First Attempt at a Meer Restoration

[Lost Somnambulist]

Here is my first attempt at restoring life to an old meerschaum pipe. I'll be honest, when it first arrived, my heart dropped a bit when I realized the old stem was supper glued in and it was in much rougher condition that its original photos indicated. Since all I have are hand tools, the process was slow, which was probably a good thing. I don't know anything about its age or providence, but I've grown attached to this pipe while working on it. The marks visible in the last photo are inclusions or flecks in the meerschaum not gouges or scratches. "New pipe" isn't what I'm usually going for. It somehow doesn't seem quite right to erase all of the history. Hopefully I kept some of the history feel of this pipe while easing it of some of the abuse of time.

On arrival


Midway



New stem and waxed

 

[jpmcwjr]

Love the resto on the stummel, but I have to say, the new stem doesn't match the pipe; it's way too long. (The original, way too short!)

 

[mikethompson]

Great job! You've managed to balance the removal of grime and muck, but kept the character of the pipe intact.

I love the colour of that stem, and I think it suits that pipe wonderfully. I will have to agree and say that, at least to my eye, a shorter, thicker stem would match the bowl.

Either way, great work!

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

Thanks, I've been debating on a good length for the stem. The stummel is actually a bit massive and this stem is something I had on hand. I'll probably have to try a few before I settle on something.

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

Great job! You've managed to balance the removal of grime and muck, but kept the character of the pipe intact.

I love the colour of that stem, and I think it suits that pipe wonderfully. I will have to agree and say that, at least to my eye, a shorter, thicker stem would match the bowl.

Either way, great work!

Thanks! The stem is 7" with a 17mm radius at the base. Hopefully I can find something shorter with a great enough radius to still work.

 

[xrundog]

I like what you’ve done very much!
The stem that came with it wasn’t original either, IMO. That looks more like an amber stem pipe. So I think the stem you chose is pretty good. There are a good number of egg in hand antiques that come up on ebay. If you watch antique meerschaums there you’ll get a feel for what the original stems are like.
The silver rim embellishment is particularly nice.
Super nice work!

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

I like what you’ve done very much!
The stem that came with it wasn’t original either, IMO. That looks more like an amber stem pipe. So I think the stem you chose is pretty good. There are a good number of egg in hand antiques that come up on ebay. If you watch antique meerschaums there you’ll get a feel for what the original stems are like.
The silver rim embellishment is particularly nice.
Super nice work!

Thanks for your input! You are right, the stem it came with wasn't original, it was even super glued in. I'm taking your advice and looking up images of egg in hand pipes. Meerschaum Market has similar stems that I'm seeing with the largest base diameter of 18mm. The flare of the shank of the stummel is close to 35mm.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Thanks! The stem is 7" with a 17mm radius at the base. Hopefully I can find something shorter with a great enough radius to still work.

You mean diameter?

I like black,

Meerschaum Pipe Stem Length: 3.5" / 8.5 cm. comes with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes - Black Color

Meerschaum Pipe Stem for Meerschaum Pipes 14 mm. diameter comes with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes. Hand made meerschaum pipe stems for all meerschaum pipes

www.meerschaummarket.com

But they’ve got what you’ve got too:

Knurl Design 17 mm diameter Pipe Stem - Length :4.15" - 10.5 cm. with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes

Meerschaum Pipe Stem Knurl Design 17 mm diameter +fitting brought to you from MeerschaumMarket Hand made meerschaum pipe stems for all meerschaum pipes.

www.meerschaummarket.com

I doubt a stem matching the entire width of the shank, at most hitting the point of curvature at the top edge of shank would be design.

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

You mean diameter?

I like black,

Meerschaum Pipe Stem Length: 3.5" / 8.5 cm. comes with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes - Black Color

Meerschaum Pipe Stem for Meerschaum Pipes 14 mm. diameter comes with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes. Hand made meerschaum pipe stems for all meerschaum pipes

www.meerschaummarket.com

But they’ve got what you’ve got too:

Knurl Design 17 mm diameter Pipe Stem - Length :4.15" - 10.5 cm. with a Fitting for Meerschaum Pipes

Meerschaum Pipe Stem Knurl Design 17 mm diameter +fitting brought to you from MeerschaumMarket Hand made meerschaum pipe stems for all meerschaum pipes.

www.meerschaummarket.com

I doubt a stem matching the entire width of the shank, at most hitting the point of curvature at the top edge of shank would be design.

Yup, absolutely meant diameter. I like the black as well, just wish it was maybe an inch or so longer, that one is 3.5 in. I'll post a photo with a 3.5 in stem and see what folks think. The round stem will look more substantial than the style in your second link.

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

Here is the pipe with a 3.5 inch stem and 15mm diameter. A similar style stem is available with an 18mm diameter base and about 4 inch length.

 

[Ahi Ka]

Is that a Peterson in the background?

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

Is that a Peterson in the background?

That is a dragon claw and egg WDC with a sterling cap.

 

[Ahi Ka]

That is a dragon claw and egg WDC with a sterling cap. View attachment 329582

Lovely! I couldn’t tell if it was WDC or Pete. Thanks for showing

 

[Green Hill Hermit]

Agree

 

[Sobrbiker]

Here is the pipe with a 3.5 inch stem and 15mm diameter. A similar style stem is available with an 18mm diameter base and about 4 inch length.

View attachment 329562

I think an 18mm smooth ~4.5” long would set that off very nicely.
Calabashpipesworld.com does note in their descriptions: If you need any other size,you can send us a message,we will try to help to get the size you want!!

By the way, the cleanup turned out very nice! I think black would complement it very well, but as biker I may be prejudiced

 

[Lost Somnambulist]

I think an 18mm smooth ~4.5” long would set that off very nicely.
Calabashpipesworld.com does note in their descriptions: If you need any other size,you can send us a message,we will try to help to get the size you want!!

By the way, the cleanup turned out very nice! I think black would complement it very well, but as biker I may be prejudiced

I might just send them a message and see what that come back with. I'm finding that one of the positives about a project like this is that I can try what ever I want to. I put it up here to hoping for more perspective, so it's much appreciated.