Estate Finds And Advise Needed!

[Byrd]

I found these at an Antique store this morning and would like advice as to how to proceed with the cleaning!

I think the top one is meerschaum with no markings. It's plugged up solid. How to get it smoking?

The second one is marked Crown of England and made in Italy. Any information on it would be appreciated!

The last one is Churchills Walnut Extra and numbered 183 and Italy.
I'm concerned as to how to proceed with this one because it's coated with what I assume is shellac. If I apply Murphy's it'll probably take the finish as well as the markings with it.

I appreciate your help and as a new forum member I've got to say I love this place!

Edit to add that I only paid $31 for all three!

 

[OzPiper]

Lots of advice and hints including before and after photos on RebornPipes

Good find.
And good luck cleaning them up

 

[Byrd]

Appreciate the direction! I'll check it out.

 

[Sigmund]

The big thing will be the stems. When you remove the oxidation pay attention to how you sand/abrade near the edge. Its easy to round down the "corners" where the joint is. Then when you put it back together it doesnt look so hot.

 

[Byrd]

I've reamed the bowls and they're soaking in cotton balls and alcohol now. I haven't messed with the stems yet other than to clean with bristle cleaners and alcohol.
Point taken on watching my stem sanding! Appreciate the tip.

 

[Pypkė]

These pipes seem to be in fairly good condition. They should clean up nicely. I think that sanding the oxidation off of the Crown of England stem while preserving the stamp will be a challenge.

 

[Byrd]

Agreed! I was concerned about that as well. I will probably use magic eraser to try and alleviate that.

 

[pipersalmanac]

Are you familiar with the Southland Piper on YouTube? He recommends this product for removing stem oxidation. This video, "Removing Stem Oxidation," might be a worthwhile place to start.

 

[Pypkė]

Agreed! I was concerned about that as well. I will probably use magic eraser to try and alleviate that.

Other report differently, but for me the magic eraser kind of sucked. I had much better results using sandpapers, starting with 600-grit all the way through the fine grit sanding pads like what rebornpipes uses.

There's no magic potion out there that replaces the need to sand the oxidized rubber off of the stem.

 

[Byrd]

That's kinda what I was afraid of. I'll try the eraser first and if that doesn't work the sandpaper will come out!
The Southland Piper is who started me down this rabbit hole! I have a box of his pipes (he passed in 68) and I started working on them. It's quite a journey and I'm learning as I go!

 

[Pypkė]

It's a fun project. I hope that you enjoy it as much as I do.

 

[Byrd]

It is fun! I enjoy making them usable again! I can say that it's a learning curve though.

 

[WilfredLind]

View attachment 425074View attachment 425075View attachment 425076View attachment 425077View attachment 425078
I found these at an Antique store this morning and would like advice as to how to proceed with the cleaning!

I think the top one is meerschaum with no markings. It's plugged up solid. How to get it smoking?

The second one is marked Crown of England and made in Italy. Any information on it would be appreciated!

The last one is Churchills Walnut Extra and numbered 183 and Italy.
I'm concerned as to how to proceed with this one because it's coated with what I assume is shellac geometry dash lite. If I apply Murphy's it'll probably take the finish as well as the markings with it.

I appreciate your help and as a new forum member I've got to say I love this place!

Edit to add that I only paid $31 for all three!

I want to buy it do you sell it

 

[Byrd]

I want to buy it do you sell it

Appreciate the offer but neither of us has the time or post count to buy or sell on the forum.

 

[Byrd]

I finished the Crown of England pipe. I'm happy with how it turned out. Sanding around the crown on the stem was fun...

 

[upnorth1]

I finished the Crown of England pipe. I'm happy with how it turned out. Sanding around the crown on the stem was fun...
View attachment 425548

She looks really nice! Most of my 60 or 70 pipes are estates. Once you have the basics down and some decent equipment restoring pipes can be very rewarding and you really get to know your pipes.

 

[Byrd]

Thank you! I agree that restoring these pipes is very rewarding! It's fun to bring one back to life again. This one was a mess inside, it was completely plugged up so it did take some work but worth it for sure!