Reaming Questions

jaytex1969 · Nov 18, 2017

So, I picked up a British Buttner reamer.
I now have two pipes that ought to be reamed. I've not done it before.
Is it best to ream cold and dry or warm and moist? (The pipe, not me)
What other virgin reamer advice can you provide?
Thanks!

warren · Nov 18, 2017

Cold. The cake should be hard. Small bites until you attain the thickness you desire. I keep mine around the thickness of a dime. It's a preference. Some will accept only no cake.

oldmansmoking · Nov 18, 2017

Ream cold, I have a Butner Reamer type. They work well but take it slow and easy. Adjust the reamer to get in all areas of the bowl.

I have reamed some extreme estate pipes, might take some time but it works.

Restored Falcons with simple reamer

nevadablue · Nov 18, 2017

I always ream wet, under hot running water. So far so good. The water keeps the cuttings flushed out, and softens the the cake. It normally just comes right out. I just finished 5 estate pipe clean ups. No problems at all.

saltedplug · Nov 18, 2017

Cold. Depending on the sharpness of the blades it can be very easy to over-ream and end up scarring the wood. You can always ream more, but not less after gouging/scraping the wood.

sablebrush52 · Nov 18, 2017

If it's just maintenance, I ream when the pipe is cold. I have more than one type of reamer and suggest that you also look into a Pipnet set. Buttners are best for conical chambers, while others do better for cylindrical chambers. Go gently as it's easy to suddenly be cutting wood, rather than cake, if you go too fast with too much pressure, especially near the bottom of the chamber if it narrows.

hawky454 · Nov 18, 2017

I'll vote for the cold and dry ream as well and be sure to go slow cause if you get in there and rush it you may do a sloppy job and you'll get chunks out of it instead of smooth ream.

mso489 · Nov 19, 2017

And some prefer no reaming. This is attained by scooping out the bowl after each smoke and wiping it out with a paper napkin or towel. This keeps the carbon layer very thin. Since you never have to ream, the chamber remains the same diameter, and the chamber never gets scored. I have pipes 30 and 40 years old that have done well, and smoke as well as any. You don't need to own a reamer. This works only if you begin with a new or thoroughly reamed estate pipe. If you choose to ream, I suggest you start with some less valued pipes, since learning to ream takes practice and you don't want to practice on your prime pipes. A friend of a friend offered to ream his pipes, since he'd just gotten a new reamer, and of course he ruined the whole bunch of them. If you overdo it, or do it wrong, you can do damage, some of it total.

Chasing Embers · Nov 19, 2017

I ream when cold with a pen knife. No pipe damage yet, and easier to control than a reamer.

saltedplug · Nov 19, 2017

I ream when cold with a pen knife. No pipe damage yet, and easier to control than a reamer.

Exactly my method, blade held 90 degrees to the chamber. Much safer.

Chasing Embers · Nov 19, 2017

Exactly my method, blade held 90 degrees to the chamber. Much safer.

And I turn the pipe on the blade instead of forcing the blade into the cake.

jaytex1969 · Nov 19, 2017

Thanks for all the tips, fellas.
I'll likely give it a whirl Thursday, between stuffing my face and visiting family.
I will also give thanks for having a fine virtual community like this in my life.

nevadablue · Nov 19, 2017

Yes, the 90 degree knife is a scraper. Scraping produces nice finishes on lots of stuff.
For reference, I cleaned and reamed six more pipes today. All were metal pipes. Four Falcons, one Grabow and an Airograte. All needed reamed. These were the hardest to ream I have done yet. One of the Falcon bowls was VERY difficult. All were done under running hot water, with a variety of reamers, alternating until the cake was gone. I did have to use a pen knife blade in the bottom of the Airograte, from the bottom.

jaytex1969 · Nov 21, 2017

Well, my wife had a 4 hour class last night and I got bored, so out came the Buttner reamer and my $10 "beater" Baraccini pipe from eBay.
I had let it rest 3 days in preparation and all went well. The reamer allowed me to get to that "just under a dime's thickness". I'd have been happy to take it fully off, but thought I'd not push my luck on the first run.
I was emboldened, so I grabbed my Viking Classic Dublin, which burns my ODF flakes, a conical chamber. Now, I do also "scoop & wipe" the bowl when done, a la MSO, but I seem to be building cake anyways. I wonder what the difference is.
I know that I am still smoking a bit hotter than many, although much improved from 4 months ago. Will technique variances alter the cake outcome?
I can see where the Buttner will fall short on some of my larger, non-conical chambers, so I'll eventually seek an additional tool.
The Senior Reamer looks interesting. Anyone that has one and can estimate minimum and maximum adjustment widths?
Thanks.

Chasing Embers · Nov 22, 2017

I'd get the Decatur Pipe Knife over the Senior Reamer.

puffermark · Nov 22, 2017

Sand paper wrapped around an appropriately sized dowel for me. Safe as houses and cheap as old chips.

joeman · Nov 22, 2017

I would not agree that scraping with a pen knife is 'easier'. It may be easier for those of you who prefer it...but I've seen the aftermath of pen knife reaming by the well-intentioned hands of those who didn't quite know what they were doing. I did some pipe repairs for a gent who 'thought' he'd burned out the bottom of his pipe bowl. Nope...his repeated pen knife reaming efforts gradually chipped away at the bottom of the bowl, as was evidenced by the slash marks. He said he's always very careful and that there was "no way it was due to my reaming technique". LOL. Whether pen knife...sandpaper...or choice of reamer...it's preference and whatever method works best for you.
Some great suggestions for tools and methods have been made by the guys here, very helpful. Take it slow!

Chasing Embers · Nov 22, 2017

I've seen the aftermath of pen knife reaming by the well-intentioned hands of those who didn't quite know what they were doing. I did some pipe repairs for a gent who 'thought' he'd burned out the bottom of his pipe bowl. Nope...his repeated pen knife reaming efforts gradually chipped away at the bottom of the bowl

Now that is odd. With a pen blade's curved tip, I've never even blemished the bottom of a bowl.

philobeddoe · Nov 22, 2017

Another vote for the Pipnet set, I use this set on my new estates probably 90% of the time now, I rarely use my Buttner or Senior reamers anymore. I do however keep them for the odd chamber that requires a different approach than the Pipnet.

PaulTheScandinavian · Nov 22, 2017

Original Pipenet set is pretty pricey then there are those more affordable(presumable china product)available,now,would these cheaper ones which come in black plastic box perform satisfactory?

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