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dctune

Part of the Furniture Now
Every so often I’ll give my stem a light buffing with White Diamond. I usually apply wax to the stem after smoking. I wipe the stem off with cold water and a towel prior to waxing. But that’s just me.

I’m sure you’ll get myriad answers as how to proceed…

View attachment 119791
That’s a nice polisher. And I can only assume there’s some nice ammo around somewhere too. And I’m also curious about the guitar(s)/pedal(s). ? There’s a lot going in this pic.
 

dctune

Part of the Furniture Now
I appreciate the suggestions. This pipe is nothing special as far as pipes goes. But it’s special to me. It’s a 20-year-old La Rocca I got on my honeymoon. (I think it’s 20 years old anyway. Somewhere around there.?). It’s a great smoker. And believe it or not, until fall 2021, I had only ever smoked maybe 5 bowls in it. If that. But it’s become one of my favorite every day pipes.

I also have a GBD Churchwarden that’s around the same age. That stem also could use some love.
 
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craig61a

Lifer
Apr 29, 2017
5,765
47,546
Minnesota USA
Not sure what that stem is made of, I'll hazard a guess that it's probably acrylic, since if it was 20 years old it would show some signs of oxidation (yellow-green coloration) if it was in fact rubber.

Magical oils, and Mr. Clean scrubbies won't help in that case. I would avoid using Mr. Clean magical eradicator. The grit in those leaves uneven scratches that will have to be further sanded out in order to make the surface smooth again, removing much more material than necessary.

You could just get some micro mesh pads and buff the surface smooth again too.
 

Chasing Embers

Captain of the Black Frigate
Nov 12, 2014
43,249
108,351

captpat

Lifer
Dec 16, 2014
2,265
12,140
North Carolina
Every so often I’ll give my stem a light buffing with White Diamond. I usually apply wax to the stem after smoking. I wipe the stem off with cold water and a towel prior to waxing. But that’s just me.

I’m sure you’ll get myriad answers as how to proceed…

View attachment 119791
I use the same setup to polish pipes and stems, the adjustable speed is quite handy. It is pretty small so it doesn't take up as much room as a larger low RPM motor will, this is really portable.

There were some old threads addressing the type and diameter of buffing wheels, which should be matched with the compound in use.
 
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dctune

Part of the Furniture Now
So what is the preferred method for polishing away oxidation on the inside of a stem? Flitz’s or toothpaste impregnated in a pipe cleaner?
Good grief. I didn’t even think about this. I suppose this could be a problem if oxidation provides a chalky/sulfury taste, as @Chasing Embers mentioned above?
 

dctune

Part of the Furniture Now
I use the same setup to polish pipes and stems, the adjustable speed is quite handy. It is pretty small so it doesn't take up as much room as a larger low RPM motor will, this is really portable.

There were some old threads addressing the type and diameter of buffing wheels, which should be matched with the compound in use.
Would a buffer wheel on a dremel tool do the job too?
 
So what is the preferred method for polishing away oxidation on the inside of a stem? Flitz’s or toothpaste impregnated in a pipe cleaner?
Sure, and I use pipecleaners for churchwardens, put one end in a vice or to some fixed thing, thread the stem onto it, and work it back and forth like a middle school boy, working off some frustration. Really work it, work it. puffy
Then rinse and use a clean pipecleaner to mop up.