“A somewhat more bargain series was given its own brand name: Spitfire. Spitfires displayed 1:1 transferred Lorenzo models (mainly for 9mm filter) as well as smaller, more classically shaped pipes. These were also extremely popular.” (Lorenzo – Pipedia). The store takes a more tragic turn in 1983,

“In 1983 Lorenzo Tagliabue came to bitter grief: his little daughter, the only child, died of cancer. He lost all interest in the business and retired still in 1983, leaving no heirs who wished to continue the business. Lorenzo Pipes was licensed for and continued for a shorter period by Comoy’s of London (Cadogan / Oppenheimer Group). Then Lorenzo Pipes almost disappeared and Lorenzo Tagliabue passed away in 1987.

But this wasn’t the end. In 1988 Riccardo Aliverti and his wife Gabriella purchased all rights to the Lorenzo trademark from the Tagliabue family and production of the renown Lorenzo Pipes resumed.

The Aliverti family is involved in pipemaking since Romolo Aliverti, the father of the current owners, joined the Lana Brothers in 1920. He later reached the rank of technical director. No wonder that his son Riccardo showed an interest in pipe making. Riccardo began learning the pipemaking trade in 1954 at the age of fourteen under his father’s watchful eyes and succeeded him as technical director upon his father’s retirement in 1973.

Today the third generation of the Aliverti family is working for the company. Massimo Aliverti, Riccardo’s son, has been with the company as sales director since 1991. He works closely with his father and knows all phases of production. Massimo has established a broad customer base for Lorenzo around the world.

As far as the informations are reliable, Lorenzo’s better lines (One Star, Two Star, Three Star, Moscato, Spumante and the Grand Canadian) are made in Italy while the cheaper ones (New Era – Riesling, New Era – Poggio, Angera, Angera Satinato, Cadry, Churchwarden, Filtro, Arena, Cadore, Sport PS and Garden) are made in Albania by Tomori to benefit from the rich deposit of briar in Albania.

The website of Lorenzo’s American distributor SMS Pipes gives a good impression of today’s Lorenzo Pipes. SMS also offers a wide range of Meers.” (Lorenzo – Pipedia).

I think that it is safe to say that this pipe was made in Italy by Lorenzo most likely between the early 1970s-1983.

The Restoration

Breaking a pipe is seldom fun and breaking one while removing a stem is less fun than that. I suppose I could take some consolation in the fact that it had already been broken and the attempted repair was what had actually broken. Regardless, the pipe made it to the workbench. I immediately dropped the shank piece and tenon end into a small medicine cup with 95% ethyl alcohol. Apologies for not photographing that step. The alcohol worked quickly in freeing the stem from the broken piece of shank. The below photo has the broken piece of shank pressed in place though not glued, for the photograph.

I began with reaming the tobacco chamber. I thought the PipNet and the #1 blade would be narrow enough for this petit chamber. It was for the first 1- 1.5 cm then the chamber tapered.

I used a Tsuge reaming tool for this narrow chamber. This was followed up with the General triangular scraper.

I remember picking up the Tsuge tool after my first PipNet set lost the #1 blade to breakage. The chamber was then sanded with 220 and 320 sandpaper wrapped around a wood dowel and a Sharpie marker, respectively. There was no damage from heat or charring in the chamber but there were a couple of places where the chamber had experienced small dings, likely from previous clumsy reaming/scraping.

The shank was cleaned with cotton swabs and bristle pipe cleaners dipped in 95% ethyl alcohol.

The stummel was then taken to the sink for a scrubbing with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and both a nylon brush and a brass wire brush. The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel.

Back at the workbench the stummel was wiped with 95% ethyl alcohol on a make-up pad. This removed some stain from the briar.

The plan to repair the shank was this:
1. Glue a ¼ inch or 6.5 mm brass tube into the mortise well past the break.
2. Glue the broken shank end into place.
3. Fill the seams with cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue) and briar dust.
4. Recarve the rustication and redye the shank.
The mortise of the Spitfire was drilled at ¼ inch or 6.5 mm. I needed to deepen the mortise to implement my fix. I used a Brad Point Drill Bits 1/4-Inch Hex Shank Stubby Drill Bit in a screwdriver handle to extend the mortise approximately 1.4 inch (6.5 mm) past the furthest edge of the break.

The brass tube was slid into position to test the fit. So far, so good.

The pieces of briar refused to align precisely. Bah! Hmm, there was a layer of glue from the previous fix on the briar which kept the broken pieces from aligning correctly.

I began soaking the broken edges with acetone to soften the old glue.

While the glue was soft I worked it with a nylon brush. This helped peel the edges of the glue from the briar. The acetone would evaporate quickly so I had to soften and scrub quickly. Eventually the glue was removed.

The brass tubing was cut to length using a tubing or pipe cutter.

The brass tube was scratched up with 80 grit emery paper to increase the surface area for the glue to adhere to. The tube was pressed into place without the broken shank piece and Thin CA was allowed to seep into the joint. The broken shank piece was slid over the brass tube and situated correctly. Additional Thin CA was applied to these seams. The two pieces of briar were then clamped and allowed to cure.

As the CA was curing I began cutting the tenon to fit into the brass tube. This required the use of the VermontFreehand Adjustable Tenon Turning Tool. I made several cutts adjusting the cutter very slightly (approximately 1/8th turn of the adjustment screw). I feared taking too much material off and shattering the thin tenon. Once the tenon was close to the right size I began filing the new tenon and smoothing it with 400 grit sandpaper.

When the CA that set, I used a countersink bit to hand bevel the inner edge of the mortise.

The stem was pressed into place and the fit was not too bad. I had to file the top of the stem to fit the shank. This was done by wrapping the shank with a layer of masking tape and filing the stem with a small flat file. The lower edge of the joint would have to wait until I had the chip filled before I could fit it to the stem.

Since the seam where the two shank pieces joined was adjacent to the stamps care had to be taken to keep from damaging the stamp. I applied brown CA with the tip of a fly tying bodkin to the seam. Briar dust was then pressed into the wet CA. The briar dust caused the CA to cure almost immediately. The excess dust was brushed off with a brass brush. This was repeated to fill the seam in very small increments.

The same process was used on the carved surface seams.

To fill the chipped shank end, I applied a bead of brown CA to the area that I wanted filled. This wet CA was then pressed into the box of briar dust. The excess dust was brushed off with a nylon brush and another thin layer of CA was applied. This wet CA was again pressed into the briar dust. Once the chip in the shank end was filled with CA and briar dust the end was filed with a small flat file. The final fill was topped with a coating of Thin CA to seal the layers of brown CA and briar dust.

At this point I was getting impatient to get a look at the finished pipe. I opted to try buffing the stem’s oxidation into submission. In hindsight, this was a mistake. I describe it here so that you can avoid being as dumb as me.

I wrapped the shank with masking tape to protect it from the buffing.

Using a rouge compound I buffed the stem until I thought I’d removed the oxidation.

The problem was, the stem looked shiny but shiny brown. I wanted shiny black. I wetted a few make-up pads with Soft Scrub cleanser and scrubbed the stem. They removed a great deal of oxidation.

“Okay, I’ll quit being in a hurry and do it right,” I said to myself. I suspended the stem into the Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer (I refer to this as deox). It was allowed to soak overnight.

The next day I removed the stem and allowed it to drip excess solution back into the jar.

I like to scrub the remaining deox from the stem with vigorous use of a coarse shop rag.

The coarse texture of the rag absorbs the solution and removes more of the oxidized rubber as can be seen below.

The stem was certainly looking more black this time. There remained brown areas especially on the top side of the stem. I sanded the stem with a series of sanding sponges from 400-1000 grit. The zone immediately (1 cm) below the button was filed using the small flat file and further sanded. Once sanded I returned to the buffer and buffed the stem with white compound.

Pleased with the stem, I turned my attention to recarving the rustications on top of the fills. I used the Dremel rotary tool and a sharp carving bit.

I tried to keep the lines pretty much the same but to carve through the fill material. I very much wanted to eliminate any shiny CA spots.

The newly carved textures looked good but their color was off when compared to the rest of the shank.

I used a Mahogany Furniture Touch-up Marker to re-stain the briar to match the existing color.

Not bad.

Not bad, at all.

The stummel was given a coat of Before and After Restoration Balm, applied with a baby toothbrush and allowed to sit for 20 minutes.

20 Minutes later the Restoration Balm was hand buffed from the stummel using an inside out athletic sock.

The baby toothbrush was cleaned using 95% ethyl alcohol. Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax was applied to the stummel using the baby toothbrush. I applied two coats of wax allowing 10 minutes between coats.

The stummel was taken to the buffer where it was buffed using a clean flannel wheel. While there I applied several coats of carnauba wax to the stem and the stampings on the underside of the shank.

To address those two rough spots from previous reaming/scraping inside the tobacco chamber, I opted to use a maple syrup and charcoal bowl coating. I applied a very thin coating of syrup to the chamber using a cotton swab.

I then used a capsule of Activated Charcoal dumped into the chamber. Oh, note the pipe cleaner in the shank. This keeps the charcoal from getting into the airway. I covered the rim with a piece of masking tape and vigorously shook the stummel for several seconds to distribute the charcoal powder evenly onto the wet syrup.

After removing the tape, dumping the excess charcoal and giving the stem a good blow, don’t draw in, you’ll get a mouthful of charcoal. The final step was a hand buffing done with a microfiber polishing cloth.

This was a long and troublesome restoration. Little things like; not having the ¼ inch brass tubing and waiting for it to arrive, the old glue removal, fitting the brass reinforcement tube, cutting the tenon, and being dumb and skipping steps, made the whole process last for many days. In the end, I think the pipe turned out well. Yeah, like the pipedia.org article says, “A somewhat more bargain series”, it is a cheaper pipe. I enjoy the challenge of returning a pipe like this to working condition. The re-carvings turned out very nicely as did the re-staining. I think you would be hard pressed to notice the break repair if you could not see the seam on the smooth stamp surface. The stem also did polish up fairly well. The brass reinforcement will certainly add strength to the pipe and should keep it from having another break. It is still a dainty little pipe which would probably be a great addition to someone who loves Virginia flake tobacco in a tall narrow bowl. The dimensions of the Lorenzo Spitfire Bent Billiard 849 are as follows:

Length: 5.37 in./ 136.40 mm.

Weight: 0.87 oz./ 24.66 g.

Bowl Height: 2.02 in./ 51.31 mm.

Chamber Depth: 1.75 in./ 44.45 mm.

Chamber Diameter: 0.61 in./ 15.49 mm.

Outside Diameter: 1.24 in./ 31.50 mm.

I do hope that you have found something here useful to your own pipe care, maintenance or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the finished Lorenzo Spitfire Bent Billiard 8497.
A Baronet 906EX (Savinelli) Restoration

January 7th, 2025
Photographed and written by

John M. Young

I like big pipes. No, it’s not the first line from a Sir Mix-a-lot parody. I can’t say I like to smoke them but I love the way they feel in my hand. The word substantial comes to mind. I also like the general hand warming powers they emit – it is winter. Anyway, this pipe has all of those characteristics. Well, maybe not the emitting heat one. I haven’t smoked this pipe but I’m sure it would excel at it. I am not sure sure when this bountiful beauty arrived due to my less than good record keeping but it has been patiently waiting in the queue for some time. The pipe is stamped with a winged crown over BARONET over BRUYERE. Offset to the right is 906EX over ITALY. Below are some photographs of the pipe as it appeared prior to receiving any work.

For comparison purposes I photographed her with a Peterson of more standard size.

The Baronet was in need of a good deal of attention. The outer surfaces had the expected dirt and grime associated with a well used pipe. The tobacco chamber needed to be reamed and inspected for any heat damage. The airway is nearly always expected to be yuck filled. The stem on this pipe seemed to be the most in need of attention. Previous experience with Savinelli pipes lead me to expect the oxidation removal from this stem would be troublesome along with some reconstruction of the button.

Background

Baronet is not a brand nor line which I had heard of. The stampings did look very familiar though. I first went to pipephil.eu, there I found Baronet without any trouble.

(Baro-Bd — Pipes : Logos & Markings)

The stampings on the Baronet in hand looked remarkably similar to the top two photos from pipephil.eu. I could not make out any stamping on the stem but that could just be to the state of heavy oxidation on the rubber. The crown of both photos lacked the wings which I thought were quite apparent on this Baronet.

Next I searched for “Baronet” on pipedia.org. There I also found a result immediately though not what I was expecting.

“The following pipe, marked Baronet with *** underneath, perhaps a grading system, was made in Denmark. Baronet is also a Savinelli Sub-brand, as well as a GBD brand. This one being made in Denmark, is apparently a different brand altogether.”
- Example and details, courtesy Doug Valitchka
(Baronet – Pipedia). The same name, similar shape, similar rustication but from a country of manufacture which was not supported by stamp evidence. Again the reference to Savinelli existed, so that is where I went next. The link from the above entry led me to the following.

Savinelli made sub-brands, seconds & order productions
- Alligator
- Amalfi
- Arnold’s – 40-50’s sub-brand
- Aurelia Ex.
- Baronet
- Bent Bob Pipes – Distributed in US
- Big Nine
- Bing’s Favorite
(Savinelli – Pipedia). The above list continues for quite a few more names. A total of 114, I counted. Baronet is number 5 on the list. Savinelli is a prolific producer of pipes, I’d say. This is wonderful if you are in need of a Savinelli pipe as the number of options is truly amazing and can fit nearly any style or budget. From a research perspective it is not so wonderful. Finding detailed information on an individual name is daunting.

I tried my luck at searching via Google for “Savinelli Baronet”. I thought, “this will never work” and was quickly proven wrong. The first result was the following:

(https://www.smokingpipes.com/pipes/new/savinelli/moreinfo.cfm?product_id=71710). The product description was pretty much spot on in describing a large pipe with a very generous bowl. There were a few others on the usual auction sites; eBay, Etsy and CollectionHero. There was an almost identical pipe featured as the subject of a Steve Laug restoration Breathing Life into a Savinelli Made Baronet Bruyere Blasticated 606EX Bent Billiard. Yet none of these carried the 906EX stamp. I checked against the Savinelli shape chart and again could not find a 906.

(https://www.smokingpipes.com/smokingpipesblog/single.cfm/post/our-favorite-savinelli-shapes). Perhaps the pipe was so big that the inclusion on the chart would have made it aesthetically unpleasing to the eye. Okay, I completely made that up. What was certain was that this was a pipe made by Savinelli, It was darn big and received the EX suffix due to that and that it was probably made in the 1970-80s based solely on the amount of oxidation on the stem.

The Restoration

The Baronet made her way to the workbench. I wondered about the word, “Baronet”, isn’t Baroness the correct feminine. I had to search for that. According to AI Google: “”Baron” and “baroness” are the correct terms, with “baroness” being the female equivalent of “baron”; “baronet” is a separate, lower ranking title in the British nobility system, where a baronet is addressed as “Sir” and a female baronet as “Dame”.” I learned something new.

The ream team was gathered and given a rousing, morale lifting speech.

The PipNet with it’s #2 blades lead the assault against the cake.

The #3 blades followed and served the cake a rounding defeat. The tobacco chamber was sanded to bare briar and proved most unphotogenic (kind of like photographing a black hole) but it showed no signs of heat damage.

Next came the cleaning of the stem.

The outside of the stem was far worse than the airway. A few 95% ethanol dipped bristle pipe cleaners and the interior was clean.

The exterior of the stem was lightly sanded with a 320 grit sanding sponge to remove the worst of the surface oxidation and the tooth dents were lightly filed.

A pipe cleaner was slipped into the tenn to act as a hanger and the stem was introduced to the Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer. It spent 6 hours in the solution.

The next task was dealing with the airway of the shank. The Kleen-Reem shank drill helped clear out a good deal of the tar but many cotton swabs, bristle pipe cleaners, and alcohol/nylon shank brush scrubs were required to exorcize the tar demons from the shank.

The lava flows on the rim were a concern. Lava on a rusticated rim can be problematic to remove without altering the rim. I thought maybe it could be removed during the stummel scrub.

The scrub was carried out at the sink with undiluted Murphy Oil Soap and a nylon scrub brush.

I spent extra time working the rim with the scrub brush.

The soap was rinsed with warm water and the stummel dried with a cotton hand towel. I was not pleased with the resulting scrub. The rim, especially, was still fouled with lava. I decided on a second scrub but with a brash brush. This removed more grime.

Back at the workbench the rim looked better but still not great.

The stummel was definitely clean but now showed serious signs of wear with missing finish.

I decided to file the rim and work towards a generally smooth finish but with spots with rustication.

I like what I saw.

The inner rim was beveled using a 2 inch round plumbing cap wrapped with 220 sandpaper. The outer rim was filed to a matching bevel.

The rim and bevels were sanded with a series of sanding sponges. I really liked the look of the smooth rim with a few spots of rustication.

Now to restore that black dye to the stummel while preserving the non-rusticated areas. I opted to use a product intended for use in the painting of miniatures for gaming – Vallejo Liquid Mask. The Liquid Mask applies as a thick liquid and dries clear. It is a rubber-like product which can be rolled or peeled off without damaging the covered surface.

I applied it to the rim, stamp area and shank end and allowed it to dry.

The stummel was taken to the kitchenette and an area was prepped for dying. This required a paper towel covered surface, Fiebing’s black Leather Dye and folded pipe cleaner applicator and a lighter. Oh, and a cork for the tobacco chamber opening which stops dye from entering the chamber and provides a handle.

The dye was applied and flamed with the lighter. This flaming fixes the dye to the briar and burns off the alcohol solvent of the dye.

A second coating was applied and flamed.

The result was a nice fresh black finish. This was allowed to dry for an hour.

The mask was rolled from the surface. It did a finance job of keeping the black dye from affecting the underlying briar, as seen in the photos below.

While the dye was drying, I removed the stem from the Deoxidizer and allowed excess solution to drip back into the jar.

The remaining solution was absorbed by a coarse shop rag during a vigorous rubbing of the stem. This removed some of the newly loosened deoxidized rubber.

The stem was looking better but I could still see areas of brown.

The stem was worked with make-up pads drizzled with Soft Scrub cleanser. This stem had a great deal of oxidation and it seemed to have worked its way deep into the vulcanite.

Below is a poorly focused shot of the tooth chatter that remained after filing and sanding the area..

I was still unhappy with the oxidation removal after sanding the stem. Back into the Before and After Deoxidizer for another hour. The drip dry and rubbing with the coarse shop rag followed. After round two there was still some slight browning. I hoped that the subsequent sanding and micro-meshing would remove this.

The tooth chatter area on both the top and the bottom of the stem were given a coating of black cyanoacrylate (CA, super glue). This was spritzed with a CA drying accelerator.

I must have been getting tired of working on this stem as I failed to take many photos. The cured CA was filed then sanded smooth. The stem was then sanded with a series of sanding sponges from grit 400–3500. Between each sponge the stem was rubbed with mineral oil and wiped with a dry paper towel.

The sanding was followed by a series of micro-mesh pads 4000-12000. Between each pad the stem was rubbed with Obsidian Oil and wiped with a paper towel.

There still remained areas of light browning from oxidation. I had chatted with Mark Hoover, the creator of the Before and After products, about how he uses the Before and After Extra Strength Deoxidizer. He said that he usually gives the stem a 4 hour soak followed by a buffing with a recycled t-shirt where he rubs hard. This was then followed by Before and After Fine Polish hand rubbed with t-shirt material. I figured I would give that a try. Many applications and a great deal of rubbing did indeed reduce the browning significantly.

The stummel was waxed using Renaissance Micro-Crystalline Wax applied with a baby toothbrush. The waz was allowed to dry for a few minutes and was taken to the buffer and buffed with a clean flannel wheel.

The stem received several coats of carnauba wax. The entire pipe was then hand buffed with a microfiber polishing cloth.

I am impressed by several parts of this pipe. It is a very large specimen with great hand feel and very ample bowl size. I love the shape with its massive yet graceful look. The black rustication works nicely with the areas of smooth lighter colored briar. I am also impressed by what a pain if the arse it was to get the stem looking acceptable. I can’t say that I am happy with the deoxidizing of the stem but I am calling it quits. In normal room lighting the stem looks great. Bright lighting however, allows the areas of brown oxidation to shine through. I was defeated by this stem and called it done. The dimensions of the Baronet 906EX are:
- Length: 6.14 in./ 155.96 mm.
- Weight: 2,43 oz./ 68.89 g.
- Bowl Height: 2.67 in./ 67.82 mm.
- Chamber Depth: 2.17 in./ 55.12 mm.
- Chamber Diameter: 0.81 in./ 20.57 mm.
- Outside Diameter: 1.62 in./ 40.89 mm.
I do hope That you have found someThing here useful to your own pipe care,

or restorations. If you like this sort of thing, please click the like and subscribe buttons. Thank you for reading the ramblings of an old pipe lover.

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Below are some photos of the completed Baronet 906EX pipe.