Meerschaum Gurgle?

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Howdy all, new member here. Not a brand new pipe smoker, but I am new to meerschaum.

I picked up this neat little piece from SmokingPipes, and I'm getting a little gurgle during the 2nd half of the bowl (most times). This is my first meerschaum and I was hoping it wouldn't gurgle on me since they are reported to have such fine smoking properties.

Aside from the usual suspects (fast cadence, wet tobacco, clenching with a wet mouth) are there any other reasons this might be happening?

I read on Reddit that sometimes meerschaums (especially with screw-on stems) need to have the airway opened up a bit? They suggested a 5/32" drill bit and a lot of caution, but I'm not going to do anything of the sort.
I've also read that bent pipes are more prone to gurgle, which makes sense as they might funnel stem moisture down into the bottom of the bowl.

Thanks!

 

[smokiespipesmoker123]

Anecdotally, Ive gotten gurgle in all my Meers. Bent or straight seems to make no difference. Probably my technique or the baccy is too wet.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Here it is. Meerschaum can absorb a lot, so it's not impossible it has excess moisture in it prior to your getting it. Dry your tobacco more, and try to smoke it to the bottom. That will push moisture out of the pipe, if that's what's happened.

And where do you live? Some places can be very humid!

 

[danimalia]

This has been one of my concerns about getting a meerschaum, particularly a bent meer. Does the pipe take a cleaner to the chamber? Most of my briars had a gurgle at first, but eventually stopped after breaking in, but I am not sure if that would be the case with meer since you're not building cake. As JPM said, maybe it is just some residual moisture and it will eventually dry up.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Here it is. Meerschaum can absorb a lot, so it's not impossible it has excess moisture in it prior to your getting it. Dry your tobacco more, and try to smoke it to the bottom. That will push moisture out of the pipe, if that's what's happened.

And where do you live? Some places can be very humid!

Interesting! Will do

I'm in Oakland, CA and the humidity in the house right now is generally 40-55% but I can't say for sure what it is outdoors where I smoke. Probably similar though.

The gurgle is minor and only shows up in the 2nd half. One pipe cleaner cures it instantly. Sometimes it comes back a 2nd time before I finish but I generally just run that same pipe cleaner through for another instant cure.

I have heard that meerschaum bowls can get quite hot compared to briar--this tells me I'm likely not smoking too hot because the bowl is never too hot to touch.

 

[condorlover1]

Some meerschaum pipes tend to act like a very small retort and hence the gurgle. Try using a Philt Pad in the bottom of the bowl and let your tobacco dry out a little before packing. Personally I love the taste of 'pipe gurgle' but them I am weird!

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

This has been one of my concerns about getting a meerschaum, particularly a bent meer. Does the pipe take a cleaner to the chamber? Most of my briars had a gurgle at first, but eventually stopped after breaking in, but I am not sure if that would be the case with meer since you're not building cake. As JPM said, maybe it is just some residual moisture and it will eventually dry up.

It does take a cleaner all the way in, but I have to rotate it a little on the way down/in. I wouldn't let this put you off of meerschaum. I've only smoked maybe 6 bowls since receiving it 4 days ago. And I'm just newly returning to pipe smoking after a 10+ year hiatus. It's a minor irritation that doesn't spoil the experience for me.

It could very well be a technique issue, as I am just getting back into pipes after 10+ years. I noticed I do tend to pack a bit tight sometimes. I'm not trying to blame the pipe, merely asking if the pipe might have any charcteristics that are contributing to the problem.

 

[alaskanpiper]

It happens. Pipe cleaners are your friend. Hopefully your meer can pass one. Smoking with the breath method has virtually eliminated any gurgling for me. YMMV.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Thanks all. I'll work on it and report back if anything changes

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Some meerschaum pipes tend to act like a very small retort and hence the gurgle. Try using a Philt Pad in the bottom of the bowl and let your tobacco dry out a little before packing. Personally I love the taste of 'pipe gurgle' but them I am weird!

Interesting! I don't get the gurgle from my Savinelli billiard so you may be onto something there.

The gurgle doesn't seem to affect the taste of my smoke, but I don't enjoy the sound/feeling of it. It feels sloppy to me and makes it more difficult to relax and enjoy. I had never heard of those Philt Pads, but I found some and maybe I'll give them a try if I can't sort it out.

 

[BROBS]

try putting the pipe cleaner in from the mouthpiece and figure out the location of the gurgle... it might be happening in the mouthpiece area of the stem. Otherwise it might be at the tenon connection but until you know exactly where it's happening it's hard to solve.

sometimes you just need to take a small needle file and "funnel" the mouthpiece area. A lot of times they make the slot in the button too narrow.

 

[mso489]

Two usual remedies occur to me. Dry out your tobacco for hours or even a day or two before packing, just a bowl or two at time. Moisture comes from that. Also, clenching can cause saliva to drain into the pipe either directly or as condensation, so try not clenching, if you do. My one Meerschaum was given to me by the late great fish'n'banjo, a straight billiard with grape cluster etchings. No gurgle with it. Meerschaum can give clarity and definition to blends as nothing else can.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

try putting the pipe cleaner in from the mouthpiece and figure out the location of the gurgle... it might be happening in the mouthpiece area of the stem. Otherwise it might be at the tenon connection but until you know exactly where it's happening it's hard to solve.

sometimes you just need to take a small needle file and "funnel" the mouthpiece area. A lot of times they make the slot in the button too narrow.

Solid advice here, thank you! It makes sense to pinpoint the issue before attempting to resolve. I'm a bit hesitant to modify the pipe, but I'll take it under consideration (once I locate the source)

 

[shanez]

I can make any pipe gurgle.

I'd try all of the advice above before I started messing with the pipe.

Is this your first pipe in this shape? The shape can be contributing to gurgle. I sometimes get the gurgle with my bent briars if I'm not paying attention and puffing too fast.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

Two usual remedies occur to me. Dry out your tobacco for hours or even a day or two before packing, just a bowl or two at time. Moisture comes from that. Also, clenching can cause saliva to drain into the pipe either directly or as condensation, so try not clenching, if you do. My one Meerschaum was given to me by the late great fish'n'banjo, a straight billiard with grape cluster etchings. No gurgle with it. Meerschaum can give clarity and definition to blends as nothing else can.

I've been pretty good about drying the tobacco first, but I'll try to be more patient in that regard and see if it helps.

As far as clenching, I have a very wet mouth so I've basically given up on the idea of clenching--except for a brief clench when I need both of my hands for something.

I envisioned this pipe as a nice little dangler when I bought it, but I may have to sell/trade it in favor of a larger straighter meer instead. I would like to have one meer in the stable for sure.

 

[Johnny_Pipecleaner]

I can make any pipe gurgle.

I'd try all of the advice above before I started messing with the pipe.

Is this your first pipe in this shape? The shape can be contributing to gurgle. I sometimes get the gurgle with my bent briars if I'm not paying attention and puffing too fast.

Sound advice here. That's definitely my plan, and yes, it is my first pipe with such a bend. I also noticed our humidity here in the area has been around 70-90% the last few times I checked, so that could also be a factor.

It's not a huge issue, but rather a soft small gurgle that only shows up towards the end of the bowl. I only bring it to the forum because I expected a meer to be more forgiving in this regard on account of its absorbant properties.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

My $0.02... FWIW A new meerschaum is going to be absorbing a lot of the flavors in the new white walled chamber as you break it in, so that (along with the notion that meers are supposed to smoke cooler) motivates the smoker to puff harder or faster than they would with a briar. So, lacking flavor, you are trying to pull more and more out of it... and, the reality is that even a meer lined draft hole can only absorb so much of the moisture, but push that with smoke moving the speed of lightning through it, forces condensation to build up along the draft walls.

Consciously slow down more. Sure, dry your tobacco, but even bone dry tobacco is going to produce moisture, as water is the natural by-product of combustion. But, slow down, and try to pay attention to how you will gradually get more flavors as you smoke the thing over and over. Focusing on taste with this in mind should allow you set the cadence properly.

YMMV

 

[danimalia]

As far as clenching, I have a very wet mouth so I've basically given up on the idea of clenching--except for a brief clench when I need both of my hands for something.

I'm the same way. I've kind of decided to stick to mostly straight pipes for that reason. I can clench for a little bit when driving and I need my hands, but generally when it's time to puff, I need to take the pipe out of my mouth after or else I'm like a rabid dog with all the moisture.

 

[dcon]

Pipe shape might have as much causation as it being a meerschaum. Some bents definitely require a bit more tobacco drying and some folks are “wetter” smokers. If you are smoking it the same as your billiard, you might want to be a bit more conscious of whether you are introducing ‘’your” moisture back into the pipe.

 

[jpmcwjr]

That's always baffled me: I can't see how folks could introduce saliva down the stem without trying. Unless it's held between the lips only. Or they never spit out excess saliva. (Some might be swallowers, too.)