Forming cake

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zanthal

Lifer
Dec 3, 2011
1,835
1
Pleasanton, CA
So I read on smokingpipes.com's briar maintenance instructions that after smoking, it's good to coat the boat with a layer of ash from the bottom of the bowl (by plugging the chamber opening and giving it a shake).
I'm not sure what it is with my pipes but it seems like the cake layer is always thicker towards the chamber opening, and gets thinner or unnoticeable about halfway in.
Anyone else noticed something like this happening with their pipes?

 

tab812

Starting to Get Obsessed
Dec 27, 2011
112
0
Floyds Knobs, IN
You may be knocking the cake off the lower section of the chamber when you get the left over dottle out of the bowl.

I have been careless and done it before.

 

pstlpkr

Lifer
Dec 14, 2009
9,694
31
Birmingham, AL
Zanthal that is not so uncommon as you might believe.

Keeping it thinned a bit around the top of the chamber, will allow the cake to develop lower down in the chamber.

I have no facts; but it seems to me that the drier "atmosphere" of the upper portion of the chamber is conducive to growing cake. Where much more moist conditions may be true of the lower portions of the chamber. Thereby; causing the above mentioned unequal development of cake.... IMHO...

 

nsfisher

Lifer
Nov 26, 2011
3,566
20
Nova Scotia, Canada
yup is right as rain, top portion of bowl stays dry where as moisture collects on bottom. Also, if ur like me and swipe ur bowl out after each smoke, the bottom gits hit hardest.

 

jaysin

Lifer
Feb 8, 2012
1,083
1
Indiana
ive had a few pipes cake up nice and even and a few the top half was always thicker then the bottom half never could fuger out why

 
Jul 12, 2011
4,135
4,205
I find what works best IMO for break-in, 1/2 bowls, smoked to the bottom for about a dozen smokes, cleaned out

and then wipe out with just a pipe cleaner, then bowls smoked after that/cleaning by gentle

stir of ash, cover chamber and shake/dump is the best...also smoking nice

burley based bacci will build up the strongest cake to start is key...aro and

English seem to flake off very easily...also make sure to smoke nice and slow (as you should always do)

 

hobie1dog

Lifer
Jun 5, 2010
6,888
233
67
Cornelius, NC
I don't know my a$$ from a hole in the ground, but I don't let any cake build up to any degree, seems everytime I scrape out the bowl and use some pipe sweetener in it, the baccy has a better flavor.

 

gripsie

Might Stick Around
Dec 10, 2010
89
17
Hamburg, Germany
I do it like hobie, I guess. I don't smoke my pipes with a noticable amount of cake... That doesn't mean I'm scraping out the bowl regularly to the bare wood or so but during smoking I use my tamper to slightly clean the bowl.. The problem with thick cake is: often it isn't hard, dry and absorbent material but a rather uneven and sticky layer of unburned tobacco particles.. Since they are uneven and tend to develop near the bowl opening you will tend to have problems with proper burning of the pipe as soon as you have such an uneven cake.
In Germany you are always told as a beginner to have a cake that is 1mm thick. The typical drilling of a pipe is 20mm. So if I let such a 1mm cake grow I only would have a chamber diameter of 18mm.. That is pretty narrow and a huge contrast to the 20mm standart drilling..
I have made good experiences with trying not or hardly to let cake develop..

 
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