Very Low Grade Pipe Restoration With Questionable Results (PICS)

[agnosticpipe]

The expression, "idle hands are the devils workshop" might apply here. Sometimes I wonder why I do the things that I do. A couple of months ago I got the hankering for a Prince Albert tobacco tin. While looking through the hundreds available, I came across a nice clean example that came with a pipe too. (a prince shape no less) No info was given on the pipe, and it was finished similar to a Savinelli alligator. So for about $8 I figured what the heck, why not another crappy pipe to play with. When I got the stuff, I was happy with the tin, but less so with the pipe, as it was crappier than I thought. It was a Whitehall "Gulf Stream", which looked like that's where it had been. Lousy with fills, cracks, especially a bad one on the shank, and a poorly fitted stem. I thought, oh well, and threw it in a drawer.
Ok, so a couple of days ago I was cleaning up a couple of Bari pipes I had come across, and I figured while I had all the resto stuff out I might as well see what I could do with that old Whitehall. After working on the fit of the stem and addressing the crack in the shank, I stripped the bowl down and found even more fills, and an especially long one on the back of the bowl. I don't what got into me at that point, but I decided I would just make it into a garish red pipe and accentuate the carvings with black while hiding the fills. I even gave the stem a little red dot like a cherry on top!
Now I don't know what to do with it, except smoke something in it, like G&H Top Black Cherry maybe. Might make a good Halloween pipe, or even a ugly Christmas pipe to go with an ugly sweater... :rofl:

 

[woodsroad]

You made a silk purse outta that sow's ear!

 

[dulgunz]

That is actually not a bad looking pipe. I would enter that bad boy in the ugly pipe contest! I remember some advice my father gave me once, "Son, not all women are prom queens and keep in mind that the best lovers are the ugly ones"!! Who knows it might smoke like a champ..

 

[gloucesterman]

Nothing shabby about that restoration. Nice job, but beware it's habit forming.

 

[cortezattic]

I think you did a nice job on that rescue! :clap:

Thanks for the before and after pix ...very thoughtful.

 

[huntertrw]

Orley:
Whitehall was apparently a popular promotional pipe. I say based upon your experience, and upon a coupon which I found in a recently purchased 60-some-odd-year-old tin of Willoughby Taylor Pipe Mixture. It states, "NEW - THE WHITEHALL PIPE." It further reads:

"THE PERFECT PIPE

"COMPLETE ACTION PIPE

"DRY IN ANY POSITION

"1. Collects Tars and Moisture

"2. Removes Heat from Smoke

"3. Prevents Mouth Flow-Back

"4. Insures Dry, Sweet Smoke

"Genuine Imported Briar

"Regular Retail Price $5.00

"Yours for $3.00 and 24 Coupons"

Wow, what a deal!
According to the Pipedia Website, Whitehall pipes were manufactured by Ben Wade in England and Italy.
Your "before" images are (hum...how do I say this?) simply hideous; your "after" images strangely beguiling; and your restoration work sterling as always! This should make a good yard/chore pipe, and I am eager to hear how it smokes for you.

 

[buckaroo]

I like it. Quite an upgrade.

 

[tuold]

Nice work! I'd smoke that pipe. I got an Amphora poker that was in similar condition. I counted 11 fills on that little pipe. Fixed the crack in the shank, sanded it down and applied a dark stain. Now it's a serviceable shop pipe.

 

[danielplainview]

Nicely done. Don't write it off just yet. I have a few Whitehall's and they smoke great. Whitehall was made in America and in England. I believe yours is an American made from the rustication pattern. English Whitehall's were made by Ben Wade and I think the American Whitehall's were made by S.M. Frank.

 

[tbradsim1]

As usual Orley To The Rescue, very nice result.

 

[jkrug]

Very nice, you took it form hideous to handsome. Curious to hear how the little pipe smokes? ::

 

[papipeguy]

That looks like a fine job to me. Well done and enjoy it.

 

[menuhin]

:clap:

Cracked and oxidized, plus those not so appealing rustication that was not so harmonious with the color of the pipe - now, it is just a beauty.
As in 'questionable' - the question would be, how does it feel to be a Pipe Resurrecting Wizard? ::

 

[crazypipe]

Great job, well done ::

 

[agnosticpipe]

Hey guys, thanks for all the comments!

Hunter, with the list of Whitehall attributes listed on that coupon, it's a wonder anybody would consider buying anything else! :roll:

Thanks to everyone else for the interesting info on these pipes. As some have pointed out, there are some Whitehall pipes that are better than others, particularly the English made pipes.
The proof is in the smoking as they say. So this morning I got around to smoking some PS Cherry Bon Bon, a cherry blend that is one of a few I can stand, as it doesn't have an over the top cherry flavor. Somehow a cherry blend just seemed the right thing for this red pipe. First off, I have to say is that despite my misgivings of the pipes quality, it smokes really well. I figure there are two reasons for this. First, it's a prince shape, which has a medium bowl diameter that is a little shallower than some pipes. I like this size bowl, and prince shapes and pot shapes always smoke good for me. Second, this pipe has one of the biggest draught holes I've ever seen. I measured with a drill bit and a 3/16 bit slid in easily but with no extra room. Man, what an open draw! I think the reason for this is that when cleaning the stem I found the tenon blocked with a twisted piece of aluminum. So I suspect it had a stinger or tube that went all the way to the bowl, that was filling a bit of space in the draught hole. I had to drill the tenon out to get about a 1/4" of aluminum out of it.
Anyway it was fun to work on and it was a nice surprise that it smoked so nicely. Still, not my favorite looking pipe, but it gained some respect from me now. ::