Pipe stuff i need help with

Welcome, archedriver

You can get a 9mm adapter for your filter pipe and not have to use the 9mm filters. You can use any 9mm filters for it. There are a number of manufacturers, keep an eye out for sales if you continue to smoke it with filters. P&C and Smoking Pipes and the other sites carry these items as a general rule.You just have to decide what works for you. In regard to the filters jamming, this happens on some pipes. I have many 9mm filter pipes but only one is bad about filters sticking in the mortise. Maybe somebody else knows a fix for it. I would just put an adapter in it. You might have the mortise opened up by a pipe repair man or if you are good with your hands try micro filing it out. You might try wrapping some wet and dry around a filter and try sanding it open a little more.

I just clean the pipe and run a bowed pipe cleaner around the bowl with some Everclear and set it back in the wrack. My question would be what is leaving a mess in the bowl? I just noticed your VA in the background is that what is leaving a wet bowl?

Sorry, archedriver.

In regard to the wet bowl:

I just clean the pipe with a paper towel, and run a bowed pipe cleaner around the bowl with some Everclear and set it back in the wrack, to dry out. My question would be what is leaving a mess in the bowl? I just noticed your VA in the background is that what is leaving a wet bowl? I have not been smoking VA's a long time, but a wet bowl has not come up. Is your smoking cadence slow or are you really puffing on the pipe? Is the tobacco wet? How often do you smoke the pipe before letting it rest. Any of these might be a problem.

Sorry, archedriver.

In regard to the wet bowl:

I just clean the pipe with a paper towel, and run a bowed pipe cleaner around the bowl with some Everclear and set it back in the wrack, to dry out. My question would be what is leaving a mess in the bowl? I just noticed your VA in the background is that what is leaving a wet bowl? I have not been smoking VA's a long time, but a wet bowl has not come up. Is your smoking cadence slow or are you really puffing on the pipe? Is the tobacco wet? How often do you smoke the pipe before letting it rest. Any of these might be a problem.

Get Churchwarden pipe cleaners if you need the reach. They are like 18" long. You can leave some ashes in the bowl while it cools but I've never seen where it draws any additional moisture out. My SOP is to dump the ash, give a quick wipe to the bowl with a doubled over cleaner in the shape of a U, run a cleaner or two from button to bowl and rack and rest. Deep cleaning every couple months where I take the pipes apart and clean with alcohol and shank brushes.

Cake buildup is a positive attribute but there's no rushing it. It'll build as you smoke and the more you smoke. The old adage of a dimes thickness is in my mind a bit much and in reality the very first bowl that's smoked lays down a microscopic layer. Some pieces of briar build cake faster and stronger than others and it needs to be even and start from the bottom up. All this will dry out your smoke but poor engineering in the pipe can cause a gurgling issue no matter what. Often times it's an easy fix but for new pipers it's best left to the pro's. Don't start drilling out the airway just because Cletus done it on You Tube. Pipe cleaners are cheap and there no crime in swabbing out the shank while you smoke. Most newbs slobber a lot when they smoke and therefore cause most of their own moisture problems. Just enjoy.