The pipe on the work table today was sent to me for some TLC. Its steward was concerned about the condition of the stem and the fading finish around the upper third or so of the bowl. As you can see from this first series of images, the pipe is Stanwell Legend 126, a shape… Continue reading New Life for a Stanwell Legend 126
Cost is almost always a prime consideration when it comes to estate pipe repairs. As I and other pipe restorers have proven more than once, virtually every estate pipe is repairable if the will to do so exists; whether the repair is worth the cost is a very different question, and the answer is very… Continue reading Worth Repairing? Salvaging a Seriously Cracked Lorenzetti Titus
I was recently sent a box of pipes for refurbishment that really worked out my restoration muscles. All of the pipes were very dirty and smelled strongly of OTC aromatic blends, and all needed new stems as the originals had been chewed up or bitten through. They also, as it turned out, were heat damaged… Continue reading Shank Crack and Chamber Burnout Repairs to a Nording 4 Freehand
I've been doing a number of simpler estate pipe cleanups lately, so I guess that means it's time for a more in-depth project. Today I'm dealing with the last of three Aldo Velani pipes recently acquired as part of an estate lot, this one an Executive series 292 Bent Apple. Aldo Velani pipes are what… Continue reading Rim Rebuild and Shank Repairs for an Aldo Velani Executive 292 Bent Apple
This smaller Peterson Canadian came to me in an estate lot I purchased earlier this summer. It was unremarkable at first glance, but I soon took another look at it after noticing the Peterson stamp on top of the slim oval shank. This series of pics shows the pipe as it was when I first… Continue reading Preserving a Piece of Pipe History – A Peterson Patent Era P-Lip 104 Canadian
About a year ago, I wrote about the rediscovery of Brigham's early line of non-Patent pipes and the subsequent restoration of two examples. I recently acquired a third Non-Patent Brigham pipe to add to the collection, this time in what Brigham called a Club shape, otherwise known as a Lovat. Here is how the pipe… Continue reading Reviving an Early Brigham Non-Patent Club
This pipe came to me in a large mixed lot of estates for repair. It is an attention-commanding fist-sized chunk of briar carved into an equally commanding bulldog figural pipe. As you will see in this series of shots taken when I first brought the pipe to the worktable, the briar was in pretty good… Continue reading Repairs and a New Stem for a Unique Bulldog Figural
I found this pipe on eBay a while ago, had a quick look at it when it arrived, then added it to my refurb box and forgot about it until recently. You may understand my initial lack of enthusiasm after looking at these pics of the pipe as found. As you can see, the pipe… Continue reading A New Stem and New Life for an English Army-Mount Billiard
I found this Peterson Kildare 01 at a local antique shop a while back and decided it was high time to spiff it up a bit. First a little research. Mark Irwin's exhaustive work on Peterson pipes, The Peterson Pipe Book, provides this information in the section entitled Collector's Guide: Kildare 1965 – First issue of… Continue reading Freshening a Republic Era Peterson Kildare 01
This older Brigham pipe came to me in a mixed eBay estate lot, and at first glance I took it for a basic Billiard. Closer examination and a shape number unrelated to Brigham's Billiard pipes changed my mind. Ultimately, I've labelled this pipe a Straight Brandy Sitter as the bowl walls taper inwards from base… Continue reading Restoring a 1960’s Brigham 127 Straight Brandy
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