Facelift…

[rdomfoto]

Started with my $2.00 Dr. Grabow that I got off of EBay.

I sanded it down to the bare wood, sanitized it, did the salt treatment, and I'm now waiting for the third coat of dye to dry.

Then a few coats of finish oil followed by a carnauba wax finish

Here it is waiting for the dye to dry

 

[rdomfoto]

The first coat soaked in really quickly, the second one took a but longer, and the third coat (I think) is going to take a few hours. That's why it looks so splochy.

 

[Hoshneer]

It's looking good man. I have a few Grabows that smoke good as hell.

 

[rdomfoto]

Thanks - it's drying really evenly, which is a bit of a surprise as there were a lot of fillings in the briar once I got it stripped down. Once it's dried completely, I'll look at it under the magnifying lamp and see if a fourth coat is needed. If not, I'll start the Danish Oil treatments.

 

[rdomfoto]

First coat of Danish Oil

 

[Tennessee Dave]

Looking good

 

[JustTroItIn]

That is looking great! Shiny!

 

[Griz]

First coat of Danish Oil

That is sweet, how long does it take for that danish earl to dry? brush or wipe it on?

 

[Ducttapegonewild]

I am curious if that pipe has that good of a shine after the stain dries. If so, that is absolutely beautiful! If not, still beautiful, just not absolutely

 

[rdomfoto]

That's with the first coat of oil still wet. It will lose some of that shine as it dries. Planning on three coats of oil and then hitting it with Carnuba wax. Should still still have a good gloss finish to it.

 

[Griz]

That's with the first coat of oil still wet. It will lose some of that shine as it dries. Planning on three coats of oil and then hitting it with Carnuba wax. Should still still have a good gloss finish to it.

did you brush the oil or wipe it on with a rag?

 

[rdomfoto]

Brushed it on with a soft pipe cleaner. Same for the dye.

Great method: clean, no drips, nowhere near the waste, and the cleaner is tossed in the trash.

 

[Griz]

cool, thanks Rob. Cant wait to see the finished product...

 

[cgraunke]

Looking great, Rob!
I might have to send you my 320 Vaniglia, it's desperately screaming for the piano gloss treatment!

 

[Whtwtrman79]

Subscribed!

 

[rdomfoto]

Alright. Couple of notes for next time. First, make sure I sand it properly. You can't see sandpaper marks until the Carnuba wax is applied. Up close, I can see the minute scratches.

Secondly, buff the Carnuba wax with my muslin wheel, not by hand.

Still, considering that I was half expecting to totally fuck this up and throw the pipe out, I'm really happy with the outcome (for the first time). Here it is before the wax but after wiping excess oil off:

And how it turned out. Definitely still shines.

 

[rdomfoto]

Wow, I was looking at it on my phone. Now that I am on my laptop and see the images up close, you can definitely see the scratch marks.
I have another Grabow (this was a $7 one from Ebay) that I will try again on. See if I can't do it properly this time.

 

[GWBowman]

Looks nice to me. I think job well done.

 

[Jfire]

I'm not much of a woodworker but iirc from my family handyman magazine. Use a 0000 steel wool after last sanding. And then use a tac cloth after that and before any stains or oils go on. I'll see if I can find the article Rob!

 

[rdomfoto]

I'm not much of a woodworker but iirc from my family handyman magazine. Use a 0000 steel wool after last sanding. And then use a tac cloth after that and before any stains or oils go on. I'll see if I can find the article Rob!

Thanks - I got impatient and that was the real problem. I stopped after using 1000 grit paper and should have continued up to the 8000 micro fibre and then the steel wool.

I may sand it down again (at least I don't have to go to bare wood) to remove the scratches, re-appy the stain, oil and wax. Or I may just start using it and take better care on the next one.

But, yeah, if you can find that article, I'd really appreciate it!