fluffie666
Posted: Thu Jun 30, 2016 5:17 am
Hello forum members
My name is Peter Krepek. I am 37 years old, live in Walnutport Pennsylvania and I've been smoking pipes for about three years. I don't make my own pipes yet. At the moment, I am concentrating on cleaning up old estate pipes with the intention of actually being able to restore them (bring them back to their original state).
After about a month into the smoking hobby I discovered estate pipes. I quickly developed a soft spot in my heart for these old smokers. They have a history behind them. The old masters intrigue me. Preben Holm, Sixten Iverson and the Danish pipe carvers of late are the ones who amaze me. Even carvers like Mark Tinsky, who in their modest beginnings, became so obsessive about carving that they just holed themselves up somewhere, smoked and carved pipes.I find this type of obsession very honorable and believe that the pipes, no matter who made them, deserve to be brought back to their original condition so they can be smoked or just admired.
I started out by teaching myself how to remove oxidation from these old things and making the stems shine. I acquired a buffer, some compounds and then realized that each stem needs to be handled with some kind of technique as to not remove to much material in order to get a desired result. I realized I can clean up a 70 year old stem to a mirror finish but, in doing so, I can remove so much material from that stem and it is possible to be left with only a shiny toothpick sized stem of a mouth piece. This fact does not sit well with me and is the main reason I am on here. To ask questions about the techniques used to remove oxidation and to eventually start turning my own stems.
I stopped selling pipes that I cleaned up because I felt I was dishonoring the pipes. I don't know enough to say that I can refurbish or restore a pipe. I can clean them up, have them smokable and shiny. But at this point, I can not restore (bring them back to their original condition).
I have many questions, many pipes and a long road to learning how to turn my own stems. I hope to find some information on here and later on in my endeavor, I hope to be able to provide sound information to someone in my shoes who wants a slow and solid learning experience.
I am honored to be on here with so many experienced and like minded people. I thank you for being here and my wife thanks you as well because she is tired of hearing me mutter around the house about stems, oxidation, keeping button lines sharp, removing material, lathes, etc.
My name is Peter Krepek. I am 37 years old, live in Walnutport Pennsylvania and I've been smoking pipes for about three years. I don't make my own pipes yet. At the moment, I am concentrating on cleaning up old estate pipes with the intention of actually being able to restore them (bring them back to their original state).
After about a month into the smoking hobby I discovered estate pipes. I quickly developed a soft spot in my heart for these old smokers. They have a history behind them. The old masters intrigue me. Preben Holm, Sixten Iverson and the Danish pipe carvers of late are the ones who amaze me. Even carvers like Mark Tinsky, who in their modest beginnings, became so obsessive about carving that they just holed themselves up somewhere, smoked and carved pipes.I find this type of obsession very honorable and believe that the pipes, no matter who made them, deserve to be brought back to their original condition so they can be smoked or just admired.
I started out by teaching myself how to remove oxidation from these old things and making the stems shine. I acquired a buffer, some compounds and then realized that each stem needs to be handled with some kind of technique as to not remove to much material in order to get a desired result. I realized I can clean up a 70 year old stem to a mirror finish but, in doing so, I can remove so much material from that stem and it is possible to be left with only a shiny toothpick sized stem of a mouth piece. This fact does not sit well with me and is the main reason I am on here. To ask questions about the techniques used to remove oxidation and to eventually start turning my own stems.
I stopped selling pipes that I cleaned up because I felt I was dishonoring the pipes. I don't know enough to say that I can refurbish or restore a pipe. I can clean them up, have them smokable and shiny. But at this point, I can not restore (bring them back to their original condition).
I have many questions, many pipes and a long road to learning how to turn my own stems. I hope to find some information on here and later on in my endeavor, I hope to be able to provide sound information to someone in my shoes who wants a slow and solid learning experience.
I am honored to be on here with so many experienced and like minded people. I thank you for being here and my wife thanks you as well because she is tired of hearing me mutter around the house about stems, oxidation, keeping button lines sharp, removing material, lathes, etc.