Saw this as the stem material - rubber/vulcanite - what is a "rubber" stem as opposed to a "vulcanite" stem ?
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Rubber/Vulcanite
- Thread starter smokertruck
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It is the term associated with vulcanizing rubber mixed with sulfur becoming a hard substance, ergo it is ebonite.
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As I understand it, vulcanite is rubber that has been vulcanized, sulfur has been added to it. I suspect that rubber and vulcanite are inter-changeable terms when discussing pipe bits. A non-vulcanized rubber bit probably would be too soft to support either an airway through it or a piece of brier on one end. Most pipe smokers would close off the airway with their bite using a non-vulcanized rubber bit.
So vulcanite is also rubber vulcanite is also ebonite ? - if so why use all these terms for the same thing ? or is it just the retailer ?
Ebonite is a brand name for hard black vulcanized rubber. In pipe parlance, though, people sometimes refer to ebonite in generic terms as being a very high grade of vulcanite (and coming in a variety of colours) that is much harder to oxidize than lesser vulcanite.
And for your edification, in case you didn't already know, the other main type of stem material is acrylic (plastic), sometimes called Lucite. It is harder than vulcanite, so some don't like the mouth feel of it, but it has the benefit of not oxidizing. Other hybrid materials are also around, including Ashtonite, which I vaguely understand is a material that includes both vulcanite and lucite, and I believe (but may be wrong) is only used in certain Ashton pipes.
so if there is a hard vulcanite ( ebonite ) then is there a softer vulcanite -
looking for a vulcanite that absorbs flavor more than other vulcanite -
wish to have a pipe made but not sure which material to request for a more flavorful stem
had an old pipe that absorbed flavor extremely well from bowl to bowl leaving the flavor of the last bowlful no matter which tobacco i smoked ( did post on this subject earlier but cant find the post )
looking for a vulcanite that absorbs flavor more than other vulcanite -
wish to have a pipe made but not sure which material to request for a more flavorful stem
had an old pipe that absorbed flavor extremely well from bowl to bowl leaving the flavor of the last bowlful no matter which tobacco i smoked ( did post on this subject earlier but cant find the post )
@ smoketruck, I'd say your pipe just has a lower grade of vulcanite. Lower grade stuff is more porous, and tends to absorb moisture. This is not generally considered to be a good thing, they also oxidize much more easily. High quality vulcanite is hard enough to prevent oxidation and absorption( to a point), and to prevent clenchers from easily chewing through the stem, while still retaining the comfort they're known for.
So, we still haven't covered Cumberland, Bakelite and amber. Have we missed anything else besides Missouri Meerschaum plastic?
The preform factory stems are cast vulcanite- high sulfur content and prone to oxidation. Ebonite has much less sulfur, is a higher quality, not prone to oxidation, and is typically formed as a rod that it then shaped by hand- the best- in my opinion is from SEM in Germany- it's is also available from Japan. Cumberland is ebonite with red mixed in. SEM has about 40 different color variations- I have some turqoise/black coming in this week. Bakelite or catalin is a cast material- there is still some old stock from the 40's available- just the raw material for a stem can cost $20.
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