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TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128
And what about Keystone pipe filters?

can they just be put in the bottom of the bowl like the Philtpads?
 

The Clay King

(Formerly HalfDan)
Oct 2, 2018
5,844
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Chesterfield, UK
www.youtube.com
I have no idea about Keystone Pipe Filters. The Philt Pads are made by Sharrow Mills - www.sharrowmills.com. If you are in the U.S and ask around on here someone will send you some to try out. I would normally oblige but I am running very low.
@condorlover1 A big shame Wilson's of Sharrow (just up the road from me in Sheffield) no longer make clay pipes - or I'd probably be their biggest customer:)
They acquired the Pollock moulds when the company closed.
 

TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128
yeah so there's probably other ways to clean clay pipes but I'd have to learn... how to clean clay naturally. Like some people clean clay pots... maybe some of those methods can be used on clay pipes as well, who knows. But one has to be very careful.. because, obviously you're going to be smoking from it.
 
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TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128

1st Impressions Eric Nording Keystones​


so this guy just puts it at the bottom of the bowl...
 

anotherbob

Lifer
Mar 30, 2019
15,865
29,756
45
In the semi-rural NorthEastern USA
If your smoking RYO, as youve said, its dry enough out of the bag. With clay pipes the bowl will get hot no matter what, so your hold it by the stem. Just take a draw enough to keep it lit and as long as your tongue or moith doesn’t hurt, youll be fine. Don’t worry about the bowl getting too hot at this point i’d suggest. Just focus on smoking at a cadence that doesn’t burn your mouth/tongue.
my experience with clays has always been that the bowl gets hot but the smoke seems dry and cool. I'd love them if they didn't break so easily.
 
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TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128
well my experience with the Keystones is that it didn't do anything. Literally, well, I did not smoke the stuff dry. So I dont know if clay pipes really work anymore?

Unless maybe only Philtpads will work because of the material they use, and they are more or less made for actually being put into the bowl, and not, uhh, into the Keystone pipes...

Anyways, besides that ,I thought maybe the only way clay pipes really work is if you have to inhale.. and most people dont do that....... anymore with clay pipes? I dont know, it's kind of harsh. And like I said, I would use American Spirit tobacco. That would ensure that the pipe never gets too hot because well, you're only having to puff it to inhale. But.. I dont like the idea of having to use the lighter.. I would really only use a vegan hemp wick I could make at home I dont even know how to make because I dont know how to clean up afterwards lol. So yeah.. if I could learn that great... I would smoke American Spirit maybe all day in a clay pipe. But I guess that is just a pipe dream for me right now.. Especially to inhale. Yeah I dont really want to be inhaling lighter fumes. I know a lot of people do it but, that's why if I use a lighter esp. to inhale I prefer a stick or w/e...

So yeah I ruined my last clay pipe. I dont think much clay pipes will work unless I use it for inhaling cigarette tobaccos..

Or. I smoke only the dryest, most dryest stuff, trying hard again not to make the bowl too hot esp. at the end. Who knows. I think maybe the filter actually collects moisture even more, and because it's a clay pipe it could make it even worse? Who knows. But gurgling did come pretty much in the very first smoke, or atleast the beginning. Another thing is , I only used about 4 or 5 pellets the first time. Maybe I shd have used more. And again, not smoking dry stuff.

But I'll keep trying, and next time make sure to smoke only the dryest stuff, and use Philtpads only. Then, if that doesnt work... uhh, then, well I'll move onto some of the whole leaf I prepare, and try only Virginia Flue Cured.. or maybe some Fire Cured if it works.. who knows. I have to learn to prepare it first. We'll see how my experiments go soon in cleaning the leaves....
 
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TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128
Another thing I did, which may have messed up my bowl is not replace the stones in time. It may be that the keystones , esp. for the clay pipe need to be replaced like every bowl? but who knows. I'll keep trying and we'll see what happens.
 

TheSt0rm

Starting to Get Obsessed
Jun 2, 2022
155
128
so the Philtpads I think do work.. atleast better than the Keystones right now...

But, I still ended up messing up my last clay pipe, because tobacco got underneath the filter... so apparently that might be a problem with these filters and maybe why my pipes got messed up so early before with the Keystones... so I basically cannot be using uhh, atleast really broken up tobacco.. so that it gets underneath the filter stone(s)...
 

The Clay King

(Formerly HalfDan)
Oct 2, 2018
5,844
53,314
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Chesterfield, UK
www.youtube.com
I smoked nothing but clays until my 20s. I still have the pipe notches in my teeth to prove the point! During the Victorian period shag tobacco was smoked in clay pipes and survivors of the era are brands like Golden Virginia before it became popular for RYO. Whilst YMMV I found that hand cut tobacco like G&H Twist or any of the plugs or flakes if prepared properly will allow you to live in peace with your clay pipe. The bowls get very hot and hence why you hold the pipe by the stem. Pipe cleaners are not an option although I used to break the things before that became an issue. If you are buying clays you might want to tip the end of the stem to stop your lips sticking to the clay and reduce your risk of lip cancer. Enjoy your journey but do try something other than RYO tobacco, your tongue will love you if you do!
@condorlover1 I smoke nothing but clays now:)