I received a couple pipes this morning. This Hardcastle is a Dunhill "second". Needed a little TLC. 
I gave it a good scrubbing to see what I had to work with. There are plenty of fills, but the sterling silver band will clean up nice, and there is no apparent damage.
Except for a hole-y stem! No problem. First step is to repair the stem from the inside. That is, with a small blade inserted into the stem to pry up any material that might interfere with the flow. Once a pipe cleaner can navigate the passage freely, the next step is to insert a small piece of wood (popsicle stick split and sanded to fit) coated with a thin film of petroleum jelly. 
The stick and petroleum jelly protects the internals of the stem, keeping the tiny drop of black medium thickness super glue from penetrating. The stem was set aside to dry while I worked on the briar. 
It's obviously not a great stummel. I lightly sanded it with 3000 grit and alcohol. I buffed it a little and found I didn't like the color much, so I gave it a quick coat of dark brown leather dye and set it aside to work on the stem. The excess super glue on the stem had to be sanded down. That was the most work of the whole project. Once it was reasonably leveled, I buffed out the whole pipe, stummel, sterling and stem, with Tripoli Compound, some Diamond Dust and then wax. 
A pipe with a hole-y stem isn't much of an investment, but it makes for a fun project. A couple hours' work and this Hardcastle will find its place in one of my racks.
I gave it a good scrubbing to see what I had to work with. There are plenty of fills, but the sterling silver band will clean up nice, and there is no apparent damage.
Except for a hole-y stem! No problem. First step is to repair the stem from the inside. That is, with a small blade inserted into the stem to pry up any material that might interfere with the flow. Once a pipe cleaner can navigate the passage freely, the next step is to insert a small piece of wood (popsicle stick split and sanded to fit) coated with a thin film of petroleum jelly. The stick and petroleum jelly protects the internals of the stem, keeping the tiny drop of black medium thickness super glue from penetrating. The stem was set aside to dry while I worked on the briar. It's obviously not a great stummel. I lightly sanded it with 3000 grit and alcohol. I buffed it a little and found I didn't like the color much, so I gave it a quick coat of dark brown leather dye and set it aside to work on the stem. The excess super glue on the stem had to be sanded down. That was the most work of the whole project. Once it was reasonably leveled, I buffed out the whole pipe, stummel, sterling and stem, with Tripoli Compound, some Diamond Dust and then wax. A pipe with a hole-y stem isn't much of an investment, but it makes for a fun project. A couple hours' work and this Hardcastle will find its place in one of my racks.
