need advice re: vulcanite stem oxidization removal
Jun 6, 2022 13:32:11 GMT -5
sperrytops, Ronv69, and 1 more like this
Post by rramstad on Jun 6, 2022 13:32:11 GMT -5
Hi there, I'm new to this forum.
Some of you might recognize me, I was pretty active on Smokers Forums for several years, and in particular, I was the guy who dealt with the custom forum Zippo each year -- another guy did the actual planning and design stuff, but I dealt with getting them ordered, collecting payments, shipping and that sort of thing.
Anyhow I put aside my pipes for a while -- starting a new business, super time consuming -- and just recently got back to them, and I could use some help.
A bunch of pipes that I had cleaned and then put away in an odd spot -- shelving that is shaded and out of the way, but in a room that gets a lot of sunlight -- seem to have had a good amount of vulcanite stem oxidization.
I know there's a lot of folks with way more experience than me and I also suspect that the state of the art and/or common practices might be a bit different now than they were in 2008 or 2010 which was the last time I dealt with this sort of thing.
Without further ado, questions:
1) I have had some success removing oxidization using micro mesh sanding pads. That said, it's typical for me to end up with the stem having a small step down from the shank i.e. the diameter of the stem after sanding is just a bit smaller than the shank, if I sand enough to remove the oxidization.
Is this a common situation when using this approach or is there something I'm doing wrong?
2) Some of the more extreme cases strike me as needing a different approach than sanding -- there's so much oxidization that sanding will take forever and remove a lot of material potentially. I have always resisted putting stems in OxyClean or bleach as I had heard that the stems can come out with weird textures and other issues. There are some new products out there that look promising.
www.tobaccopipes.com/briarville-stem-oxidation-remover
lbepens.webs.com/apps/webstore/products/category/1172755
Has anyone used these products and if so what were your results? Tips and tricks? Other products to consider?
3) I know it's a big topic potentially but I have never used a buffer on my pipes, they've always scared me, I worry about hurting myself or a pipe. I have a Delta GR250 variable speed grinder in the garage and some buffing gear that was bought from Pimo Pipecraft but all of that was gotten long ago and second hand.
If you use a buffer and strongly feel that using a buffer will give me better results, I'd be curious as to what equipment you use -- wheels, compounds -- and links to any videos or guides as to techniques.
4) In the past with some of the tougher stuff, particularly because of my lack of buffer capability, I've sent it out. The guys I used in the past are retired or no longer with us -- George at Precision Pipe Repair, Dave at Walker Briar Works.
Looking around, I found Stem & Briar
www.stemandbriar.com/Pipe-Repairs/Rejuvenation
Has anyone used them and can provide a review? Any other suggestions for folks who do good work at reasonable prices?
At the end of the day I'd rather spend time smoking my pipes than maintaining them and so it might just make sense for me to send out stuff periodically and not worry about it...
Anyhow I asked a lot of questions, hopefully food for thought, and thanks in advance for suggestions, references, answers. It's kind of bewildering to come back to the hobby after a ten year absence... oh, bonus question:
5) Name three blends that came out in the last ten years that you love, ideally VA or burley based.
Gotta feed the TAD!
Thanks again!
-- Bob
Some of you might recognize me, I was pretty active on Smokers Forums for several years, and in particular, I was the guy who dealt with the custom forum Zippo each year -- another guy did the actual planning and design stuff, but I dealt with getting them ordered, collecting payments, shipping and that sort of thing.
Anyhow I put aside my pipes for a while -- starting a new business, super time consuming -- and just recently got back to them, and I could use some help.
A bunch of pipes that I had cleaned and then put away in an odd spot -- shelving that is shaded and out of the way, but in a room that gets a lot of sunlight -- seem to have had a good amount of vulcanite stem oxidization.
I know there's a lot of folks with way more experience than me and I also suspect that the state of the art and/or common practices might be a bit different now than they were in 2008 or 2010 which was the last time I dealt with this sort of thing.
Without further ado, questions:
1) I have had some success removing oxidization using micro mesh sanding pads. That said, it's typical for me to end up with the stem having a small step down from the shank i.e. the diameter of the stem after sanding is just a bit smaller than the shank, if I sand enough to remove the oxidization.
Is this a common situation when using this approach or is there something I'm doing wrong?
2) Some of the more extreme cases strike me as needing a different approach than sanding -- there's so much oxidization that sanding will take forever and remove a lot of material potentially. I have always resisted putting stems in OxyClean or bleach as I had heard that the stems can come out with weird textures and other issues. There are some new products out there that look promising.
www.tobaccopipes.com/briarville-stem-oxidation-remover
lbepens.webs.com/apps/webstore/products/category/1172755
Has anyone used these products and if so what were your results? Tips and tricks? Other products to consider?
3) I know it's a big topic potentially but I have never used a buffer on my pipes, they've always scared me, I worry about hurting myself or a pipe. I have a Delta GR250 variable speed grinder in the garage and some buffing gear that was bought from Pimo Pipecraft but all of that was gotten long ago and second hand.
If you use a buffer and strongly feel that using a buffer will give me better results, I'd be curious as to what equipment you use -- wheels, compounds -- and links to any videos or guides as to techniques.
4) In the past with some of the tougher stuff, particularly because of my lack of buffer capability, I've sent it out. The guys I used in the past are retired or no longer with us -- George at Precision Pipe Repair, Dave at Walker Briar Works.
Looking around, I found Stem & Briar
www.stemandbriar.com/Pipe-Repairs/Rejuvenation
Has anyone used them and can provide a review? Any other suggestions for folks who do good work at reasonable prices?
At the end of the day I'd rather spend time smoking my pipes than maintaining them and so it might just make sense for me to send out stuff periodically and not worry about it...
Anyhow I asked a lot of questions, hopefully food for thought, and thanks in advance for suggestions, references, answers. It's kind of bewildering to come back to the hobby after a ten year absence... oh, bonus question:
5) Name three blends that came out in the last ten years that you love, ideally VA or burley based.
Gotta feed the TAD!
Thanks again!
-- Bob
