Just for the sake of trying it, I’ve applied Miniwax stain and finish to my new Lorenzetti.
Let’s try a few coats to see how much I want it to shine.
Why Oil Polish?
- Thread starter Briar Lee
- Start date
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Let’s try a few coats to see how much I want it to shine.
They don’t use hardware store grade.
I’m looking around my garage and I have boiled linseed oil, Danish oil (used on Winchester Model 21s), Tru Oil, and Miniwax.
I’ll try them all, see how they work on pipes.
But the BLO I may use on one I don’t like very much.
Yes, try the scientific approach.They don’t use hardware store grade.
I’m looking around my garage and I have boiled linseed oil, Danish oil (used on Winchester Model 21s), Tru Oil, and Miniwax.
I’ll try them all, see how they work on pipes.
But the BLO I may use on one I don’t like very much.
Boiled linseed oil leaves a tacky finish - combine that with pipe ash and you might not like that result.
Also, on dings - steam them out with a wet towel and an electric iron set on high (then re-polish/wax).
Also, on dings - steam them out with a wet towel and an electric iron set on high (then re-polish/wax).
I’m never buying another estate pipe…..
Then is sounds like someone else once applied something else to the finish that does not shine up ... like linseed oil, furniture varnish, or possibly years of vegetable oil. I would strip it down and refinish it.Ok...
I have Paragon, and a Jeweler's cloth, neither helping.
I’ll keep polishing with them, maybe in time it will come around.
@monty55 as mentioned I have Paragon.
I am making notes on who is putting oil on their pipes and making a note to never buy an estate from them. What a horrible thing to get a pipe that someone has abused like that. Might as well smoke a Lakeland in it or just fill the thing up with soap.
Depends on the oil. A drying oil is quite common for pipe makers.
Wax or oil eventually just goes away.
Even a varnish may eventually age crack.
This stamped star Lee Prince is more than a half century old, dry as a bone to the touch, but during my time owning it I’ve occasionally used grapeseed oil to keep it lustrous.
One advantage of grapeseed oil is that it’s temporary.
You can do what you like with your pipes. That's you prerogative. But, once you get a coat of wax, the wax lasts a long time, and all you have to do when was loses its luster is buff it by hand with a fluffy towel, and it brings the shine back up. But, i am not in the camp that all of my pipes have to be shiny at all times, so if it goes matt for periods of time, it doesn't ruin my smoking experience. I'm just not a fan of anything with an odor that interferes with the slight aroma of warmed briar while smoking. Linseed oil would be one of those ruin-ers for me.
I’m sort of afraid of linseed oil for pipes, because of the smell it leaves on gun stocks.
Until I joined this forum I’d used olive oil (only a tiny, tiny bit) to hydrate my pipes for a half a century and now I think grapeseed oil is a little better, mainly because it’s more temporary.
I occasionally still rub one on my face, too.
But as I’m using a gritty stain and varnish Miniwax compound on my Lorenzetti I’m starting to realize my Lee pipes (and the rest of them, too) had some kind of filler added on the briar when finished at the factory.
I learn something new about pipes every day, it seems.
This fresh looking old $30 Marxman is in the mail, and when it gets here I’m going to see how well Danish Oil works on pipes.
The Winchester Custom Shop used it on Model 21s.
I think danish oil is the most common I see used by people for a drying oil. Each one is different, some are based on linseed and some tung. I can’t speak to them as Iv only ever used pure tung oil, which I use regularly, but the “danish” derivatives incorporate additives to speed the curing process.
I’ve got a huge stash of high quality American market shotguns and I’ve redone the walnut on those that need it for about forty years.
Why I settled on boiled linseed oil is I’ve never hurt one using it.
Similarly, you can apply a drop of water over the ding and pass a flame back and forth over it until it's dry.
So here's the problem, as my old dumb eye's see it.
If you bought an estate pipe that the owner previously used carnauba wax on, none of your oils will penetrate, but rather sit on the surface of the wax. So in order for your oils to penetrate you have to manually remove the wax first...
If you bought an estate pipe that the owner previously used oils on and you attempt to wax it, the wax will not stick to the oiled surface, so you would somehow have to remove all the oils from the briar in order for a wax to do it's job.
Am I wrong?
If you bought an estate pipe that the owner previously used carnauba wax on, none of your oils will penetrate, but rather sit on the surface of the wax. So in order for your oils to penetrate you have to manually remove the wax first...
If you bought an estate pipe that the owner previously used oils on and you attempt to wax it, the wax will not stick to the oiled surface, so you would somehow have to remove all the oils from the briar in order for a wax to do it's job.
Am I wrong?
I was going to say that oils don't actually stay on the pipe for long, unlike furniture which isn't touched or held while warmed. But, I am not sure. Most pipes were finished with a wax or a mixture of wax and varnishes... which you would think would resist the oils. But, looking at the Lee pipes he keeps posting, ha ha... they don't look like they were finished with much. I'm not judging... jus say'n...
I think you are right, except it’s extremely easy to remove face oil, olive oil and grapeseed oil. Just clean with Everclear.
Here’s the problem.
Cheap factory pipes came (and some still do) with a cheap grade of varnish.
It looked really pretty in the display, but varnish shows the slightest ding or Nick and it cannot be touched up.
The only good thing about cheap varnish is that it strips off very easily. Harry Hosterman stripped every Grabow pipe before he smoked them, sixty years ago.
Then there’s the matter of a high quality varnish on pipes. I tried once to strip one and never again. It’s really on there, and it’s hard to remove. They’ll even stand just a bit of repair using 4/0 steel wool.
A drying oil polymerizes after exposure to oxygen. While you can build up layers with multiple applications (like if you oiled a floor or table as example), I think its typical use in pipes is more as a sealer/base protective coat. Once the oil has fully cured, you can sand/buff it and apply wax on top of it. The wax coat will wear off over time but the cured base coat will last a much longer time unless actively sanded down past the penetration point.