Cracking on the bowl coating?

[magicmike]

Hello everyone,
I just want to say thanks for helping out a complete newbie. In my new found zeal for pipe smoking I recently purchased a handmade artisan pipe with a bamboo stem. The shape and look of this pipe just spoke to me. I smoked my first bowl in it last night. I tried to take it slow and steady and not hot box the pipe like a cigarette. All of this to say when I cleaned the pipe I noticed some cracking on the inside of the bowl. I cant tell if its a crack in the bowl coating or something worse. I have contacted the online dealer, but have yet to recieve a response. I really like the pipe and would hate to lose it. Should I be concerned? Is it a flaw that will cause a problem or just a crack in the bowl coating? Sorry for the ramble. I truly appreciate all of the help.
Mike

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Does it just look like the surface coating is mildly cracked, as in a shattered window, or does it look like cracks caused by charring? Without seeing it, it's kind of hard to say.
If it is just the coating and not the wood cracking or charring, I wouldn't worry one bit. The coating is just to make the first few dozen bowls taste better. Some of the pipe gurus that have written at length about the hobby will remove this coating with alcohol to keep the pores in the briar open. I don't do that, but it just shows that the coating is no big deal.

 

[fadingdaylight]

I had this problem not long ago, turned out to be the coating. Can you post a pic?
If your really worried, you can mix up some pipe mud (fine ash and spit) and smear it over the crack. I did it, and everything went fine. Once you build up a good cake over the cracked spot, it wont be an issue.
Alternatively, you could go through with a reamer or some fine sandpaper and remove the coating altogether, that way you can see if the crack is in the briar or not. Even if it is, you will probably end up filling it with pipe mud, plus you will have to fully break it in.

 

[mso489]

This seems to be a new pipe, in which case the crack is likely in the coating, which is not a problem.

Especially an artisan is not going to market a pipe with a crack in the bowl. Pipe carvers work incredibly

hard to establish a reputation and increase their pipes' value, so they would toss out any cracked bowls.

They're just not going to do that to their good name. Most "machine" pipe makers feel the same.

 

[magicmike]

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Thanks for the information. I will post a couple of pics. I hope all is not lost for this pipe.
Thanks,

Mike

 

[magicmike]

Okay,
Let me try this again.
Mike

 

[wcannoy]

My money says that it looks like a burnout. Sorry.

 

[magicmike]

That does not sound good. I have only smoked one bowl. I did use a match to light it. I was told to smoke slow, so I took my time smoking a bowl of Mcclelland Anniversary blend. Should I contact the artisan or the company I bought it from?
Thanks,

Mike

 

[fadingdaylight]

I would contact the company, it definitely looks like a burnout. Those look pretty deep and pretty charred.

 

[tuold]

That looks like a lot of buildup for just one smoke. And those "cracks" look more like gouges made with a knife. Anyway, couldn't it be fixed by the application of pipe mud, or are they too deep?

 

[jah76]

Looks like a burnout to me. I'm not saying burnouts don't happen, but I've puffed the HELL out of some of my pipes when first starting out and never came close to that. Did you smoke it in a steady wind or something?

That looks like a lot of buildup for just one smoke.

Yeah or a very thick and uneven bowl coating. Is it an estate?
I've fixed some decent burnouts with ash and honey made pipe mud, but not one that deep. That one really looks concave in the pictures.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

Yeh, that's not a crack in the bowl coating, lol. That's burn out.

You could coat it in some mud, but that will eventually crack and peel off. You've got some thickness to the chamber walls, I would recommend reaming that out into the wood and just taking it slow and trying to build up some natural cake. You can probably send it off to get reamed, or if you feel comfortable doing it yourself...

But, the crux of the problem is smoking a bit too fast and hot, IMO.

 

[magicmike]

Yea, I bought the pipe new from smokingpipes. They have been very good about responding to my emails. When I first recieved the pipe I noticed it had alot of bowl coating on it. I had been warned several times to smoke my pipes slow and not puff on them like a frieght train. So I tried to smoke it slow, but I am a newbie and maybe my version of slow isnt slow enough. Its kind of discouraging after your first bowl to find such a defect, or problem. Thanks again for all of the help.
Mike

 

[fadingdaylight]

It is, but don't let make or break the hobby for you. Smoking pipes has become one of the most rewarding and enjoyable things in my life. I burnt out a Savinelli the first time I smoked it, and they get rave reviews for their quality control. Shit happens, I didn't try to get the pipe fixed, I stuck it on top of my fridge and gave up on it. But, I have several others to work with. If SP won't exchange it, go the pipe mud route until you can afford another pipe. Stanwell's are great pipes for the money, and a good one can usually be had for around $100. I think they still have a few of the Stanwell Pipe of the Year 2010 (a $300 pipe) for $80 over on pipesandcigars. Hilson also makes great pipes at good prices.

 

[samanden]

I think a bit of pipe mud will fix it. I had the same issue with my first pipe, a Peterson's Silver Spigot. That was 6 years ago and it's one of my best pipes today. As long as you don't see any damage on the outside of your pipe, you still have a chance to save it. It actually takes a lot of abuse to burn out a pipe. Just my opinion...

 

[mso489]

I got that one wrong. A picture is worth a thousand words. At least I can say, burn-out that soon is rare.

I think it was a bad spot in the briar. Hope pipe mud fixes it, if you can't trade it back in.

 

[magicmike]

I have an update on my cracking issue. I sent the pipe back to smoking pipes, and they determined that there was a soft spot in the briar. They gave me store credit to a new pipe purchase. They were great to deal with and kept me posted the whole time they had it.
Thanks,

Mike

 

[tbradsim1]

Good for you on the Feed Back, a lot of our Brothers don't, they post problems and you never hear of the resolve. Smoking Pipes IMHO is the Hallmark of what a Pipe Shop should be, and that's in all Depts, their Estate pipes are the cleanest I have seen. Thanks Buddy.

 

[northernneil]

Glad to hear SmokingPipes.com came to the table for ya Mike! They are a great company to deal with.
Have you any leads on the pipe you'll get to replace the damaged one?

 

[phil67]

Yep, thanks for taking the time to give an update on it. It's really good to hear that SP took good care of you.