I picked this up for $18 bucks via ebay. It's a Peterson 303 System Pipe. When I bid on it I had no idea if the crack went all the way through the bowl or not.
I knew the cracks went around most of the bowl but I had no idea they we're almost a perfect circle around the entire pipe. However I was happy to find that they did NOT go into the bowl. The pipe looked worse then it does in the pictures specifically the rim top and the interior of the bowl. It also has fills everywhere.
I used some briar dust I had gathered from a few previous bowl toppings and packed it into cracks. Then I used thin layers of super glue along it. I let it sit for a few days before cutting out the thick layer of cake in the pipe. Then I used alcohol, cotton balls, and pipe cleaners to pull out TONS of gunk out of the bowl. Between the stem and the bowl the crud I pulled out looked like sewage.
I let it sit for a week, sanded it down with a few different grits, topped it, did the stem, then polished it with white diamond. I did NOT wax it and I figured it didn't really need to be stained.
I actually thought about trying to rusticate the pipe but honestly I think this poor little pipe has had a hard enough life. That big old ugly scar just makes that pretty birdseye look all that much better. I know it's not a professional job, but I figure I can get a few more years out of this pipe.
Ignore the bad cell phone pics and "dusties" from my buffing wheel.
BEFORE via the Ebay Seller:
After:
I'll have to show you guys my collection of "rescued" Peterson's one day. I think I have about six now.
I knew the cracks went around most of the bowl but I had no idea they we're almost a perfect circle around the entire pipe. However I was happy to find that they did NOT go into the bowl. The pipe looked worse then it does in the pictures specifically the rim top and the interior of the bowl. It also has fills everywhere.
I used some briar dust I had gathered from a few previous bowl toppings and packed it into cracks. Then I used thin layers of super glue along it. I let it sit for a few days before cutting out the thick layer of cake in the pipe. Then I used alcohol, cotton balls, and pipe cleaners to pull out TONS of gunk out of the bowl. Between the stem and the bowl the crud I pulled out looked like sewage.
I let it sit for a week, sanded it down with a few different grits, topped it, did the stem, then polished it with white diamond. I did NOT wax it and I figured it didn't really need to be stained.
I actually thought about trying to rusticate the pipe but honestly I think this poor little pipe has had a hard enough life. That big old ugly scar just makes that pretty birdseye look all that much better. I know it's not a professional job, but I figure I can get a few more years out of this pipe.
Ignore the bad cell phone pics and "dusties" from my buffing wheel.
BEFORE via the Ebay Seller:
After:
I'll have to show you guys my collection of "rescued" Peterson's one day. I think I have about six now.
: