Dunhill POS - Removing Dip Stain Taste

[kgs]

My new Dunhill is dip-stained and it tastes terrible. The taste is bitter, chemical-like, and also burnt-hair-like. I did not know about dip-staining before I smoked this piece of shit. After the pipe's first bowl I came online to figure out what I was tasting. I am pretty sure it is the stain, but I welcome comments on this point. I am familiar with the taste of bare briar, and this is nothing like that. This Dunhill is a shell briar.

The bowl had a black coating, but underneath I could see the red stain. I swabbed the bowl with an alcohol-dampened cloth and tons of red stain is coming off. Same with the mortise area.

I have been smoking through this to try and get rid of this stain. Smoking it seems to help to lift the stain out of the briar. After I smoke a bowl, I wipe it with an alcohol-soaked cloth and even more red stain comes off. My guess is that the heat and fire help to lift the stain and then the stain gets trapped in the oils and tar.

I don't want to just build cake over this crap to hide it. I want to remove this taste so that the pipe tastes normal without a layer of cake.

This is my first Dunhill. Unless a very good explanation comes to light, I will never buy another product from Dunhill, pipe or otherwise. This is by far the most disappointing purchase I have ever made. If anyone has the contact information for Dunhill please give it to me. I would like to write them a letter.

I will admit that the stem work on this pipe is very good. But next time I will buy another Savinelli. The one thing that Dunhill seems to be doing right is that they still use vulcanite stems. It is too bad that so many makers are moving to acrylic. Acrylic stems are too hard on my teeth.

As for this disaster of a pipe, I am determined to fix it. I will continue to try to smoke-out this bad taste. I will just keep smoking it and rubbing out the stain with alcohol. I will continue to update this thread with my "progress" on this front. Of course, I also hope that other members will offer their own advice and experience.

 

[krizzose]

I've had this happen with other pipes. I swab out everything with alcohol a few times to get as much stain out as I can, then just keep smoking. The last pipe I did this was fine after 3 smokes, but I think the alcohol is key

 

[Casual]

What a disappointment. I’ve had a couple like that, but a much cheaper brand. I share your bullheadedness, and would also waste a ton of time to make it smoke well.

 

[Sloopjohnbee]

I share your misery - things like this have happened to me
I wonder if there is anyone at corporate you can reach out to - this should not be an experience people have to deal with

 

[verporchting]

Gently sand it out with sandpaper. I’ve tried smoking through it and building cake and it never worked for me - especially if it’s in the mortise. That requires a lot of effort to remove. Ultimately I’ve sold every pipe this has been a problem with because I was always hyper aware of the bad taste and it perpetually pissed me off until it just wasn’t worth it to even pack a bowl since I just knew it wouldn’t taste good. Sorry you had to deal with this issue - it sucks.

 

[kgs]

Maybe I am overly pessimistic, but I don't think anyone at corporate would really care. Do they even have a corporate? I bet the people running the corporate side don't care at all about pipes. At best they would offer to replace it with another pipe with either the same and/or a different problem. I had purchased another Dunhill before this which I returned because the drilling was unacceptable. That same pipe is back up for sale on the site.

The brochure has a phone number and an address. Are they still at the same address? How am I supposed to get them on the phone when we are in different timezones? The Guarantee instructs me to return the pipe to my nearest Alfred Dunhill shop or authorized dealership.

One of the reasons I paid so much money for this thing is because I do not have time for this bullshit. This was an expensive lesson, but not one that I will easily forget.

 

[sablebrush52]

My new Dunhill is dip-stained and it tastes terrible. The taste is bitter, chemical-like, and also burnt-hair-like. I did not know about dip-staining before I smoked this piece of shit. After the pipe's first bowl I came online to figure out what I was tasting. I am pretty sure it is the stain, but I welcome comments on this point. I am familiar with the taste of bare briar, and this is nothing like that. This Dunhill is a shell briar.

The bowl had a black coating, but underneath I could see the red stain. I swabbed the bowl with an alcohol-dampened cloth and tons of red stain is coming off. Same with the mortise area.

I have been smoking through this to try and get rid of this stain. Smoking it seems to help to lift the stain out of the briar. After I smoke a bowl, I wipe it with an alcohol-soaked cloth and even more red stain comes off. My guess is that the heat and fire help to lift the stain and then the stain gets trapped in the oils and tar.

I don't want to just build cake over this crap to hide it. I want to remove this taste so that the pipe tastes normal without a layer of cake.

This is my first Dunhill. Unless a very good explanation comes to light, I will never buy another product from Dunhill, pipe or otherwise. This is by far the most disappointing purchase I have ever made. If anyone has the contact information for Dunhill please give it to me. I would like to write them a letter.

I will admit that the stem work on this pipe is very good. But next time I will buy another Savinelli. The one thing that Dunhill seems to be doing right is that they still use vulcanite stems. It is too bad that so many makers are moving to acrylic. Acrylic stems are too hard on my teeth.

As for this disaster of a pipe, I am determined to fix it. I will continue to try to smoke-out this bad taste. I will just keep smoking it and rubbing out the stain with alcohol. I will continue to update this thread with my "progress" on this front. Of course, I also hope that other members will offer their own advice and experience.

When did Peterson start making Dunhill pipes?

 

[ofafeather]

One possibility is contacting the vendor. Some vendors care and might do something if their customer is unhappy, especially when for the cost of a Dunhill.

 

[Chasing Embers]

When did Peterson start making Dunhill pipes?

When Dr. Grabow sold the name to them.

One of the reasons I paid so much money for this thing is because I do not have time for this bullshit. This was an expensive lesson, but not one that I will easily forget.

I've had five and all were less than satisfactory. They make good planters though and are less expensive than Yixing pottery.

 

[ssjones]

We don't see too many new White Spot pipes here any more, guess we know why.

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

Maybe I am overly pessimistic, but I don't think anyone at corporate would really care. Do they even have a corporate? I bet the people running the corporate side don't care at all about pipes. At best they would offer to replace it with another pipe with either the same and/or a different problem. I had purchased another Dunhill before this which I returned because the drilling was unacceptable. That same pipe is back up for sale on the site.

The brochure has a phone number and an address. Are they still at the same address? How am I supposed to get them on the phone when we are in different timezones? The Guarantee instructs me to return the pipe to my nearest Alfred Dunhill shop or authorized dealership.

One of the reasons I paid so much money for this thing is because I do not have time for this bullshit. This was an expensive lesson, but not one that I will easily forget.

been doing this road before,no would respond your to your query at the White Spot D,the only way is to send it back to the vendor, in the recent past I had one brand new Dunhill with unacceptable large drilling when I asked for a replacement (UK based vendor) the storehead answers he is hesitant of sending a replacement cuz all two another pipes he had on hand were no better when it comes to drilling ..

 

[kgs]

I am posting with an update. I am smoking the pipe right now.

I have not had the time to clean the pipe with alcohol again, but I have been smoking it exclusively this week. I have not really cleaned it at all. Today I swabbed out some moisture from the button-end of the stem with a piece of paper. I had no pipe cleaners left in my pipe pouch. I think I remember swabbing out the bowl with a paper towel this morning.

I have smoked a few three-quarter bowls and some half bowls. Generally in the afternoon and in the evening after work. I think that my plan to smoke-out the stain taste is working. The flavor of this pipe seems to be improving. So I have hope that I will get the pipe to taste normal. Maybe I am getting used to the bad taste? Only time will tell. I will clean it with alcohol again over the weekend.

I neglected to mention that I experienced some bite/burn/irritation from the first few bowls. That problem is also going away. I would not be surprised if the fumes from that stain are irritating to the mouth and tongue.

I like the smoking qualities of this pipe. It is a group 3, which is larger than my other pipes. My other pipes are, I would estimate, about groups 1 and 2 in size. My other pipes go out a lot. I can, however, keep this pipe lit with very little effort. The smoke tends to be less voluminous, I think because the larger diameter allows more air into the mix.

The larger diameter is allowing me to manipulate the ember, tobacco, and ash in ways that I could not in my other pipes. For example, I have been able to reignite partially burned tobacco that is resting above the ember just by puffing in and out. That technique never worked in my other pipes. I can let the pipe simmer down to almost going out and then bring the ember back to life so it rages like it was freshly lit. Also, I am able to smoke a bowl down to the bottom. I think the bowl shape has to do with this. My other pipes are Italian (Savinelli and Rossi) and the bowls are U-shaped with almost flat bottoms. This bowl has a more V-like taper.

 

[Chasing Embers]

I like the smoking qualities of this pipe. It is a group 3,

Wait until you smoke a magnum sized pipe.?

 

[jeremiah]

I've had the same experience with the new "The White Spot" Dunhill pipes. What I ended up doing is packing the bowl with cotton balls and adding Everclear until they were saturated. I stuck a fuzzy pipe cleaner down the shank to absorb the stain as well. After the cotton balls and pipe cleaner were dark with extruded stain I dumped them out, wiped the inside of the bowl with a clean paper towel and repeated the process. After several (5 as I recall) repititions of the process I sanded the bowl and any stain taste was pretty negligable. It's a shame that this particular bit of attention to detail is overlooked by the new makers.

As Laudisi Enterprises now owns Peterson and it's believed that Peterson is making Dunhill pipe now perhaps messaging Sykes Wilford or somone in the customer service/public relations team over there might prompt some discussion on this issue on their part.

 

[frozenchurchwarden]

If something in the bowl really bothers you I'd send it to a pipe restoration shop for a full alcohol retort cleaning. If it can get the ghost out of a pipe a bit of stain shouldn't stand a chance.

 

[sandollars]

As Laudisi Enterprises now owns Peterson and it's believed that Peterson is making Dunhill pipe now

HUH? Peterson is not making Dunhill pipes.....

Peterson bought the Dunhill tobacco blends and are made by Scandinavian Tobacco Group for Peterson. The pipes are still made in England, not Ireland.

 

[Bluemonter]

Here's an older post that may help...

Breaking in a new pipe that has stain inside the bowl :: Pipe Smoking Basics & Beginner Questions

If you acquire a new pipe, do you need to remove the stain from inside the bowl, if so, how do you do this?

pipesmagazine.com

 

[jeremiah]

HUH? Peterson is not making Dunhill pipes.....

Peterson bought the Dunhill tobacco blends and are made by Scandinavian Tobacco Group for Peterson. The pipes are still made in England, not Ireland.

I've heard different things, that Peterson is making and staining the bowls is one of them. Any way about it whoever is making them now isn't putting the attention to detail one would expect at the price point.

 

[kgs]

Thanks everyone for the information. My project is coming along. I am going to take a break from the Dunhill and smoke my Savinelli this week.

I noticed another problem with the pipe this weekend. Apparently whoever fashioned the stem did a poor job. It is not simple to describe the problem so I will try to provide an illustration.

At the button end of the stem they drill at the opening at an angle so that the airhole flares out at roughly 45 degrees. I have seen this done in a video on Dunhill "manufacturing." When they drilled this tapered opening they pressed the drill in too far. The result is that there are these crevices on either side of the inside of the stem. Here is my attempt at a top-down cross section of the stem. At the bottom end you see the button and the two filth-collecting crevices. Truly the work of a brilliant artisan. So now there is gunk collecting in those little holes. I can't get into the holes with a pipe cleaner. Of course it took some time for me to notice this. Bits of pipe cleaner fuzz get stuck in there along with saliva, tar, and oil. (Pipe juice or whatever you want to call it.)

What a turd this thing is.

 

[sasquatch]

The moral of the story is....