New pipes tastes bad...Why?

[jchaplick]

Hi everybody, i just bought a new pipe, its a brand new peterson systems pipe 313. I have only smoked orlik out of it, absolutely no englishes or aromatics, an it doesnt taste good, kinda ashy i guess and sour, i clean my pipes very thoroughly including the system chamber and i dont believe i smoke too hot.
If someone could give me a reason why, and more important how to fix it, i would be very happy, thanks
john

 

[markw4mms]

That's the biggest reason I've never bought a Pete. I like the look of a lot of their pipes, but I'd hate to have to smoke through the stain. I guess it could be reamed out, but it seems a shame to have to ream a brand new pipe.

 

[jchaplick]

I have smoked it several times, is there a way to get rid of the stain taste? Will it burn off eventually?

 

[olderthandirt]

It could well be the stain mentioned by mark and baskerville.

The practice of dipping the pipes in stain was supposedly stopped several months ago from what I'd read elsewhere. But it was done for a long time and you know there are going to be a lot of pipes still out there that had been stained in this way.
Do you get color on a pipe cleaner when you run one through the shank into the bowl?
I had a 317 with this issue and it took several bowls to "smoke through" the problem. As in perhaps 20.

I did vigorous alcohol cleanings and it would appear to have removed the stain but after another bowl or two was smoked I'd once again get color on a pipe cleaner.
Any stain that may have been inside the bowl itself was pretty much locked up by the pre-carb, the stain in the shank was the real issue. It do taste sour!

 

[macnutz]

I've heard this complaint from several people on Youtube and different forums. It makes me nervous about buying a new Peterson, especially from an internet source, where you can't examine the pipe. Burning twenty bowls of crappy baccy is not my idea of a fun time.
Pete's fit my budget but this gives me serious second thoughts about the bulldog I had decided upon for Christmas. My Pete Standard System pipe, (very used by previous owner, is my favourite pipe. A new dilemma for my tiny mind. :?:

 

[jchaplick]

I just tried cleaning the shank with some whiskey and several pipe cleaners until it didnt come back dirty, i guess ill give it a try tomorrow

 

[yohanan]

Just keep smoking it, as stated above Petes are known for tasting bad until you break them in, the problem is it takes longer to do that. You will have some cake built up on it before long and the taste will go away. You could also do the alcohol/salt treatment and see if that helps. ::

 

[philip]

The practice of dipping the pipes in stain was supposedly stopped several months ago

Must have. I haven't had any problem with my new Peterson.

 

[olderthandirt]

Don't be to put off by the stain issue macnutz.

As with Philip and Paul, plenty more I'd think as well, I got a Donegal Rocky 03 a few weeks back and there was no stain in the shank or chamber airway at all.
Bear with it jchaplick, keep smokin' it and clean the chamber airway and shank regularly, the pipe will come around.

 

[macnutz]

OTD, I'm glad to hear that. I have an ache in my heart desire for that bulldog. I know I'm going to try it anyway. I've got this mental disorder... :puffpipe:

 

[jchaplick]

Yeah, i think we all have some sort of mental disorder, i believe they call it pipe collecting.... Im pretty sure ive had dreams about pipes id like to have, that ive seen the day before at the pipe store

 

[rigmedic1]

Personally, I think straight Virginias taste acrid, ashy, and sour. If you are dedicating this pipe, I agree, stick with it till it gets better. If not, a Virginia/Perique may taste better in that pipe. IMHO.
Note; I just got a new Peterson Kildare X105, didnt notice and stain in the bowl or stem, and started it on Black House. No acrid or ashy taste noted, and didnt sour on me after 2 dozen smokes.

 

[robs]

Every time I see a thread start with this in the title, I just know that Peterson will inevitably end up being mentioned. As several have alread commented, the practice of "Dip Staining" has been stopped, so one suspects that eventually we will hear of this as a thing of the past. Don't forget though, Peterson, like many others, produce a tremendous volume of pipes in a month, so given that Tom Palmer of Peterson stated that he would stop all dip staining about six months ago, there will still be pipes out there that have some stain.

Personally, I have never had a problem with it and as I smoke nothing but Petersons, you'd think that I would have run across it by now? I guess I have been lucky?

Many of my fellow Peterson smokers mention that they sand the chamber out as a matter of course prior to smoking a new one. The problem of stain in the strumle can be cured easily by just opening the Draw very slightly with the Tool in the hadle of a Senior Reamer, or similar, but as I say, I have never found this to be required.

I think most Peterson Smokers will agree that something like the Donegal Rocky series takes a few more bowls to break in than the other ranges, but that's about it.

 

[olderthandirt]

something like the Donegal Rocky series takes a few more bowls to break in than the other ranges, but that's about it.

Ha ha!

I guess that makes me a special case then (something I've been told before by the way).

The Donegal I just got is one of the only new pipes I've purchased that took off from the very 1st bowl and has only gotten better!

 

[dylan793]

I just bought a Peterson Rock of Cashel 408 a few weeks ago and had absolutely no taste issues. Maybe only certain lines are/were dip stained? That's a little disheartening for me to hear. I'm sure i'm not the only one here with a very small pipe budget and buying a Peterson is a luxury. If I had spent the $100+ on a system pipe and had to worry about sanding the chamber or opening the draw, i'd be none too happy. :?

 

[jchaplick]

Thats what im thinking

 

[yohanan]

In my experience with briar pipes, all the ones I have smoked including peterson's, need to be smoked a few times to be break them in. That 3rd or 4th bowl is going to taste a lot better that the first one with a new pipe. But that's just my opinion. ::

 

[robs]

That is the point that I was trying to make. When we asked Tom Palmer about stopping the practice of dip staining, he agreed to stop it there and then. It is becoming increasingly less likely that you'll have a problem by now, but I would always suggest that where possible, you inspect the pipe before buying.
I personally have not heard of anything like this for quite a while, so I am reasonably certain that the stocks prior to the cesation of dip staining have been used up in all but a very few lines.

 

[ohin3]

I only own one Peterson. It is an Irishmade Army 102. It is stained much like the Aran line of Petersons with a high contrast walnut stain and a matte finish. I never noticed any taste issue and this is the first I've heard of Peterson's dip staining practice. That sounds insane to me. How could they have been dip staining their pipes for all these years and still be such a popular pipe maker? My only issue with my one and only Peterson is that it does tend to get rather hot to the touch while smoking. The smoke itself is not hot. In fact, it is quite a nice little smoker to tell you the truth. It is just hard to handle when smoking.

 

[spartan]

Sounds like an excuse to buy a pipe glove. Make it all sparkly like Michael Jackson's. :rofl: