Cleaning

[Petejames]

I have several rusticated Peterson's that I love. The problem is, being fairly new to this, I neglected to wipe the rim of the bowl after each smoke and now have quite the gunk buildup. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to clean this without damaging the finish? I have another smooth finish (much cheaper) pipe and I was able to get that one cleaned up nice. The nooks and crannies in the rusticated pipes make this a little more difficult and I'm scared to scrub with anything other than a soft cloth.

 

[anotherbob]

I have several rusticated Peterson's that I love. The problem is, being fairly new to this, I neglected to wipe the rim of the bowl after each smoke and now have quite the gunk buildup. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to clean this without damaging the finish? I have another smooth finish (much cheaper) pipe and I was able to get that one cleaned up nice. The nooks and crannies in the rusticated pipes make this a little more difficult and I'm scared to scrub with anything other than a soft cloth.

wet paper towels work for me. Seriously damp paper towels might take a little time but it works. I really don't care about how the rims look myself but wanted to see if it was gunk or damage (just gunk) so I cleaned my rims. And one of those pipes was my only pipe for 20 years so if that pipe could clean up that easy....

 

[bullet08]

Spit and paper towel. Let the spit soak in, then rub it off with paper towel.

 

[anotherbob]

oh wanted to add that agitation not pressure is what does the trick. You don't need to press into it just wipe over it several times.

 

[Petejames]

Thank you both. I'll sure give this a try.

 

[OzPiper]

I'm lazy, so I use an electric toothbrush (with an old brush-head) and good old soap.

 

[sablebrush52]

Spit and a cloth works. Coffee and a cloth works.

 

[craig61a]

Lemon juice works good too... if the gunk is real stubborn I use a small brass bristle brush; lightly, don’t bear down on it.

 

[Chasing Embers]

wet paper towels work for me.

Yep

 

[workman]

I always rub the rim of the pipe with my finger and some spit after a smoke. I want my pipes to look well kept.

 

[edger]

Codgers use ample applications of nose grease.

 

[Petejames]

Codgers use ample applications of nose grease.

Haha. I think I'll stick with the wet paper towels, I'm not sure I could squeeze enough out to get the rim clean

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[Sincerely]

Other than my really fancy smooth finish pipes, I use the hot water and paper towel method after every smoke.

If I were you, I'd run hot water into the bowl of the pipe for a minute then rub and rub and rub with paper towel.