By the way, the only stamping found on this pipe was: LONDON on the shank 64 on the opposite side The letters SM enclosed in an oval on the stem. Any identifying help would be appreciated...
You've gotten a lot farther than me @PappyJoe I keep coming up empty handed. The mechanics seem pretty good, and the bowl has a good thickness. But as I said, it came as rather a bonus with the 2 meers that I really wanted, so I can't lose...
Here’s my latest E. A. Carey acquisition. A whopping $14 including shipping. I love the Prince style but wasn’t too fond of the solid black. I’ll give it another buffing or two but overall I’m pretty happy with it. Before and after.....
Got this Dr. Grabow Silver Duke lovat from a friend to restore. Overclocked - fixed Rim charred - cleaned Shank band pitted -now like new Stummel varnished and peeling - varnish removed, sanded and stained Stem was oxidized - almost cleaned. Here's what I'm talking about so far: Before...
Used a bore bit and cleaned the hole in the stem. Then applied vulcanite dust with super glue to and around the damaged area. Now allowing 2 days to cure before filing and reshaping... Naturally the pics are in reverse order...😏
Ok. Stem hole repaired, filed, sanded and buffed. Finished the stummel: waxing and buffing... I think he's going to have a good looking lovat for that 30 to 40 minute smoke...
Next is a Medico Jet Stream. Things that need attention: Huge bite dents in stem... The varnish on the pipe is cracking... Charring on the contoured rim of bowl... Time to go to work!
Well I wound up cleaning and stripping the stummel. The varnish was in a bad state of deterioration. (besides, I don't like varnish on pipes anyway). Here's how it looked after stripping. Notice all the pit fills...
Decided to 2-tone stain. First I stained the pipe a solid black after heating it up. Sanded most of it off leaving the black to highlight the grain. Next, added a blended shade of brown and then went to work on the pit fills. Then waxed and buffed. I was satisfied with the final on the stummel. Now to the stem...
@KA9FFJ holy smokes man! The two tone finish is just spectacular! You are a true Craftsman. Thanks for showing all the before and after pics, it really shows all the work that you put into each pipe. 👍
Those teeth marks were big and deep ( not to mention all the chatter). When I cleaned the inside of the stem, I noticed the cleaner went through very easily. With the dents being so deep, I usually encounter at least a partially blocked airway. Then it hit me, these were dents, but were at least half way caused by chipping away on the vulcanite. In other words, instead of the vulcanite being compressed and still technically there, at least half of the vulcanite in those dents were gone! Why is that important? The heating process used to help relax the vulcanite and bring back at least half or more of its original shape is now totally non effective. I know, I tried it and nothing happened. So now I am limited to patching those huge dents, and that can also be a crap shoot. All vulcanite is not created equal. Some have a softer rubber content, some have a harder plastic content. It is a lot like steel metallurgically speaking, different tensil strengths, etc. Anyway, almost all the deep chatter is gone, but you can tell the patches used due to the differences in the vulcanite. Although much better than before, I'm not very happy with the outcome. Here's the final:
Tnx @Londy3@Kmhartle Sometimes you have to settle for less than you were hoping for. I guess it's not really THAT bad. I mean, the huge dents have been filled, the chatter is all but gone, and the stummel did finalize nicely. I'd give it an 85/90 out of 100... IMHO...
Next is a Dr. Grabow Grand Duke. First, I had to use a great amount of force to separate the pipe from the stem! After putting it in the freezer for about 25 minutes, I still had to use vise grips to finally get it apart. It had reached the point that I honestly thought the shank was going to break! Once out, and allowing everything to reach room temperature, i wrapped 500 grit sandpaper around a dowel rod and carefully enlarged the mortise. Now it gives a tight fit without sticking...
The pipe itself has a very dark stain and varnished. Upon close examination, it looks as if it was done to hide pit fills (what else is new?) Check it out and see if you can spot some of the culprits... and chances are there are more we can't see.
Comments
LONDON on the shank
64 on the opposite side
The letters SM enclosed in an oval on the stem.
Any identifying help would be appreciated...
Can you post a closeup of the SM logo on the stem?
However, when I check pipephil.eu, the stamping they have for Silver Match is different.
The mechanics seem pretty good, and the bowl has a good thickness. But as I said, it came as rather a bonus with the 2 meers that I really wanted, so I can't lose...
Sweeeeeeeeeet
Overclocked - fixed
Rim charred - cleaned
Shank band pitted -now like new
Stummel varnished and peeling - varnish removed, sanded and stained
Stem was oxidized - almost cleaned.
Here's what I'm talking about so far:
Before...
Then applied vulcanite dust with super glue to and around the damaged area.
Now allowing 2 days to cure before filing and reshaping...
Naturally the pics are in reverse order...😏
Finished the stummel: waxing and buffing...
I think he's going to have a good looking lovat for that 30 to 40 minute smoke...
Next is a Medico Jet Stream.
Things that need attention:
Huge bite dents in stem...
The varnish on the pipe is cracking...
Charring on the contoured rim of bowl...
Time to go to work!
You are a true artist. I had on idea that a stem could even be repaired. I am in awe!
Here's how it looked after stripping. Notice all the pit fills...
Next, added a blended shade of brown and then went to work on the pit fills.
Then waxed and buffed. I was satisfied with the final on the stummel.
Now to the stem...
When I cleaned the inside of the stem, I noticed the cleaner went through very easily. With the dents being so deep, I usually encounter at least a partially blocked airway.
Then it hit me, these were dents, but were at least half way caused by chipping away on the vulcanite. In other words, instead of the vulcanite being compressed and still technically there, at least half of the vulcanite in those dents were gone!
Why is that important? The heating process used to help relax the vulcanite and bring back at least half or more of its original shape is now totally non effective. I know, I tried it and nothing happened.
So now I am limited to patching those huge dents, and that can also be a crap shoot. All vulcanite is not created equal. Some have a softer rubber content, some have a harder plastic content. It is a lot like steel metallurgically speaking, different tensil strengths, etc.
Anyway, almost all the deep chatter is gone, but you can tell the patches used due to the differences in the vulcanite. Although much better than before, I'm not very happy with the outcome.
Here's the final:
Sometimes you have to settle for less than you were hoping for. I guess it's not really THAT bad. I mean, the huge dents have been filled, the chatter is all but gone, and the stummel did finalize nicely. I'd give it an 85/90 out of 100... IMHO...
First, I had to use a great amount of force to separate the pipe from the stem! After putting it in the freezer for about 25 minutes, I still had to use vise grips to finally get it apart. It had reached the point that I honestly thought the shank was going to break!
Once out, and allowing everything to reach room temperature, i wrapped 500 grit sandpaper around a dowel rod and carefully enlarged the mortise. Now it gives a tight fit without sticking...
Check it out and see if you can spot some of the culprits... and chances are there are more we can't see.