Pipe Polishing and Care

[dbaker55]

EDIT: Fixed Capitalization in Title (See Rule 9)

Hi all new to Pipe forum. I clean
My pipes with old English Polish
Seems to work well at least once
A week
most of my pipes are estates Pipes
And are in great shape dbaker55

 

[mikethompson]

Welcome to the forum!

I've never heard of that polish before. Most just use mineral oil on the stems and carnauba wax on the bowls.

 

[stokesdale]

I've never polished a pipe in my entire life smoking one...over 35 years now.

 

[sumusfumus]

Honestly.....I'd be very careful when using any kind of furniture/car waxes, rubbing oils, wood polishes on a briar pipe. These products are usually formulated with petroleum distillates that can outgas when the briar pipe is heated -from smoking- and can stink like kerosene, etc.

Ditto: handling a pipe after applying cologne/after-shave, and not thoroughly washing it off your hands. Perfumes will ghost a pipe for a very long time. I once bought a estate pipe that came with a stale, "old lady" scent. Even after sanding and deep cleaning, the scent oozed out whenever the briar was heated up while smoking. Eventually after many, many, annoying smoking sessions, the "old bag" smell left the wood. I came close to dumping that pipe right into the garbage.

Personally....I just use food-grade Walnut Oil, which can be found in better/gourmet food markets, health-food stores, on-line, etc. It's purified, and has little or no scent. You can use it when mixing salads, too. Carnuaba wax for stems and bowls works, too.

Leave the furniture polishes, Tung Oils, Danish Oils, etc...for your chairs and tables.

 

[ssjones]

Old English is great for covering marks on wood furniture, cabinets but there are better pipe-specific products. Old English seems safe enough from the Safety Data sheet, so I don't think you are doing harm - but it uses an ingredient called Limonene which is made from citrus peel and it has a strong citrus odor that might not be pleasant mixed with pipe tobacco.

Halycon (sand blast pipes) pipe wax works well for hand-polishing and Paragaon (smooth pipes) are good pipe specific products.

Cleaners & Cleaning Supplies Paragon Wax 1oz | Buy Cleaners & Cleaning Supplies Pipe Accessories at Smokingpipes.com

A special blend of microcrystalline and natural waxes, Paragon Wax is designed for use on smooth pipes and pipe stems

www.smokingpipes.com

 

[cshubhra]

I think ? it was not a cologne/after shave ? but the Ghost ? of a Lakeland Tobacco. If you are not familiar you can search about Lakelands in the forum

Ditto: handling a pipe after applying cologne/after-shave, and not thoroughly washing it off your hands. Perfumes will ghost a pipe for a very long time. I once bought a estate pipe that came with a stale, "old lady" scent. Even after sanding and deep cleaning, the scent oozed out whenever the briar was heated up while smoking. Eventually after many, many, annoying smoking sessions, the "old bag" smell left the wood. I came close to dumping that pipe right into the garbage.

 

[mso489]

I don't use wax or polish of any kind on my pipes, almost never. A brisk polishing with a stiff cloth first, and then a softer one, or the same treatment with a jeweler's cloth, keeps my pipes well. I don't own a buffer. I don't go for a brand-new look in any case, just a well-maintained look. I have some pipes 35 and 40 years old, that I bought new, that look a few years old. I like signs of gentle wear, a light patina, as looking more authentic.

 

[irishearl]

I've long buffed smooth pipes with a soft cloth which has been sprayed with Pledge and dried. Works pretty well. Also rub stems with it which seems to retard oxidation.

 

[cigrmaster]

I have a couple of the Dunhill Cloths. One is brand new the the other is pretty close to new as I rarely use it . I don't care much if my pipes are shiny, but I will say it does a good job.