Tips for restoring this Peterson Army Mount 87 - Rim Work

[dogparkpiper]

I decided to keep this pipe because

1) I’m fan of the shape


2) It’s a nice project to take on


My question is about the rim that a previous right-handed owner burned down with a lighter. (Torch?)

Does the task involve sanding the rim down until it’s level and then restain the pipe ?

What tips do you have?

I also will polish the sterling silver and open the draft hole a bit

Thanks

 

[Sigmund]

If you want it to look undamaged some wood has to go. You will need to reshape the curves and stain.

If you are not experienced with these things or handy it can become a mess.

Id suggest practicing on some junk pipes first.

 

[georged]

Cosmetically Topping & Refinishing a Classic English Stummel

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[OzPiper]

Cosmetically Topping & Refinishing a Classic English Stummel

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^^^^^
Not going to get better advice than this

Good luck with the job.
Love to see the results of your work when you are done

 

[Sigmund]

If you take your time it is very feasable. Im not a pipe pro but I am accustomed to working with small files, abrasives, and fiddly little things. I make handmade sax mouthpieces.

This pipe was beat way more than yours. Aside from scortch marks someone had used their heel vigoursly over years. I had to take off WAY more material than yours. It actually took me a while to even think this was worth bothering with it was so beat and like a dark brown grainless turd. Also lots of bite marks in the stem. Ive also had some nice pipes where one edge was slightly over reamed and reshaped the bowl slowly and carefully.

Just remember you cant put material back.

 

[Alejo R.]

When you want to clean something, you go from the mildest to the most abrasive. Sandpaper and wood removal should be the last option. If that were mine, I'd mask off all the wood except the rim and clean it with a soft plastic-bristle brush and detergent foam. Put a drop of detergent in a dish with a few drops of water and swirl it around until it foams up. Use that foam to clean the rim, alternately wiping and drying with a rag to keep the pipe from getting too wet. It'll probably remove most of the carbon.

 

[ssjones]

To remove that burn dip, it will need topped, looks like maybe 2 mm?
Restoring the round bowl top could be done, but a bit more work than just getting it flat to remove the dip.
Depends on how much work you want to put in.

 

[Sigmund]

Yeah, if you smooth and dress the inside and outside edges nicely you can get away with flat. Some bad restores on ebay arent done that way and its obvious they have been topped.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Definitely needs topped, but take care to just take what needs to go.

The curve on the rim (as opposed to flat with slightly raised edges) would be important on a Peterson 87, unless of course it’s not important to you.
There are good videos out there (of which I have none handy) of the process.

 

[lukasstrifeson]

I had a very similar project but the burn dent in the rim was wider and less deep.

Instead of filing anything down, I just cleaned it as much as possible and re-stained it in a Castello Aristocratica finish and it seems to hide the deformity well.

Your dent is a little deeper but I would consider this option before filing/sanding anything down as it becomes a much bigger undertaking.

OR I'd even look into silver capping it. You'll probably have to work with a jewelry or someone unless you want to do the blacksmithing yourself but that's another option!

(Especially since your pipe has a silver band already, it could be a nice compliment to have a silver rim too)

 

[Shore]

From the OPs post it sounds like topping this pipe down is his intent, but, I would submit that the other alternative is to just to leave it and enjoy the imperfection as part of the pipes history/journey.

The longer I am in this hobby, the more I enjoy pipes that aren't perfect; its part of their story...My $0.02

 

[xrundog]

I don’t like burn marks either. The procedure in the video is pretty much what I do. Take some pics of the rim from various angles before starting. It has a unique profile you’ll want to get right.
Peterson aficionados are a picky bunch .
You may not be able to get all of the char. Once the rim is flat, assess how much you’ve taken off and if you can afford to go further.
An even rim with a slight dark spot is better than a bowl that looks short.

 

[dogparkpiper]

Starting with a bowl cleaning

 

[anotherbob]

Frankly I'd leave the rim as is. The damage doesn't seem like it effect the chamber internals. Though it's a cautionary tale for sure.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Frankly I'd leave the rim as is. The damage doesn't seem like it effect the chamber internals. Though it's a cautionary tale for sure.

I agree, I’m growing very fond of 87’s.
I’d rather have that pipe cleaned up well as it is than topped and refinished, unless I could afford a top-tier restoration (to include a new stem with the proper old drilling in vulcanite). @dog_park_piper-is that an acrylic stemmed silver mounted army?

 

[dogparkpiper]

I agree, I’m growing very fond of 87’s.
I’d rather have that pipe cleaned up well as it is than topped and refinished, unless I could afford a top-tier restoration (to include a new stem with the proper old drilling in vulcanite). @dog_park_piper-is that an acrylic stemmed silver mounted army?

It’s a vulcanite stem.

Today I gave it an Everclear bath, reamed the carbon in the chamber, cleaned the inside of the stem and mortise, and polished the metal.

The rim has me less worried now. There is a dip in the rim, but the burnt briar with it makes it look deeper than it really is, and for smoking purposes it’s not an issue.

So, my next task is to polish the vulcanite stem, and open the draft hole. It’s a little too tight for my preference.

 

[anotherbob]

It’s a vulcanite stem.

Today I gave it an Everclear bath, reamed the carbon in the chamber, cleaned the inside of the stem and mortise, and polished the metal.

The rim has me less worried now. There is a dip in the rim, but the burnt briar with it makes it look deeper than it really is, and for smoking purposes it’s not an issue.

So, my next task is to polish the vulcanite stem, and open the draft hole. It’s a little too tight for my preference.

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hey that dog is parked not walking.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Nice.
Vermont Freehand has 5/32 tapered drill bits, and additionally I usually like to chamfer the tenon end.

 

[xrundog]

If the burned spot doesn’t bother you, I won’t criticize.

 

[ssjones]

That result looks tolerable. You can always be more evasive if it starts to bother you.