Advice on Estate Pipes

[Mr_houston]

Something that hasn't been mentioned yet is a good coffee ground soak *after* you have done all your cleaning of the bowl and stem.

You take damp coffee grounds, and stuff the bowl and shank. Let it sit for a day or two, until the grounds dry out. You might need 2 treatments, but it eliminates any ghosting.

That’s one I hadn’t heard. It makes intuitive sense to me.

Any coffee smell left behind?

 

[mikethompson]

That’s one I hadn’t heard. It makes intuitive sense to me.

Any coffee smell left behind?

I forgot to mention a quick rinse to get all the grounds out, then dry it.

No coffee smell left, but most importantly, no ghosts either.

 

[bent1]

One source of sourness that should not be overlooked is stem oxidation, especially inside the stem.

Agreed. I use bristle pipe cleaners & rubbing compound, Dupont #7. Then, use clean bristle cleaners & water to clean it out.

 

[tschiraldi]

Science? Not exactly. It comes down to the state of cleanliness of the pipe. I've bought from dealers and individuals, on eBay and through private sales. Regardless of the source I've always needed to take the pipe well beyond the level of cleaning that it was at when I bought it. A dealer can only put so much effort into a pipe before the amount of labor involved costs more than the pipe will bring. Private parties often send the pipe without any serious cleaning, possibly with the expectation that I'll clean it to my own satisfaction. I'll put some hours, or even days, into bringing a pipe back to a neutral state. Dealers and private sellers aren't going to do that.
One of the areas that doesn't get nearly enough attention is the mortise. Even when a seller has done a reasonably good job with the shank airway and stem airway, the mortise may still have significant deposits, and those deposits can contribute to a pipe tasting sour.
There is a lot of information on cleaning pipes, including S/A treatments, retorts, ozone, and cleaning regimens. Unless the pipe has been badly abused or smoked with some sort of strongly ghosting tobaccos, and sometimes even then, with patience and elbow grease it can be returned to a neutral or near neutral condition.

Okay, Jesse, how's this? It's hard to get a good picture of the inside of the tenon, so you'll just have to trust me, its clean as a whistle! BTW, this is a Sasieni Eight Dot that is 70 or 80 years old!
#Blue Room Briars

 

[sablebrush52]

Okay, Jesse, how's this? It's hard to get a good picture of the inside of the tenon, so you'll just have to trust me, its clean as a whistle! BTW, this is a Sasieni Eight Dot that is 70 or 80 years old!View attachment 62691View attachment 62695
#Blue Room Briars

Looks great!

Now, take a tapered bristle pipe cleaner, dip it in alcohol, shove it down the airway and let it sit for a few minutes then scrub the airway with it. If there's very little to no stain on the pipe cleaner, the pipe will be at my standard.

 

[ashdigger]

Looks great!

Now, take a tapered bristle pipe cleaner, dip it in alcohol, shove it down the airway and let it sit for a few minutes then scrub the airway with it. If there's very little to no stain on the pipe cleaner, the pipe will be at my standard.

Yep, Every. Damn. Pipe. In. My. Rack. Gets. Tapered. Bristle. Abuse.

I applaud a good seller.

I also applaud elbow grease.

 

[tschiraldi]

Looks great!

Now, take a tapered bristle pipe cleaner, dip it in alcohol, shove it down the airway and let it sit for a few minutes then scrub the airway with it. If there's very little to no stain on the pipe cleaner, the pipe will be at my standard.

Already done. Came out clean!

 

[tschiraldi]

Yep, Every. Damn. Pipe. In. My. Rack. Gets. Tapered. Bristle. Abuse.

I applaud a good seller.

I also applaud elbow grease.

Came out squeaky clean. They are the only ones I know that put that much attention to detail into every estate.

 

[02Knight]

Research salt bath videos for pipes. In short, you soak the stem in grain alcohol. Fill the bowl with coarse kosher salt, then fill the bowl with grain alcohol. The two punch combo tends to leech oils and tars from the briar. Please note, there is more to it than this but this can get you started.

I recently got a Calabash at an estate, reasonable price, it has a Meerschaum bowl, It was pretty dirty so I used the salt bath technique, with the grain alcohol for soaking and cleaning. It worked VERY well, took all the old tars out of the inside of the chamber. I used the 50/50 bleach method to clean the stem, then the Magic erasure with a buffing wheel & white rouge. Now I have a very good smoking, no sour tastes, Calabash.

 

[cigrmaster]

When I buy estate pipes I try to find ones that are in pristine condition. So far Briar Blues is my favorite when it comes to buying pristine. I believe he does the best work and I have bought more from him than anyone else from him. I don't do any refurb work on any pipes and trust him to do the best work, He is my favorite.

 

[sablebrush52]

When I buy estate pipes I try to find ones that are in pristine condition. So far Briar Blues is my favorite when it comes to buying pristine. I believe he does the best work and I have bought more from him than anyone else from him. I don't do any refurb work on any pipes and trust him to do the best work, He is my favorite.

Mike's a great guy. Very knowledgeable and very honest.