How Important Is The Stem For You?

[cigrmaster]

For myself it is a total deal breaker. If it is not made of high quality German Vulcanite, I don't want it. If it is not flat and thin, I cannot deal with it. If is is rounded in any way, I will junk it. I am so anal about my stems I wonder how acd I really am. Anyone else a stem freak like myself or it isn't a big deal like I think it is. Oh yeah, acrylic stems sucks balls for my tastes.

 

[yaddy306]

I don't clench, so it doesn't much matter to me what the material is, with regards to comfort.
Acrylic is easier to keep looking nice, in my experience.

 

[bnichols23]

Not mega-picky here. I like lucite but also good vulcanite. Too fat a button doesn't work for me, & if the sucker won't pass a cleaner (bristle preferably) I'm not as likely to choose it.

 

[cosmicfolklore]

acd

abusiveness compulsive disorder? Abscessed community disaster? ha

If it doesn't have a stem, that's a deal breaker for me. That is where I draw the line. No stem, no deal.

I am quite picky about my stems. Thin to my teeth and a fat button. And, I prefer the inner funnel to actually be a funnel, not just where a bur sliced into the bit.
...and at the end of the tenon, I prefer it to be flat and flush, no funnel at that end.

I prefer vulcanite too, but on my Ardors the acrylic is actually quite soft to my teeth, which are probably as sensitive as yours. And, I don't usually like acrylic at all.

 

[olkofri]

I don't clench, so it doesn't much matter to me what the material is, with regards to comfort.
Acrylic is easier to keep looking nice, in my experience.

? This 90%.

I don't care for vulcanite. If I like the pipe, I'll live with it, but I prefer acrylic.

 

[bullet08]

prefer vulcanite and p-lip. but i can work with others. vulcanite just feels better with my teeth.

 

[ray47]

If it is not flat and thin, I cannot deal with it. If is is rounded in any way, I will junk it.

Same for me, but only arylic. I hate keeping those vulcanite stems clean. Yeah, I'm lazy, but I can live with it.

 

[Chasing Embers]

Not a fan of acrylic really at all. Ebonite is my favorite and upkeep is simple but my deal breaker with a pipe is a badly drilled airway.

 

[alaskanpiper]

Not that picky myself as far as materials as long as construction is good. Not a huge P-lip fan, but It isn't a deal breaker if the pipe is beauty. Generally, good airway is enough for me.

 

[voorhees]

I've got some good pipes with not so great stems or buttons. I have some great pipes with better stems and very nice button work. I like acrylic or vulcanite. I'm not throwing the not so great one out.

 

[smudgersmissingleg]

For myself it is a total deal breaker. If it is not made of high quality German Vulcanite, I don't want it. If it is not flat and thin, I cannot deal with it. If is is rounded in any way, I will junk it. I am so anal about my stems I wonder how acd I really am. Anyone else a stem freak like myself or it isn't a big deal like I think it is. Oh yeah, acrylic stems sucks balls for my tastes.

'Anal', 'sucks balls'.
Are you sure you've got your post in the right section cigrmaster?
All joking aside all my stems are acrylic. As I'm not a clencher it doesn't really bother me and some of them sure are easy on the eye.

 

[macaroon]

I clench most of the time, and my preference is still acrylic simply for the ease of maintenance. Admittedly, I've never owned a vulcanite stemmed pipe, but I hate the idea of dealing with oxidation, or sanding or sanding a stem to get it back to a clean condition. Too much fuss

 

[gervais]

I only have experience with acrylic stems so far, and I like them. I sometimes clench though, so my incoming sav bing with Ebonite I cannot wait to try for a comparison

 

[didimauw]

I won't buy a pipe if it has a vulcanite stem. I'm a hard clencher. The last pipe I bought with a vulcanite stem, had dents in it after the second day. Huge dents after a week.
Acrylic is much harder, and requires little to no maintenance. Every estate pipe I've bought that had a vulcanite stem needed to be cleaned. P.i.t.a

 

[BROBS]

stem is very important.. too round and it rocks around as you clench.
too thick and I drool a lot, and also hard to clench.

acrylic is OK but nowhere near the good feel of vulcanite.

actually bone has a better feel than acrylic IMO.

@didimauw must have a killer clench!

 

[alaskanpiper]

I'm a hard clencher

Yeah no shit. That Grabow you've been divebombing into the ground looks like a goddamn wolverine attacked it.

 

[didimauw]

Yeah no shit. That Grabow you've been divebombing into the ground looks like a goddamn wolverine attacked it.

Gotta clench harder while I'm chopping wood, and throwing the ball for the dogs. And then when I'm mad, my teeth take it out on the stem I guess ...

 

[BROBS]

when I clench I barely even hold the pipe in my mouth.. it kind of moves like a diving board.

or like you're doing the "rubber pencil" effect.

 

[craiginthecorn]

If it doesn't have a stem, that's a deal breaker for me. That is where I draw the line. No stem, no deal.

Morgan ONE pipe... no "stem". [Chris Morgan video]

"The One Anse is a delightfully portable pipe. It smokes wonderfully cool despite its short length and lack of stem. In fact, the lack of stem aids in its pleasant smoking qualities. Not only is there no transition of material, which results in condensation. There is also no interruption in air flow, which causes turbulence normally. This is the simplest interpretation of a briar pipe on the market. "

 

[sisyphus]

It's important that it's original and that the tenon is attached to it, otherwise I defer to the maker and keep my own preferences. Molded vulcanite stems ARE a deal breaker, but that's usually low end and seconds lines.