I got my hands today on an old Stanwell pipe. Engraving on the side says Stanwell Buffalo. I posted some pics as well. The midpiece of the stem comes off so I think it's got unglued. My question is if this pipe can be restored (there are some cracks inside and outside too) to be smoked for some time, why not years. Wouldn't mind doing the restoration myself, I would need some tips to that.
Old Stanwell Repair/Restoration
- Thread starter Ajsnow93
- Start date
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I am by no means a pipe restoration expert. The “middle section” was probably not glued in. I can’t tell from the picture; what is the mid-section made out of- synthetic, horn...?
The stem is in very good condition with logo intact.
The big concern is the exterior crack. The inside of the bowl does have some spider webbing. I tried to zoom in on the pictures of the interior of the bowl to see if the crack went all the way through?
Not sure how much time do you wanna spend on the registration? I am not knowledgeable of doing fills on briar pipes.
I am sure there’s someone on the forum who has extensive experience in this area.
I’m not sure if this was a free pipe or you purchased it?
If you’re interested in smoking it, I would give the pipe a thorough cleaning and go ahead and smoke it.
The stem is in very good condition with logo intact.
The big concern is the exterior crack. The inside of the bowl does have some spider webbing. I tried to zoom in on the pictures of the interior of the bowl to see if the crack went all the way through?
Not sure how much time do you wanna spend on the registration? I am not knowledgeable of doing fills on briar pipes.
I am sure there’s someone on the forum who has extensive experience in this area.
I’m not sure if this was a free pipe or you purchased it?
If you’re interested in smoking it, I would give the pipe a thorough cleaning and go ahead and smoke it.
Cracks on both interior and exterior seem not to go through the other side. The midpiece must be horn and it doesn't stay on the pipe that's why i believe it was glued on. Also the pipe was passed on to me for free and I wanted to freshen it up
Ok, I would continue with a thorough cleaning of the pipe. There’s great threads on the pipe maintenance section of the form. I would carefully clean the Mortis area of the pipe. I can’t tell from the picture if that is carbon residue and gunk from years of not being cleaned or if it is glue residue indeed? Once that area of the pipe is thoroughly cleaned, You could try refitting the horn midsection and see if it seats well and doesn’t turn?
If you can get the midsection and stem to properly connected to the pipe and considering that the cracks don’t go all the way through, I would say you’re ready to smoke the pipe. It’s definitely a pipe you want to smoke slow and low. Any excess heat could exacerbate the cracks in the pipe.
I was hoping that some of the pipe restoration exports on the forum would have chimed in by now. Hope this helps. Whatever you do, let us know; I’m interested in the outcome!
If you can get the midsection and stem to properly connected to the pipe and considering that the cracks don’t go all the way through, I would say you’re ready to smoke the pipe. It’s definitely a pipe you want to smoke slow and low. Any excess heat could exacerbate the cracks in the pipe.
I was hoping that some of the pipe restoration exports on the forum would have chimed in by now. Hope this helps. Whatever you do, let us know; I’m interested in the outcome!
Looks like a Stanwell shape 63 (a favorite of mine). Got a nice thick bowl, and doesn't look like the crack goes very deep, so it should smoke fine. I'd suggest the salt/alcohol soak to clean it out, making sure no alcohol gets on the outside.
If you have the time, cleaning this up and doing repairs and smoking it would be a pipe restoration 101 course. It might last for years to come, but even if it didn't, you'd be repaid by learning a lot you could use with other pipes in a little better shape. My suspicion is that you will get years of smoking out of this one. That's some nice plateau on the brim. It's a good example of a freehand when they were a major shape.