Rusticating Pipes

a collection of my work on new and estate pipes

Throughout the years I've acquired several pipes...my wife will tell you I've acquired too many.  Honestly, she might be right!  I've been restoring and reviving estate pipes now for several years, maybe a decade.  I've been doing this as a hobby and for my own enjoyment.  Sometimes I'll restore a pipe and sell it via e-bay or directly to friends or even donate one to my Father.

The two pipes pictured above are two similarly stained / finished pipes.  My Father picked up the Churchwarden at an Antiques Mall on the way up to visit us in Massachusetts last year.  The grain was nothing special and he asked me to rusticate the pipe similar to my oversized Colossal bent Rhodesian (also pictured above).  I've always been drawn to Ashton and Ferndown pipes and their 'style'.  With a steady hand and an eye for how I wanted the finished product to look - based on the size and shape of the pipe - I take the pipe to my workshop for its transformation.

My First Rusticated Pipe - a Watch City from Framingham

My first attempt

I had a cheap cheap basket pipe that I first tried rusticating with several different suggestions found all over the internet.  Most were not successful but one was able to dig into the pipe as desired and enable me to have the control I needed to manipulate the pipe throughout the process.  Fast forward a couple weeks...

The first pipe I completely refinished was a Watch City pipe from their Framingham location.  They had some pipes made for them that had some blemishes.  It got me thinking about rusticating and refinishing these brand new pipes into something I, and others, would enjoy holding and smoking and displaying.  I bought it and took it immediately to my work-shop.  The whole process took my 4-5 hours but the finished product got my creative juices flowing.

My First Complete pipe ready for enjoying

The finished product is to the left.   I must admit this one was more of a 'tip of the cap' to Steve Weiner and some of the pipes he made and finished - stain / color specifically.

This one was sold on e-bay to a very happy woman who gave it to her husband for his birthday.  He was very pleased with the pipe and it enabled me to move on to the next project.

Fast Forward to July 2015

I just received a pipe via e-bay that is a style and size I really like.  It's an Author Shape or a Bent Apple with a tapered stem.  I've always enjoyed the GBD 9438 and the 9242 Rhodesians but I always find myself coming back to the Author Shape.  Here are a couple pictures of the pipe before i went after it.

Pipe as received...needed thorough cleaning but was in decent shape.  It's an unidentified, undated DEL RIO pipe with a stinger - estimating 40s or 50s.

Pipe cleaned and ready for the rustication process - Made in France can be seen on the stem.

Another view of the cleaned pipe.  Grain was pretty lackluster and there was a fill on the rim.

The pipe cleaned up beautifully and if it wasn't for the fill on the back of the rim I would have left it 'as is'.  BUT - it needed a new look.  I had a Dunhill CK years ago that was a favorite of mine but I couldn't resist restoring it and selling it to fund more pipes...I'm sure we've all done that!

Below is the finished product - just finished this one this morning.  Took me roughly 4-5 hours to rusticate and refinish.  Keep in mind the work totaled 4-5 hours.  It has to rest and dry for roughly 24 hours.

A couple pieces of my polishing cloth were left behind but overall this came out as intended.

I've already smoked a bowl of the new Balkan Sobranie as well as a bowl of my personal Heritage blend of Julius (1 year old this week - Wonderful tobacco at this stage that was named after my Father's Father whom I never met).  The pipe smoked beautifully and really shows wonderful balance.  This is the first attempt at rusticating the rim of the pipe which I was afraid could have gone horribly wrong but the integrity of the rim is intact.

If you have any questions about my process or how I approach the refinishing of the pipe, I'd be happy to elaborate in a future post.  

I can tell you I use leather die for my colors and use a bit of shellac on the finished product to give it that Ashton-like finished look (think a well aged Dunhill pipe color / finish).

Thanks for looking!  Will add more pictures as I sift through previous projects!