I have a couple of real stinkers....

peteguy · Mar 3, 2014

No they don't smoke bad, they smell bad.

I smoke about a bowl a day and have a good 14 pipe rotation. I give my pipes a run through with pipe cleaners after every smoke both down the stem and folded then rubbed around the bowl. I keep the cake at a minimum and do a thorough alcohol cleaning about once every other month with pipe cleaners dipped in everclear. So maybe 4 -6 smokes through each pipe before the everclear hits them.
I smoke almost exclusively VA, VAPER or VABUR with no real care as to which pipe gets what. Out of the 14 pipes two of them I just cannot get the smell out of. They have a really strong almost ashtray smell. After the alcohol cleaning it comes back after the first smoke. The other thing I should mention is one I purchased new the other was an estate.
The pipes are actually quite good smokers but the smell is almost over powering when they are sitting in the rack. Has anyone ever encountered this before or have any suggestions?

twoonefive · Mar 3, 2014

Have you done a salt treatment yet?

peteguy · Mar 3, 2014

I did on the estate pipe but not the new pipe as it had the wood showing when I bought it.

twoonefive · Mar 3, 2014

The only thing I can reccomend is a 24 hour salt treatment. It has always worked on my pipes when they sour. I'm sure others here will have more/better advice for you. Good luck!

msandoval858 · Mar 3, 2014

Sounds like a 24 hr salt and a few rounds of a retort are in order.

fnord · Mar 4, 2014

Pete:
Do you have a retort? They're magic, pal, and will kill just about every demon in the pipe smoking world except Lane 1Q. But, if it doesn't, there's always the ozone chamber.
I created the latter in my smallish, basement bathroom with a full sized room deionizer. Works like a charm after 16 hours or so.
Let me know.
Fnord

pruss · Mar 4, 2014

They're magic, pal, and will kill just about every demon in the pipe smoking world except Lane 1Q.

And Condor... holy crap does that ghost linger. The last pipe I tried to clean up for a pal which had seen light Condor use took two retorts, and 3 salt and alcohol treatments and the ghost still wasn't busted. Fortunately my mate smokes heavy Latakia forward blends, and he managed to bury it after a couple weeks in his rotation.
-- Pat

peteguy · Mar 4, 2014

I don't have a retort - I wouldn't even know where to start or where to get one or how to use one. The new pipe is, well of course, a Peterson Donegal.
I would be interested in giving the retort a try. The ozone chamber sounds like something I may hire out.

mso489 · Mar 4, 2014

Hmmm. What caught my eye/ear was the description of the smell. I've had pipes go funky on me, maybe

a little mold or mildew, and a good cleaning with high proof liquor did the trick on that. But an ashtray

smell is different. Some lingering smell of tobacco, if that' what this is, has always struck me as pleasant,

the pipe's own perfume, and I don't try to exorcise it at all. Maybe this is a stale smell, which would not

be good. My point is, some residual tobacco smell is a given and doesn't need to be cleaned off. Something

else, yes.

shaintiques · Mar 4, 2014

Or you could try cleaning your pipes after every smoke. That is what I do. I know what you mean, the ashy smell in the bowl is sometimes strong when they are on the rack, but if you clean them after every smoke there is no problem.

fnord · Mar 4, 2014

Pete:
Walker Briar Works offers an affordable deionization treatment:
http://www.walkerbriarworks.com/html/ozone.html
In the meantime, retort kits are also affordable but can be a bit intimidating the first time you use one. You're mixing fire, high proof alcohol and a glass beaker to hold the boiling alcohol.
What could possibly go wrong, right?
After a while it becomes second nature although my stomach still flips when I see the mess that gets discharged. Yack!
Fnord

mikestanley · Mar 4, 2014

Greg Pease wrote an excellent article on the use of activated charcoal to get out ghosts. It's on his web site and is titled Out Damn Spot.
Mike S
oh www.glpease.com

sablebrush52 · Mar 5, 2014

In you description of your cleaning regimen you didn't mention whether or not you pull out the stem and clean out the mortise. If you do then I have nothing to add to the above. If you don't, your problem may lie with build up in the mortise.

seagullplayer · Mar 5, 2014

I have this issue with a couple of pipes, I understand the ash tray smell.
I will have to look into some of the recommendations.
Seems like I have heard of using mouth wash to freshen a stem?

tankbuster183 · Mar 5, 2014

I like the salt/Everclear treatment a lot, especially for estate pipes. I'll get it dampened at night, then add a few more drops in the morning before work to top it off. I've always had good luck with it.
If it's stem residue, I soak the stem in really concentrated OxyClean. It takes everything off (including delicate paint).
Having said that, I'm a heathen and don't have specific pipes for specific blends.

spartan · Mar 5, 2014

Taking out every last bit of cake sounds to me like the simplest solution.
A little ream here, a little ream there, sand paper sand paper. Badda Bing Badda Boom.
Maybe then do a little alcohol and cotton ball soak. Shizaaam!
New pipe. 8)

peteguy · Mar 6, 2014

Thanks everyone. I think I will try the following:
24 hour salt treatment making sure that I clean the hell out of the inside shank and inside stem as well. (I don't want to sand to bare wood as they are broken in now with a nice thin cake layer. I may resort to this if my attempt fails.) Purchase retort and give that a whirl when it arrives. Smoke.
I will pull these two from the rotation until the above are done.
It will take me some time to get a retort but I will report back with the final analysis.

brudnod · Mar 6, 2014

Spartan sort of danced over it but I too use alcohol and cotton balls. Never really convinced that the salt added much. The effect is the same and it offers two additional effects: you cannot spill the salt out and it is far easier to do. I remove the cotton balls with a hemostat and voila! you have a better smelling pipe. The process sometimes (particularly with smelly pipes) need to be repeated but it is so easy that you can hardly object. Oh, yes, I use Barcardi 151 rum.

Spencer

salewis · Mar 7, 2014

Peteguy:
I know what you mean regarding the odor in the room when you have many pipes together. I to keep my pipes very clean and regularly perform a thorough cleaning with Everclear and use two to three pipe cleaners after each smoke. However, when you get 35 pipes together in a bedroom (guest room) the pipes do emit a tobacco odor, not too offensive, but definitely a tobacco smell.

halfy · Mar 7, 2014

retort works for me like a charm. the salt + alcohol method is far less efficient.
after retort you can wipe off the old cake with a gentle touch. then do the retort again, this time it's bare wood like new. no reaming or sanding required.

I have a couple of real stinkers....

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