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philous

Lurker
Jul 30, 2016
8
1
I wood like to know if the base of the bowl of my pipes could begin to wear out with normal use or by removing the ashes with the czech tool.I never smoke hot pipes so it won't burn the briar and i always smoke dry tobacco so it wont make my pipe too hot.I always rotate my pipes and let them rest for at least a week.

Thank you.

 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,248
108,337
I have pipes in my collection that were bought new nearly thirty years ago, and estate pieces that range from new to 112 years old. Not much damage at all to the heel of the chamber. Unless you're really digging, you shouldn't have anything to worry about. Briar is a really dense and durable wood. I smoke the same pipe twice daily for a week then change to another. Have done that for years to no ill effect. You should be fine.

 

mikethompson

Lifer
Jun 26, 2016
11,287
23,315
Near Toronto, Ontario, Canada
There is really no need to scrape the bottom of the bowl like a madman to get ashes out, so you will be good. Even in my Meerschaum, which is softer than a briar, I've had no issues. The 'shovel' part of the Czech tool is fairly blunt as well.

 
One of the first pipes I got started to get a hole in the heel from me being over exuberant with my pipecleaners, boring slowly into the front of the heel inside the chamber. But, once I noticed what was going on, I backed off of pushing the cleaners in. Now, cake has filled the hole, and it is still in rotation. Just use your tools with some reserve, and it should last you beyond your lifetime.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
On these issues of how hard to attack a chore like cleaning a pipe, I always like to remember the ingenious aspect of a torque wrench, familiar to me only in the car magazines. This is a wrench with a scale that tells the user how much torque they are applying to the bolt they are tightening to know if they are applying unnecessarily damaging pressure. I don't own a torque wrench, but I remember the principle when I'm tightening screws and bolts and doing other jobs, especially on delicate things like jewelry, pipes, and pens. So when you're scooping ash, really feel the bottom of that bowl, so you are clearing it but not gouging it. Likewise use measured strength taking off stems, or putting them on, and especially if you use a reamer. I'm not a massive person, so I only have to keep this in mind. If you're a big, powerful person, you need to make it part of your mindset, I'd guess. But mostly, as noted in earlier posts, this is a peripheral concern, and pipes given the least consideration tend to last forever. That's why they're being sold for smoking long after even their longer-lived owners are gone.

 
Apr 2, 2018
3,112
35,187
Idong,South Korea.
Try to build up a cake in the heel of the bowl by smoking all the way to the bottom,or,in the words of Ed Burak,”light up the ashes”. You can clear out the ashes with a pipe cleaner either fluffy or bristle folded in half.I keep the cake Pared down with sand paper.For heavy cake,try 180 to 200 grit,and finish with 600 to 800. Don’t use anything so pointed or sharp that you get piercing

Of the cake or wood,as the case may be,or an unwanted or uncontrolled removal of the cake.Hope this helps.

 

thehappypiper

Can't Leave
Feb 27, 2014
303
0
I am careful about this. I only use the blunt end of the Czech tool and try not to hit the bottom of the bowl, just disturb the tobacco enough to enable me to get it out with the old "slap into palm of hand" method.

As for smoking all the way to the end of the bowl, I never do it. At least extremely rarely and almost never with flakes. This means my cake stops about a third of the way down the bowl. I feel a bit guilty about that but the tobacco never tastes right beyond that point. My oldest pipes are 12 years old and so far no problem (touch wood). The way I look at it, I smoke a pipe for enjoyment. I am careful, but if I have to replace a pipe once every 12 years, that's a good trade for 12 years of pleasurable smoking. I'm not going to spend 30% of my smoking life with a bad taste in my mouth.

 

bluto

Part of the Furniture Now
Aug 24, 2018
737
8
I get the girlfriend to clean my pipe , but I got to wait until the wife is outta town

 

jaytex1969

Lifer
Jun 6, 2017
9,517
50,591
Here
@MSO
Reminds me of what one of my friends likes to say in regard to moderation.
Just make it tight, not FARMER tight!
jay-roger.jpg


 
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