A great example of Steve Laug's eye for pipes, and a reminder that even aesthetically-challenged pipes deserve a second chance. Steve takes an ugly duckling and transforms it into a swan.
Tag: 2 Colour Stain
Banding a Cracked Shank on a Truly Filthy Alpha Enterprise Chubby Bulldog
I spotted this Alpha pipe on eBay and managed to submit the winning bid at a price reflective of the pipe's condition. It's always nice when that works out. I think most other bidders were put off by the euphemistically described “hairline” crack running about 3/8” up the shank from the mortise, but as I… Continue reading Banding a Cracked Shank on a Truly Filthy Alpha Enterprise Chubby Bulldog
Improving a no name basket pipe
This post by Troy at Baccy Pipes is a great reminder that small adjustments can make big improvements in the smoking qualities of a pipe. Troy did a great job with this pipe; I’m amazed at what he did with a Sharpie!
I actually got this pipe back around summer of 2014 when i first started refurbishing and repairing pipes. It was gifted to be by a member on the Dr.Grabow Collectors Forum. I was giving a few pipes by him that he did not want or use . I did not have many pipes at the time so the gifts were eagerly accepted by me . One of those pipes was this no name he picked up in a junk/antique store lot if I’m not mistaken. I don’t think he had more than a couple of dollars in it.
For the last two summers this has been one of my favorite pipes to sit outside with on the warm evening and nights . I usually load it up with some John Patton “Dark Horse” or “Storm Front” , just sit ,relax and drift away.
Well the warmer weather is arriving here so…
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A Humpty Dumpty Cross Canada Project – Could this Poor Richards Select Square Shank Billiard 9489 ever be whole again?
Think that pipe in your box is done for? Take a look at this restoration, my second collaboration with Steve Laug of Reborn Pipes. We initially had labelled this pipe as firewood, but somehow managed a Hail Mary.
Blog by Steve Laug and Charles Lemon
My brother sent me a box of pipes and bowls that he had picked up. In it was an old square shank billiard that had seen far better days. The bowl sported a thick cake and was cracked 2/3rds of the way down the bowl on the front and another crack on the back of the bowl that went across the bowl to the left side. The finish was rough but there was some nice grain. Its stem was chewed up and was broken and smelly. I threw the unredeemable stem away. The bowl went into the parts box to be cannibalized for repairs. It was interesting that the pipe was stamped Poor Richard’s over Select over Bozeman, Montana on the left side of the shank. I grew up in Idaho and spent a lot of time in my early years in Bozeman…
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Author, Author! Cleaning up a Pair of Brigham Shape 29 Pipes
Here's another two-for-one pipe refurbishment. I've been picking up estate pipes in ones and twos recently, and adding them to the refurb box as I go. When I realized I had two vintage Brigham Shape 29 (aka Author) pipes waiting for me, I decided to work on them together. The first pipe is a 2-Dot… Continue reading Author, Author! Cleaning up a Pair of Brigham Shape 29 Pipes
Completing My Set of Brigham Bent Bulldogs
I've collected a few Brigham Shape 26 Bent Bulldog pipes over the years. The shape is one of my favourites, and was produced at every level in the Brigham range except the entry-grade 100 series. I had examples of the shape in 3-, 4-, and 5-Dot versions, so when I had the opportunity to acquire… Continue reading Completing My Set of Brigham Bent Bulldogs
The English Patient – Repair & Restoration of a 1918-1921 Dunhill Shell Briar
An email pinged into my inbox a few weeks ago, sent by a fellow member of the Briars & Bull Pipe Club here in Kitchener. He had, he said, an old Dunhill pipe he'd like to have cleaned up, and would I be interested in tackling the project for him? I said yes, of course, and… Continue reading The English Patient – Repair & Restoration of a 1918-1921 Dunhill Shell Briar
Mission Impossible: Operation Long Shot
The door opened and a man walked into the bar, pausing briefly in the doorway to allow his eyes to adapt to the dim light inside. The place was what optimists would euphemistically call a dive. The establishment was empty except for a few drunks and a large, bored-looking man behind the counter wiping glasses… Continue reading Mission Impossible: Operation Long Shot
The Burn Unit – Reclaiming a Scavenged Danish Sovereign Rhodesian
Hunting for estate pipes to refurbish has its ups and downs. Back in the heyday 1950s and 60s, almost every man had a pipe somewhere, which created a steady supply of pipes needing repair. Nowadays we refurbishers must be more adventurous, wading through the flotsam and jetsam of antique shops, second-hand stores and estate sales… Continue reading The Burn Unit – Reclaiming a Scavenged Danish Sovereign Rhodesian
Smartening Up an English Kaywoodie Standard
This is the first refurbishment of a half dozen pipes my older daughter and I found at a local antique sale recently. The clover logo on the stem clearly identified the pipe as a Kaywoodie, but it was only at home under better lighting that we spotted the "Made in England" stamp on the right… Continue reading Smartening Up an English Kaywoodie Standard
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