Leave Stems Unattached?
- Thread starter Tony.A
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I clean a pipe as soon as I'm done smoking. It generally cools off for maybe 15 minutes before I get to it, but I feel the gunk cleans out easier if it's a little warmish.
I separate the stem, clean out the tenon with Qtips, run bristled and then soft pipe cleaners through everything, sweep out the bowl with a folded pipe cleaner, then reassemble and put it back on the rack. I put a .45 bullet by the last pipes I smoked to keep track and let them dry for at least a few days.
I separate the stem, clean out the tenon with Qtips, run bristled and then soft pipe cleaners through everything, sweep out the bowl with a folded pipe cleaner, then reassemble and put it back on the rack. I put a .45 bullet by the last pipes I smoked to keep track and let them dry for at least a few days.
If you smoke a 9mm pipe DO NOT run water through it and try to reassemble. The wood swells. Its a good way to snap a tenon. I learned the hard way. If you run water through the pipe let it completely dry and contract before you try to put the stem back in. Im not sure its safe to run water through while the stem is in. It might get stuck. Im not going to do further experiments to find out.
Not in the area that secures the 9mm tenon. At lease it never expands as much. It might be fine if you leave the stem on and wash it but if you take it off it will be very tight to try to put back on for most of a day.
A 9mm tenon experiences much more surface area than a normal drill. That may be part of why.
A 9mm tenon experiences much more surface area than a normal drill. That may be part of why.
The Funkhouse has it right. An additional note: with a hot water flush, you can run it immediately upon finishing the smoke. Can also disassemble the pipe to clean the mortise, then put the stem right back in. Voilà! No problems with swelling or shrinking of the briar in the shank.
For years I followed the advice to never separate bit from shank. But over time I noticed some pipes began to smell foul. I then removed the bits and was shocked at the amount of gunk which accumulated in the joint--despite my regular use of alcohol soaked pipe cleaners.
I recommend occasional separation and thorough cleaning.
I confess, I have sometimes fixed a loose vulcanite tenon by rotating it well above a lighter's flame and then pressing it down on a table!
I recommend occasional separation and thorough cleaning.
I confess, I have sometimes fixed a loose vulcanite tenon by rotating it well above a lighter's flame and then pressing it down on a table!
Forty years of pipe smoking and I remove the stem whenever I want to. The only two pipes that ever broke at the mortise were pipes that were decades old and had never been smoked. I occasionally water flush and wipe, but I always remove the stem, clean, and attach it back to the shank. Pipes are the last item I want on an OCD list.
When I get through my 200ish pipe rotation I spend 2 day's detaching and cleaning 
It's a good idea to let the pipe dry with the stem separated from the shank, as you've been doing. This allows for better airflow and helps prevent moisture buildup. However, it's also important to be aware of the potential issue you mentioned, where the shank can contract and make it difficult to reattach the stem.
To minimize this risk, you could try reattaching the stem after a day or two, once the pipe has had some time to dry. This way, you're still allowing for airflow and drying, while also reducing the likelihood of the shank contracting too much.
Couldn't disagree more.
Actually, the shank will contract slightly as it dries, and while the mortise is thus enlarged minutely, it being dry is often the problem with reinserting the stem.
Again, drying out becomes the problem. No reason to leave the stem out after the mortise is cleaned.
I take great pleasure in removing stems from stummels mid smoke.
A long time ago an “expert” on a long gone forum assured us that our stummels would break if we ever tried anything so stupid.Daring! You must be living on the edge....
All I saw was “try something stupid”, and I signed up.
Just to clarify.
I don't belive anything bad would happen if you remove the stem...
I just hate seeing the poor pipe like that. Seems rude to rip the thing in half when it's not necessary.
I know if I was a pipe I wouldn't like having my stem pulled off.
I don't belive anything bad would happen if you remove the stem...
I just hate seeing the poor pipe like that. Seems rude to rip the thing in half when it's not necessary.
I know if I was a pipe I wouldn't like having my stem pulled off.
I only do this with pipes that are set up for a filter, I leave the stem off until I smoke it again. Never had any problems whatsoever putting it back on.
With other pipes I only remove the stem when they need a thorough cleaning (which is almost never).
They would disappear if I did that. My office/workshop is used for too many things. Id be digging behind furnature frantically looking for stems.