Vulcanite Stem Oxidation Removal. The Natural Way

[bersekero]

Like I previously said I didn't take before and after pictures. Sorry about that.
I am not trying to convince anyone.
A couple of years ago I new nothing about pipes and now I can enjoy pipe smoking. Thanks to this community and the very kind and helpful members.
So I am trying to return the favor by exposing something I do know for sure.
It's up to you to take it or leave it but rejecting something that you never tried doesn't lead to any progress or improvement.

 

[ssjones]

Like I previously said I didn't take before and after pictures. Sorry about that.
I am not trying to convince anyone.
A couple of years ago I new nothing about pipes and now I can enjoy pipe smoking. Thanks to this community and the very kind and helpful members.
So I am trying to return the favor by exposing something I do know for sure.
It's up to you to take it or leave it but rejecting something that you never tried doesn't lead to any progress or improvement.

Long time members have all seen these type of processes, so we're skeptical with cause. Follow some of the current and past threads here if you wish to shorten your learning curve

 

[bersekero]

Point taken. Thank you my friend.

 

[sablebrush52]

Like I previously said I didn't take before and after pictures. Sorry about that.
I am not trying to convince anyone.
A couple of years ago I new nothing about pipes and now I can enjoy pipe smoking. Thanks to this community and the very kind and helpful members.
So I am trying to return the favor by exposing something I do know for sure.
It's up to you to take it or leave it but rejecting something that you never tried doesn't lead to any progress or improvement.

Lemon juice as a cleaning agent isn't exactly new. It's sort of in the same category as white vinegar, an old time cleaning and freshening agent, usually in connection with another cleaning agent like baking soda.

As far as removing oxidation, many have claimed and none have shown, which is why before and after pictures are important. This forum gets a lot of helpful suggestions, some of them actually legit and some of them very not legit.

Even something as basic as water flushing has some members here spinning on their heads while other have adopted the practice to great satisfaction.

But one thing I know is that a lot of people here conflate mouth crud with oxidation, and they are not the same thing.

Here's an image of a stem with a mild build up o mouth crud. It is not oxidized, just needs a clean:



It's a build up of saliva and whatever else, tobacco tars and oils, the sardine sandwich you just ate, your girlfriend, whatever. It's on top of the Vulcanite. It is not oxidation, which is a molecular level chemical change in the make up of the Vulcanite due to exposure to sunlight and oxygen.
Usually, like 99% of the time, oxidation is a uniform discoloration, which spreads over time, eventually taking on a yellow greenish to orange color.

 

[Waning Embers]

Like I previously said I didn't take before and after pictures. Sorry about that.
I am not trying to convince anyone.
A couple of years ago I new nothing about pipes and now I can enjoy pipe smoking. Thanks to this community and the very kind and helpful members.
So I am trying to return the favor by exposing something I do know for sure.
It's up to you to take it or leave it but rejecting something that you never tried doesn't lead to any progress or improvement.

I'll keep it in mind should the need arise. I didn't believe the Magic Eraser or the lighter tricks until I tried them. Always good to have more methods.

 

[xrundog]

I have a couple Kaywoodies coming in with green stems. I’ll do a side by side comparison when they get here.

 

[Pipeandapencil]

I use magic erasers and my own tears. The tears do nothing but I cant stop them from falling on my beautiful oxidized stems.

 

[FLDRD]

Lemon juice as a cleaning agent isn't exactly new. It's sort of in the same category as white vinegar, an old time cleaning and freshening agent, usually in connection with another cleaning agent like baking soda.

As far as removing oxidation, many have claimed and none have shown, which is why before and after pictures are important. This forum gets a lot of helpful suggestions, some of them actually legit and some of them very not legit.

Even something as basic as water flushing has some members here spinning on their heads while other have adopted the practice to great satisfaction.

But one thing I know is that a lot of people here conflate mouth crud with oxidation, and they are not the same thing.

Here's an image of a stem with a mild build up o mouth crud. It is not oxidized, just needs a clean:

View attachment 423864

It's a build up of saliva and whatever else, tobacco tars and oils, the sardine sandwich you just ate, your girlfriend, whatever. It's on top of the Vulcanite. It is not oxidation, which is a molecular level chemical change in the make up of the Vulcanite due to exposure to sunlight and oxygen.
Usually, like 99% of the time, oxidation is a uniform discoloration, which spreads over time, eventually taking on a yellow greenish to orange color.

Well, I guess I've been dealing more with, and seen more "crud", than oxidation.
Mine, and estates.
Interesting.

 

[samuelgawith01]

If you are happy with your results, fantastic. But that's simply not true and impossible. Vulcanite material oxidizes, new or old stems. And for it to not return as fast, you need to remove material with sandpaper. There is no shortcut.

I agree.

 

[samuelgawith01]

I would suspect that any chemical effects the integrity of the rubber. But many likely not to a detrimental level. As you said earlier, there are no shortcuts to removing oxidation. And you can delay the return, but like time, oxidation marches on.

True.

 

[bersekero]

Generally speaking for materials and especially metals like aluminum, copper, brass, silver, etc. oxidation can be removed by using only chemicals (natural and artificial acids) without using abrasives — but the effectiveness depends on how deep or severe the oxidation is.

I wonder why this does not apply to vulcanite and some sort of abrasion is necessary.

Another question is how long does it take for the vulcanite to show signs of oxidation.

I apply a minimal quantity of vegetable oil to my carbon steel Yosukata pans after use and cleaning and they stay corrosion and oxidation free. And I am talking about pans where we cook acidic foods like tomato sauce etc inside.

 

[Waning Embers]

Another question is how long does it take for the vulcanite to show signs of oxidation.

Entirely depends on the quality of the formula. Material with a higher percentage of sulphur will oxidize much faster.

 

[Waning Embers]

some sort of abrasion is necessary.

Not if the oxidation is singed away but a tiny amount of surface material is still lost.

 

[Sigmund]

Different formulas of vulcanite will oxidize at different rates.

Hard rubber doesnt just oxidize on the surface like metals. It results from a loss of material as it gasses out (which is acclerated by light and other environmental factors). The loss of material (sulfur) isnt just on the surface. While its not not a sponge it is more porous than metals. So with stems, ugly is more than skin deep

 

[ssjones]

I have primarily British pipes (Dunhill/Sasieni/GBD/Ashton/Comoys/Peterson), all with vulcanite stems. I keep them in a closed chest, with no direct sunlight and in a relatively dark room (master bedroom, just off the kitchen). My previous storage was a large, oak, bow-front cabinet with glass all the way around. Even in the cabinet, they all seem to oxidize at the same rate as stored in the glass cabinet. They all do oxidize at different rates. The two worst offenders are a large James Upshall (notorious for oxidation, as they used cheap, pre-made stems) and a jumbo Charatan.

My Ashtons, with the mysterious Ashtonite material hardly oxidize at all. George D made me a tapered stem for one of my Ashtons. He uses a high grade rod stock, but that one oxidizes more quickly than any of my other Ashtons.

 

[bersekero]

How long does it take to show oxidation?
I left an estate Charatan with double comfort vulcanite stem at my farm for several months, maybe a year. The house is humid but dark unless I go for the weekend and open the windows and smoke that pipe. I never saw any sign of oxidation. I never took any kind of care for that pipe like wax etc. I left it there along with three mm cobs as farm pipes.

 

[Sigmund]

Additionally, some hard rubber compounds add other synthetics to the mix. This makes for less expensive hard rubber compounds since rubber is more expensive. That does not necessarly make it inferior, just not pure hard rubber. My assumption is that this too, would have an impact on how it gasses out.

 

[Briarcutter]

I never saw any sign of oxidation.

That's that good,healthy farm living

 

[sablebrush52]

Another question is how long does it take for the vulcanite to show signs of oxidation.

I own a cased companion set of unsmoked Barling pipes from 1907 and those Vulcanite stems are still black and shiny.

 

[bersekero]

So there’s hope that as I keep my pipes stored in a dark place, I won’t have to clean off the oxidation again until I die!