Did you catch the pipe smoking watchmaker on 60 Minutes tonight 12/07/2025? I found it very interesting. Loved the guy who sells his timepieces for hundreds of thousands of dollars light his pipe with a Bic!
Probably just a buildup of residue inside the stem's tenon hole. I clean mine by bending a pipe cleaner 180 degrees to make it wider and swabbing out the hole. Usually an easy fix.I found it stranger that his stem was not fully flush
Anyone else notice that?

