Ebonite reconditioning?

[Multum in parvo]

I have this lovely French Sitter made from Algerian briar.
It’s huge but only 2.5oz.
The stem turned slightly sandy to the touch and the glossy shine is long gone.
Will Obsidian oil and a polishing cloth work or do I need something more drastic like a buffer wheel?

 

[Benzadmiral]

There are suggestions here on The Brown Leaf. Soaking the stem in a mix of hot water and baking soda is one, and soaking also in Oxyclean is another. I did both, then sanded the stems with fine grit sandpaper, and finally used some olive oil on them. They look 200% better.

It's a lot of work. All the pipes I've bought since January have had acrylic or horn stems -- much easier for my peace of mind.

 

[Multum in parvo]

There are suggestions here on The Brown Leaf. Soaking the stem in a mix of hot water and baking soda is one, and soaking also in Oxyclean is another. I did both, then sanded the stems with fine grit sandpaper, and finally used some olive oil on them. They look 200% better.

It's a lot of work. All the pipes I've bought since January have had acrylic or horn stems -- much easier for my peace of mind.

This one is old and afaik Algerian briar is not available anymore so I want to be at least in a decent condition. Frankly speaking it’s much too big for my current patience and expertise. Even loosely packed it’s a 2 hour’s plus smoke.

I’ll look into the hot water baking soda solution as I’m not positive if we have Oxyclean over here. Which paper grits did you use and was it wet or dry?

 

[Benzadmiral]

This one is old and afaik Algerian briar is not available anymore so I want to be at least in a decent condition. Frankly speaking it’s much too big for my current patience and expertise. Even loosely packed it’s a 2 hour’s plus smoke.

I’ll look into the hot water baking soda solution as I’m not positive if we have Oxyclean over here. Which paper grits did you use and was it wet or dry?

I bought a pack of 800 and 1000-grit sandpaper at Walmart, and used them wet. Note also that the hot water should not be boiling -- it could soften and ruin the ebonite. Just hot tap water. It'll be very encouraging to see the brownish stuff come off the stem, both with the soak and with the sandpaper.

 

[Salty O'Rourke]

FYI, obsidian oil is food-grade mineral oil with some sunscreen mixed in. You can get some inexpensive mineral oil sold for treating cutting boards to see if you like the results. Store your pipes in the dark, or at least out if direct lighting, to slow down oxidation.

 

[EdT]

Car paint polish on a rotary with a foam polishing wheel !

 

[8 Track]

I primarily use toothpaste, toothbrush and Magic Eraser for regular maintenance. Agree with Salty on mineral oil for the finish.

 

[JCinPA]

Not all shops have one, but if you go to a fairly large Pipe/Cigar store in a major city (Holt's in Philadelphia, Iwan Ries in Chicago, and many others that are not that large but have a good selection of pipes). They'll likely have a buffer wheel on site and if you buy a cigar or two, or some pipe tobacco, they'll likely buff it up for you in a couple minutes while you wait. Takes all the brain damange out of it.

 

[Multum in parvo]

Pipe shops are a dying species in my area. The last pipes I got from Josef Ostermann (founded 1811) in Vienna, they closed in 2016 after 205 years…

 

[ctr]

Toothpaste hand buffing followed by oil.

 

[Titleist]

I primarily use toothpaste, toothbrush and Magic Eraser for regular maintenance.

I realize this is an old thread. But, this advice is timeless. Just read this today and tried the Magic Eraser with toothpaste. Perfect results! I did actually have Obsidian on hand so I treated the stems with that. The pipes have admittedly been neglected and suffering badly at the hands of my golf game, cigars and straight razors.

 

[luvmysuper]

After a 30 minute soak in hot water and oxy clean type cleaner, the buffing wheel with tripoli compound will have the nastiest, brown stem glossy black in minutes.

 

[steveclarkus]

I have this lovely French Sitter made from Algerian briar.
It’s huge but only 2.5oz.
The stem turned slightly sandy to the touch and the glossy shine is long gone.
Will Obsidian oil and a polishing cloth work or do I need something more drastic like a buffer wheel?
View attachment 1318949

Oxyclean will do it. Always worked for me many times.

 

[JCinPA]

Did you ever get it cleaned up? I got a buffing wheel since then, but all mine have been overnight soak in oxyclean, rinse, then sand with 600 or 800 grit wet/dry paper (go easy), then the full set of micromesh sanding pads, from 1500 to 12000 (see link below), and finally a t-shirt and CIF cream, Flitz, toothpaste, whatever fine polishing cream you have. Sit in front a tv show and work at it. It works very well. Labor intensive, but it works.

How did yours end up?

 

[Multum in parvo]

Did you ever get it cleaned up? I got a buffing wheel since then, but all mine have been overnight soak in oxyclean, rinse, then sand with 600 or 800 grit wet/dry paper (go easy), then the full set of micromesh sanding pads, from 1500 to 12000 (see link below), and finally a t-shirt and CIF cream, Flitz, toothpaste, whatever fine polishing cream you have. Sit in front a tv show and work at it. It works very well. Labor intensive, but it works.

How did yours end up?

I did a batch with baking soda, toothpaste and chapstick - all by hand. Definitely better and not anymore brownish/green but far away from a shiny glossy finish.

 

[JCinPA]

Naturally I forgot the link. These help a lot.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H6EC4C?ref=nb_sb_ss_w_as-ypp-rep_ypp_rep_k0_1_15&amp&crid=WY08A7916CPH&amp&sprefix=micro+mesh+pads

Then the CIF, Flitz, or toothpaste, and Bob's your uncle.

 

[Multum in parvo]

Naturally I forgot the link. These help a lot.

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000H6EC4C?ref=nb_sb_ss_w_as-ypp-rep_ypp_rep_k0_1_15&amp&crid=WY08A7916CPH&amp&sprefix=micro+mesh+pads

Then the CIF, Flitz, or toothpaste, and Bob's your uncle.

I used these

https://www.amazon.de/Schmutzradierer-Schwamm-Stück-Schuhe-Reinigungsschwamm/dp/B08D9SPPQY/ref=sr_1_6?crid=JGIFF44GRM81&keywords=schmutzradierer+schwamm&qid=1642096304&sprefix=Schmutzra%2Caps%2C162&sr=8-6

but I guess something with an actual grit like yours will work much faster.

 

[JCinPA]

Yes, that is like the Mr. Clean Magic eraser thing. Those micromesh pads are really great for this. They are also good for smoothing out the stummel after a good Murphy Oil Soap bath. Very handy products for pipe cleaning.

 

[karacha]

Magic Eraser + mineral oil works wonders.

 

[Benzadmiral]

I keep my pipes in my kitchen pantry/closet, so unless they are being smoked indoors or outside, they are in darkness. Plus I treat the ebonite/vulcanite ones with a little olive oil and make sure to wipe them down frequently now that I've reconditioned them. Don't want to go through that again any time soon.

Maybe I need to get some obsidian oil anyway.