Before Attempting to Remove Oxidation

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Jul 28, 2016
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Finland-Scandinavia-EU
I have noticed that one of my estate Dunhill which I had recently bought from a reputable online vendor has still some hidden oxidation left, so my sense says I have to face clean up procedure down the road, therefore I must ask if it is advisable to give the stem a half-hour blech bath before proceeding to micromesh pads, yet how I do avoid making damage to white spot stem logo. Thank You for your time & recommendations.
 

Civil War

Lifer
Mar 6, 2018
1,552
396
Be careful with the white dot on Dunhill pipes. I've had Oxy-clean damage the dot on a couple of Dunhills. Going forward I just clean and buff them mechanically (i.e, magic eraser or fine sand paper followed by buffing compound on a buffer). After cleaning oxidized stems I cover them with Carmex lip balm, keeps the oxide from forming in the first place. I wipe it off prior to smoking the pipe and then reapply it when I am done.
 

Pierre1965

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 6, 2020
198
649
I used resources like this forum and Youtube to get an idea of how to proceed. Before working on a pipe that I cared about I picked up a couple of "funky", bottom of the basket pipes form a local antique store and used them as training aides. They helped me figure out how to use the reamer, how long to soak, how much pressure to apply when sanding or buffing. They also helped me build confidence so when I brought a nice pipe to the work bench I knew I wasn't going to screw it up.
 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,621
44,833
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Bleach will pit the Vulcanite. So unless your stem is really badly oxidized, do not use bleach and if you must use it dilute it by 50%. Most professional restorers avoid it. You can try Oxiclean. There are other, less destructive methods. Getting rid of the pitting takes a lot of work. I can spot a bleached stem on an estate in a nanosecond. The granular pattern of the pitting just defies polishing.
 

jpmcwjr

Moderator
Staff member
May 12, 2015
24,566
27,068
Carmel Valley, CA
Be careful with the white dot on Dunhill pipes. I've had Oxy-clean damage the dot on a couple of Dunhills. Going forward I just clean and buff them mechanically (i.e, magic eraser or fine sand paper followed by buffing compound on a buffer). After cleaning oxidized stems I cover them with Carmex lip balm, keeps the oxide from forming in the first place. I wipe it off prior to smoking the pipe and then reapply it when I am done.
A very thin coating of mineral oil on the stem, well wiped down will do the trick easier, and doesn't need more wiping prior to the smoke, and will last some time.
 

BROBS

Lifer
Nov 13, 2019
11,765
40,026
IA
I have noticed that one of my estate Dunhill which I had recently bought from a reputable online vendor has still some hidden oxidation left, so my sense says I have to face clean up procedure down the road, therefore I must ask if it is advisable to give the stem a half-hour blech bath before proceeding to micromesh pads, yet how I do avoid making damage to white spot stem logo. Thank You for your time & recommendations.
your best bet is to use only 91% alcohol then sand/buff IMO.
the white dot is acrylic rod.
 

Pierre1965

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 6, 2020
198
649
I have a couple of older Stanwell's and the white has faded; any recommendations for reapplying white to the emblem?
 

bent1

Lifer
Jan 9, 2015
1,138
2,999
64
WV
your best bet is to use only 91% alcohol then sand/buff IMO.
the white dot is acrylic rod.

I do the same on oxidized stems. Additionally, I use a bristle pipe cleaner saturated with rubbing compound and work in the stem draft hole. Barkeepers friend could work also. This also works on acrylic stems (draft hole only).


1582764773482.jpeg
 
Jul 28, 2016
7,564
36,059
Finland-Scandinavia-EU
Barkeepersfried&Toothpaste mix followed by white diamond and Carnauba on the wheel was sufficient this time around, only I'm a bit saddened by the fact that I had to do this again instead of those folks who were selling me the pipe at the first place,why they couldn't bring this process to the very end, the pipe in question was anything but cheap and the vendor was quite renowned and well known, sometimes this just happens in our business, been doing this road more than once,lol
 
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