Having been inspired by @Briar Lee, I thought I’d take a wack at restoring one of these abused & overlooked Algerian briar pipes. The pipe itself wasn’t much to look at, but as a friend of mine once said; “You don’t get points for looks”.
The method is as follows. Buy an Algerian briar pipe for as cheap as possible. This one was ~$19 after tax & shipping. Ream, scrape, & sand the bowl. Then stuff with a cotton ball soaked in 91% isopropyl alcohol. Scrub the shank & stem with pipe cleaners soaked in more alcohol. I used at least a dozen, as well as Q-tips. I left the cotton ball & a pipe cleaner inserted overnight & repeated the process the next day. Rub the outside of the pipe with alcohol to remove any wax, let it evaporate, then rub with food grade mineral oil. Coat the inside of the bowl with honey & let it sit overnight. Pack & smoke the next day. I chose 3 Friars, but use whatever blows your skirt up. Finally, rub with alcohol & mineral oil.
I think it turned out remarkably well for a first attempt & for less than 20 bones+elbow grease. I haven’t finished polishing the stem, but that’s coming this weekend.
It smoked great & I'm looking forward to enjoying it for a long time. I don’t think this poor pipe saw a pipe cleaner or a reamer in its long life, but now that it’s found a good home, I’ll be sure to keep it well taken care of.
The method is as follows. Buy an Algerian briar pipe for as cheap as possible. This one was ~$19 after tax & shipping. Ream, scrape, & sand the bowl. Then stuff with a cotton ball soaked in 91% isopropyl alcohol. Scrub the shank & stem with pipe cleaners soaked in more alcohol. I used at least a dozen, as well as Q-tips. I left the cotton ball & a pipe cleaner inserted overnight & repeated the process the next day. Rub the outside of the pipe with alcohol to remove any wax, let it evaporate, then rub with food grade mineral oil. Coat the inside of the bowl with honey & let it sit overnight. Pack & smoke the next day. I chose 3 Friars, but use whatever blows your skirt up. Finally, rub with alcohol & mineral oil.
I think it turned out remarkably well for a first attempt & for less than 20 bones+elbow grease. I haven’t finished polishing the stem, but that’s coming this weekend.
It smoked great & I'm looking forward to enjoying it for a long time. I don’t think this poor pipe saw a pipe cleaner or a reamer in its long life, but now that it’s found a good home, I’ll be sure to keep it well taken care of.
