Tool suggestions for charred chambers

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fluffie666

Can't Leave
Apr 4, 2014
497
5
I've come across some nice estate pipes that were smoked to hot by the previous owner. Any suggestions on tools to remedy this? I've been working on some with just sand paper. When the charring is deep I cant get the boar holes to stay round with sand paper. I was thinking a Dremel tool. My second thoughts on that are the rpm speed. What do you use?

 

zack24

Lifer
May 11, 2013
1,726
2
A Dremel will allow you to ruin a perfectly good pipe much faster than you could with sandpaper. I would suggest you remove only the cake, not the charred briar. With the tools available to most guys at home, you're not going to improve a heavily charred pipe without distorting the chamber or thinning the walls too much...

 

buroak

Lifer
Jul 29, 2014
1,867
14
What I have learned in talking with Mike Myers of Walker Pipe Repair, is that the charred areas are sometimes best left as-is and, if bad enough, coated with something like pipe mud. As zack24 says, trying to remove the char will distort the chamber or remove too much wall.

 

fluffie666

Can't Leave
Apr 4, 2014
497
5
Yhank you gents. I've considered pipe mud. I suppose that's the logical next step in my learning experience. I'm actually on the way to my local shop to get a nice stogie so I can whip some up. In the case where I might want to move further, I have a few pipes that I don't mind ruining so... drill press? One in bowl in particular has very thick walls. Is there another tool that would suffice or is the drill press the way to go?

 

zack24

Lifer
May 11, 2013
1,726
2
If you had a drill press and a chamber bit that matched the profile of the pipe, and a secure way to clamp the pipe without damage, you'd have a good start. If you try to take a ground down spade bit in the drill press and hold the pipe while you drill it, you will destroy the pipe and probably hurt yourself...you could try something like a Pipe reamer by hand...much safer and easier to control...

 

buroak

Lifer
Jul 29, 2014
1,867
14
If you are dead set on trying to get past the char and down to bare briar, I would recommend that you use dowels and sandpaper. The dowel will help you keep material removal even. This is a slow process, but probably the safest available to you. Like a good doctor, first do no harm.

 

halfy

Starting to Get Obsessed
Mar 6, 2014
245
6
Leave it as is. Smoke the hell out of it. Then someday it's buried under cake and you would like to sand the cake a bit to get a perfect smooth wall.

 

xrundog

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 23, 2014
737
1
Ames, IA
Try and get the rim rounded. The chamber will be okay once it's caked. Chasing char to bare wood will make you crazy and might ruin the pipe. Besides, a chamber is supposed to be charred. Spider webbing is undesirable but not necessarily an indication that you have to do anything. Smoke it and see what happens.
Even rounding the rim can be tough if it's been hacked with a knife. Sometimes all you can do is clean the marks up as best you can and live with what's left. Smoke it and don't clean it. Eventually the defects will be covered.

 

buroak

Lifer
Jul 29, 2014
1,867
14
Even rounding the rim can be tough if it's been hacked with a knife. Sometimes all you can do is clean the marks up as best you can and live with what's left.
How true.

 

buroak

Lifer
Jul 29, 2014
1,867
14
The one caveat I would suggest we add to our advice is that sometimes char or other abuse has left substantial changes in the contours and diameter in portions of the bowl. I am thinking here of reamer-created "stepped-out shelves" or char-created "stepped-in shelves" in the bowl. These I will sometimes very carefully and minimally smooth in order to prevent future cake formation from becoming dangerously uneven. The occurrence of such defects is rare, at least in my collection, but I have had to deal with them.

 

fluffie666

Can't Leave
Apr 4, 2014
497
5
Well I really appreciate the suggestions and time from you folks. I'm going to try the pipe mud on one, dowels with sand paper on another and another kind of pseudo pipe mud that my tobbaconist suggested on the third. It's a dry "mud" made from almost disolving some tobacco in high proof alcohol, adding a bit of honey to that mix then letting the liquid evaporate. He says to coat the bowl with this dry mixture and smoke it.
Xrundog, I'm not sure what you mean when you say "round the rim". Is that the inside chamber rim? I do carefully ream with a very sharp knife when my reamers just don't work. Some of the bowls I'm working with are quite large... what I'm saying is that I'm pretty good with the knife and I am willing to try anything. I have a lot of pipes I'm trying to get through. Enough to learn and hopefully become pretty good at this little hobby I took up. I haven't counted all the charred ones I have but I wouldn't be suprised if the number is north of 20. Some with shelves, fairly suvere burn out and the like.
The few I have fixed so far have gone up on ebay from time to time. I put the whole ebay thing on hold for now because I need some more tools and more ideas so I can figure out how to get these things as close to perfect as I possibly can. Zack24 saved me a lot of frustration before in another posted question I had. I come on here to ask before I decide to do anything crazy. I really don't want to destroy any of the pipes I have. I read a lot of buroak's posts as well as xrun and all of you fine people on here. Very helpful.

 

mso489

Lifer
Feb 21, 2013
41,210
60,433
There's a legitimate decision as to whether these are the pipes in which to invest the time. The bowl is the heart of the pipe, and these sound pretty far gone.

 

xrundog

Part of the Furniture Now
Oct 23, 2014
737
1
Ames, IA
Yes I was referring to the inner rim/chamber edge. If it's been hacked on, careful sanding with just paper or a paper wrapped dowel usually cleans it up. Low dollar pipes that have really been beat up are good candidates for honing ones techniques and skills.

 
Jan 4, 2015
1,858
11
Massachusetts
The rim can sometimes be restored on a drill press with the use of a conical grinding stone. Anything with a sharp edge will cause chattering when you try to drill unless you have a way to secure the pipe. The stone will put a beveled edge on the inside and help remove the hacked edge. I've used it several time on pipes that are not of any significant value. You can pick up a stone at most hardware stores. They are used with hand grinders. You will need to sand to get a scratch free surface but it does work.

 

fluffie666

Can't Leave
Apr 4, 2014
497
5
All great suggestions and very much appreciated. A lot of the pipes are to far gone to save. These I'll keep for myself to practice on. If they become good smokers it'll be a bonus for me to learn from them and have an extra pipe to smoke. For now, I'm doing this all by hand until my tool repertoire grows. All things in time. I really like the dowel and sand paper deal. I started with that and the results are getting better. To do it by hand before I push a drill bit or grinding stone through there is helping me to understand the mechanics I'll be dealing with. It would really be a shame to destroy any of these pipes. Refinishing stems is fairly easy for me now. As for the bowls, using a pipe reamer, salt treatment and retort is fairly simple too. As for really restoring old briar, on the other hand, that's a whole new world.

 

cortezattic

Lifer
Nov 19, 2009
15,147
7,637
Chicago, IL
These things can be pretty aggressive crud removers, even when used by hand.

Just roll it up to size, stuff it in the bowl, and have at it!

Or cut a slot in the end of a dowel, slide a piece of pad into it, and use in a drill press.

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rigmedic1

Lifer
May 29, 2011
3,896
75
In most cases, once a cake is built up, the briar contributes little to the taste of the tobacco. I would make sure the bowl was as close to round as possible, and apply one of the suggested bowl coatings to encourage a cake to form. On an old Dunhill or high end pipe, it would be worth the effort if the pipe is of some value to you. I don't think I would waste the effort on a basket pipe unless I really liked the shape. It's all in what you want out of the pipe.

 

fluffie666

Can't Leave
Apr 4, 2014
497
5
Never thought Of a Scotch Brite pad. Fine idea. I'll add that to my cleaning tool collection. I do have a couple of Dunhill pipes that have burn marks in them. One has a shelf from improper and aggressive reaming. I'm putting those to the side until I gain some experience. The basket pipes I use to practice on.

 

fnord

Lifer
Dec 28, 2011
2,746
8
Topeka, KS
Fluffie:
You asked for and received some wonderful advice from a crew of salty pipe makers and restorers. Glad to see you taking it to heart.
I can only clean crud and polish but I've learned enough to make sure my Dremel always stays unplugged when I have burners on the bench.
Fnord

 
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