So, I'm restoring a cob. I know. I know. WHY? I have no idea. It's not even old. It was a cob gifted to me by one of the fine gentlemen on our previous home forum.
I was smoking it a couple weeks ago on my back steps, which are like a tiny deck barely wider than our back door, and I guess I set it on the rail to cool. Apparently, I went inside and forgot about it and it fell over the side. Off and on I'd remember it and look through my pipes wondering where it had gone.
My boys found it yesterday,and it looked rough. It has rained a lot this past month, and it took a toll on the pipe. It had not rained for the past few days, so it was relatively dry, but it was obvious it had swollen and then shrunk back to near original size. The filler was cracked and falling out, the was a dark patch from the dirt, the cob had swollen past the filler, and one side of the cob was now a little taller.
In retrospect, I kick myself for not taking a pic. I know, it is rule #1. (no Fight Club references, please)
I was bored, so I decided to see if I could fix it.
I started by knocking on it pretty hard with the end of a pocket knife to dislodge any loose filler.
I then sanded it with 100 grit sandpaper to try to smooth the sides back out.
I grabbed some wood filler I had laying around and puttied the outside, then let it dry.
Once the putty dried, I sanded it again, reputtied a few spots than sanded it back down until I could see the original filler.
I used some brown shoe polish (I know. Probably not the best choice) and lightly rubbed some into the new putty with my finger.
I then tossed it in the toaster over for a minute to cure/dry/air out.
After it cooled down, the shoe polish smell was gone, and it looked pretty good.
Unfortunately, all of the expanding and contracting warped the shank a bit, and the hole is permanently smaller than original size. The bit will not fit in the cob any longer.
My plan is to drill it out or use a small dremel sanding drum to bore it out to the right size again.
I'll post up a pic when I'm done.
I put way too much effort into such a cheap pipe, but I wanted to see if it could be salvaged; and if it can be, it will be more special. (until I forget it outside again!)
