Project Log - Project Brigham 1 dot, 2 dot, 3 dot (Picture Heavy)

pruss · May 9, 2013

With my first project wrapping up in the hands of Mike Meyers, it's time for me to move on to some new (ok... old) briar to clean up.
I've really enjoyed getting to know the work of Phillip Trypis over the last few months, and wanted to get a feel for the Brighams that he spent so long working on. Over the course of the last week I've managed to go from no Brighams to three Brighams.
All three were made in Canada, which I like. The 1 dot, and 3 dot appear to be in the best condition; while the 2 dot is well loved.
As with my previous Project Log, I'll update with photos as I go through the different steps of cleaning these pipes up. I'd appreciate any advice, critiques, jokes, colourful language or sagacity you folks feel like you wanna throw my way as I go through the process with these lovely little Canadian smokers.
The 1 Dot

2 Dot

3 Dot

So I've reamed them all back to a very thin cake, and have salt and alcohol going while the stems soak in oxy-clean.

More tomorrow after I do the surface clean on the bowls, and take the magic eraser to the stems.
Have a good evening friends.
-- Pat

brdavidson · May 9, 2013

Can't wait to see them Pat, good luck with the Brighams, hopefuly you keep one for your own collection

ghost · May 9, 2013

Congrats on landing the Brighams, Pat! Can't wait to see them cleaned up.

lordofthepiperings · May 9, 2013

Hope they come out well.

allan · May 9, 2013

Have you ever tried going straight to tripoli on the stems without the soaking in oxyclean? Tripoli is a rather strong abrasive (not like magic eraser or sandpaper) but I'm curious if you have tried that.

cavendish · May 10, 2013

I can't wait to see them! I know you will like smoking them as well. Brighams are good pipes. My uncles and my old neighbour have sworn by them for years!
You have some really nice pipes there Pat, and if you are ever looking to sell let me know! I love Brigham pipes!

fnord · May 10, 2013

Pat:
Love your pix and I especially appreciate the fact that all three are Brighams.
Looking forward to the magic you accomplish today.
Fnord

pruss · May 10, 2013

Have you ever tried going straight to tripoli on the stems without the soaking in oxyclean?

Hi Allan, thanks for the question. I am pretty new to restoration and refurbishing, so no, I haven't. Based on the best practices of others I've opted to start stem cleaning with an oxy-clean soak. From experience this does two things for the stem: 1) it appears to 'lift' the oxidation and 2) it also helps loosen the tars, sputum and gunk in the draught hole of the stem. I have some beater stems from some drug store quality pipes, perhaps I'll give this a shot and come back to you guys with results.
Thanks everyone for the encouragement and comments. I can't wait to get home from work today to clean these puppies up.
-- Pat

docwatson · May 10, 2013

Good luck with your restorations. Are the older/Canadian made Brighams fitted with a metal filter??? I know the newer Italian and French made bowls are fitted with Maple filters. I saw Brian's display in Chicago and they are really nice looking pipes for very fair prices.

pruss · May 10, 2013

Heya Doc. As I understand it, Brigham patented their Rock Maple Filter System in 1935 and have been using the Maple filter since. There was a short period of time when they had a line of pipes w/o filter, but that appears to have been short lived. All of these pipes have this system. Here is a link to the Brigham website with info on the filter system: http://www.brighampipes.com/The%20Brigham%20Pipe%20Filter.htm
-- Pat

hodirty · May 10, 2013

Im a fan of the two dot myself. But they all look very nice. Congrats and good luck on the resto.

pruss · May 10, 2013

Evening neighbours.
Day 2, S&A is done, bowls have been reamed, surface cleaned (acetone wipe on the smooths, murphy's oil soap and a toothbrush on the rusticated), stems soaked in oxy-clean then hit with 0000 steel wool and magic eraser, stem/shank/stummel all cleaned with isopropyl alcohol and pipe cleaners.
I may take these to the bench tonight for some buffing... I may wait until tomorrow.
Thanks in advance for any advice and comments.
Hey, I'd love your input. Take a look at the bottom of the bowl of the 2 dot. There are two lumps which are not coming out with a reamer... I think that they're cement, like someone was trying to patch a burnout. But I can't tell, and have never seen this (although I've read about it). So I'd appreciate any ideas/input.
Cheers,
-- Pat
1 Dot

2 Dot

3 Dot

ejames · May 11, 2013

Have you ever tried going straight to tripoli on the stems without the soaking in oxyclean?
Hi Allan, thanks for the question. I am pretty new to restoration and refurbishing, so no, I haven't. Based on the best practices of others I've opted to start stem cleaning with an oxy-clean soak. From experience this does two things for the stem: 1) it appears to 'lift' the oxidation and 2) it also helps loosen the tars, sputum and gunk in the draught hole of the stem. I have some beater stems from some drug store quality pipes, perhaps I'll give this a shot and come back to you guys with results.
Thanks everyone for the encouragement and comments. I can't wait to get home from work today to clean these puppies up.
-- Pat

If you use tripoli on a stem,do so lightly. Stem buffing,IMO,should be kept to an absolute minimum. Lightly oxidized stems can be cleaned up with a buffer,without any type of soak, but I wouldn't use tripoli to do it. If white diamond won't take it off I start wet sanding with the finest sandpaper that will,sanding up to at least 800 grit and then buffing with white diamond.For heavy oxidation I use bleach. Have no use for Oxy-clean-YMMV. It has been my experience that heavy buffing,especially with a coarse compound,and I consider any tripoli coarse,will leave the stem surface wavy. A buffing wheel just won't remove material evenly,because the face of that wheel is not a uniform hardness.Tripoli will also destroy sharp edges-quickly- if you are not careful,but then any buffing compound will do that if you're not careful. I like to get my stems as smooth as possible by wet sanding and then buff.

Another thing I found is that water will show you if there is any oxidation remaining on your stem after the initial sanding,steel wooling etc. Wipe any dust off it and dip it in water,if you see any brownish or greenish colored areas then there is oxidation still present.

cavendish · May 13, 2013

Those look great Pat! Nice work!

pruss · May 13, 2013

Thanks for the tips ejames. I hear you on buffing stems, I've upped my game and purchased some finer wet sanding papers in the absence of micromesh to aid in cleaning up stems.
Cav - Appreciate the comments mate. I hit these pipes with white diamond and carnauba on Saturday but am not satisfied with them yet. The rusticated areas need the help of heat, which I'll try tonight, and I need to do a little more work on the stems to get the mirror finish I want on them. So, more to do. It's a good thing this is fun!
-- Pat

pruss · May 13, 2013

I'm sure your restorations will be spectacular

You're too kind. But I'll take it!
Agreed on the burnout and patch on #2. The stem is loose on #2, but I'm convinced it's the right stem for this pipe. I'm giving it a bees' wax treatment to stiffen up the connection and we'll see how that goes.
More anon,
-- Pat

pruss · May 14, 2013

Final pictures. So here are my self-improvement edits...
1) I need to get micromesh sanding pads to make stems shine like I've seen others here do...
2) I need to learn how to use steam effectively to lift tooth chatter
3) It's time to start experimenting with staining
That all being said. I likey.
Which is your favourite? What can I do to improve my resto/refurbs?
Cheers,
Pat
1 Dot

2 Dot

3 Dot

ghost · May 14, 2013

Hey Pat, since you're in the GTA or thereabouts you should have a Lee Valley store? That's where I get my micromesh pads in Ottawa. (I also got the Beall buffing kit from them too.) I ordered Fiebing's dye from Tandy Leather in Scarborough. Very fast delivery if you don't drive in that area.
Staining is fun, probably my favourite part of restores. Pretty easy to do, and I'm real addicted to taking heavily lacquered basket pipes and stripping them down and restaining. It can really make an otherwise cheap looking pipe look like a million bucks.

group4 · May 15, 2013

Great job. Those look wonderful.

hfearly · May 15, 2013

Great job Pat, The 1 dot and the 2 dot came out nicely!
Ghost: you gotta show me some of those basket refinishes!

Project Log - Project Brigham 1 dot, 2 dot, 3 dot (Picture Heavy)

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