Discolored Bite Marks on Stem

[bugpipe]

Hey all, I've been enjoying this lovely estate pipe for a few months after I thoroughly refurbished it, and the previous owner (who has smoked this pipe for 10 years) had left no bite marks, however I personally dont hold anything back when it comes to bite :D

The odd thing is, the bite marks not only leave dents as they should, but they also cause discoloration on the stem. I do not fully know what material this stem is made of, although im guessing acrylic. How can i get rid of these discolorations? I've tried isopropanol and soap and just plain warm water so far, none helped.




dunno if this helps identifying the material of the stem, but this is what the mortise looks like.

 

[crashthegrey]

Oxidation of a vulcanite stem.

 

[xrundog]

Yup, oxidized rubber. Your saliva makes it worse at the bit. Magic Eraser with Soft Scrub cleanser and some elbow grease will probably get it clean as it isn’t too bad. It will need a buff after. You have to get it all or it will come right back.

 

[Waning Embers]

A magic eraser to remove the oxidation followed by thumb buffing with plain white toothpaste will return it to a black mirror finish.

 

[bugpipe]

tanks for the tips folks, the color seemed so uniform (and honestly looked kinda nice) i figured it mustve been the color of the plastic itself haha

 

[bugpipe]

Thanks once again for the tips, though i dont magic sponge available, I went ham on it with some toothpaste and after an hour of scrubbing and a coat of oil, Im very pleased with the results! Did some heavy scrubbing with the green side of a dish sponge and it seemed to get rid of the bite marks, although left a lot of scratches and I followed it up with my toothbrush.

 

[Sobrbiker]

Vulcanite does take some maintenance, but I still prefer it.

One observation for future reference.

I do not fully know what material this stem is made of, although im guessing acrylic. How can i get rid of these discolorations? I've tried isopropanol and soap and just plain warm water so far, none helped.

If you suspect a stem is acrylic, you may want to leave to isopropanol in the medicine cabinet. Alcohol makes acrylics brittle and may induce cracking.

 

[Briarcutter]

but this is what the mortise looks like.

FYI, that is the tennon. Mortise is where the tennon fits into