Hello Dave,
It is good to know that the rounded stem shank connection can be fixed!
Could you please explain how can I do it?
I cleaned a bunch of stems so far (I submerge them in OxyClean overnight, then I sand them with 1500 and 2500 sandpaper, then micromesh to 3200 and finish with Vim followed by polishing tow or burlap) but this one was in very bad shape and took a lot of rubbing, plus I think the vulcanite was a bit softer.
I only restored two pipes so far, two identical Butz Choquin Capitan 1631 which were my father's.
Both were mangled by his dogs, and were full of teeth marks, scratches and every kind of ding you can imagine. And the stems where very heavily oxidized.
Here are a couple of pics. Any advise on how to make the look better would be very welcome.
Cheers,
J