I also remember reading somewhere to rub honey on the stem (not sure if it was honey) and somebody said to do both (honey and hemp). The hemp is mainly for clenching since it won't destroy your teeth.
I had the same clay for almost 25 years and never had an issue with the stem at all and it was never finished. I had to retire it eventually because I had nibbled the stem to under 3 inches and the bowl was in danger of burning my nose. I have no tooth wear, either. All I can say is YMMV.I also remember reading somewhere to rub honey on the stem (not sure if it was honey) and somebody said to do both (honey and hemp). The hemp is mainly for clenching since it won't destroy your teeth.View attachment 263949
Of course if you are not scared you can always get a cool pipeholder in your mouth if you want
Man that skull looks happy with his choices :D
Well, a lot of these skulls exist. But I guess these folks just smoked a clay pipe constantly while clenching hard while working. Or maybe they did it deliberately? In any case, I would watch out.
The bowl is actually ample taking a surprisingly large amount of tobacco, the draft hole allows for very free smoking and the seam is almost invisible. It has some heft to it as well. Indeed the logo is stamped on the stem near the bowl. I have used electric tape for the mouth piece and am smoking mcbaren plum lake for the inaugural first bowl. I might have to buy a few more.Oooh wow, someone scored one!
Ahh I see it has their logo, it looks like etched on the top of the shank near bowl.
That’s an interesting shank style/shape.
NOW that airway, that’s quite different. It looks rather small in the pic, any idea on millimeter size? Hmm
It would be interesting to know the occupations of these people. Sailors at the time would have had their hands full of rigging, so clenching would not be surprising. The same for any other tradesman. It would be interesting to see the skull from a pipe-smoking aristocrat from the same period to see if this dental pattern was class distinctive.
People in the past had their hands full regardless and probably did not care all that much about potential damages. People were just built different.
Wrap enough electrical tape around the end so that a regular softie bit fits, about four times around for the Canadian
As opposed to acrylic, vulcanite, plastic, resin, bakelite, amber, chemicals in tobacco smoke, etc.?
@tobakenist Hope you can make it to Nottingham Pipe Show next year!I have 8 clay pipes but can't keep up with halfdan.
Some people are pretty skilled at smoking a pipe while doing activities, but I imagine when running around and having to work hard with both hands, just chewing the stuff made more sense.
I've used enamel fingernail polish on my clays. I still wrap them with a layer or two of electrical tape for cushioning.
As opposed to acrylic, vulcanite, plastic, resin, bakelite, amber, chemicals in tobacco smoke, etc.?
