Putting Shine to Briar

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Hillcrest

Lifer
Dec 3, 2021
3,706
18,967
Connecticut, USA

cossackjack

Lifer
Oct 31, 2014
1,052
648
Evergreen, Colorado
Jojoba Oil :

A highly purified, highly unsaturated liquid WAX ester.
High flash point
Anti-oxidant; no rancidity (unlike other plant oils)
Chemically similar to spermaceti (which it eventually replaced).
NO significant toxicity.

The perfect pipe exterior treatment for briar stummels, meerschaum, & all pipe stem materials.
(I don’t use it on cobs, just beeswax the rim)

I’ll use carnauba to shine-up, & touch-up with Jojoba, then hand or wheel buffing.

Tried the others mentioned which are just OK. (Alright, maybe jeweler’s cloth).

I changed from vegetable glycol to pure organic Jojoba oil as a base for essential-oil insect repellent.

Plus, it’s a nice skin emollient.
 
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Reactions: Briar Tuck

Sinzalot

Starting to Get Obsessed
Oct 22, 2022
230
2,517
Wales
Im not a fan of super shiny pipes, to me they feel plasticky. I usually sand them back with a very fine grit paper to the raw briar and add a little nose oil. A quick rub over with a cloth and I'm good to go.
Nose oil is great for stems too btw. Happy buffing!
 

pepperandjack

Starting to Get Obsessed
Feb 21, 2023
118
147
West Carpathian ToodleOoh
I have studiously avoided any kind of upkeep on my pipes. They are like objects in nature, untouched by human hands, most importantly mine. This is in keeping with my housecleaning policy, which can be summarized with the sentence, "Thou shalt not touch. . ." the vacuum, in my world, which never being used, has, by my strategy, had its life extended by at least 100%.

So back to pipes. I figure that by not buying grape, coconut and reptilian extract, or Greek or triple-pressed mango juice, or whatever other substance currently in favor, I will have saved thousands.

And do I really care how my pipes look? Not so much. I care about how well they smoke.
 

Sobrbiker

Lifer
Jan 7, 2023
4,006
52,336
Casa Grande, AZ
I bought some empty 55gal drums for use around the property from a local “soap store”. They package and sell all sorts of supplies for DIY soap and lotion making.
Anyway, one drum was organic grapeseed oil, which I had been looking at there and elsewhere but it was cost-prohibitive as packaged.
There was enough grapeseed oil left in my drum that I got near a pint out before making it into a burn barrel, so I’ve been using that.
Just the tiniest amount on a fingertip will do.
Now I’m waiting for my pipes to go rancid….
 

RudyG

Starting to Get Obsessed
Aug 25, 2023
100
273
71
New York
There's and aerosol spray called "Bees Wax" that is amazing for most any type of material and especially on wood.

However because it is a spray you have to apply it to a cloth first and then wipe down the pipe.

You certainly don't want the spray to get into your bowl.

Prevents wax build up.