Meerschaum pipes have long been known for their capacity to be carved into an extraordinary range of shapes and styles, from sleek classic shapes like a Billiard or Bulldog to fanciful smokable sculptures. The pipe on the worktable today provides a rather geometric take on the venerable Egg & Claw shape. As this initial series… Continue reading Cleanup and a New Stem for a Unique Egg & Claw Meerschaum
I recently wrote about the work done to restore a vintage Frank Bulldog. Today's patient is of a slightly older vintage but where the Frank needed structural work to bring it back to life, this Kaufman Brothers & Bondy pipe arrived in pretty good estate condition. The pipe was in need of a good general… Continue reading Refreshing an Elder Statesman – a KB&B Blueline Bakelite Cased Bulldog
Today's pipe restoration project is a fairly straightforward undertaking - a nice break from the more involved repairs I have been dealing with lately. The patient on the bench today is a handsome Savinelli Punto Oro 616KS Bent Billiard. This description from Smokingpipes.com sums up the shape: One of the most full-bodied examples of Savinelli's… Continue reading Putting the Gold Back Into a Savinelli Punto Oro 616KS
One of the joys of meerschaum is that it is fairly easy to carve and thus meerschaum pipes come in just about every shape imaginable, from basic Billiards to fantastical dragons, castles and more. The carver of today's estate pipe project took this block of meerschaum in a very different direction - folk art. The… Continue reading Reviving a Rather Unsettling Folk Art Carved Meerschaum
One of the fun parts about pipe restoration is not knowing exactly what will show up in the shop. Will the next pipe be a Dunhill ODA, a huge artisan grade "War Club" or something more delicate, like the diminutive Frank Amberloid Bulldog that is the subject of today's post? Here is the pipe as… Continue reading Back From the Brink: A New Lease of Life for a Vintage Frank Amberloid Cased Bulldog
Working on estate pipes can present a unique series of challenges at the best of times, but when presented with a very old pipe the restorer needs as many tools in the repair arsenal as possible. I really had to consider all the options when this vintage meerschaum Devil Anse (ish) pipe arrived at the… Continue reading Saving a Vintage Meerschaum Devil Anse
I recently worked my way through the cleanup and restoration of a newly acquired pipe collection sent to me from a fellow Ontario, Canada pipe lover. The collection of Danish pipes represented a few different brands, but was heavily weighted in favour of Pipe Dan pieces. Not having worked on a Pipe Dan pipe for… Continue reading Retouching Fills on a Dan Pipe Shape Reformed 18
Over the years, I have worked on many older pipes passed down from one generation to the next. For their stewards, these pipes are tangible links to the past, evoking memories of significant people, places and events in their lives. The pipe on the bench today is just such a pipe, this time in the… Continue reading Treading the Line Between Restoration & Preservation of a Family Heirloom Pipe
I had a bit of down time in the shop over the Christmas holidays so I decided to have a bit of fun working up a stray stummel and a few other parts into a FrankenPipe. I first came across this term on Steve Laug's seminal pipe restoration site RebornPipes, used to indicate a functional… Continue reading New Year, New FrankenPipe
The choice of a first pipe is an important decision. As a new pipe smoker, finding the perfect first pipe is often a balancing act between cost and quality, not to mention finding a pipe shape that speaks to you, is comfortable to hold and clench, and that is neither too large nor too small.… Continue reading Refurbishing a Steward’s First Pipe
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