Tampers are an often overlooked yet essential part of pipe paraphernalia. We fuss and argue over matches, lighters, pouches, bags, racks and stands but no one really seems to get that fired up over a tamper. Perhaps it's because just about anything can be used as a pipe tamper as long as it meets certain… Continue reading A Quick Budget Tamper Project
They say that wait times at your local hospital Emergency Room are bad, but I think this case proves that some victims wait longer than others. The patient in question had obviously been lingering between life and death for some time before I encountered it on my operating table. The question was could I save… Continue reading A Bulldog with a Concussion – Emergency Surgery for a Brigham 526
I had the opportunity to add this Patent Era (1938-1955) Brigham 302 billiard to my collection recently. The online auction listing by an Ontario antique dealer described the pipe as in “great used condition”. The pics, though darker and more shadowy than I would have deemed acceptable in one of my sales, looked ok, so… Continue reading Reviving a Tired Patent Era Brigham 302
Charles Lemon lives in Eastern Canada and Steve Laug lives in Western Canada. Connecting them across the distance is a common passion for restoring old pipes. Both men find beauty and pleasure in the work of restoration, and share their work on their respective blogs. Charles started and maintains DadsPipes – exploring the art of… Continue reading The When and Zen of Pipe Restoration
Steve and I are guest blogging on each others sites this weekend. If you haven't yet, wander over the RebornPipes for the full post!
Blog by Steve Laug Charles Lemon of DadsPipes and I thought it would be cool to do a guest blog post on each other’s blog. Charles sent me his post yesterday and I posted it last evening. Now it was my turn to send one to him. I chose this little nondescript pipe bowl to… Continue reading The Rebirth of a GBD Pedigree Regent Billiard
Al’s minimalist approach to this restoration is nothing short of inspiring. His light touch has brought out the best in this GBD. Beautiful job, Al!
By Al Jones
A member of the PipesMagazine.com forums brought my attention to this pipe, which was being sold on Etsy. While this shape is not in my typical wheelhouse, it was one that I had not seen previously. The 755 shape is not listed on the old shape chart but I found another one sold by SmokingPipes. To this point, I’ve not seen this GBD Shape. The “Century” finish was seen in GBD catalogs starting in 1950, which was also the year they celebrated 100 years of pipe making. The catalog describes the finish as “”A golden finish created to celebrate over a century of manufacturing the finest briar pipes.” I would call this shape a Lovat.
The “Conquest” script stamp denoted a plus-sized GBD pipe. Conquest is the smallest of the three plus sizes, followed by Collector and Colossus sizes.
The pipe had some issues with the bowl…
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I thought I'd switch things up a bit today with a look at the lighter side of Pipe History and some unique and sometimes bizarre inventions that pipers have seen over the years. I'll start off with this well-intentioned invention. We all know that pipe smoking can bring people together from all walks of life –… Continue reading A Wander Through the Lighter Side of Pipes
It's 2016! May it be a great year for all of you and yours. I thought I'd start the year off right with a restoration that gives many new years to a classic Canadian-made pipe. This restoration was easily one of the most ambitious and challenging pipe refurbishments I have undertaken to date. A fellow… Continue reading Happy New Year and Happy New Life for a Brigham 613
I recently purchased a mixed lot of New Old Stock pipe stems, so I sat down yesterday and sifted through my box of estate stummels to see if I could put two and two together, so to speak. I came up with a bent billiard stummel marked “S.C. Flambe” on the left shank, “908” on… Continue reading Restoring and Re-Stemming a Paradis “S.C. Flambe” Bent Billiard
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