Ooops, Drilled Through the Bowl

[professorwheezy]

OK, got the answer to what is a retort and that would have worked great had I had one. Instead, I broke out the power drill (I'm learning not the best tool for the pipe cleaner/restorer) to clean out a clogged airhole on a bent billiard style. Didn't mark the drill bit with tape as a depth gauge so now I need to know how to fill in a

small drill hole in my bowl. Yes, it went all the way through.

Yes, it is an eBay estate pipe (Dr Grabow Omega) so its not the end of the world and I am considering all this right now as practice.

Just in blowing through it, now the shank is pretty clear, I can tell the person 1) smoked this pipe a lot

2)Smoked English style tobacco.
SO question again is - How do I fix a drill hole in the bowl?

 

[eaglerico]

lol, Well that's one way to learn. Super glue and pipe mud would probably work. Maybe mix the glue with some saw dust. The old cajun has recommended fire caulk instead of pipe mud in previous threads.
In the future, using a drill bit to unclog a pipe is the tool to use, but hand crank it. That's what I use but only after more conventional attempts. I usually will prop the pipe in a flower pot full of sand in such a way so that I can fill the pipe with alcohol and it not run out. I use a dropper so not to get any on the finish of the pipe and to not over fill it. I usually let it sit for a day or two, by that point the alcohol will either have penetrated and been absorbed or evaporated. Then I push / pull a bunch of bristled pipe cleaners until I get through.

 

[ejames]

Briar plug.

 

[acme]

eJames has the right of this one.

Turn a small dowl out of briar. Make certain that the grain runs straight the length of the dowel. The fit should be such that you can put in and take it out with your fingers, but NO slop.

You could probably use any epoxy, but the slower curing is best.

Put just the tiniest amount in the hole with a toothpick, and put all you want on the sides of the dowl itself.

Twist the dowel as you put it in, to spread the epoxy already in the hole. Watch inside the bowl for the dowel's apprearance, and let it come flush, but not proud.

Leave it to dry and then cut excess dowel and epoxy off. Finish to your statisfaction.

anthony

 

[kashmir]

Happens to the best of us. Look on the bright side. Now you've got an opened draft which should make a better smoking pipe.

 

[zekest]

Run a short brass screw into the hole.

It will look like a decoration.

Sell it on eBay as: "Vintage Mint Art Pipe - Very Rare! - Highly Collectable!"

 

[cortezattic]

Follow zekest's advice, but drill a few more holes to make it look like intentional work. Steam Punk Pipe. :lol:

 

[professorwheezy]

I got the fireplace mortar in a caulk. I drilled a hole in the end of the tube and was able to get a large pencil lead bead. Broke it and it went right into the hole from the outside. Broke off another bead and stuffed it into the hole from the inside. Then I made pipe mud w/ SoCo and BBQ ashes and put that over the mortar on the bottom of the bowl. The bowl is a burgundy and rusticated so the black mortar is barely noticeable on the outside bottom. I'm guessing its a pretty good smoker since the shank buildup is why I drilled in the first place. I took a reamer to it today and wore blisters on my fingers.