Is my pipe doomed or can this be repaired?

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fishmansf

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 29, 2022
273
589
PNW
Just bought this beautiful estate pipe from my local B&M but forgot to look inside the bowl before I bought it. Now that I’m looking it looks like there is a huge burnout just above the draught hole. It doesn’t appear to have burned through since there is not exterior discoloration (or holes). Is their hope for this pipe?9B83698E-696E-4C2F-9872-12CC1B36A097.jpeg
 

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KaunThePiper

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jan 2, 2022
159
1,540
45
New England
www.instagram.com
While it does appear to be deeper than flake (at least to my eye) Chasing Embers is correct that can be sanded down quite a bit. That maybe your only true best bet. I would recommend getting some very finely powdered activated charcoal, and mixing it with raw honey about one tablespoon of raw honey to one one. Half teaspoon of charcoal. Charcoal. This together until it makes a nice slurry, use a q-tip to coat the inside of the bowl until the entire inside is black. Then fill the bowl with activated charcoal powder and let it sit for a few hours. Don't the activated charcoal back into the charcoal bottle for later use. Your bowl should look as if it had a professional coat of carbonization on it. Wait a few days. Excess moisture will evaporate. By the way, before you start this, don't forget to put a pipe cleaner down the shank just to where the draft enters the chamber. Before smoking, blow through the stem and out the chamber so you can make sure you don't get a mouthful of charcoal lol. Should save that pipe
 

fishmansf

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 29, 2022
273
589
PNW
Just had a section of cake break away on my meer too. I'd suggest you ream the pipe, and try to even that all out.
View attachment 196953
Wow this is gold! Thanks for your pic, looks exactly like mine. Went to smoke a bowl of Robert McConnell Scottish Flake in mine a few minutes ago and had to quit because of the unpleasant ashy “antique” taste to the cake in my bowl. I think the previous owner was a fan of aromatics 👀
 

craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
5,765
47,535
Minnesota USA
There’s a pretty thick layer of cake in there. I would knock it down with a pipe knife before sanding it. Of course you’ll need a pipe knife and have figure out how to use it.

The are reamers that’ll do the job too. It’s my experience that reamers do more damage to a chamber than any other tool available. People tend to overuse them and apply way to much pressure, which removes the floor of the chamber, leaving the draft hole over on the side of chamber and parallel to the chamber wall. As the burn progresses the ember tends to move over to the back of the chamber leaving unburned tobacco in the front of the chamber. In the afore mentioned scenario, people tend to stir the tobacco, tamp and relight. This repeats until you burn down enough soggy tobacco, and burn the hell out of the draft hole…

Sanding is the least intrusive as long as you don’t try to push the paper through the other side of the pipe. A few light spins should be enough to remove a sufficient amount of cake to keep it from becoming too thick. I use 220 grit to even out the cake in my chambers.

Out of round chambers, wavy chamber walls, and the messed up positioning of the draft hole are the results of poor technique in maintaining a chamber.

I’d check with the B&M and see if they can remove and smooth out the cake for you. If so they can probably give you some pointers, or provide the necessary tools. It takes a little practice to do it right, but the learning curve is not steep. Over time you’ll get to now how often to do it, and won’t ruin a chamber by over zealously sanding, reaming etc.
 
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crashthegrey

Lifer
Dec 18, 2015
3,810
3,566
41
Cobleskill, NY
www.greywoodie.com
Sanding down or getting rid of most of the cake is one of the steps when cleaning out an estate pipe, at least to me.

You did clean out the insides right?
Typically an estate from a B&M should be cleaned properly. If I have to restore the pipe from a shop, that's a hard pass for me. Unlike Ebay, these guys should know what they are doing.
 
Jun 9, 2015
3,768
23,557
42
Mission, Ks
Typically an estate from a B&M should be cleaned properly. If I have to restore the pipe from a shop, that's a hard pass for me. Unlike Ebay, these guys should know what they are doing.
This right here👆. What B&M is selling uncleaned, un-reamed "estate" pipes? having said that, its a beautiful straight grain pipe, ream it and move on, its fine.
 

Hunter1

Starting to Get Obsessed
Dec 23, 2022
138
842
MD
Nice looking pipe, glad it all worked out.Now smoke the heck out of it.