Peterson’s Chamber Coating - What A Mess!

[seanv]

Has anyone, besides me, gotten themselves a new Peterson and not had an issue with the coating? Threads like this have a tendancy to suggest the problem is with everyone or every pipe Peterson makes.

I have had a few in the last year and no trouble.

 

[Egg Shen]

Funny nobody complains about the bowl coatings in another vendors pipes... That stuff can leave a rubbery concoction at the bottom of the pipe. I just scrape it and keep smoking.

I’m here to complain about the honey coating in my Savinelli. It took a lot of Everclear, q tips and time to remove. I just don’t get why any pipe maker would add that. We obviously select our tobaccos because we like the way they taste as is - meaning without some added dimension that might clash with our preferred blend. Plus the general consensus on coatings seems to be that they are not liked.

 

[ukbob]

No problem at all with my 2021 Xmas pipe.

 

[timelord]

Not had a problem with any of the Peterson's I've bought this year.

 

[jpmcwjr]

I’m here to complain about the honey coating in my Savinelli. It took a lot of Everclear, q tips and time to remove. I just don’t get why any pipe maker would add that. We obviously select our tobaccos because we like the way they taste as is - meaning without some added dimension that might clash with our preferred blend. Plus the general consensus on coatings seems to be that they are not liked.

One use of such a coating is to help start a thin coat of cake, as the sugars turn in to black carbon.

As to a consensus, you may be right, but a number of us don't care if the pipe we want has a coating or not.

 

[Egg Shen]

One use of such a coating is to help start a thin coat of cake, as the sugars turn in to black carbon.

As to a consensus, you may be right, but a number of us don't care if the pipe we want has a coating or not.

I did notice a small crowd that didn’t mind. I wonder if they’d mind more if it was a flavored coating like my Sav had, as opposed to a neutral gum arabic coating.

 

[Bowlsmoker67]

I've never had a problem with it

 

[jpmcwjr]

Flavoring the coating would make it worse for me.

 

[anotherbob]

Has anyone, besides me, gotten themselves a new Peterson and not had an issue with the coating? Threads like this have a tendancy to suggest the problem is with everyone or every pipe Peterson makes.

no problem here.

 

[craig61a]

 

[anotherbob]

I’m here to complain about the honey coating in my Savinelli. It took a lot of Everclear, q tips and time to remove. I just don’t get why any pipe maker would add that. We obviously select our tobaccos because we like the way they taste as is - meaning without some added dimension that might clash with our preferred blend. Plus the general consensus on coatings seems to be that they are not liked.

they are not liked on a forum. And we're a minority of pipe smokers. And probably more particular about pipes and also knowledgeable about how to smoke a pipe so it doesn't get damaged during the breaking in period.
Or in other words just because people here are vocal about something doesn't mean that most people buying pipe agree with them at all. A good example look at what blends are talked about most here and which are the best sellers on a site that tracks them such as smoking pipes.

 

[romaso]

I don’t think that blotch is coming out, it seems to be impregnated into the wood, it’s not like it’s on the surface, it’s in it, otherwise I’d mess further with it, if it was still a coating on top.

That may be stain from the exterior of the pipe that got into the bowl, and not the bowl coating.

 

[username]

Has anyone, besides me, gotten themselves a new Peterson and not had an issue with the coating? Threads like this have a tendancy to suggest the problem is with everyone or every pipe Peterson makes.

The Aran I got in my secret Santa hasn’t had any issues with the bowl coating.

 

[Egg Shen]

they are not liked on a forum. And we're a minority of pipe smokers. And probably more particular about pipes and also knowledgeable about how to smoke a pipe so it doesn't get damaged during the breaking in period.
Or in other words just because people here are vocal about something doesn't mean that most people buying pipe agree with them at all. A good example look at what blends are talked about most here and which are the best sellers on a site that tracks them such as smoking pipes.

I get what you’re saying but do they really think “ordinary“, non-enthusiasts are buying $200 pipes? Perhaps so, but to me this is gimmicky, at least the flavored coatings. Also, what’s wrong with building up char slowly as you smoke it over time?

 

[romaso]

I have alot of Peterson's and always found the old charcoal-based coating to be the best of the lot (with the Rossi bowl coating being the worst tasting I've had). I used to rub/scrub some out with a wet cloth/scrubber sponge and then coat with a layer of honey and some fine ash from my favorite blend. This has worked for me on Pete's, thinning theirs and going over what's left with mine.

I've always been hesitant to sand a new bowl as I don't want to expose a soft spot which could lead to burn-out (except I sanded the Rossi, it called for drastic measures).

I thank you all for the warning on the new, clear coating, which looks like it's not charcoal based (unless they make clear charcoal now). I just got some new Peterson's and noticed the clear coating, which had me bewildered. Several of you have mentioned it's water soluble, so I'll try washing it out before smoking.

Thanks again! Sounds like you've saved me some trouble!

 

[anotherbob]

I get what you’re saying but do they really think “ordinary“, non-enthusiasts are buying $200 pipes? Perhaps so, but to me this is gimmicky, at least the flavored coatings. Also, what’s wrong with building up char slowly as you smoke it over time?

Yeah I certainly do think many regular average everyday pipe smokers will spend between 100 and 200 on a pipe. At least if they smoke regularly. Additionally most enthusiasts probably aren't on these forums anyways.
What's wrong with building up char slowly nothing, but also what's wrong with coating the pipe which means a better chance of even cake forming which also means better chance of the pipe not breaking latter no matter how the person smokes it? Whether people prefer or not means less then if a pipe experiences breakage or failure. And uneven cake can promote uneven heating in the chamber to a degree that can cause fissures and cracks to form. So it's probably a good call from a business sense to put a coating in the chamber. Additionally anyone that doesn't want it can remove it.

 

[craig61a]

 

[Swiss Army Knife]

I've got three Vauens and they all came with a coating. A fairly matte black coating that didn't seem to have a taste or really effect anything.

I bought my first Pete about a month ago, an Ebony spigot, has a bowl coating. This one was slick shiney black. It burned fine and then in the last 1/3rd of the bowl it all just turned into a tar pit. I've had issues with it ever since, it gets progressively less 'tar pit'-y every smoke buy yeesh, I wish I'd just sanded it.

So maybe it's just some coatings Peterson uses.

 

[SunriseBoy]

In regards to my new Peterson I posted here;

My New Peterson ?? :: Pipe Talk

Just bought a Bay Denmark I posted, I received last week, opened today, and I wasn’t expecting also my Pete today, when it rains it pours, oh I feel like a kid in a candy store. LOL ? ? ? The SPC Newsletter that came last week, showing the new Newgrange Spigots that came in stock, when I saw...

pipesmagazine.com

The chamber coating for me turned out to be a mess the first time I smoked it. It greatly effected/altered the profile of C&D Carolina Red Flake as my first bowl, turned it more into a regular Virginia VaPer, that was extremely spicy, not at all like Red Flake tastes, also with odd background notes, which came from the chamber coating, like some floral charcoal.

I should of never tried smoking with this coating, because if the taste wasn’t bad enough, it turned everything, ash and some un burned leaf attached to the chamber like a glue, and it couldn’t simply be wiped out with a paper towel.

Not even the pick of my Czech tool could dig this mess out.

So after smoking, which ended up at 12am, I wasn’t about to leave this cement in my chamber any longer then I had to.

So I went at it for about 30 minutes with q-tips, paper towels with some 80 proof vodka.

I also let some vodka sit in the chamber for a few minutes, but when I tried to carefully dump it out a little got on the top of the finish, and the exterior of the bowl. So as a brave lad, remembering the words of @jpmcwjr talking the other day about water flushing, I dove right in cranked up the faucet pretty warm and started rinsing the outside and flushing the chamber.

Well it ends up, SPC tells me they’ve heard a lot of issues with these coatings, that Peterson is looking into doing something different.

Here’s my cleaned out chamber now, back to the drawing board, or is that the smoking board! LOL ?

I hope none of you find yourself in pipe madness in the wee hours of the morning.


View attachment 109069

If rapid cake build up is required, smearing the bowl with a light coating of honey will do a great job.

 

[BROBS]

I've got three Vauens and they all came with a coating. A fairly matte black coating that didn't seem to have a taste or really effect anything.

I bought my first Pete about a month ago, an Ebony spigot, has a bowl coating. This one was slick shiney black. It burned fine and then in the last 1/3rd of the bowl it all just turned into a tar pit. I've had issues with it ever since, it gets progressively less 'tar pit'-y every smoke buy yeesh, I wish I'd just sanded it.

So maybe it's just some coatings Peterson uses.

They used this gooey black coating for a period of time a few years back.

I’ve had the best luck using a pipe knife or reamer and shaving it all out.