Pipe Cleaning With High-proof Spirits

[4dotsasieni]

OK, Harris, true to my word, I have now cleaned all my pipes with Bacardi 151 proof rum. Yes, it removed a lot of gunk. But I was in constant terror of accidentally spilling some on the bowl surface and removing stain (actually, this did happen once, but it was on that Peterson that kept leaching stain onto my hand every time I smoked, so no big problem, maybe actually an improvement).
But, honestly, I don't notice any improvement in taste after the cleaning, and so, being an old codger set in my ways, I think I'll stick to keeping chemicals out of my pipes, and cleaning with paper towel and dry pipe cleaners.
Still, it was a worthwhile experiment (and I got to drink a lot of rum). Thanks for the inspiration.

 

[crazypipe]

I use Graves grain alcohol 190 proof, I have use this for years works well for me everytime. ::

 

[canadianbacon]

I use some shine that my buddy made that is nearly undrinkable. Works well though.

 

[allan]

4dot
I enjoy the ritual of once a month or so taking a bunch of pipes, disassembling them, and going through with bristle brushes, bristle pipe cleaners, q tips etc to make the pipes clean. Does it matter? I'm really not sure, but I figure that I enjoy drinking out of a clean glass without spots on it, so certainly I could enjoy a clean pipe.
Of course, I'm going to guess that most of the folks who smoked pipes in yesteryear did not do any of the cleaning rituals we do now. And I'm sure that they enjoyed their pipes as much as we do without all of the fuss.

 

[ravkesef]

I confess that I'm a bit stunned at your revelation that a thoroughly cleaned pipe did not smoke any better than one that had not been cleaned. Must have been all that rum. I generally use grain alcohol (available here in Connecticut ) and the amount of gunk that it dissolves tells an eloquent story, and the taste is always fresh.

 

[4dotsasieni]

Rav, I didn't say I don't clean my pipes; I just don't use chemicals to do it.

 

[branzig]

I only use spirits on estates.
Other than that I just use the good ol pipe cleaners dry and don't worry about it too much.

 

[escioe]

I notice a big difference when cleaning the shank with a high-proof spirit. All that gunk that comes out ... how could it not make a difference? My pipes seem a good deal more articulate, for lack of a better word, when cleaned like this.

 

[muser1]

I follow the routine that Brian Levine suggested in an episode of The Pipes Magazine Radio Show. After finishing a bowl, I dip a pipe cleaner about a half inch into Everclear and then run it through the pipe. Then I turn the cleaner around and run the dry end through the pipe. I do this after every bowl. My pipes are clean and never gunked up. But I also agree with "allan" that rituals, such as cleaning, play a very important role for pipe enthusiasts. So maybe I overdo the cleaning, but I enjoy overdoing it.

 

[gray4lines]

If they were already pretty clean, the alcohol cleaning probably wouldn't make a huge difference. When I clean mine with rum (151) it isn't a night and day difference or anything. I like to think that it makes them fresher, and by all the crap that comes out it at least looks as if it's doing a good job and cleaning out what dry cleaners miss.

 

[swampmouth]

I'm with you 4dot. My sasieni has never seen chemicals.

 

[spartan]

Are we using 'alcohol' and 'chemicals' as synonyms here?
Because you're mouth is a truly dirty thing, and you should sanitize your mouthpiece regularly at the very least.
I'm all for building up your immune system and all that, but, there comes a point where you really need to clean stuff before you put it into your mouth. (that's what she said) 8)
We're not 2 anymore...

 

[swampmouth]

She said she's a dirty dirty girl.

 

[hobie1dog]

4dot- I still use the rum cleaning method. Works great for me.

 

[4dotsasieni]

I think my big mistake was not drinking half the bottle of rum before doing the cleaning. Then I might not have worried so much about damaging the stain. :laughat:

 

[halfy]

I clean my bowls using wet paper towels ... it actually dries faster ...

 

[sumusfumus]

Hello, Forum Members....
Just this morning I joined the forum, and my first posting was in a thread regarding freshening a "sour" pipe... whatever that means. Cleaning my pipes after smoking was part of my routine, so my pipes never really "soured" with saliva, moisture, tars, and God knows what else. I hate the smell of a rank pipe.
When I regularly smoked my pipes, I made sure that my cleaning routine included McCormick's Rum Extract which can be bought in any supermarket's baking section. Rum Extract is used to flavor cakes, etc, and the alcohol content is between 21-29%. I'd moisten a tissue or paper towel with a few drops of the extract and wad up the towel so it fit tightly into my pipe bowl. I'd leave the pipe sitting there with the extract moistened towel in the bowl, for an hour or so, and then I would remove the towel, twisting it as I removed it. The Rum Extract will clean out the pipe bowl, very nicely. A few drops of this extract of the tip of a scrubby pipe cleaner will clean out all the gums, tars, and nasty residues from the fouled pipe stem. My pipes always smoked "sweet" after cleaning, and I suppose cleaning a pipe with high-proof spirits would have the same results. Hope this might help.
Nice to find this forum of kindred spirits. It reminds me of the old, sadly, now defunct, "Pipe Smoker's Ephemeris that the late Tom Dunne used to published many years ago.
Frank

 

[cosmicbobo]

Welcome, sumusfumus, glad to have ye

 

[PaulTheScandinavian]

one senior member here does keep his pipes clean rinsing the bowl chamber and mortise?with hot running water..