Shank obstructions are a fact of life for many smoking pipes, so much so that a long, thin shank reamer is part of just about every pipe tool on the market. Typically not much more than a length of stiff steel wire, shank reamers are designed to push through a blockage in the pipe's airway… Continue reading Clearing a Tough Shank Obstruction & Re-Stemming an Astley’s Straight Apple
Meerschaum-lined briar pipes hit the market around the 1960s and were very popular for a time. Indeed, some are still being made today, but this tends to be limited to Turkish brands since the exporting of raw meerschaum was banned in the 1970s. Some consider a meerschaum lining little more than a gimmick, while others… Continue reading Trash to Treasure? Removing a Broken Meerschaum Bowl Liner from a Lord Rusticated Pot
After a Spring and Summer of Hand Cut stems and special projects, it's nice to be able to write about a much simpler restoration. The pipe on the bench today is a vintage Peterson System 3 in shape 357. It was sent in by a fellow Canadian pipe lover for a bit of TLC. As… Continue reading Refreshing a Peterson System 3 Shape 357 Bent Billiard
I was contacted recently by a gent who had acquired a Brigham Valhalla stummel some time ago and was looking to have a new stem fitted to it to make the pipe useable again. After a bit of discussion, the pipe was sent in to DadsPipes for the work, where I took the following initial… Continue reading Reviving an Early Brigham Valhalla
Stem replacement is one of the bread-and-butter jobs for any pipe repair shop. I have fit hundreds of stems over the last decade or so, from relatively simple jobs using pre-cast stem blanks in Vulcanite and Acrylic to fully custom hand cut stems crafted completely in-house from Ebonite, Acrylic or Resin rod. As a writer,… Continue reading Replacing a Worn Out Acrylic Stem on an Armellini Verona 903
Some pipe lovers really enjoy a shiny pipe, something that pipe makers have recognized for decades. One common way to provide a low-maintenance, high shine finish to briar pipes is to add a gloss topcoat over the colour coat during finishing. While a topcoat maintains a pipe's shine for quite a while, it inevitably begins… Continue reading Refinishing a Peeling Peterson Killarney 65 Bent Billiard
Today's patient is a 2010 St Patrick's Day pipe by Peterson, sent in for some TLC by a Canadian piper in Ottawa, ON. Judging by the series of photos below, the pipe is one of its steward's favourites. The pipe had been well used but looked a bit worn out when it first arrived on… Continue reading Reviving a 2010 Peterson St Patrick’s Day Pipe
Metal pipes have been around since the 1930s, and while briar pipes make up the overwhelming majority of smoking pipes, metal pipes, made famous by the makers of Falcon and Kirsten pipes, have a strong following. Part of the success of metal pipes is their light weight and interchangeable bowls, which can be made from… Continue reading Restoring an English Made Arcadia Metal Pipe
As a restorer and pipe repairman, I am often asked about the value of a particular pipe. On the surface this is a straightforward question about potential resale value, but when one digs into things a bit further, the definition of "value" becomes quite a bit more complicated. Take today's pipe, a Medico VFQ Apple,… Continue reading A Complete Bowl to Button Restoration of an Heirloom Medico VFQ
Over the years, many pipe retailers commissioned established makers to produce pipes marked with the retailer's own brand, in much the same way that grocery chains today contract existing producers to make their house brand merchandise. For pipe lovers, buying a house brand can be a more accessible ( read "less expensive") route to acquiring… Continue reading A Hand Cut Stem for a Tinderbox Unique by Charatan
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