Got some project pipes!
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Nice Kaywoodie! I have used Everclear to strip off old varnish from pipes before. The trouble I ran into was the stubborn spots. Everclear got most of it off but I resorted to using acetone on cotton balls to get absolutely everything off. I'd rather not use harsh chemicals but acetone just works better. After I finish I just get an absorbant cloth and dry the briar as best I can. I come from the same school of thought as gloucesterman. I think putting the pipe through a retort warms the briar enough to evaporate any trace of the acetone. I came across a spirit called Bak's Spirytus. Everclear is 190 proof. This stuff is 192 proof. I'm not sure if that extra one percent of pure grain alcohol would make much of a difference in regard to removing paint and/or varnish without leaving those dreaded stubborn spots but it's worth a try. 750ml of the stuff cost me 20 bucks. I use it mainly for salt treatments, retort, cleaning out shanks, stems and cleaning out wounds. It works great.
Got the cake reamed back and when time permits I'll start stripping the old finish. The more I look at it, the more I like it!
I'm also watching with interest. I got a couple of these in a huge estate lot last month (PAD got me bad), a white and a green. Thanks for letting us follow along on this resto!
I stripped one of these once and had pretty nice wood underneith. Youll loose the kaywoodie logo as its stamped into the paint. I used 500 grit wet sand paper and every so often I would wipe it down with a clean, damp rag. Then I moved up to 1200, 1500, and 2000 before staining. I still need to wax it.
Well it appears that acetone is not going to phase the white paint or epoxy or whatever it is. Looks like I get to do some sanding. On the positive side the bowl reamed back nicely and I left it with just a hairs thickness. Interior looks good. I'm just taking my time and hopefully learning as I do. 
Would a blow torch do the job? This is a question of others, not a recommendation! I may take a torch to one new pipe to remove the coating.
Alas, no time to get into it these past couple weeks. I do see some daylight ahead and I plan to get that stripped down. I'll post pics, promise!
My remark on a blow torch wasn't in jest, but I wouldn't do it unless others have done so with good results. (small hand held butane kind of torch).
Anyone?
Anyone?
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