Do You Believe In The Cake? Yes or No

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craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
5,767
47,574
Minnesota USA
Yes

I’ll allow cake to build a bit at a time producing a relatively thin layer, most of the time.

I don’t allow ash to remain after smoking, except for some hardwoods. Once the cake gets somewhat thick and orange peely in texture I’ll scrape it thinner/smoother with knife or sandpaper.

A sufficient layer of cake does let the pipe smoke cooler. I proved this to myself by smoking hardwood pipes and having less of them burnout.
 

Kottan

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 5, 2020
508
1,329
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
Thick cakes pose a threat to the structure of the pipe because they expand with heat and can crack the bowl.
Hello Sable,
I've never heard or seen that a cake can break a bowl. I think before this happens the cake would break, what in fact happened sometimes in those (early) days when I let grow the cake. (building cake was a kind of competition among us young boys). The reason why I began to reduce the cake was the loss of the tobacco capacity of the chamber and the realization that from a certain thickness of the cake there was no further improvement of the taste.
 

Seamaster

Starting to Get Obsessed
Sep 16, 2020
191
948
Scotland
It's a yes from me, but that could just be because it was an article of faith when I first started smoking a pipe thirty years ago. I've never tried the alternative.
 
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mikethompson

Lifer
Jun 26, 2016
11,292
23,327
Near Toronto, Ontario, Canada
4ful3h.jpg
 

JOHN72

Lifer
Sep 12, 2020
5,136
51,569
51
Spain - Europe
[QUOTE = "winton, publicación: 36200649, miembro: 1715"]
Hoy es el cumpleaños de mi esposa. Ella no ha dicho nada sobre el pastel, así que tal vez esté bien con solo helado.
[/CITAR]
DL7qICiW0AA2dvk.jpg large.jpg
 

sablebrush52

The Bard Of Barlings
Jun 15, 2013
19,632
44,861
Southern Oregon
jrs457.wixsite.com
Hello Sable,
I've never heard or seen that a cake can break a bowl. I think before this happens the cake would break, what in fact happened sometimes in those (early) days when I let grow the cake. (building cake was a kind of competition among us young boys). The reason why I began to reduce the cake was the loss of the tobacco capacity of the chamber and the realization that from a certain thickness of the cake there was no further improvement of the taste.
I've seen quite a few over the years. But then again, I've handled a lot of used, secondhand, old, beaten to death, estate pipes. I'm surprised that you never heard of this over the years since it's been mentioned in a lot of articles on the care and feeding of one's pipes.

But hang in there. As you gain experience you'll come across this.
 

boston

Part of the Furniture Now
Jun 27, 2018
539
1,238
Boston
Yes for new pipes. Initial cake / ash coating is a good idea. I cover the top of the bowl and shake ash to evenly coat and then let it rest. After that stage I do clean with a pipe cleaner or paper towel as I do not think a thick cake (or anything approaching that) is useful. I still don't do water flushes. Tried it once and didn't care for it. Many seem to like that but not for me.
 

madox07

Lifer
Dec 12, 2016
1,823
1,689
No, not really, I mean a thin layer is acceptable and I let it form, but I am not an adept of the thick walls of cake. We have some club members that have a full ritual by poking the remaining ash in the bowl after they finish smoking it, and rattle the bowl to the point it forms a gray thin layer all around the inside of the bowl, throwing away the little that remains of the ash - it builds better cake they say. I never saw the benefit of that, nor to arguing with them, who are 110% convinced I am wrong. I for one use a pipe cleaner in a u shape, and wipe the insde of the bowl with it. Whatever gets out gets out whatever remains builds my cake, without doing it on purpose ... whenever I clean a pipe to restore, or convert to another blend, I always ream it.
 

jpberg

Lifer
Aug 30, 2011
2,905
6,545
Too much cake.

895A1B99-6110-4E8C-AF84-E7D09A23654A.jpeg
A beat old Castello I smoke the hell out of. I was tamping it with my finger one day and realized that either my finger got fatter or the cake had snuck up on me.
I’d reamed about halfway down then took the picture - you know, in case there was ever a cake thread.
 

Kottan

Part of the Furniture Now
Apr 5, 2020
508
1,329
Frankfurt am Main, Germany
I've seen quite a few over the years. But then again, I've handled a lot of used, secondhand, old, beaten to death, estate pipes.
Okay, I believe you. I think you meant, when the pure hard layer you described, grows thicker and thicker it can cause a bowl crack by expanding under heat.
Nevertheless I saw many fat cakes (cause this was comon in the mid 60s/early 70s) which don't do any harm to the bowl. And as I said, somtimes parts of the cake flaked off. That seemed logical to me. When it comes to tensions in the cake layer the resulting pressure goes in all directions but affects most the inner bowl because there is no resistance.

Few days ago I got two Charatan estates with bowls both full of cake. The one cake could be easily removed with a tooth pick, the other one took me several hours with a reamer and sanding paper. Reminds me of your two described layers. But I think there will be mixed forms too.
 
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