I clean the stem with a pipe cleaner and maybe the shank after it cools and dries. Then again after ir dries I wad up one corner of a folded paper towel and kind of screw it into the bowl to avoid cake build up. I dont know if its right or wrong but thats how I do it.
Been Smoking for a While, First Meerschuam Pipe, any Tips
- Thread starter ArchaicFossil
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so am i trying to avoid cake in order to have to not ream it is that the idea??
- Correct. I wrap a strip of fine grade sandpaper around my forefinger instead of reaming the bowl, just once in a while to prevent carbon accumulation. But generally, as others have said, I use a piece of tissue paper to wipe the bowl after each smoke, and run a pipe cleaner through the stem and shank. For a deep clean, I use isopropyl rubbing alcohol or over-proof Navy rum with the pipe cleaners and tissue.
In The Beginning (somewhen around 1700) Meerschaum reminded someone of pipeclay, and they did the obvious by carving a pipe, as they previously had out of wood. It was just another good pipe material: nobody bothered to massage the bowls with beeswax, nobody wore cotton gloves for fear of finger-marking the bowl, and all that finicking fuss. Just enjoy the cool smoke a good Meer provides, and watch the little lady slowly take a honey-coloured tan in her own good time. And tap her out gently on the plam of your hand, of course. May she delight you for many years. And the girlfriend, too: I like her attitude
so then what i have heard of meers cracking from forming a cake is incorrect???- Correct. I wrap a strip of fine grade sandpaper around my forefinger instead of reaming the bowl, just once in a while to prevent carbon accumulation. But generally, as others have said, I use a piece of tissue paper to wipe the bowl after each smoke, and run a pipe cleaner through the stem and shank. For a deep clean, I use isopropyl rubbing alcohol or over-proof Navy rum with the pipe cleaners and tissue.
In The Beginning (somewhen around 1700) Meerschaum reminded someone of pipeclay, and they did the obvious by carving a pipe, as they previously had out of wood. It was just another good pipe material: nobody bothered to massage the bowls with beeswax, nobody wore cotton gloves for fear of finger-marking the bowl, and all that finicking fuss. Just enjoy the cool smoke a good Meer provides, and watch the little lady slowly take a honey-coloured tan in her own good time. And tap her out gently on the plam of your hand, of course. May she delight you for many years. And the girlfriend, too: I like her attitude
and thankyou the pipe so far is delighting me alot smokes well and so does the girlfriend shes a real champ for getting me such a lovely gift :D
- I've heard it said that cake in the bowl of a Meer stops it breathing and so can cause cracking - and I believe it. I don't allow cake to form at all, hence the sandpaper method: using a knife or a reamer risks damaging the chamber.
what does breathing mean in this context sorry im not familiar with that terminology.
Absorbing, the smoke particles, because it's porous, like a morta. And that's how a Meer colours after repeated use.
Meerschaum is porus. A clean bowl allows it not only to breath but absorb the juices and allows it to color.
You can't completely avoid cake unless you wipe the chamber out with a wet cloth after every smoke.
Very thick cake can crack any pipe because the heat is going to expand it faster than the surrounding material.
A few of us here have tinkered with that idea. They colored just as well clean or caked.
Briar is porous as well but the coloring isn't evident in stained pipes. Here's an unstained briar new and after hundreds of smokes.
There's not much to know, unless you're looking for ways to accelerate coloring. Some will tell you to wear a cotton glove, but few of us will be willing to bother with that. If you want to color the pipe faster, there are historical methods and there are coloring bowls, which are affixed to the bowl of your pipe. Otherwise, the coloring will start around the transition from the bowl to the shank.
I have an IMP meer that has a ton of fingernail dents in the bottom. I’m not sure why or what I’m doing, but just be careful in that department
right so to clarify i can allow a minimal cake to form i should avoid reaming with my usual method ie them cheapo butterknife looking tools that come on the end of your usual pipe tools with a spike and a good scarape is using one like this style better to avoid damaging the bowl and bieng able to leave some cake as i would genuinely prefer it
on that note unvarnished wood definately does indeed colour over time from bieng smoked heres a pic of a pipe i did the engraving work on myself for funsies and have smoked many bowls of english from i believe its made from pear wood or something??? so it was a verry bight yellowy wood now its a deep red/black wood instead :P :P :P heres a few pics
before i did all that carving and sanding it looked like one of these el crappo ali expres pipes
bc thats what i started with removed the shite bowl drilled it out cut the lame stem it has off drilled out that stem to fit a generic stem sanded it flattened it so itd stand and did some fun engravings that guys been smoked for i would say 6-9 months and has coloured so much its nearly black all over :'D