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!
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The Rebirth of a GBD Pedigree Regent Billiard
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
GBD 755 Century “Conquest” Restoration
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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A Wander Through the Lighter Side of Pipes
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
Happy New Year and Happy New Life for a Brigham 613
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
Restoring and Re-Stemming a Paradis “S.C. Flambe” Bent Billiard
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
Happy Birthday to Me – Restoring a Brigham 565
My affection for vintage Brigham pipes is evident to anyone browsing this blog. Many of my restored Brighams have been showcased on the site, and I own more Brigham pipes than any other brand (currently 15 of the 55 or so pipes in my man-cave), ranging from run-of-the-mill 1-Dot Standards through to top-of-the-line Presidential Freehands.… Continue reading Happy Birthday to Me – Restoring a Brigham 565
Taking a Swing at Reconstructing and Refurbishing an old CPF Meerschaum Bulldog
Blog by Steve Laug
In a previous post where I wrote about repairing the overturned stem on the CPF Bulldog for Michael I referred to a Meerschaum Bulldog that he sent to me as a gift project. I had no idea what he meant about that until I took it out of the box and started checking it out. It really was a rescue dog operation. It is shown in the photo below (the pipe on the right). The picture does not show half of the story about the state of the old stem.
When the pipe was unwrapped what met my eye fit well with Michael’s “take a swing at it” approbation. It was in rough shape. The Meerschaum bowl was scratched and dirty and the bling was worn and tired. The rim was pretty beat up with dents and scratches but the bowl was solid. There was a…
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Rescuing a Tinderbox Monza Horn – Restemming and Refinishing
Blog by Steve Laug
Another of the pipes that my brother Jeff sent me was a horn shaped pipe that was stamped Tinderbox Made in Italy in a circle with Monza in the centre of the circle. It is stamped on the underside of the shank. The shape is quite unique. The bowl had around 10-12 fills in it that went from tiny spots to huge plugs in the briar. The finish was a heavy urethane coat that made the pipe very shiny and really highlighted the fills around the bowl and the shank.
The shank had a split in the underside of the shank that went from under the band up the shank for one inch on the bottom side. It had just turned slightly upward and if left alone would have continued to the bowl. The rim was heavily damaged and there was a thick hard cake in…
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Reviving a Family Era Hardcastle’s Jack O’London Blasted Billard
I managed to squeeze one more restoration in before heading away for a bit of Christmas R & R with the family. The pipe was sent to me by a fellow member of the Brothers of Briar pipe forum. He had been given this old Hardcastle but needed the stem repaired before he could use it.… Continue reading Reviving a Family Era Hardcastle’s Jack O’London Blasted Billard
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