Bad Taste after Cleaning.

[onestrangeone]

I have a Comoy's estate that has a very bad taste to it, to me it taste like what the Decatur pipe shield (wax) smell's like. When I got this pipe it was filthy, I used Everclear to unclog the stem, then an Oxy-clean soak, sand and buff. I reamed the bowl and did a salt treatment, EC and sea salt, I used baking soda and a toothbrush to remove the old wax, rinsed and dried. Then I applied 3-4 coats of the pipe shield by hand.

When I fired up the first time the taste was BAD, I thought maybe I got some of wax into the bowl somehow, since then I have wiped out the bowl with EC several times and tried to smoke thru it, its not getting worse but not any better either. I am no longer convinced that it's wax in in the bowl. Could this be salt residue? How do I get rid of it?

 

[ben88]

I washed my pipes after the salt treatment with warm water. Seems to work.

 

[cossackjack]

Rubber or plastic stem?

Vulcanite/ebonite stems with significant external & internal oxidation, the latter being more difficult remove despite OxyClean & Everclear cleaning. Alcohol can oxidize rubber stems.

I suggest cleaning the air passage of the stem with soap & water; you may need to use bristle pipe cleaners to remove the internal oxidation.

For bowls I have used baking soda-peroxide, like a salt-alcohol treatment, to eliminate mildew odor & taste; several treatments may be necessary. Then wash with unscented soap & water, rinse well, & dry thoroughly.

 

[clickklick]

If I really liked the pipe, I'd sand the bowl down to bare wood and smoke it until a cake develops. If it still is a dog, send it for ozone treatment. After that . . . if it doesn't work, throw it in the fire.
This is of course if you truly think it's the wood and not the stem itself.

 

[jpmcwjr]

Sometimes the mortise can collect gunk that will partially harden, but emit an odor when smoke draws through. I'd also remove the wax for now.

 

[onestrangeone]

Thanks for the replies, It is a vulcanite stem that was very heavily oxidized, it cleaned up nicely thou and I don't get any kind of weird taste thru it when I draw thru it off the pipe. I spent a lot of time cleaning the stem out.

I have already removed what little cake it had and was planning on doing the alcohol treatment again with cotton balls instead of salt this time.

If I decide to sand it out how smooth should the bowl be when finished? Glass? Matte? leave a cross-hatch?

 

[clickklick]

Most suggest going to 600 grit, but I personally go to 120 or 220 and call it a day.

 

[dmcmtk]

Reading the OP, I don't see any mention of how, or if, you cleaned the airway and mortise? It is of great importance that this is done thoroughly for an estate pipe to smoke well, and not just look good.

 

[onestrangeone]

Hi Dave, yes I did clean both the airway and mortise, doubled over bristle cleaners with EC until they came out looking the same as going in, for the mortise I twisted bristle cleaners into a sort of ball, when you look into the mortise with a flashlight there is no funk all you see is raw briar.

The taste is not anything that even remotely resembles anything tobacco related, that's why I was thinking it could be salt or wax residue, maybe.

 

[danielplainview]

Ten Russians will obliterate any ghosts

 

[pagan]

Try the coffee ground treatment

 

[igloo]

Bake it . http://www.glpease.com/Articles/Spot.html

 

[onestrangeone]

@igloo, very interesting article, I may have to give this a try if nothing else works. What I have done so far is wipe out the bowl with alcohol, then sand with 220 stuffed it with cotton balls instead of salt this time. II pulled the cotton this morning and it has been airing all day, so tomorrow we will see if it did any better.

 

[dottiewarden]

If all else fails:

Ten Russians will obliterate any ghosts

I can't speak for the Ten Russians, but I'd smoke several bowls of a heavy ghoster through it before giving the toss.