I have a new meerschaum which I intend to enjoying smoking on a regular basis.
I see this from the Antinok website under the heading of "meerschaum care":
"Do not touch the bowl with your hands when the pipe is warm. The softened wax may cling to your fingers and the pipe will color in blotches. However, some pipe smokers prefer Meerschaum for its smoking properties, rather than for its ability to change color. If the coloring is not of importance, then, of course the Meerschaum can be handled and smoked in the normal manner."
Now I'm as anal as the next guy when it comes to taking care of my pipes, but it this true? Am I supposed to smoke my new meerschaum with tweezers? What gives?
I see this from the Antinok website under the heading of "meerschaum care":
"Do not touch the bowl with your hands when the pipe is warm. The softened wax may cling to your fingers and the pipe will color in blotches. However, some pipe smokers prefer Meerschaum for its smoking properties, rather than for its ability to change color. If the coloring is not of importance, then, of course the Meerschaum can be handled and smoked in the normal manner."
Now I'm as anal as the next guy when it comes to taking care of my pipes, but it this true? Am I supposed to smoke my new meerschaum with tweezers? What gives?
I generally will avoid holding the bowl of a NEW meerschaum for the first 10 or 20 smokes, as the wax settles in. After that, no problem. I hold and smoke my meers just like any briar, they color just fine.
